Has it lost it's appeal???

Kelly Timoffee

Kelly Timoffee

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Just wondering if others out there feel the same.

I used to be so dedicated to hunting and look forward to the start of the season.I even purchased a bow so I could get as much season as I could.This season I think I have been out maybe four times.


Now, it seems almost like a chore or an inconvenience to head out hunting and there is always something more important to do.

Is it me or is it not what it used to be???
 
Im already lookin forward to next year ...even though ALC has a lot of where i hunt marked to be cut... and this season aint over yet;)

I used to spend lots of time with my dad hunting, he took me when i was very very young.
I now spend that same time with my boy

So yea , things change.
But you need to adapt ?
 
so may i ask to buy all your rifle for pennies?? since you i am offring to take all your "chores" out.
oh hell, you might need to pay me to take all your gears away!
 
I've been through countless peaks and valleys in my hunting career. I've ranged from being hard-core crazy in scent controlling everything and rushing headlong into near blizzard conditions to the other extreme of hearing the alarm go off and saying "meh! I don't have it in me today"

Through it all, I've enjoyed each of these times. If I don't have the desire to hunt one day, that's fine. It means I'm needed elsewhere with my wife or kids. Those are fantastic times as well.

I've only been out 1 day this fall. It's been that busy for me and yes, it makes me a little crazy. I don't think I'll have any difficulty in bouncing out of bed at 4am in a weeks time. It's good to be a little hungry when you head out looking for deer. Good luck in regaining your drive!
 
I used to enjoy going to the camp for the week of deer season, drinking too much and lying about all the woman I had but now I find I miss my family and can't wait to get back home. Used to curse the old lads for wanting to shut the generator off at 9 pm but now I'm the one heading for fart sack by 9. I still enjoy hunting but the Christmas morning feel has long gone, maybe once my daughter gets old enough to tag along the hunting desire will return.
 
I've got to keep changeing things up, going different places, hunting different species, and playing with an seemingly endless stream of rifles. Deer hunting isn't the same as it was 35 years ago, but has evolved into guideing my kids which has its own appeal.
 
I think most people go through phases. A few years back I was wondering why I tortured myself getting up before dawn to sit all alone in the cold duck blind. But I found a couple hunting buddies and it's fun again.. plus we only do a couple morning hunts each season. The rest are in the afternoon and we do just fine. It hasn't really been about the kill for a long time..
 
I find that my interests wax and wane over time... If it's not fun right now you shouldn't force yourself to do it. Sometimes it's just a matter of having someone else around that's enthusiastic to get your mojo back...
 
Some days it just feels like a chore to me. I think it is time to mix it up and try hunt a new area.
 
I've only been hunting for 4 or 5 years, and it still gets me pretty excited. Get away from work, out of the house, forget about the world for a few hours. I am getting tired of hunting with the girlfriend though, her hunt speed is my brisk walk from point A to point B. Going too fast and you can't spot anything before it moves, kick them up too far away. Funny how I can call in deer without her. Sorry for the rant.
 
I feel your pain! I only legitimately hunted for a week this year. And none of that was for deer. It's been a busy season for me though, so even finding time has been tough. But more and more I'm realizing I need some new hunting buddies, as I'm found I just can't stand the ones I have now!
 
Due to various time, money or logistics factors I have had no luck hunting the past five years on this crappy wet Westcoast island.

I still have two unfilled tags in my wallet this season and wish I hadn't wasted the money on them this year. So yah it's loosing it's spark for me as well.

Also I have seen more deer running through my backyard these days then in the woods, lol. :p
 
My God, are you a mind reader? I thought of posting this same question just a couple of days ago. I still enjoy getting out locally, but never seem to find the time. I'm just as happy to let the next generation do the killing and then I can just criticize the way they gut and skin and handle the meat. I took some guys out a couple years ago moose hunting and had a very bad knee at the time. I did some hunting but ended up the last week pretty much in camp. It wasn't all bad by a stretch, I cooked and cleaned up the camper and filled the water up and kept the fire going and quite enjoyed myself. I find I just don't have that burning need to "tag out" every year as I used to. In fact I find myself more like my old buddy in Texas who said "Ya know Doug, I just ain't as mad at them deer as I used to be, heck I'm almost friends with 'em now". I do still enjoy my other side of the world hunts trying for which ever obscure trophy I don't have, and like Dogleg said mix it up, new countries, new animals, new continents, new cultures etc. However if I never shot another moose or caribou or black bear my feelings would be just fine. rral22 just said on another post "that nothing ruins a good moose hunt more, than actually shooting one" and Bison is even worse.
I just got home from a hunt where 3 am was the normal wake up time and I can tell you I'm definately getting tooooo old for that sh!t. Penelope Cruz naked doesn't even interest me at 3 am!!!!! Well maybe for a weekend, but not 16 days straight.
Maybe it's that I have taken almost every animal I ever wanted, or just the sheer numbers I've taken, which is well into the hundreds, I don't know. Maybe it's just age as I'm heading towards 60 in a few years, maybe it just that age where nothing is as critical or important as it used to be, not even Penelope. I have a beautiful car collection I don't drive anymore or even wash and polish like I used to. I used to build 10-15 rifles a year and develop several wildcats every year, now I'm lucky if I build 1 or 2 a year and haven't designed a new wildcat in years. I used to fly my plane over 200 hrs a year now I'm lucky if I log 20 hrs in a season.
So you see, it's not just hunting, it seems that my whole life and all the things I used to obcess about just aren't as important as they used to be. I don't know if there's a cure or this is just normal old age creeping up on me. Nothing holds the same allure as it used to. Maybe I just need to motivate myself more and get off my tired ass in the evening and get back into doing some more stuff, like I used to. I will say that when I do take the time and make myself get ready and take a few days to go hunting, I do still really enjoy it, kill or not. So the enjoyment factor hasn't left, just the will to make all the preparations and actually get out and do it has waned.
H4831, Eagleye, 1899, any of you guys got any advice for those of us who are getting on and feeling that it just ain't worth the effort anymore.
 
