When does hunting become too easy?

[NWBuck]

I frequently hunt out of an enclosed "tower" blind, and yes, when it's cold we are likely to start up a heater. Easy hunt? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. There wasn't anything "easy" about the building of the things, which took us hours of planning and construction, swatting mosquitoes, hitting our thumbs with a hammer, etc. I assume those against such enclosures only hunt out of treestands with no seats

Every thing is relative, and to each his own...

[Bear55]

I assume those against such enclosures only hunt out of treestands with no seats

They also walk up hill to their stand both ways and wouldn't dare drag out a deer with anything but a pair of boots and a rope.

[CANOPY SAM]

There's also a number of extenuating factors that play into what's easy for some, and not for others.

Age, overall health and fitness, eyesight, hearing, knowledge and experience, etc..

After many years of hunting and fishing, I've "learned" to hunt smarter, not harder. Once you get a pretty good understanding of your quarry, the hunt can get a lot easier then it was when you first started out.

Duck hunting for example. When I was a kid I slogged thru knee deep mud, carrying way too much gear, way out into the middle of the field. I nearly killed myself for an opportunity to harvest a duck.

Now I call them into a little slough with no decoys, right behind the barn, where I sit on a small comfy chair, and drop them on dry land so I don't have to get my toe-toes wet! Too easy, or just a much more energy efficient, and economical way to hunt?

Personally, I find it especially meaningful (in terms of ease) when I can bag a few ducks this way, all the while watching big $$$ truckloads of guys down the road, wearing their big $$$ hunting outfits, carrying their big $$$ guns, and screaming at their big $$$ trained dogs to retrieve the duck they just blew 9 big $$$ shells at.

Don't get me wrong. I still enjoy working at it. I just don't work at it as hard as I used to.

[Musky Buck]

I hear your point and understand what you mean, I still rough it sorta, no ATV, no roof on stand, very minimal shooting lanes, as little of technology as possible, but that's where we are in 2010, it's why I'm anti-baiting because I could likely tag the biggest buck on the farm if I waited about a week before deer opener and piled the apples and acorns high and arrowed him, heck our monster buck is showing up in our yard still eating acorns often before last light. If anything for me hunting has become way tougher, I'm after 1 buck only, a mature one, there are way less mature bucks in my hunting areas as every 3 acres seems to have those tower stands and 25 days of gun hunting compared to the 2 or 4 day zone 4 with no muzzy of the past. To get any deer would be easy for me and most of us. But, I don't know everyones circumstances, I want the elderly to still be in the field and the people who's health is a factor, etc. My uncle spent over 8 grand on his stand, helps him in ways but he loses the sound of nature and approaching deer, that stand has cost him a few large bucks over the years as his ability to hear is gone and those big guys don't seem to enjoy walking through those clear cut shooting lanes, yes times have changed and I to miss the old school deer hunting of the past, some still do it that way.

[LightningBG]

8 grand on a stand, huh?

Does it drive itself out there?

Any other secret perks this stand provides while sitting in it?

[MNice]

I go both ways. For rifle season I hunt on private land up north. All of our stands are 4x4 with about 3' sidewall and a roof. All have kerosene heaters. Yes we've been there for 20+ years and have had very good success. Many times I satay in my stand all day, and have even cooked lunch on a coleman stove. Ya, I rough it!!

Bow hunting, I pack in my climber & backpack, mostly on public land, so I go as far as possible.

I truly enjoy both, there is not a right or wrong.

Just enjoy the hunt, and don't bother others.

[goblueM]

mmmm satay in the stand. now THERE's a good idea

[brittman]

To each their own. There is noting wrong with having some type of permanent shelter as a deer camp.

Rather than spending time pitching tents, etc... I spend time scouting my quarry and understanding their habits, tendencies, etc...

This makes for a more enjoyable and successful hunt.

