RE: Starting to doubt myself. This sucks.
I'd say it is too early to go drawing conclusions. Most yearsI don't even start hunting until the third week of bow season. Deer are still in summer patterns and mostly nocturnal in nature. When the pre-rut starts kicking in, you will see more daylight deer movement. At this time of year, you may want to limit your hunting to early morning and late evening hunts only, if you tend to get discouraged at the lack of sightings. This Saturday will be my first hunt of the year. Unless we have colder than normal weather, it is pretty much my normal routine. Right now you want to be on a heavy travel route to food sources and only hunt them early morning and late evening. When it is hot out, do you like to move around during the heat of the day for no reason? Neither do the deer. Save the "gung ho" attitude for later in the season, when it will more likely pay off. You don't want to burn yourself out before the good hunting begins. Hang in there and good luck.