Kind'a Lost!

[Big Skyz]

So it's the middle of deer season. I see bucks chasing does all over the place. Normally I get pretty excited over this and sort'a go into rut myownself. However, this year I just can't care. I've got several friends that want to hook up for a day of deer hunting, and I just can't seem to find it in me to want to go. This is really weird. I mean I've gone nearly every year since I was a child. I have well over 200 hundred big game kills and probably ten times that many, or more, small game/birds, varmint, and predator kills. Here I am in my 53rd year on the planet and I have zero excitement about heading out to hunt. I feel really lost to be honest. When you have done something for nearly 5 decades without ever considering not going as being an option, it is a really lost feeling. I actually enjoy fishing more these days, but I will admit, I have yet to feel the same adrenaline rush from any fish that I've ever caught, verses what I have felt when seeing large antlers or a big black bear. Don't get me wrong, big fish get me excited, but not fall-down, half brain-damage, start to shake kind of excited. I have never hyper-ventilated over a fish, but certainly have over a few bucks and bears. Maybe this is just part of getting older, I don't know, I've never been this age before. I need to decide here in the next few hours whether to go hunt on Saturday, or fish, as I have a buddy waiting on my answer for the hunting option. This is just plain crazy. I've never had a debate like this in my head before...because there never was a debate, it was always hunting all the way. Okay done rambling.

[BarryBobPosthole]

Welcome to the club. I deer hunted from the time I graduated from songbirds with a BB gun and squirrels (and anything else that moved) with a 22. I used to count down the days to the gun opener and always took as many vacation days as I could when season came in. I duck hunted like a fiend and shot so many crows you couldn’t count them all.

Now I just fish. And the feeling is unexplainable. Maybe it is growing older, I don’t know. One thing I can put my finger on is I used to love the process of hunting, getting guns and equipment and gadgets ready, scouting, and then game cameras and feeders and the whole nine yards. Deer camp was always a tradition in our family that I truly loved. I had my own deer camp for probably twenty years and loved every minute of it. I think its as much the process that I’ve grown less excited about as the hunting itself.
Maybe thats it. Maybe its the catch and release aspect of fishing, I don’t know.
But I can relate!

BkB

[Big Skyz]

I like that catch and release aspect as well and have wondered if that is why I enjoy it more these days than hunting.

[Penguin]

You aren't the first one that I have heard share similar sentiments Troy. So I would guess there's not anything "wrong" with feeling that way. Things change, circumstances change, people change.

It is funny but the one time in my life that I felt myself not caring about hunting was 2005. I remember being scared because I was afraid that I was going to lose one of the few things that I truly cared deeply about. Part of it was that I had gone through a very tough period where some very big things went truly pear shaped. One of the other things I think contributed to the loss of caring, and here is the funny part, is that there was too much gadgets and stuff attached to hunting. Exactly the opposite of what Posty said. Anyway I trimmed down, went old school, forgot about all of the worries about equipment and whatnot.

Hell, I didn't need any fancy shotguns or special shells or new camo or whatever when I was a kid. Run home from the school bus stop, grab the old model 12, stuff some shells of some kind (without looking or caring what they were intended for) into the pockets of my jeans, grab a dog and hit the woods. Hell I didn't even change. Just wore what I had all day. Hunt till it turned dark and came home.

I put a little of that into my hunting and I think it made a lot of difference in my enjoyment.

Will

[BarryBobPosthole]

And just so its clear: I’m not criticizing anything at all about hunting. I will encourage and teach my grandsons to hunt and fish and enjoy the outdoors. I’m just talking about my own wants and needs related to outdoor stuff.
And I still love to eat venison too and hopefully I can depend on my buddies who do hunt to wake me up when they see a fryer on the hoof and shoot it for me. The last one was larrupin!

BKB

[Big Skyz]

I'm not anti-hunting either in any way. I still watch hunting videos and get excited for friends when they have success.

[Chicken Dinner]

I've hunted plenty, but haven't killed a deer in a couple of years. Unless it's going on the wall, I'll my boys do the killing.

[quercus alba]

9730

Welcome brother

[Big Muddy]

I can sympathize with and understand where you guys are coming from.....however, I must be honest by saying, I hope that feeling never hits me, but I'm sure at some point it will.....I still get excited about all aspects of hunting and fishing.....especially, outsmarting a tom turkey, squirrel hunting with Sandy, a nice buck chasing does, the tap-tap on my little jig pole of a slab crappie, the thunder of yelps from a dozen well-trained rabbit beagles....these are the main things that keep my blood flowing in the outdoors.....you will notice that I never mentioned the words "killing" or "catching".....that's secondary, and only remotely on my mind, when in the outdoors.....I'm just thankful to the Good Lord for every minute that HE grants me the freedom and opportunity of being out there.

[Thumper]

TBH, I’ve been there also. For 30 years, I couldn’t wait for deer season, turkey season and bear season. The annual trip to Northern Ontario for bear was always my favorite. Throw in a bunch of walleye fishing and I could stay pretty busy through the year.

When I went through that long hospitalization, I was pretty severely handicapped for a bunch of years with many follow-up surgeries. I had to sell off all my guns (30 of them I think) and equipment, just to pay my bills. I thought it was going to kill me not being able to hunt, but I was totally surprised when I didn’t miss it at all.

