When the luster of the season wears of.... re-evaluating your goals and purpose

This is the toughest time of the year for most hunters who have not achieved their goals in the deer woods (ME). The rut is waning, the temperatures are plummeting, one's body is run down from many days of hard hunting, the family is calling for your presence at home, and the list goes on and on. I find this time of the year the toughest mentally. Basically one realizes all their hard work in the off-season and season is not going to pay off in the form they desire. It is a tough pill to swallow.

Well what do we do if we haven't met our hunting goals? Do we keep pushing ourselves to the brink of exhaustion? Do we just pack it up and quit? Do we keep hunting all day even when our families need us at home? Well those questions are only ones you can answer. As for me, I prefer to take a break for 7-10 days, no hunting at all. I get much needed sleep, do things around the house to help the family, eat good food, and re-establish my goals for the remaining month of the season. My goals could be as simple as enjoying hunting or they could be as tough as kill a mature buck on heavily pressured grounds.


I will use myself as an example. I chose not to shoot bucks under a certain level this year and stuck to it, hence no buck on the ground yet and more than likely not this year. I have thought about going back to my recurve and setting a goal of taking a doe in the month of December. However I have decided to keep hunting hard for a buck with my compound and if a doe presents itself, take another for the freezer and enjoyment of the hunt. Those are my goals, plain and simple.

For those of you down and out right now mentally, just take a step back and realize getting in the woods is a treat in itself and should be cherished. Get some much needed rest, be with your family, and begin thinking of ways to make hunting fun again as the season for most comes to a close here in the month of December. About a week ago as I hunted in the mountains on a cold morning and watched the sun rise, I realized hunting is so much more than killing an animal. It brings me hope, connects me with my ancestors, and provides a level of excitement few things in my life can match. That is why I hunt.

Be proud to drag in any animal in the cold month of December as not many people keep hunting hard when the woods turn rough and pressured. GOOD LUCK to everyone and give it your best as the hunting season won't be with us again for another 9 months or so. Value it.

 

Very timely post Brett, thanks! I'm beyond frustrated at this season.

 

Very nicely said.

 

Great post, Brett. Unfortunately my season is too short to take 7-10 days off so, as crappy as it is going, grudge along I will...

 

I can relate to this 100%. I averaged 10-20 hours in the stand every week since sept. 15, no meat in the freezer. I had a heartbreaking hunt a few weeks ago when I managed to connect on a doe, that I found had been eaten by coyotes before I got to her at first light. I finally gave in and took out the old thunder stick this week in a desperate attempt for at least one harvested deer. I managed to shoot a small buck, one which I would have passed on earlier this season. I feel a great sense of relief and accomplishment knowing that I finally got one, yet still feel like I cheated because it wasnt with my bow. With all the hours of practicing, scouting, and sitting in a tree, I'm beat down and drained mentally. I have one month left of bow season, but my focus will now be on next season and planning my opening day sits. I also have some ducks out there that are calling my name.

 

I'm going to seek revenge with my 30-06 and gear up for bow season next year. I'm going to work on my plan to scout better, plan better, and execute better. Let downs are the driving force to improvement in my eyes.

Red meat is not bad for you; green fuzzy meat is bad for you.

 

Very well said Brett! This season has been of the same feelings this year. It took me nearly 200 hours and 180 miles to kill a deer... Just one.

In perspective, I learned an incredible amount about the game I hunt and myself. That being said, I can't wait for the late season. I love to spot and stalk deer in harsh weather that pushes me physically and mentally.

Good luck to everyone out there. Never stop pushing and leave nothing in the woods!

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

 

I just hope to get out there at some point. I got three sits in this past week and saw 0 deer. The 10 day rifle season and summer like weather had them on lock down.... Heading to Kentucky on my birthday December 20 through Christmas....hoping to get some cold weather sits in and at least drop the string on a doe.

Goals going into next year are securing places to hunt, as I've lost access to every spot I had as of last season.

 

Funny you post this now.

I was just talking to my girlfriend about this, this morning. She hates this time of year for obvious reasons. She doesn't see much of me. Im a salaried manager for a retail giant, so when the Holidays and Rut hit at the same time, it sucks. Working 50-60 hour weeks, (70 this week), doesn't leave much down time, and usually, that down time is spent in a tree (even when I don't have the desire to go). Yeah, it gets to be a grind, but I know what I've gotta do to get that big reward, and that's put in time on stand. It may or may not happen. Although I did see my target buck (Horace Grant) for the first time last week, and it was a hell of an encounter.

I intend on continuing to head hunt until after the second IL gun season. Once that's over, if I don't have a 2nd buck on the ground, I'm more than likely shooting the first big doe that walks by. That should break up the "grind" a bit.

 

I'm kinda at that stage in the season too, with a twist. I bowhunted really hard the first part of the season and didn't shoot anything. But then I shot my #1 target buck and buck of a lifetime during the gun season.

I could call it a season right now and be perfectly happy, but I'm planning on getting back out there a few weekends soon and hopefully find another good buck with my bow and try to balance the herd by killing a few does in the late season too. My food plots look great so late season should be good hunting at my place if we get some nasty weather. I have 2 ground blinds set up over my plots to snuggle up in.

I'll still be hunting, but admittedly not as hard knowing Baker's Dozen is at the taxi. Unless his twin shows up.

