What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

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run&gunBOB
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby run&gunBOB » Fri Jul 27, 2018 1:57 pm

Like many others, i find that #2 is my culprit. I tend to scout my way into locations and determining whether or not the sign in front of me is going to be the "hottest" sign can seem like a gamble.


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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby Chuck B » Fri Jul 27, 2018 2:27 pm

I would say #1 and #2. With scouting, it doesn’t help that I live 2 hours away from where I hunt and that I have a young family and a business to run. So, definitely lacking there. I’ve taken 1.5 days off work the last two springs to scout tho, so I am improving. 2- I see a lot struggle with this including myself. But, let’s be honest, there is some luck involved here. Never a super easy thing to do in terms of picking the right tree. However, can I improve....most definitely.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby Weaver.b » Fri Jul 27, 2018 2:36 pm

I struggle most with finding mature bucks on the high pressure public land I hunt. Im limited on being able to travel elsewhere to hunt and have very little private to hunt. I know there are a few needles in the haystack but they are tough to locate
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby Scratchman » Sat Jul 28, 2018 1:09 am

I am really good at starting things. I get on the sign, and can find the bucks. I am not so good at the finishing details of scouting.........finding the tree. This is where I need more discipline. Often I go scout another area, when I should be picking and prepping trees.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby MikePerry » Sat Jul 28, 2018 2:04 am

Definitely the Shot for me when it comes to bow hunting. both my elbows and both my shoulders are shot. Years of sports and splitting wood by hand and lifting weights took it toll, played softball on three teams in three leagues till I was 40 so 80 games or more a summer for 22 years including tournaments. I now can only practice shooting my bow about 5-10 good practice shots with my compound, I used to practice all summer now I just can’t do it like I once did. My shot distance is limited because I no longer practice long distances like I used to. I still do well on making a kill shot when the time comes but if I could say there is one aspect of my hunting that gets in my head while being in the stand it’s my confidence in my shot. Never used to be that way, it started at about the age of 48 five years ago. Not going to see me making many shots over 20 yards, that is the yardage I’m most comfortable at.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby Tim H » Sat Jul 28, 2018 2:12 am

It's really cool to read through everyone's comments to know you are not alone in needing improvement. The humility is refreshing.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby d_rek » Sat Jul 28, 2018 2:14 am

MikePerry wrote:Definitely the Shot for me when it comes to bow hunting. both my elbows and both my shoulders are shot. Years of sports and splitting wood by hand and lifting weights took it toll, played softball on three teams in three leagues till I was 40 so 80 games or more a summer for 22 years including tournaments. I now can only practice shooting my bow about 5-10 good practice shots with my compound, I used to practice all summer now I just can’t do it like I once did. My shot distance is limited because I no longer practice long distances like I used to. I still do well on making a kill shot when the time comes but if I could say there is one aspect of my hunting that gets in my head while being in the stand it’s my confidence in my shot. Never used to be that way, it started at about the age of 48 five years ago. Not going to see me making many shots over 20 yards, that is the yardage I’m most comfortable at.


Have you considered a crossbow? My FIL picked one up after he could no longer draw back his compound comfortably. A crossbow got him back in the woods during archery season. Bodies get old and beat up. No shame in that.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby MikePerry » Sat Jul 28, 2018 2:39 am

d_rek wrote:
MikePerry wrote:Definitely the Shot for me when it comes to bow hunting. both my elbows and both my shoulders are shot. Years of sports and splitting wood by hand and lifting weights took it toll, played softball on three teams in three leagues till I was 40 so 80 games or more a summer for 22 years including tournaments. I now can only practice shooting my bow about 5-10 good practice shots with my compound, I used to practice all summer now I just can’t do it like I once did. My shot distance is limited because I no longer practice long distances like I used to. I still do well on making a kill shot when the time comes but if I could say there is one aspect of my hunting that gets in my head while being in the stand it’s my confidence in my shot. Never used to be that way, it started at about the age of 48 five years ago. Not going to see me making many shots over 20 yards, that is the yardage I’m most comfortable at.


Have you considered a crossbow? My FIL picked one up after he could no longer draw back his compound comfortably. A crossbow got him back in the woods during archery season. Bodies get old and beat up. No shame in that.


