Does The Number Of Years Between Buck Harvests...

I get to hunt a bow only metro county, and we have some slammers. If I ever have to leave that county and get in on a regular county lease my standards will drop. We actually hold out for a little better than you could realistically expect but oh well...I think some get ahold of a good cam picture and assume that is the standard deer they should hunt. I have a "buddy" who got a SLAMMER 170+ on cam here in GA a few years back. He would not shot anything, even passing 120 and 130" deer several times. After 3 years he shoots a 90" 8pt and you could just see the pressure and stress leave his body with that shot. He had almost taken the fun out of it, but never again. He currently has a few 150's, but if a 125ish comes down the land, good night.

 

I kinda look at it the other way. If I got one every year I'd be raising my standands. I like the bar set just at that point that's hard to reach but yet obtainable with a hard effort ( and a tab bit of luck)

 

Brett, you are right - you have to be realistic for where you hunt. You can't hold out for what ain't there. My goal is 100" and/or 3.5 as well.

 

this is year number 3 and my rule is it has to be bigger than the ones on my wall or ill let it walk and currently i have a 144 148 and a152 (all gross scores nets are for fish)so it could be a while but prolly not im in illinois LOL

 

The reason I thought of this and asked, my friend North of me shot a 163" buck last year. It was the largest buck he had ever shot. Last weekend he had two buck come by him 15 minutes apart. He dropped both of them as he saw tall tines on one and mass on the other. The most the larger buck would have scored was around 120". He was very upset with himself as he never wants to shoot a buck smaller than his largest on the wall. Another guy that hunts with him, who has a 145" buck on the wall said it's been 3 years of tag soup and would have been tickled with either buck. He said it's was a macho thing to take a buck no matter how big or small it was. I didn't understand that train of thought and wondered if others we in it for just the horns, no matter what.

 

Maybe it was you who said that then.

 

I haven't dropped my standards. The goal is shooting a buck scoring 150 or very close to it. An older 4 pt wouldn't need to be near that. Granted 150 is getting close to top end here but is do able. I like targetting certain bucks we scout up in the summer. I haven't shot a buck with bow since 2005. I have gotten within bow range of 4 of them... two this fall, one last year and 1 the year before. 2 of them should have been on my wall but misjudged the range on one last year and shot under him. Shot under one this year and have no excuse for doing so this time. As long as I can keep getting in range of my goals... there is no reason to drop my standard. I just need to quit missing !! That just plan sucks to drop the ball when you work so hard getting there cause those moments are few and far inbetween.

Tim

 

its kinda like dating girls back in H.S. and college, lower your standards raise your average..

I have to admit I have had a little change of heart in the past 5 years with my philosophy and two buck tags! .. as Idaho's left over nonresident tag has jumped from 200.00 to 300.00 now... I dont like that spendy sucker not getting filled.. Chit I may even shoot a doe with that buggar if I needed too in the future... being its so spendy, call me cheap but I dont like wasting 300.00 and I like eating deer meat, A LOT!

I used to go by the mind set of "Wait it out till the late season and lower my standards a bit if need be."..... then I ate a few of those SPENDY second tags over the past 5 years.. and I didnt like that taste.. So this year I decided to flip my strategy and kill the first good buck I could and then hunt for the big daddy the rest of the season, thats what I did this year and quite honestly I like this better, one buck dead, 1 to go in Idaho.. got some fine meat in the freezer and feel good about killing a nice buck early! Sure i would love to kill two monsters here in Idaho every year with my bow but that just aint gonna happen every year, if I can kill two monsters in one year say.... 3 or 4 times a decade.. I would be stoked..

When I go to other hunting areas across the country I simply shoot what makes me happy.. I dont get as picky..

 

Try a little soy sauce and butter, it makes them a little more bearable!:D

 

I think it's about what people WANT...not that they CAN'T live with "no antler standards".

Honeslty...deer hunting would provide very little excitement or challenge to me if I was just going to shoot the first dink buck I see in the woods. Been there...done that. My goals changed over time.

 

Admittedly Yes, after a couple year (archery) drought, I took a smaller buck last year, then I normally would have. I struggled with it for a while, afterward, but as many have said, it's part of a journey.

Does that mean every deer from here on out will be a P&Y, I may not be to the point where I'm ready to make that statement. But I'm in a good frame of mind for the next opportunity.

 

I think it's my standards that cause such lapse of time between bucks...they can't get big if you don't let them.

 

Better words could not be typed Kelly. Well said and completely agree.