RE: Looking for advice
Well, only thing i can infer from what you said is that he knows that being committed to harvesting a big buck is alot of work. And he doesnt feel he has it in him anymore. So the only two angles i can see you working here are asking him for help and telling him you feel you could benefit from his knowlege, That makes most people feel good and they are then glad to jump in.The other would be telling him you would enjoy spendin some father son time with him hunting and that you would take care of all of the stand work and such for him. Either way just talked to him, see what his motivations are, feel him out, get him in the woods so he can catch that bug again.
Let us know how it turns out...good luck