I took a long 5-6 mile hike back in deep in the forest I hunt. I explored, I took pictures, I compared what I was seeing on the map to what I believed I thought I knew about the area. I found two spots on the entire hike that I would hang a stand. Maye I am getting more picky about my stand sites, but in reality I really believe that I came to the realization today that I have ALOT of room for improvement in my pre-season scouting and overall understanding of deer movement, in particular big buck movement. I was kind of in a zone today, putting pieces of a puzzle together that has taken me months to "figure" out in one particular area I hunt. And that is just one spot. I am gonna get back at it on Thursday and do another clean sweep of another entire area I hunt, then not stepping foot back in there for another 3.5 months. MAN I have alot to learn.
Another reason I am thinking alot about this lately is I always hear people saying, "If I only lived in Illinois or Iowa then I would arrow a big buck". But in reality, you have to do the same legwork wherever you are, and if you don't understand big buck movement, then your chances of arrowing one greatly diminish. I'm not saying that living in those types of states would not improve my odds, they would, but in reality I need to learn and study alot more on the fine details of hunting mature bucks and seeing deer in general to have consistent success wherever I lived. I have gone on my instincts alot since I learned to hunt by myself, and really believe I didn't learn the basics of deer hunting. I have learned alot, but still need to go back to the basics to improve my overall hunting. It is like I skipped the "white belt" stage of hunting and missed out on learning some of the most vital/basic knowledge there is in the woods.
I told myself today I am again a "newbie". I am going to assume nothing, but am getting back to relearning and modifying some tactics I employ. I guess a long walk with beautiful terrain gets one thinking.