 

Really well said. I just hit the wall this week and feel exhausted. I think I have put in about 90 hours in the treestand this year. I tagged a mature doe in October and filled my rifle tag in early November. Still, I havent filled my archery buck tag yet.

It has been a year of frustrations for archery hunting. With EHD absolutely crushing the area, the number of mature bucks is way down. The ones who did survive EHD, seem to have an incredibly elusive gene.

One of the breaking points was a couple weeks ago when I decided I would skip every class except one and hunt hard all week. The one class I couldnt skip was one I had a test in. After unsuccessfully hunting five straight days I checked my trail camera. Of course, the one morning I didnt hunt that week, there was a shooter standing 10 yards in front of my blind as the sun rose. DOH!

With one month left, I plan to make one last strong push as the deer hit food sources. Good luck to everyone else, I will need some too.

 

This is exactly whats been on my mind the last few days! great to hear from someone else!

 

It's something I always face at this time. Usually I look back and think about the what ifs.

As far as bowhunting goes this year I'm pleased. I killed my goal of a P&Y buck, while also tagging an early season doe. Trail cameras will dictate when and where I hunt with my Mathews from here on out. With not a lot of food on our farm, late season is rough. If I fail to harvest a doe during next weekends gun season, I'll aim to take one later with my bow. If I do lay one down with the H&R, it'll be me chasing my lone hit list buck left, P Diddy, a buck I passed last weekend during the 1st gun season.





Good luck to those still out there, and remember to keep shooting those bows. As more layers of clothes get added, things tend to change with form.

 

Brett
My season has been rewarding, but not in tagging an animal. Mine was from all the extra work I put in by using the Monster Raxx and extra Trail cams. Was very useful in the fact I got to have the opertunity to shoot at my #3 buck on my second sit. It was a hit branch ,that was a lesson learned. I learned a lot this year even though I have been bow hunting for 22 years, so that was good too. Saw my #1,#2 ,#3 ,#4 and #5 bucks all in early season. Not sure if it was due to hunting the right wind every time but I'm sure it helped. Tore my shoulder up good 3 weeks ago and thought I was done for the year till 3 days ago. I entered my garage to shoot to keep the shoulder strong as I normally do and found I could pull my bow again. I was out Saturday morning and was blessed with the precense of 2 young bucks answering the call of me rattling. It all brought back what I took for granted all these years, that was the enjoyment of Gods makings. I have 4 days left to hunt, I truly think I can get a buck down, but will it be one of my top 5? We'll see! Great thread Brett, good luck to you my friend.

 

Brett, you are a wise person and always add good stuff to the forums. I appreciate your insight. Over the last few days I have been re-evaluating my approach for the remainder of the year as well as things I plan on doing for next year. A lot more camera work and not spreading myself so thin by hunting too much land is my plan for next year. I too am hanging around the house catching up and gearing up for the late season. I look forward to getting out there and trying to kill a buck and a doe before the year is out.

This year has been a bitter pill, having killed a smaller buck then I was planning on. This happened because of my horrible on the hoof estimate or as some like to call it ground shrinkage. Finally, the main thing I am planning on for next year is getting my two boys on deer for next year, either gun kills or bow kills but my time is limited to get them going in the sport and I will regret it if I don't put in the time now. Those are good times I missed not having my eldest in the woods with me this year. He will be next year as will his younger brother.

 

We both have similar goals in the last part of the season except for my its for my first buck. Before I went home for thanksgiving break i was kinda down at how the last few weeks have been but i had some amazing encounters of other things besides deer and it just made me realize that there is a lot to enjoy than just trying to kill a deer. Im excited to get out there now with a new outlook for the rest of the season and work on taking my first buck. Good luck to everyone still out there in pursuit of achieving your goals.

 

Awesome post!! Seems like this is quite a common thought/feeling this time of year. It was running through my head yesterday when my alarm went off at 4:00 a.m. You just got to persevere and give your best attempt! When the goin gets tough as it has for me this season(1 doe), you just have to keep your nose to the grind stone. It aint a bad idea to take a little time off (time permitting) to refresh your body and brain, but this point is when the "Fair weather" hunters call it a season, put their bow in the attic and forget about this season. In order to be rewarded, sometimes you'll have to put the extra bit of effort in. What keeps me going till the final day of the season is the thought of "What if my #1 buck walks by that stand at 20 yards every day for the rest of the season and I'm not there to see it." or what if this what if that. If I go and I never see that buck atleast I know I didn't miss the opportunity. Everyone, good luck the rest of the season and be safe!

 

Great topic. This is my (and my 13 year old son's) first season bow hunting. I secretly really want to harvest a deer but I keep telling him that this year would be like bow hunting practice. We have learned a lot, scouted new places to hunt (all public land), had some great encounters (including two 10 pt bucks at the same time within bow range on opening morning for my son). If we got a deer that would be a bonus. We've hunted hard at times (all day sits, 3 mile walks, weekly practice at the range, etc.) then taken a couple of weeks off to rejuvenate. The early morning wake ups, camping in freezing temps, making rookie mistakes, does take its toll on the motivation when the freezer is still empty. But when I saw this topic I turned and asked my son if he thought our season has been a success so far given that we've got no deer. He looks at me and says "Of course!, we've seen deer almost every time out."

I think I've created a bow hunting addict, so yeah it been a success so far. (We are still going out this weekend to try to fill the freezer.

 

Still time.....




To KILL!

 

Us guys in Illinois have plenty of time. Till Jan. 20th