Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Time To Kill? A Few Thoughts On Hunting

After reading the post on the poor state of game in parts of Texas and then reflecting a bit on reading some thoughts by Elmer Keith last night I thought it might be time to sat at the keyboard and unleash some thought that have been running circles in my mind of the last twenty or more years.

For the most part I have never been a trophy hunter. This in no way is intended to be any kind of a slam or put down on those who have collected beautiful trophies or have trophy rooms bigger than my barn. I always enjoy seeing the fruits of their hunts and I like to see pictures often posted here as well as view the mounts at places like Cabela's.

But my thoughts wander to looking at the long term effects of hunting for giant heads. When we pass up spikes, forks, and even modest four points to take a monster head are we not taking the best of the genetic pool and leaving the worst?

Before anybody points a finger at me and asks if I have passes on a monster and taken lesser deer I will confess that yes I have. For three years I watched a monster mule deer. Not the writer who posts here but a four legged six point or better real deer. I lived in a canyon and so did he. All through the year I watched him from early velvet to glistening mahogany colored glory he wore as head gear. I watch him lay in the afternoon sun against towering basalt palisades taunting me as I sat with a steady rest and looked at him in the crosshairs of my 25-06 from around 200 yards. An easy shot and me with an open tag in my pocket during season. I am sure the porcupines have long ago devoured his bones and I am pretty sure no one ever shot him. It was private land and he had no reason to move on.

Why, because every year he was widening his gene pool all over that ranch.

My wife and I like to feast upon wild game. But rather than take the best of the best I would rather feast on a spike or better yet a fat baron doe or cow.

So what say you? Am I wrong?

The vast majority of trophy mule deer die from old age/natural causes than from a bullet or arrow.

OK, I believe you are right but is that a bad thing?

I agree, Scott.

Take the chance to do the deer herd some good when you fill the freezer.

Besides, those antlers don't get real tender, no matter how you try and cook 'em.

Means I'm not going to worry about dropping the hammer on a mossback.

Well that is why you bought a tag and you sure don't need the go ahead from anybody else. I was just asking for thoughts.

He's always wanting to play chess, when the game is really checkers...

We have a spike and doe season here and that's when I work on them. I have passed on many big bucks which were not true monsters and could be expected to get older and bigger while spreading their genes. Some I would have taken with a bow and tried to but never got the chance.

I lost the enjoyment in taking a medium sized buck many years ago, first with a gun and then with a bow. I would leave that prize to a youngster or newby who would be thrilled in getting it. To me they loose their luster when their eyes glaze over.

Maybe some day the thrill of outsmarting a really big buck will also pass and in fact I am less industrious in making it happen with each year that passes.

I wouldn't take any does in the late season if I didn't like the venison and that I have a pre-64 Win FWT 243 that is a joy to hunt with and I'm getting older and it deserves more notches.

Didn't think you would understand, and I was correct.

Sounds like you want to talk about feelings..

Sorry.

I hear ya Scott

The thought is the large mature heads have had quite a few seasons to pass on their genetics and are entering the twilight if their lifespan. Better my bullet and table than a pack of yotes or starving to death over winter.

While I'm not a horn freak, but certainly appreciate a nice trophy, I also don't like the extent to which "trophy" wildlife has been commodified. That same market however also protects a lot of prime wilderness.

It is what it is to each person. That's kinda the way it oughtta be.

Wishing I would have been hunting with Scott at the time. I hate the 'waste' I consider it to be for squirrels to destroy a monster set of horns.

meat hunter here with similar tastes, if there's a 60 inch moose standing by a spike fork, I'm filling the freezer with the spike fork.


used to have similar thoughts as Scott when we were knocking the hell outa bou bulls in the Mulchatna herd, if we weren't cleansing the gene pool to the detriment of future hunting

nowadays there really ain't a Mulchatna herd, but from the pix and trophies I've seen the antlers from the NW Arctic herd aren't of the same caliber as the trophies we were taking

well scott, what did edward alby say about it? A young man without a blood lust, probably isn't much of a man. An old man with the same blood lust probably doesn't have much in the way of brains?
To each his own, but i have never been a trophy hunter, not important to me, filling the freezer is. And I a long time ago stopped shooting stuff i had not use for, as to the eating department.
I chased one buck for probably four years, had multiple chances to smoke him, and didn't. Mainly because i figured out his modis operandi, and after that it wouldn't have been a chore to kill him, but no purpose in it.
I am off end of the week for deer, the trip itself is enough, the killing of a deer is secondary. I have nothing to prove.
I also was on a trophy elk bull for quite a few years, smart ol fellow. But after i figured out how he managed to stay alive, i left him along.
A couple of years ago, i downed a pretty good cow elk, and was telling my grandson how sad it made me, to take it's life. I remarked that in my book that sadness comes with the territory.
His comment was that sadness will disappear when gramma puts that steak on the table, and he was right about that too.
But I don't take it lightly.

I meat hunt. Don't much care about antlers.

Yep!

My wife fusses at me for shooting a old deer, buck or doe.

She prefers the young ones, and its not rocket science...
they're tender and they do taste good!

[i][/i]

I would agree with this, but I have never turned down a trophy when I had the chance. I have quite a few trophies, but they were gotten over the years while I was hunting meat...

What I hate to see is a big trophy deer laying on the side of the road, that probably was nocturnal and got hit by some drunk or speeding idiot at 3 in the morning...

Years ago I came to the realization that the best trophy you can hope for is the biggest buck in the pasture you're hunting.

So....... I set out to try and pattern the biggest buck in the pasture each year, and kill him. It keeps me interested. I figure I get it done about one year in four.

I kill cull bucks and does to eat, and I leave camp with that in mind. I want the weather to be right for meat preservation when I do, which means killing them of an evening in the early season.

No sir, I was just talking about thoughts and primary on herd improvement. I chose not to take that big guy back then and today I feel good about that decision. I do not get over there any more so I don't really know if it worked or not. And I am not saying I would never shoot a huge rack if the chance came again but it would not be my primary reason for hunting.

Each and every person that hunts has their own reasons for heading out and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Your reply did not offend me in any way, not that it matters.