Failures and mistakes afield are inevitable. In fact we will experience many more failures chasing game than we will encounter success. How we react to those failures and mistakes has a big impact on future hunts. The only thing worse than not learning from a failure / mistake is making excuses about the how and why of it. Excuses are in essence an enabler, as you are enabling yourself to repeat those mistakes again by not owning up to them. Don't make excuses, own up to the issue at hand. Dig into it, dissect and analyze what happened and put a plan in place to not encounter that failure or mistake in the future. Embrace the failures / mistakes afield and own up to them as they shape us into the hunters that we are and will become.
Wow Pretty steep on this one! I'd say 90% would own up to there mistake and benefit from it where as the other 10% are hicks who shouldn't be hunting and are the one's whom give hunting a bad name. Opening up a can of worms here, it's these subjects that make the site go down hill. People will be people and do as they want, your going to get the bad with the good in any way of life,it's just a fact. Rocky
What are you talking about??? Slow down and re-read. You have me lost in your reply. About every time you hear people talk hunting it's excuses why they didn't see anything that day, or why they got winded, was spotted etc... Aside from that, if you don't like the topic hit the back button and find something else to do.
I failed to realize how quickly a mature buck will take over another mature bucks primary bedding area when the first buck is killed. As many of you know I killed my first buck this year very early. I had a couple inconsistent pics of another buck I would have loved to kill, but assumed he was living on the other end of the ridge. After I had filled my second tag and we found out the neighbors had killed him on opening day of gun season I got back into the now available core bedding area I had killed my first buck in and found dozens of daytime pics of this guy. I believed he moved into the premium bedding area within weeks of me killing my first one in there. If you look closely you can see the climbing sticks from the stand I killed my first buck out of in the top left of the pic.
Pretty sure the two big failures or things I need to improve on are probably scent control and limiting my movements while in the stand. I kill deer every where but if I improved those two things it would probably help with harvesting a mature animal more. There's probably other things I could change as well but I would say those would be the major ones. Not sure if those are some of the things your meaning by failures.
This season was filled with failures. Looking back, it was a much needed ego check. Now, with a long list of failures, I'll be able to focus on improving for next year.
I failed to practice enough... Enough said. Missed two shooter bucks, both at 18 yards, 2 weeks apart, and both shots over their backs.
I failed at taking a buck during archery and I realize it was more than likely too much pressure on one hunting area. In 2015 I will need to find multiple areas to hunt that won't affect each other.
This is such a big issue in our society. I have been preaching this to my Daughter as she advance in sports. I'm a realist. I tell her how it is and I don't make excuses for her. She knows the right way to do things and when she doesn't do it right or takes the easy way out, I'm sure to let her know about it. I see so many parents make excuses for why their kids are failing at something, it's no wonder why everyone seems to have an excuse today. I want to tell those parents, stop making excuses for them, start coaching them up and encouraging them. Let them know when they are being lazy, or when they aren't using the proper form. I hope that as my daughter grows up, she will understand why I pushed her to work harder then everyone else. It certainly wasn't so she could be the best athlete, it's so she will always have the drive and desire to things the right way, without taking shortcuts I fail quite often when it comes to hunting, I try to use those failures as learning experiences. The hardest part of learning from failure is actually realizing you have failed.
I think a lot of Hunters make this excuse a lot. They say they don't have time to practice shooting, and in my mind ,if you don't have time to practice, you don't have time to hunt. A lot of guys I know pull their bow out 2 weeks before the season starts, shoot a few times, and then go hunting. Then they wonder why they miss, or how come they had a gut shot. I shoot my bow every day, I have two kids, I'm going to school full time, and I have a full time job. I still make time to shoot. One mistake I made this year was being stubborn. I should have put in more stands, but I was lazy and didn't. I only had 2 stands up and it really limited my options. So this year, I'm going to put out 4 stands and hunt every one of them.