I’ve thought about it and I have no problems with hunters using them infact I have my 8-10 year old boys hunting with a cross bow now. I’ll hold off hunting with one as long as I still feel I can make a quick clean ethical kill with my compound and when the day comes that I can no longer do that I’ll switch to a cross bow in an instant because nothing is keeping me out of the woods during bow season.
Persistence pays!!!
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby elk yinzer » Sat Jul 28, 2018 2:46 am

2 for sure. Overthinking, over analyzing, second guessing, outright guessing, I fall victim to it all.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby JPiskun1080 » Sat Jul 28, 2018 4:11 am

elk yinzer wrote:2 for sure. Overthinking, over analyzing, second guessing, outright guessing, I fall victim to it all.


Pretty much hit the nail on the head for me with that post. I’m constantly over analyzing things and question every little step I want to take.
Im lacking confidence when I’m not
-Finding Bucks/bedding
-Finding good access to and from a stands
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby jhpa » Sat Jul 28, 2018 6:09 am

I'd have to say both 1 and 2 are on equal footing at this point in my hunting career.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby Rob loper » Sat Jul 28, 2018 6:23 am

I have found tons of great areas and busted my hump this winter finding them. Im sure 1 out of ten might be good or produce eventually.
I have attempted too figure out what winds and entries are gonna be best for my spots.
I am having a hard time locating, glassing or spotting anything. The situation is that all my darn spots are corn fields that are 8-10 foot high. Lol. At least most of them lol.
I do have my eye on two nice ones that im pretty sure i know where they are bedding at. I need to wait til the soy beans are harvested and they change their beds to the ones i think they are using. So until then i try to get a glimpse of them while im out delivering pizzas lol
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby JoeRE » Sun Jul 29, 2018 12:21 am

The first one I thought of not being confident in was finding time to hunt but that's not on the list.

I suppose of those scouting might be the one I have the least confidence in. I succeed in learning an area through many scouting trips and watching it for several seasons to really understand the patterns of deer movement I am in awe of those that can walk into a property with no prior experience and kill a good buck!

I have suppressed the demons of screwing up shots and loosing deer, at least for the time being, by learning from a lot of bad experiences and decisions.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby headgear » Sun Jul 29, 2018 12:29 am

JoeRE wrote:I suppose of those scouting might be the one I have the least confidence in. I succeed in learning an area through many scouting trips and watching it for several seasons to really understand the patterns of deer movement I am in awe of those that can walk into a property with no prior experience and kill a good buck!


Unless you are Dan I think this is high on everyone's list, rescouting areas and learning over time is really what most of us have to do to figure it all out. We all certainly believe in the tactics but it isn't as easy and going out and slamming one your first year even though I was able to do that. In all honesty that might have set me back a little because I got a little overconfident. We all have to walk the walk and put in the hours hunting and scouting to gain the experience necessary to be able to hunt this way and be consistently successful and its still not an easy thing but is sure is fun. Once things didn't come as easy I started re-scouting everything and it was a huge eye opener and I learned an absolute ton about the areas I hunt.
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Re: What part of the hunting process are you least confident in?

Unread postby _Swamp_Stalker_ » Sun Jul 29, 2018 2:52 am

For me, it's finding the buck beds and/or finding mature bucks. I hunt a 10,000 Ac state forest with very little pressure during archery season. It's the type of woods where if you see a deer you have had an AMAZING day. I've been hunting it for years. My father has been successful there on quite a few occasions, I love the man to death, but his mentality is that you just have to put your time in. (aka even a blind squirrel finds a nut eventually) I'm having a hard time trying to find a rhyme or reason for deer movement.

I dropped the ball this past winter on scouting for buck beds. I admit I was lazy and only have myself to blame for the results this fall. I went out scouting last week and finally said screw it and got friendly with the thick and nasty stuff. I found a main travel corridor. apparently, I've been hunting secondary trails all of this time. I blazed my own access trail to get back there silently. Had I gone out in the winter, i probably would have been in the usual same areas seeing the usual sign, and agreeing with my dads approach. So maybe it was for the best? There are a few major land features I have investigated, saddles/shelfs but they lead to nowhere. There is very thick mountain laurel everywhere as well as shoulder level pine trees.

I hunt on the ground with a ghille suit, early season I do quite a bit of still hunting, mainly just to see if I can bump something and scout at the same time. I really think I'm missing something, I know there are mature bucks in there.
Joe


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