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

This is a very hard time of the year for a lot of guys. My family has had great luck this year. I killed a 9 point very early in the season and then a doe about 3 weeks ago. My dad took a little buck about 2 weeks ago and my brother in law took a 9 point last weekend. I've been where a lot of you are and the couch and some football sounds a lot better than the tree stand sometimes. Great thread, Brett.

 

oly, are you sure it isn't the 15th of January?

 

Its the 20th, see http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/calendar/pages/deerarcheryseason.aspx

 

Not giving up just yet Fitz! Just need to step back a bit and get my energy back up.

 

Yes... focus...

 

Second season here is Dec 17the through Jan 10th. Hoping I can kill my buck on Friday before all the shortbus army disturbs the deer patterns.

 

Gotta love your generalizations.... dude.....

 

No more than anyone else.

 

I still need to drop a buck. It's frustrating cause I've had them in sight the past couple weeks but haven't had a shot. My goal is to shoot a buck that makes me happy and kill 5 more does by 1/31.

Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk 2

 

Maybe not more by the number of comments but more belittling type comments.

 

Exactly ....Sam, I feel you are not long for this site .....

 

I feel like every season is a different journey. THis year has been different for me since I was blessed with getting to kill snow bird in oct. Since then I have just been sitting back and filming frank for the past month. Late season can be a great time to hunt, But it is also a very difficult tome to hunt. We usually try to take a couple weeks off after Thanksgiving and regroup. The one thing that I really concentrate on is getting my cameras back out. I start watching fields a lot and we hunt less. We try to stay out untill we start to get pics of a good deer that we are after. This time of year you cant put much pressure on them or they will be gone. But with that being said, if he was there last night theres a decent chance he will be there tonight.

If you have season left dont give up. Take some time off and re evaluate whats going on. When you get rested up get back after them and only in the evenings. Get some family time in during the day. In my opinion late season hunting is the best there is for seeing big mature deer. If its so cold and nasty that there is no way anybody in there right mind would go hunting. Thats when you need to go.

 

This as we are pretty much in the same boat. We have been laying pretty low during rifle season as it is tough to find a safe spot to take Britney out bowhunting. I really didn't feel like going out hunting without her. We spent time doing family stuff while waiting for it to get over. The wife is a happy camper on account of it which is a plus. Now that rifle season just ended... we are refreshed and ready to hit it hard again.

Tim

 

Good post Brett.

I hear ya, and though I haven't put in the hours the past couple years that I would have liked - or used to, due to too many family obligations (aka - sports) I know exactly where you are. Its good to take a breather once in a while, and re-charge. I've had a couple seasons where I basically threw in the towel due to frustration, and thats never a good thing.

Overall my season has been a success, I killed a few does with my gun and so did my son so we have meat in the freezer. I also got a beautiful bobcat and best of all my 12yo daughter decided she wanted to be behind the gun this year and got her first deer ever (3pt) last weekend. That made my whole season right there, she was so excited! At the point I am in my life, I try not to get frustrated over it at all now. I know I'll get more time later to get back to doing it the way I want to.

 

This year has had more downs than ups for me. I think I'll more than likely put less effort in next year's season, due to this. Food plots were a complete failure and w I'm going to consider transforming them in to a more bedding like area. When your plots compete with 1000's of acres of corn.

All of my bucks were nocturnal the entire rut. I'm questioning myself for this, as I spent a lot of time making supposedly improvements this summer.

 

Nice post.
While I have spent more hours in the woods this fall than most years, expecially in recent memory, I've also spent the fewest hours bowhunting. The bow is hung up for the year and the guns will be out to fill the freezer.

 

Awesome thread! I'm kinda down in spirits right now in the season haven't seen nearly the number of deer I was seeing early season. This Friday is the last day I'll sit with the bow for 16 days as shotgun season opens Dec. 1st - 16th here in RI. So I'll be concentrating on putting a couple in the freezer with the Ithaca 12 gauge slug chunker. After the 16th I'll be back at it with the bow though as our season runs until January 31st.

 

My first bow season has left me frustrated, haven't even seen any deer here in Alabama on the numerous times I've been out in the woods or up in a tree with the bow. Go figure, opening day of gun season I get a deer with my shotgun.....at least it's meat in the freezer but I still have until Jan 31st until the bow/gun season is over! I'll be alternating with gun and bow for the rest of the season but when the rut hits in late January here I will be out with the bow mainly, to try and get my first bowkill.
As for samiam(whatever), your comments are really getting old. So apparently because someone hunts with a gun, they are a retard and ride a shortbus? Don't know what your deal is, but maye it's time you grow up or just STFU for once.

 

Wow....just wow....

 

Good post Brett...Im thinking it may have lost its luster for good .

Passed a couple in the 130's and one in the 140's on public land....told myself I would not shoot a buck this year if it didnt get me excited and It still hasnt happened yet...I feel nothing when deer walk by my stand.