What is it about for you?

[electric10162]

Back in my younger days it was camping and hunting with my Dad, brother, uncle and cousins  in the Gap, shooting the first antlered buck you saw during six day. Bow season was shooting a doe....maybe a buck. Then.....life gets in the way.... marriage, kids, business etc. Dad and Uncle Joe are gone but my brother and I continue the tradition. I love the dark cold mornings watching the wildlife and maybe a nice buck....but the kill is secondary. The scouting, trail cams, and preparation all add to today's excitement. I hope this feeling never fades.

[3Blade]

1 minute ago, Nomad said:

Make it fun for him.  Short hunts.  My son hunts a lot, but I don't think he is a nut about it like me.  

Yeah that's the  plan. I am going to try and get him out once or twice this season while I use the crossbow. I bought one this year to see if that would help and it did peak his interest.

[Livesintrees]

For me. I’ve been tagging along with the family since I was 4 y/o.  It’s all I’ve ever known. Listening he the same stories thousands of times over the years and they never get old. To me those “old guys” were idols. They were “men”.  31 years later and on my 25th year of hunting I’m now 35. And those stories are as vivid now as ever. I HAVE TO HUNT. Not bc I must do so to eat. But bc it is who I am. I went through all the phases of shooting any deer and as many as possible. I’ve shot them with stickbows, compounds, shotguns, and muzzleloaders. Over 200 animals. These days I don’t have the “need” to shoot a deer. I don’t “have to” shoot a buck. I just set my sights on the best animal I can and pursue him until the last hour of the last day. I let every other buck walk. I know the vast majority will live to see another year and I watch them year after year get older and wiser. Of course I still take some does. Usually 2 for myself. One for a woman who I still have a lease with. And I’ll always donate my first EAB doe to HHH.

 

It is no longer about the kill. And hasnt been for quite some time now. Trying to play the game with a mature buck on his turf and on his terms is what I love to do. We are supposed to be smarter then them but I’ll assure you that’s debatable. Being out there is therapy for the soul. 

[B B]

It's the highest of highs and the lowest of low's.  This being the first year my wife is hunting has made it that much more fun.  It's a new unforeseen adventure every time I step into the woods.  Killing or catching is just a bonus to any hunt or trap line check.  It's my sanity!

[LPJR]

On 10/11/2018 at 3:51 PM, Nomad said:

Of course I enjoy hunting with the kids and seeing them have fun.  That comes first.

For me, it is the rising sun illuminating the stark November woods, on a cold frosty morning.  The sounds of grunts, and hooves running thru the leaves and the anticipation that at any moment a large buck may be coming my way.  

The sudden appearance of the buck, the rush of adrenaline, the quick calculations,  and the shot.

The following of the crimson trail on the brown leaves to where the beautiful buck now lays.   The sight and smell of the great, handsome beast, that now is still on the frosty leaves.

The sorrow that we all feel at his demise, but the realization that this is the way it must be, and always has been...

Very well written Mark.........

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[Rusty]

1 hour ago, LPJR said:

https://smallseotools.com/plagiarism-checker/

 

[Rusty]

On 10/11/2018 at 7:43 PM, Nomad said:

Make it fun for him.  Short hunts.  

[Nomad]

3 hours ago, LPJR said:

Very well written Mark.........

https://smallseotools.com/plagiarism-checker/

I passed?

[Killerbee]

I took my daughter out for her first sit on Sunday.  We had small Doe's come and go the whole sit. Sat from 1:30 til dark.  A fawn came in before I could the bolt in the crossbow.  She did good.  I had a old phone I put game apps in for her. Kept her busy.  They were brown but just too small. She would elbow me to shoot one.  At one point she made a big move out of no where at the same time a deer was coming in from behind us.  The deer saw her then ran and snorted.  It was a good lesson on not moving.  However I am almost positive that deer would have been a shooter. Also, I thought my walking through the woods was loud.  She is a 8 year okd freight train.

 

She liked it. 

[dlist777]

Accomplishment.  On my own.  Doing the whole thing soup to nuts.  Scouting, setting stands, running cams if I desire, quietly getting into my spot, staying still, getting close to deer, and finally making an ethical shot for a clean kill.  Field dressing and butchering too. 

Some guys say "its not about the kill" or that the kill is the least enjoyable part.  I have to admit; that's not me.  It's not that I enjoy something dying.  Its just that its such a joy and relief to know it all finally came together for me.  Its the culmination of so much effort.  I've only been hunting 5 years so it may change.  I don't do outfitter hunts anymore because it takes away so much of the effort to be "put on a deer" that I just don't enjoy it as much....even if I can get a bigger buck that way.

 

 

[Live to Hunt]

It’s  about living it’s my life. I eat sleep and breathe it 24/365

Edited October 16, 2018 by LPJR

[Bucksnbows]

Deer season to me is about so many things some 43 seasons after my first.  It's memories of building wooden stands with Dad and my kid brother, it's about running out of beer at our PA camp and having to drive to NY state for resupply, it's about learning about deer habitat and habits, and it's about spending quality time in the woods and preparing for deer season(s) with great people (and with Lou). 

Sometimes it can be a solo archery hunt and I'm all alone with my thoughts.  Other times it's about building a new bunk room at deer camp, cutting shooting lanes, or playing poker at night between hunts.  But it usually means that the stresses of the world are gone, and memories are being made....

[Zone35killer]

Spending time with my dad and friends. Hearing about what everyone saw after the hunt and making jokes about each other for no reason. I do I enjoy the harvest as well though, it doesn’t even have to be me, but I like when someone kills something so we all get together at the skinning barn. 

[Rusty]

3 hours ago, Killerbee said:

I took my daughter out for her first sit on Sunday.      She is a 8 year okd freight train.

 

Great pictures Bee,   she will always remember Dad taking her hunting.   

[Mountain Goat]

As much as I like hunting by myself in bow season during the rut and spending the day in the stand waiting for the BIG one, I also very much enjoy spending time with family and good friends chasing deer and bear around the woods!  For example our gang hunted all 3 bear mzl days and although we did not connect we saw many bears and shared many laughs and had a great time!  Also we love heading to the Walpack Inn on Friday nights to enjoy the prime rib special!!