It was quite a relief actually. Much less stress planning for days off, figuring out transportation, sighting guns, picking up ammo, etc etc. once I got rid of my stuff, I felt relieved and had plenty of time for travel or other things I wanted to do, but never seemed to have the time. Before I became self-employed, EVERY vacation I had was used for nothing but hunting and/or fishing trips.

Overall, I still enjoy seeing everyone else get their critters, but on the other hand, I feel relieved that I didn’t have to sit in the wet & cold, knock a deer down, gut it out, then have to drag it out of the woods to butcher it, package it and get it in the freezer. Maybe I got lazy in my old age and enjoy spending my free time doing new things. I will admit I’ve never done anything as exciting as sitting in a ground blind waiting for a big ol’ blackie to walk by, but ... been there, done that ... MANY times. I just don’t miss it like I thought I would.

[LJ3]

Same here so at least we're in good company! I've been getting the bug again, though. Hunting with some of you naredowells last year sort of woke it up in me. Making some venison jerky reminded me of how good that stuff is and that I enjoy making it and giving it to people, too. I don't think I'll ever get back in to it like when I was younger but I can see myself enjoying more than I have in the past lull. Fishing is still what I enjoy more.

JB's post got me thinking about a hunting nap. I don't think I ever relax as much as I do when I cop a good nap outside!

[DeputyDog]

I’m not as old as most of you and a whole lot younger than some ;), but I don’t hunt nearly as much as I did when I was in my 20’s. We had an early goose season to thin out the resident geese that was 15 days and it was rare if I didn’t hunt 10-12 of those days. Now, I can’t remember the last time I goose hunted and went duck hunting once this year for the first time in at least 15 years.

I haven’t squirrel hunted since my dad died and that will be 18 years ago next month. I guess it’s because it was one thing we always did together. I do take vacation for all of the gun season for deer and have only gone one year since I was 13 that I haven’t shot a deer, but once I get one, I don’t go back out usually and if the weather is crappy, I’ll just stay home.

Thinking about it now, it maybe because I usually went hunting with my dad I miss that part of it and don’t like going out alone all the time. My kids are getting to the age to start and have expressed an interest, so maybe that will reinvigorate me.

I am taking my 15 year old nephew this weekend when our season opens. His dad, my BIL, doesn’t hunt so I’ll be the one showing him the ropes. I did that with my sister’s boy when he was younger, he’s 30 now, and that was a lot of fun so I hope it helps refuel my fire.


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[HideHunter]

Strange goin's-on.. ;) For 40 years I've read the "Five stages of hunter development".. I pretty much hit them all and have been stalled in the "Method" stage for *lots* of years. I'm seeing the first inklings of the final stage.. Don't get me wrong.. I fully intend to shoot something when I go out ;) .. but, now.. if there's a kid or novice involved.. I'm starting to see the fun in that.

[Captain]

I read every word you said and I’m not far behind you.
I swear I enjoy getting things ready to hunt more now that the actual hunting.

[Arty]

I hope I never lose the urge, but I can see where you are coming from. The “gettin ready to get ready” part though is huge for me. Also handing down all my infinite knowledge of prep and planning to my boys is a lot of fun.
And then there’s the jerky and burger that comes from it... I guess that’s OK too. :)

[HideHunter]

I probably should qualify my above post.. I went hunting four days this week.. Killed something every day.. My standard "reasoning".. "I could use the walk." ;)

[Big Muddy]

Someone remind me who it is here that owes me a pound of jerky.....oh yeah, I remember, now. ;););)

[DeputyDog]

Like I said before our gun opener is tomorrow. My 15 year old nephew is here to go hunting with me. It’s currently raining like the cow and the rock and it’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow. I don’t think I’ve ever missed an opening morning since I started deer hunting at 12, and I’m 48 now, but if he wasn’t here, I’d stay in bed in the morning and wait for better weather.


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[HideHunter]

DD - you've pretty much hit on one of my "stock" answers.. People often ask, "How do you know you're retired? All you do is hunt and fish and that's all you did for 40 years." I tell them, "Back when I was doing it for a living - I went pretty much every day, rain or mud - $8it or blood." Now some mornings I look out the back door at the crappy weather and say, "Aw hell, there'll be a better day." ;)

[Bwana]

Though I may not have the drive I used to, (sort of like a freshman boy at his first college party) I still get pretty darn wrapped up with anticipation when the deer opener approaches.

[quercus alba]

Wonder if they make a little blue pill to give you a hard on for hunting? You could make a fortune around here

[LJ3]

Someone remind me who it is here that owes me a pound of jerky.....oh yeah, I remember, now. ;););)

I was making it for Egghead, not my venison. Sorry! I'll hook you up as soon as I kill one. If that ever happens again!

[BarryBobPosthole]

Just a sniff of a spent shotgun shell might do it.

BKB

[Bwana]

LOVE that smell Posthole! Maybe that is why I coached 3 youth leagues this year??? :)

[DeputyDog]

That is an awesome smell.

I can remember before I was old enough to hunt with my dad I would always tell him to bring home the shells so I could smell them.


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