I sure don't understand the dire need to git the arse up at the wee hours when the dew is still setting.
I took a chum out the other day so he could use up his LEH doe draw.
Found a few and guess what?
He phook'in missed.
I told him that it was a good thing too.
Huh?
Well, if you made that shot, it would of ruined the hunt.
Go figure.
His mojo's is gitt'in better though.
This time he managed to chamber a round and fire a shot.
Fur is fur and fun is fun.
Sometimes it's just fun to hunt the fur and forget about the
work that goes with it.
Life is great aye?
Pay all these bucks to go out in the bush and not cut paper.
Maybe the evolution of the camera hunt t'aint so bad after all.
Me, hunting and fishing is all about gitt'in me arse out there,
tired bones and all.
Fresh air and no hassles is good for the soul.
Fresh liver adds to the pleasure though.
Yup, tuff decision, lay in bed or go git sum fresh air.
 
i get just as excited now as i got 20 years ago when i was first a legal hunter. Can't see that changeing any time soon. Still can sleep the night before a big hunt or a little one for that matter.
 
I hunt a lot, and have been very fortunate to have actually done most of the hunts that I dreamed about when I was young. ( there are still quite a few on the "list" though!) I get a lot of my hunting pleasure from learning new skills and experiencing new things and seeing new places. One way to do that after having mostly "been there, done that " is to take beginners out and experience their excitement with them. It really works, and I highly recommend it. I teach hunter ed and firearms safety courses, and there is a new batch of enthusiastic newbies each year who are just aching for someone to mentor them.

The other way to enjoy the hunt much more than just the outdoor activity is to pay more attention to the meat and the meals that come from it. I have developed my butchering skills and cooking skills to the point that many family and friends now look forward to our meals and my gifts of wild game, and the infinite variety of cooked and processed meats is a world without end. Hunting can also become simply gathering the groceries and need not be exciting to be very satisfying. We eat mostly wild game and garden produce, food self-sufficiency is a wonderful feeling.

And lastly, I feel sorry for so many hunters who only hunt big game. There is a whole world of opportunity out there of wonderful bird and small game hunting that fewer and fewer hunters bother with anymore. I have a love of hunting with good dogs. A dog is always enthusiastic, always loyal and a good companion. I hunt with the European versatile breeds that can point upland birds, track on land and water, and retrieve on land or water, for both birds and furred game. A hunting dog only lasts 10-14 years, and it takes 3 years or more to develop their potential and continuous training to keep them sharp. Training a pup and showing it new things never gets old, and even on days when you'd rather stay inside, one look at those eyes and wagging tail and you just have to go. I get a lot of positive reinforcement from my dogs.
 
upnadam said:
i get just as excited now as i got 20 years ago when i was first a legal hunter. Can't see that changeing any time soon. Still can sleep the night before a big hunt or a little one for that matter.
Click to expand...

Upnadam;

At year 20 of my hunting life I was still in my prime and hunted every minute allowed, "tagged out" nearly every year and could not be seen without a rifle at my side or in my hand. This was about the time I did my first hunt in Africa. Come to think of it the 20 year of hunting mark was when I really got rolling. Now I'm beyond the 40th year of hunting and finding things as I posted above. Maybe I should take up fishing HHMMM.
I remember the excitement you speak of though, even a weekend sheep or caribou hunt was cause for loss of sleep. A real 5-6 day sheep hunt was planned for months and maps were poured over till the wee hours. Equipment was checked weeks in advance and gathered up from the previous years storage, repairs were made as necessary, new rain gear ordered...........it was an exciting time. Several flights made in the weeks before looking at new areas that may harbor monster rams. Yep hunting pretty much ruled my free time life back then and if not hunting dogs in the winter I was in front of my lathe cooking up some new wildcat or trying some experiment.
I have hunted more places and taken more animals and species than most men even dream of, so maybe I'm just a little burnt out.
 
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