I'm 61 and started hunting five years ago. I've taken three deer, a nub buck, a large doe and a small doe. As this season ends, I'm reflecting on what I have learned, what I need to do different and what maybe I need to learn.
So some highlights from the last five years.
- The only big buck I've seen during shooting hours happened five minutes into my first hunt. It just popped out of the trees as it came up a hill. I had to pass on shooting it because there wasn't a back stop and I knew there were hunters in the field below and beyond it. Still, a real treat to see. The learn here is to enjoy the hunt and what I see. A successful hunt is one I enjoy. A harvest is nice and the goal but it isn't essential to a good hunt.
- I hunt with a Marlin 336W using Hornady leverolution cartridges. The learn here is to use it as a two shooter. I like the cartridge but I cycle the gun gently and they occasionally jam if there is another round in the tube.
- I was bow hunting (still haven't taken one with a bow) when a deer presented itself. It had gotten so dark I couldn't see the sight even though I had 15 minutes of legal shooting time left. So I sat there and watched as a herd of ten does and fawns grazed for 30 minutes in the growing dark. The learn here is hunt with the wind and cedar bushes are tremendous at masking human scent. There were points where some were only a few yards away and they were all clueless I was there. I sat in a ladder stand this year. At 35 yards, the wind swirled, the doe and two fawns winded me, despite the odorless soap and detergent, and bolted. A side learn here is don't wait for the easy 10 yard bow shot. I'll practice more, a lot more, and take that 35 yard shot next time.
- I bought 40 acres, set out cameras and was shocked by how skinny the deer were. So I bought a feeder and stock it religiously. I get a ton of pictures from by that feeder. The learn here is feeding wildlife, especially if they look like they are starving, just gets you more wildlife to feed. I've gone from three skinny ones to groups of up to 10 big does and fawns, more raccoons than I could imagine, flocks of up to 20 turkeys coming in (amazing to see them land, wow), cardinals so fat they look like Christmas ornaments and red squirrels that look like weightlifters on steroids.
- Turkey hunting has convinced me they are the stupidest animal alive. The learn here is camo does NOT matter. Movement matters, a lot. Any sudden or tense movement matters a lot. Sometimes a big tom will come in without a sound, just move very slowly and he will hang around till he can be shot. Call once every 15 minutes. It's quiet in the woods, calling too much isn't natural and it takes awhile for the prey to show themselves.
- My second year on my ground, the neighbor's dog pack took to running game. It was amazing to watch their coordinated running, a couple of small dogs making the tips of a Y with the two big dogs making the down leg. They would guide an animal, whether it was a doe or a coyote, with some precision. The neighboring 30 acre wood saved some of those animals but the damage was done. That year was a bust for my hunting. The learn here is to make friends with the neighbors. I got him to corral his dogs and still have him watch over my 40. He became much friendlier when he lost one his dogs to someone who practices SSS. (On a side note, he has pretty much kept them off my ground since then. He understands I will put them down if they ever threaten me or mine again.)
- I've lost a several deer, one which may have been shot, because I moved too soon. Last year I was busted by three does that stepped out of the neighboring 30 acres. They were about 200 yards away. I stepped slowly into the woods and gave a grunt call. Through the branches I could see them settle and bed down. I spent the next two hours moving slowly through the woods to go for a shot. When I got to 30 yards, I lost sight of them and thought they had left. When I took a step into the open they got up and bolted. This year I spent 90 minutes in a cedar waiting for a passerby. Finally, giving up, I stepped out and startled a buck, a big buck, but the only thing I really saw was a really big ass disappearing into those 30 acres. I just couldn't see it through the cedar. The learn here is patience and staying low. Getting low is hard because of sound but at least it would have given me a chance.
- I walk my ground once a week, sometimes doing chores and sometime just walking. The learn here is to practice walking quietly, to identify trails of deer and squirrels, (hint, if a "deer" trail goes from tree to tree and just vanishes, it's a squirrel trail not a deer trail. Never knew that squirrel could make a trail.) Another learn is deer have bedding areas, eating areas and watering holes. Identify the trail and find a places to set up depending on the wind. Trails and bedding ares change over time, especially with human activity changes on neighboring ground.
There's more but this is getting really long.
What do I need to learn?
- Patience for one. I've lost some simply because I wasn't patient enough. Hunt starts when I step out of the truck and doesn't stop until I get back in it.
- Better stand placement is another. I've identified a cottonwood that will get my ladder stand next year. It is on the edge of a creek bed between feeding and bedding areas. I'm optimistic that I am finally going to get something next year off that section of my woods.
- Don't use mittens. I spooked two does at 90 yards this year fumbling with the scope. Wouldn't have been a problem with gloves.
- I need a better blind. The pop up blind offers little weather protection and worse it creates a dust environment that badly irritates my eyes. I'm formulating a plan for an insulated shed. Yes, it will be expensive compared to a pop up blind but it will be so much more comfortable, especially when it 5 degrees and windy.
I'm sure there are other things I need to learn. I'd appreciate any suggestions anyone has. It was a good deer season (I got one doe) but it would have been a great season if I had just been a little more patient and had a better blind.