While we hunt out of "open" ladder stands that we set up in October, I have often thought a few enclosed stands would be great if they allow a hunter to stay out and hunt longer. No one has an ATV in our camp and I would prefer people walk to their stands ... pulling deer back to camp ... if you have an ATV ... use it.

[NaturesRespect]

I love the hard work it takes to get to a stand spot in south east MN I love the sweat and strain of draging deer up and down steep hills in south east MN. I love setting up tents and building fires and getting situated at camp.

sometimes i hate these things. but everytime i hate it seconds later i realize there are some that wont even last just getting into the woods that i hunt.

from the movie Into The Wild (I read somewhere... how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong. To measure yourself at least once)

thats why i do it.... to feel strong... to feel like one with nature

[MNice]

OOPs, for got to spell check that one. My bad

[BLACKJACK]

naturesrespect, I'm curious, how old are you?? I think your tune will change as you get older, wiser, get a few more aches and pains, and more money to afford the nice little luxuries that make hunting easier.

[CANOPY SAM]

NR. Sounds like you guys might need a boat to get your deer out this fall. Hope you're staying above water. Good luck. Hope you're all okay down there this morning.

Yep, Blackjack. The adrenaline rush we had as teens and early twenties just don't overpower the aches, pains, and exhaustion that comes with age. Kinda sucks. My mind tells me I can still do it. My chubby carcass tells me another story...

[Harmonica Bear]

+1

HAHA - spot on!

[Musky Buck]

Yes 8 grand which is nothing to him, heck he leases 320 acres for mega bucks each year, money talks, he has it, I don't. Not to mention 2 elk hunts, moose, bear, LOTW trips every other weekend and more, thankfully he won't take any of his nephews along, ever, the weasel. I hope a mature buck with my name on his leg has his snorkel on today.

[NaturesRespect]

naturesrespect, I'm curious, how old are you?? I think your tune will change as you get older, wiser, get a few more aches and pains, and more money to afford the nice little luxuries that make hunting easier.

im 17 years of age. I have lwer back pain sometimes, terrible weak legs at times, bad vision, averege strength, not a great respitory system. I feel like one of you older guys lol. I have 50 year old uncles who can out perform me anyday lol.

I play sports and is very good at any sport that is presented to me, only weakness is body recovery like pain or sore muscles. I have aches and pains, heck just squirrel hunting i had to lift my own leg to drive! thats how sore i was but it does not stop me from hunting hard! yes i do have quite alot of cash right now and yes i can afford alot of the things to make hunting easy for me but i decide not to buy any. I'm just a die hard outdoorsman i guess

[Bear55]

Don't worry NaturesRespect it will get much worse, you only think you have pain and sore muscles now.

[BLACKJACK]

NR, when I was in my 20 and 30's I ran marathons, and was busy all day long from sunrise to sunset, used to drive my wife crazy, I'd set my alarm on weekends, even when it wasn't hunting season. Now at the age of 53 I plan an afternoon nap on weekends and can definitely feel the weather changes in my joints!! I still duck hunt, but I only throw out about a dozen decoys, not four dozen. I still bowhunt, but I've given up on tree steps and portable stands and now use ladder stands. I love to pheasant hunt and still have two labs, but nowadays its more about getting out to hunt, watching the pure joy that my dog shows, rather than whacking two pheasants per day.

Enjoy the youthful vigor while you can!! That feeling of being invincible doesn't last forever!!

[gurkster]

NR - See me in 30 years . I love your passion. We used to hunt east of Ely out of homemade tents made from blue tarps we strung up. Heated it with a little wood stove, we would have to drag all this stuff in about a mile from the trucks. We worked so hard getting to camp, setting it up, gathering fire wood, trying to stay warm, etc that hunting became an after thought. It was fun though (especially looking back on how we did it). We still rough it to some extent, no electic or water, but at least a cot or bunk and open ladder stands. Now we can hunt more rather than trying to survive. Enjoy it while you can.

