ORIGINAL: davidmil

Experience seems to mean a lot of different things to folks around here. Who would have "thunk it".[8D] Let's see, does a guy that learns his local herd inside and out have the same experience as say someone that's hunted under a variety of situations, places, habitats and weather. Does the guy that's hunted mountain deer, hill country deer, swamp deer from the South, deer from the food belt, public landsetc have to learn all those herds inside and out tobe considered competant. I think experience has to have a test of time to it. Get thrown from your honey hole and you have to start all over, or do you. An experienced hunter will hit the new woods with excitement and knowledge from years past. It's NOT necessary to "Learn everything about a herd" to be successful. To me I enjoy much more walking into a new woods for the first time, taking a quick cruise through, finding some sign and setting up and being successful. Some will say it's luck, but luck doesn't happen year after year. That's experience. Knowing your animal where ever he is comes only over a test of time. The whitetail deer in say a food plot in the South is a different animal than the ridge running cedar swamp dweller in the Adirondacks. They don't even act the same. It's quite easy to learn a local herd on a small parcel of land. I dare say much of it can be learned from the deck of your house overlooking some fields. Does that make you experienced enough to cross a few state lines and hit a big chunk of woods for the first time and to be successful. I really don't think so. If you can do it time after time you have experience. With todays internet, magazines, videos, TV shows etc it's become easy for people to parrott what they've heard and seen. It's quite another to walk into a strange woods and put it to use on your own. First you have to sort out all the bull doo doo in these things, and there is a lot of that out there due to marketing.

Experience to one person may be "Hunting a Food Plot". Experience to another may be walking 3 miles back in a swamp. A lot can be learned of a persons hunting style just by listening to what they say. "I went to MY stand today". 90 percent of the time that's what he mean, MY and he hunts no where else. One or two others maybe. Is he experienced, not to my way of thinking, but that's me. Experience must have a test of time to it, but it doesn't guarantee you learned a thing.

As far as the shot selection. I'll take any shots I have a notion too and feel good about it. When ever I draw on a deer I honestly expect it's all over, he's dead. It hasn't always happened, but I'm experienced enough to expect the next one I draw on will die. I've known some really good target punchers that just can't calm down in the woods. How you react at the moment of truth over and over does allow you some latitude. You just have to know your limitations. There is an autopilot. It works great. I never think of actually drawing it seems. I'm watching the critter and looking for the right moment to draw. The rest happens. I see the deer, the others around, the hole, the hair and TWACK. If you can do that and remember everything about the sight picture, before and after, and follow the deer as he flees, you can have some latitude. IF you're a shaking timber but shot 300 in the spot league, I'll help you track your critter.[8D]