Sorry this was so long. If nothing else, just a learning hunter trying to figure out how to do this better.
So some highlights from the last five years.
- The only big buck I've seen during shooting hours happened five minutes into my first hunt. It just popped out of the trees as it came up a hill. I had to pass on shooting it because there wasn't a back stop and I knew there were hunters in the field below and beyond it. Still, a real treat to see. The learn here is to enjoy the hunt and what I see. A successful hunt is one I enjoy. A harvest is nice and the goal but it isn't essential to a good hunt.
- I hunt with a Marlin 336W using Hornady leverolution cartridges. The learn here is to use it as a two shooter. I like the cartridge but I cycle the gun gently and they occasionally jam if there is another round in the tube.
- I was bow hunting (still haven't taken one with a bow) when a deer presented itself. It had gotten so dark I couldn't see the sight even though I had 15 minutes of legal shooting time left. So I sat there and watched as a herd of ten does and fawns grazed for 30 minutes in the growing dark. The learn here is hunt with the wind and cedar bushes are tremendous at masking human scent. There were points where some were only a few yards away and they were all clueless I was there. I sat in a ladder stand this year. At 35 yards, the wind swirled, the doe and two fawns winded me, despite the odorless soap and detergent, and bolted. A side learn here is don't wait for the easy 10 yard bow shot. I'll practice more, a lot more, and take that 35 yard shot next time.
- I bought 40 acres, set out cameras and was shocked by how skinny the deer were. So I bought a feeder and stock it religiously. I get a ton of pictures from by that feeder. The learn here is feeding wildlife, especially if they look like they are starving, just gets you more wildlife to feed. I've gone from three skinny ones to groups of up to 10 big does and fawns, more raccoons than I could imagine, flocks of up to 20 turkeys coming in (amazing to see them land, wow), cardinals so fat they look like Christmas ornaments and red squirrels that look like weightlifters on steroids.
- Turkey hunting has convinced me they are the stupidest animal alive. The learn here is camo does NOT matter. Movement matters, a lot. Any sudden or tense movement matters a lot. Sometimes a big tom will come in without a sound, just move very slowly and he will hang around till he can be shot. Call once every 15 minutes. It's quiet in the woods, calling too much isn't natural and it takes awhile for the prey to show themselves.
- My second year on my ground, the neighbor's dog pack took to running game. It was amazing to watch their coordinated running, a couple of small dogs making the tips of a Y with the two big dogs making the down leg. They would guide an animal, whether it was a doe or a coyote, with some precision. The neighboring 30 acre wood saved some of those animals but the damage was done. That year was a bust for my hunting. The learn here is to make friends with the neighbors. I got him to corral his dogs and still have him watch over my 40. He became much friendlier when he lost one his dogs to someone who practices SSS. (On a side note, he has pretty much kept them off my ground since then. He understands I will put them down if they ever threaten me or mine again.)
- I've lost a several deer, one which may have been shot, because I moved too soon. Last year I was busted by three does that stepped out of the neighboring 30 acres. They were about 200 yards away. I stepped slowly into the woods and gave a grunt call. Through the branches I could see them settle and bed down. I spent the next two hours moving slowly through the woods to go for a shot. When I got to 30 yards, I lost sight of them and thought they had left. When I took a step into the open they got up and bolted. This year I spent 90 minutes in a cedar waiting for a passerby. Finally, giving up, I stepped out and startled a buck, a big buck, but the only thing I really saw was a really big ass disappearing into those 30 acres. I just couldn't see it through the cedar. The learn here is patience and staying low. Getting low is hard because of sound but at least it would have given me a chance.
- I walk my ground once a week, sometimes doing chores and sometime just walking. The learn here is to practice walking quietly, to identify trails of deer and squirrels, (hint, if a "deer" trail goes from tree to tree and just vanishes, it's a squirrel trail not a deer trail. Never knew that squirrel could make a trail.) Another learn is deer have bedding areas, eating areas and watering holes. Identify the trail and find a places to set up depending on the wind. Trails and bedding ares change over time, especially with human activity changes on neighboring ground.
There's more but this is getting really long.
What do I need to learn?
- Patience for one. I've lost some simply because I wasn't patient enough. Hunt starts when I step out of the truck and doesn't stop until I get back in it.
- Better stand placement is another. I've identified a cottonwood that will get my ladder stand next year. It is on the edge of a creek bed between feeding and bedding areas. I'm optimistic that I am finally going to get something next year off that section of my woods.
- Don't use mittens. I spooked two does at 90 yards this year fumbling with the scope. Wouldn't have been a problem with gloves.
- I need a better blind. The pop up blind offers little weather protection and worse it creates a dust environment that badly irritates my eyes. I'm formulating a plan for an insulated shed. Yes, it will be expensive compared to a pop up blind but it will be so much more comfortable, especially when it 5 degrees and windy.
I'm sure there are other things I need to learn. I'd appreciate any suggestions anyone has. It was a good deer season (I got one doe) but it would have been a great season if I had just been a little more patient and had a better blind.
Sorry this was so long. If nothing else, just a learning hunter trying to figure out how to do this better.