Second guessing myself. Most times it doesn't pay. This year was no different. I should have stuck with the plan. I could have had a shot at Trash. I knew where I needed to be. Britney would have had a shot at good buck. Same thing on that hunt. I had a plan and I second guessed myself and while we sat less then a 60 yards from the "planned" spot... it was 15 yards too far. Other then that... I need to push harder when the time is right instead of being too careful and missing the moment on account of it. Britney also learned a few things. When the wind drops and every little sound is magnified by the quietness... the last half hour you have the release clipped on and position yourself for the shot so you don't make any unnecessary movement or sound. Tim
I was unprepared. I got spoiled the previous seasons chasing the same buck. I had him down in the end and it made me lazy. After my brother shot him last year, I needed to get out, regroup and start fresh. I didn't. I did everything the same and only saw one buck all season, a fork. New challenges will arise this year with a little one. I need to maximize my time in the woods, something I've never had to do. Good thing I've been scouting already
I deer hunt year round but only bring my bow a few days out of the deer. Preperation to hunt to me is as important as the shot it's self. People I know think I am crazy when I talk about how I prepare to hunt. I do all the scent free stuff and shower before every hunt. I have what I call a scent free tent where my hunting clothes and bow is kept. Before I shower I turn on the ozone machine and restart it when I get in the tent to get dressed. When I hunt I hunt no phone diddling I have no bow hanger my release is on the string and I move as little as possible. I get as intense when I prep to hunt as I ever did when I played sports my heart rate goes up, I don't like to talk to people when I am getting ready I am in a zone. I am usually surrounded by does when I sit so I have to be very careful sure I have made mistakes but I think being very well prepared and planned helps. Plus at my age I have probably made every hunting mistake twice or more and failure to me is a slow burn that I tend not to forget for a while. I know this is going to sound like I am spoiled but I get pissed when I hunt and see only does. I don't hunt to relax it is a competition for me not against another person but against the deer, so if I screw up the deer won I don't like it when the deer win.
I applaud you on this, I have 2 kids and work full time and can't find the time (or for that matter the Desire) to shoot my bow everyday, during season once a week, out of season no more then twice a month..I guess I don't view hunting as a job, but as something I enjoy, a pleasure and hobby not a chore....Now I'm not saying you do either I'm just stating an opinion....I think we sometimes make hunting bigger then it should be...just my opinion though
I got very greedy this year and tried to push the envelope on intruding into a mature bucks core area in october...and blew it. he was coming through right around legal shooting light, so i took a chance and went in there 2 hours before shooting light. he walked in 10 minutes to early caught my scent trail and was gone. never saw a shooter buck after that on my property this past year. This year was unlike any other for me, with a big acorn crop the bucks really werent moving through my property, and when they did go through the oak groves it was at night. I'm hoping to have my food plots up by summer, bedding on my prop isnt an issue now since i did alot of hinge cutting and large tree felling last winter, now i just need the food plots, and hunt the funnels i have created.
Couldn't have said it better myself. With my wife being pregnant and knowing we'd be having our first child during the season, I failed to prepare myself to be successful in the limited time I had. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
After watching the last episode of season five and see what Clinton went through, I am going to shoot my bow a lot more. Even after all the time you spend practicing you can still miss the shot when that big monster comes in but as being prepared goes, Clinton put the time and practice in. You got nothing to be ashamed of when you are as prepared as you can be. Me, on the other hand, if a big shooter would have walked by late season, I would not of been prepared to make a strong, confident shot. That's not fair to the deer, myself, and my family. So more time shooting is what I will focus on.
Ashaid, No offense taken. Hunting is my family's primary source of protein. So it does have some priority when it comes down to it. I also got my wife and my son a bow, and they love going out and shooting with me, so that helps. I started shooting every day by just shooting 6 arrows right when I got home from work (15 mins tops). My wife calls it my "Cool down" time. It really helps me transition from work mode into Dad mode. Since getting my wife and my son a bow, they now join in, and it's great. My daughter is only 2 so she spends her time sipping sweet tea and watching us shoot, and cheering us on. It's a family activity, and it's really brought us all closer. I'm not saying everyone has to do it, but I think we often attempt to blame our poor shot placement on anything else but a lack of practice, when in reality, that's mostly what it comes down to. Killing an animal is serious business, and it's not something I take lightly, which is why I spend as much time shooting as my crazy schedule allows. You practice far more than most people I know. Keep hammering, and just do what you can.
