Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Anybody else changing?

It's the thrill of the chase... not the kill...as you get older its the thrill of someone else's thrill and then comes a point where priorities kick in and we become young again(in our minds)and just want to have fun plain and simple...doesn't matter if it's pulling the trigger on a trophy buck or sitting at camp playing cards with the boys or watching TV and cooking for the camp....Seems some where down the line a lot of hunters forgets why we are supposed to be doing what we are doing...for enjoyment and to have FUN

The posts above pretty much, in the aggragate,sum up how I feel about it at 60......I am still driven to go,and hunt because I enjoy it so much.But I am focused on having "fun".

But I guess my attitude is one of being a lot more "relaxed" about it.....I am much more patient and somewhat indifferent to whether I kill one or not. This year hunting in Wyoming with two companions, I was more concerned with seeing them succeed,and I did not even load my rifle the first two days...

The funny thing is,after struggling to get on a good buck the last few times years, I have managed to kill two good one's the last two years......maybe the key is to relax,take it slow, be patient and hunt with your head......

At 29 I'm already in the "fun" stage; I won't hunt with guys who absolutely have to get a buck.

I think the same way everytime I see something that is shootable ...It better be a nice one or the trigger doesn't get pulled.

+1 I once shot a nice buck about 400 yards down at the bottom of a cliff I was sitting on. Took all day for me to find my way down and then another day to get back up with that buck. Unless I'm starving, or it's a record book, that won't happen again.

I'm careful to hunt uphill from camp, stay out all day and come on down after dark. Maybe sliding a nice cow downhill with me .
The uphill climb once a day for me.
I need to soak up the silence more than make a kill so I prefer hunting alone, nice and quiet.

Maybe we begin to realise 'deer camp' is a state of mind and being with good friends is the important part.

O

Thankfully we haven't discussed turkey as I'm still obsessed with them.

Yes and no. I am "only" 52, but have hunted with dad since I was 5. I hunt harder than ever and work harder in the off season getting things ready. But I seldom shoot any deer as I have my family that likes to hunt. And I really enjoy watching them having fun and learning to hunt. I won't shoot an immature buck and haven't on purpose in a long time. Notice I didn't say I was a trophy hunter. I just get little satisfaction from killing the young, rut crazed bucks. If an old buck comes out, I don't care if it has 3 points or 12, that is what excites me now. I will shoot does because we need to, but don't get excited about.
I am spoiled from our abundant deer here in TX and I know it.
I spend most of my powder on feral pigs. No season, no bag limit. And good eating.

I enjoy the camp more, and especially with good friends. But I also enjoy seeing the various wildlife species in S. TX and watching everything do their thing in my binocs.

stumpy

I like afternoon naps on sunny afternoons with my back against a tree trunk following a good cold morning of hunting. Its nice to go a couple years or so and not kill a big one, just some meat for the freezer, and be completely happy with that.

I had my heyday when I would carry in a sleeping bag and sleep up on the mountain so as to have the best chance at the bull of the woods. Now the camper and a cup of morning tea are just fine. Its even more fun now since my attitude has caught up with my age.

BTDT, they can really really get to you. I learned you CAN call them OVER a fence, a game fence, a creek, a river and so on....got to the point of calling and shooting with a bow, and after that, they just don't do anything for me anymore.

You'll enjoy getting to my stage though FOR SURE.

Thinking you're not older than I am nor have you killed a slam, nor are we they same. I'm also pretty damn certain I'll never be where you are and I'm grateful for it.

What is it about those damn turkeys? Last season, my then 12 year old son had one gobbling like crazy within 25 yards. He said he could not take it anymore, and about peed in in his pants. This is from a kid who has killed his share of deer and hogs, including a couple of bow kills.

My mouth was so dry (I was sitting behind him), that I could not use the mouth call anymore. Freaking good times right there!

I am very near the point that all I prefer are Axis and nothing else. Quite an abundance of them in Texas. Otherwise I prefer to shoot at the range.

Well said.

Thanks for writeing this John Moses. I thought I was the only one.2010 wasn't a good year for me 3 surgeries and a heart attack,so i missed most of dear season.I have been getting out for a little squirrel hunting though,and the little 22 single shot i bought for my grandson works great.

John, you've described my evolution perfectly. Rather than our bodies slowing down, I suspect that it simply has taken us this long to discover the true essence of hunting is not killing a deer, but taking in the experience as a whole.

This fall, when we took my son with us for the first time with our group, I realized how we all looked forward to going to lunch at the same little restaurant that we've been having lunch on opening day for many years. That was almost as anticipated as actually getting a deer. The simple pleasures matter.

Guess we are all getting old, slowing down, and having a change of heart on what is important. But, darn hogs have moved in on my place and I have to get off it and do something. Hate it when that happens.

i have been hunting the easy to get to spots lately, its just easier with work, family, etc...

Shooting is my heart throb. Hunting is purely recreational, nothing more..