Thoughts on deer hunting-

[trapoholic]

Why is deer hunting always gauged by "Did you get anything"? Whenever I return home from a deer hunting trip or even a daily outing, I get bombarded with the same question from all of my non hunting friends and family. Sure, the end result in a successful deer hunt is a dead deer. But, there is so much more to deer hunting than just bagging a deer. Only a deer hunter knows the true meaning of hunting.

[Liv2hunt]

If it was about getting one every time I went out I would have quit 40 years ago.. I   Love hunting it doesn’t even phase me when I don’t get one. I am happy  if  I see some.. 

[jumpthestring]

I have been hunting over 40 yrs now. i am just happy to be in the outdoors enjoying mother nature. Seeing or killing a deer  would be icing on the cake... At this stage in the game i don't care what people think..

[Bucndoe]

I hunt to relax.

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better"  Albert Einstein

Edited November 29, 2020 by Bucndoe

[Lunatic]

For the same reason they ask you "did you catch anything" when you go fishing. Its a small talk and although I get your point, just take it  as a polite question form disinterested in hunting individual. Be happy they are not saying did you murder something today you blood thirsty killer

Edited November 29, 2020 by Lunatic

[BHC]

they are uninformed with the sport.....they see deer on the road and think it's super easy

For me, if I get a deer great but I'm just grateful to hunt and be out, once I retire I will have more time to hunt

[archer36]

Non-hunting family and friends think hunting is a waste of time. Get up early and sit in the woods and come home with nothing. I can see why they think that way. When I see people playing video games I feel the same about them. 

It doesn't matter what other people think. It matters how it makes me feel. 

[vdep217]

Those who don't hunt dont understand it.  Try taking one of your non hunting friends out with you.  While it may not turn them into a hunter they will understand why you hunt.  And you may gain a new hunting buddy out if it.

I say the same with turkey hunting guys that don't turkey hunt in the spring have no idea what they are missing.  Its totally different than the deer woods and those that don't turkey hunt don't experience it

[Psehunter]

At least they ask you if you GOT anything. I get asked "Did you CATCH anything " ..I always reply with a  " I jumped on a big bucks back but he knocked me off and got away".oooo does that piss me off for some reason hahaha.

[hammer4reel]

More than half the guys hunting don’t get it . Why expect a non hunter to understand .

‘instead of just saying no , explain to them the good things you saw or happened on your hunt .

a lot of a hunt is about anticipation , same to them as buying a lottery ticket .(how many times do they win lol?)

difference is we get to see so much while enjoying nature . A great break from the daily grind and hustle of normal life .

 

[3Blade]

39 minutes ago, Psehunter said:

"Did you CATCH anything "

Lol..to this day my mom still asks that. 

[JHbowhunter]

its as much as the shots I never take or could not take or the hunts that do not go well, or are slow, or are action-packed but do not end up in a harvest as it is about the ones that end in a punch tagged. 

All I know is that the knowledge base never stops growing, from my first deer hunt at age 10, to my last one last night where I guided a friend onto a doe from my blind - just never stop learning something and seems more often than not - see something in nature I never saw before. It could be a bug, a bird, a rodent, a predator, a deer, a bear and here in NJ - might even see something from a human you never saw before either! 

I think many of us set our own standards and raise our own bars - such that it's impossible to "score" every hunt.  If your standards include a certain age class buck or set of antlers, or a particular doe, under a particular condition or circumstance - well already you are setting the stage for more failure than success and that's exactly what drives me.   

"If it's brown it's down" is a laughable phrase that is still a big  part of NJ hunting especially once the guns come out.   Those of us that spend countless hours in the woods and fields in pursuit of whitetails long before gun season starts, can't possibly comprehend or adopt that mentality. However - it does exist because to some, it's just a gang thing and pushing and driving deer and shooting them for meat is fun I suppose. 

[Rickinthepines]

For me nothing is more relaxing than being in the woods and letting my senses go to a different level .Killing a deer is not the most important reason for all the work involved, I really enjoy the experience. Deer meat is a bonus.

[CatchinDeers243]

Lol my mother in law hits me with the “did you catch any deers?” Every time I get back. Irritates the 💩 outta me that’s why I made this username to dull the irritation lol

Hunting is so much more than the harvest. Bring a kid into the sport and watch them learn that. That’s the ultimate prize

[Lunatic]

3 minutes ago, JHbowhunter said:

its as much as the shots I never take or could not take or the hunts that do not go well, or are slow, or are action-packed but do not end up in a harvest as it is about the ones that end in a punch tagged. 

All I know is that the knowledge base never stops growing, from my first deer hunt at age 10, to my last one last night where I guided a friend onto a doe from my blind - just never stop learning something and seems more often than not - see something in nature I never saw before. It could be a bug, a bird, a rodent, a predator, a deer, a bear and here in NJ - might even see something from a human you never saw before either! 

I think many of us set our own standards and raise our own bars - such that it's impossible to "score" every hunt.  If your standards include a certain age class buck or set of antlers, or a particular doe, under a particular condition or circumstance - well already you are setting the stage for more failure than success and that's exactly what drives me.   

"If it's brown it's down" is a laughable phrase that is still a big  part of NJ hunting especially once the guns come out.   Those of us that spend countless hours in the woods and fields in pursuit of whitetails long before gun season starts, can't possibly comprehend or adopt that mentality. However - it does exist because to some, it's just a gang thing and pushing and driving deer and shooting them for meat is fun I suppose. 

I agree.

I think the "if its brown" is lived by hunters who do not devote to hunting as much time as we do. Some will come out with their friends for a gun hunt maybe once or twice and in that case harvesting a deer could be an overwhelming desire. I am not sure I can blame an occasional hunter for it. I know when I started, I had that feeling as well.