I'm not talking about feeling like the hunt,the experience amongst nature,or sharing time with friends.But when the season is over and your alone do you feel like a bit of a failure if you did not get a deer?? Be honest with your answer.My answer is yes I have felt like a failure already.

Yes, I do feel like a failure. This is my first year I haven't gotten a buck(4th year hunting), but my season is not over yet. I passed 3 smaller buck during archery, but when I see and hear other people talkin about their harvests, even small buck, I feel a sense of failure. I'm just gonna swallow my pride and harvest only larger deer, no matter what the situation is.

Shots that are True....Pass right Through!!!

Honestly yes. Not so much for not getting a deer. I useually end up with several for the freezer by the end of the year, but for not getting that "buck" everyone is looking for. That feeling is what drives me. In my early days of hunting I went "deerless" for several seasons. I did not like the way I felt, so I studied, and practices, and worked really hard all year preparing for the upcoming season. By doing so my "luck" changes and I was able to consistatly fill my freezer. Now the next step for me is to go after only does, and mature bucks.

TAKE YOUR KIDS HUNTING AND YOU WON'T BE HUNTING FOR YOUR KIDS

Only when I let my self get down and forget
to appreciate just being able to go then the
feeling changes to one of satisfaction thanks
to your necklace and what it stands for my
hunting has taking on a new outlook and my
time in the woods is truely a blessing take
care!

[Deleted by Admins]

Failure as a hunter? no. I've been close enough to deer to kill on 5 or 6 occasions this year alone. Failure as an archer? yes. For not knowing enough about my equipment to realize I was hunting with junk. So live and learn. This next year will be spent learning all the nuaineces of the modern compound bow. And how to set them up and tune them. Then next season, IT'S ON!

KEEP IT LEGAL. KEEP IT SAFE. OR WE MAY NOT GET TO KEEP IT AT ALL.

Never.

To be honest... It's been 31 years since I DIDN'T get a deer. That year I moved right before deer season. If I were to have ample time to hunt, decent hunting country and came up dry.... I'd feel let down maybe a little... but not a failure. I've had so many good years I'm probably way past due for a bummer. If for some reason I didn't have time to hunt much and came up dry.... I'd still feel let down... but not a failure. I think LAZYARCHER hit the nail on the head. I never feel quite as bad as I do when one gets away after springing a leak. That's a true bummer... but I know it happens and get over it. Fortunately it happens rarely.

I'm where you are, 5 shot. I'm hoping to pass on all bucks that aren't out past the ears, and shoot does for the freezer. I am sure I will fail some years doing that though.

This year, I turkey hunted a bunch, and took no birds. I really cannot say that I even thought of it as "failure" though. Believe it or not, it was the best season for turkey that I've ever had. I met with two great people from this board and we hunted together for a few days in Ohio. I hunted Pennsylvania with a life-long friend and called in a bird for him. And at his camp, we ate venison twice a day, had great coffee, a lot of laughs, built small fires in the woods on the colder mornings just to warm up a bit, scouted for deer, saw a newborn fawn in the same spot on two different Saturdays...

I feel lucky to just be able to get out.

lol. And I feel sorry for people that don't know the pleasures of hunting or fishing in America or Canada.

If there is no hunters out there that at one time or a nother that has not felt failure than they have not hunted very much.With out failure you can not have SUCCSESS.Because we learn as hunters from or failures.Good hunting to all