[bikeoutback]

I can't afford the toys but once I can I'll start to hunt easier in certain respects. I'm starting to think the idea of a permanent stand with roof and everything is not going to be me though only because my reading (I'm a beginner deer hunter trying to read up and learn) leads me to believe that I may want to move my stands around each year. I'll do ladder stands but only because I own my land now and can place them and leave them where I want without worry. But I want to be able to move them year to year and have a few of them so I can learn to play the wind better each day. I'm also going to get much more into scouting since I live on the land now and don't have to drive there. All of this seems like it will make hunting easier to me... but it's also work doing the scouting and such. I enjoy the woods though so I'm excited to get moved into the house this weekend and start scouting and getting a feel for everything in the next few weeks. I've never shot a deer yet in the past 2 years and yet I'm out for trophies instead of just shooting a deer already.

My guess is 20-30 years (30 now) I'll be looking for a cozy, dry, platform with heat to hunt from also but I'll still want trophies and don't expect them to just walk up to my heated stand, I just doubt it's that easy.

[bogwalker]

Just get out there and do the best you can. Have a great hunt.

[Tator2k]

You mean being able to see your deer lanes from Google earth is a bad thing?

The echo what everyone else has said. To each their own. I think it's up to each person to make it as much fun as they wish. For myself, I like easier hunting. I've trudged through swamps, climbed trees and sat on random brush piles hoping to find the perfect spot to able to harvest an animal. Heck, I've even sat on an up-turned 5-gal pail in the middle of a cedar swamp, because my dad told me to sit there until the deer come...

Presently, we have a number of permanent box stands we use for deer season. As previous posters have said. They help you extend you time in the woods.

This past season, I was out for the first 4 days without seeing an animal. So was it still easy?

[CANOPY SAM]

T2k - "see your deer lanes from Google earth" - that's funny!

bikeoutback - if you haven't shot a deer yet, I'd recommend that you just take a nice doe. I know that hunting for a trophy, and making it your "first deer" would be super cool, but honestly, you might spend a better part of your life waiting to pull the trigger! Get a few under your belt. It helps a lot in the process of learning to hunt larger, trophy animals. If you can pattern deer consistently your on your way to taking a giant.

I hunted "hard" for many years, waiting to drop that wall-hanger. After seven years of tag-soup I decided I wasn't doing something right. So I refocused my efforts on just putting a nice animal in the freezer. Since then, I've become a much better hunter, and can now, with a fair amount of consistency, put a nice buck on ice. Don't waste too many years waiting for the glory buck. He may never show up. Just IMHO.

[Tator2k]

[Bear55]

You mean being able to see your deer lanes from Google earth is a bad thing?

Good one Tator2k, we've actually got a few stands on private ground where you can see the shooting lanes on Google Earth too. Cutting 10 shooting lanes 150-200 yards each is anything but too easy. But I guess the stands is a little too comfortable.

[bikeoutback]

Canopy Sam - Don't get me wrong, at this point in time I'll shoot any deer that walks past me during legal shooting and is larger than my dog at this point in time. I'm not above does.... however I may not have that choice this year depending on how the lottery goes. The house we bought is in a lottery zone and I applied but no doe permit means no does allowed where I'll be hunting 85% of my time this year. I'm just attempting now to learn how to pattern and become a better hunter now that I live where I hunt. It's just seems a whole lot different now that I live in the country and have the land around and are part of it daily vs when I was in the cities and had to drive 70 to 80 miles to hunting spot. I guess simply put when I hunted public land I didn't want to put in the proper time, energy and $$ just to pick a spot or two just to get there and find someone else 12 feet away from me. Now I can spend the time in the woods cause I enjoy it and work on trying to pattern. Hopefully we get permits in the lottery so both myself and wife have a chance to harvest our first deer.

ps. This is only my 3rd year of deer hunting with no kills to date. She has hunted the past 12 years with her family and hasn't shot one yet I'm crossing my fingers that I can somehow put her in a spot to get a shot this coming year, would really prefer her to take one cause she's dedicated and tries just hasn't had the luck of right spot right time yet.