ORIGINAL: Double Creek
Some guys feel like must tag out or get the limit on everything they hunt or fish for. I've been around them, usually it's kids, before they mature. But many adults hang on to that mentality. To each his own I guess, as for me and my family, we are trophy hunters, that's what flips our switch.
Some guys have a lot more people to feed then others. We put 7 deer in the freezer this year and at the rate it is going we
might make it close to the fall with what we have.
There is just no reason for me or anyone I hunt with to pass a deer up. First of all chances are few and far between.........just seeing a deer is a very good day. Is there better hunting lands around me??? Sure there are........but I can only access them if I go alone. I have a couple friends and 2 brothers and my dad that I hunt with constantly and wouldn't trade that for anything. Most private land owners are OK with one guy.....maybe two but they slam the door real quick when they hear you have 5-7 guys in your party........that's just life. I would rather hunt the worst land in the world with all those guys........then the best honey hole out there by myself. The public lands we hunt are literally beat to death by hunters. Taking a deer of any kind is a nice accomplishment and a big buck is about as likely to walk by as Bigfoot.........we have killed 2 in the last twentysome years......that's just life. A big reason why I take my chances as they come is I know that something better is HIGHLY unlikely to walk by. I know these woods like the back of my hand and we know what comes out of them year after year after year. When I saw that 6 pt come out I didn't think twice about slinging that arrow. All the bucks that I had in range after him were nothing but different versions of him.........no surprise. I shot the 4 ptr with my gun 15 minutes into gun season again not even thinking about it for a second...........I saw one other buck all season, a 6 ptr sneaking through some brush. There is nothing to wait for. My oldest brother has not seen a buck of any kind for 3 years and he hunts bow and gun...........is he supposed to pass a deer he sees because it doesn't meet someone elses standards??
So I could hunt land with a better chance at a big buck but I would have to leave my family and friends behind to do it...........No thanks..........or I could pass on every buck I see so someone else can shoot him and I can eat my tags every year.......No thanks. I enjoy the way I hunt and who I hunt with. We do EVERYTHING legally and ethically. I just have a very hard time seeing that as a "problem". The size of a bucks rack will never make or break the level of enjoyment we all share every time we head into the woods.