kevin1

Other than having a slight hangover(stupid) , and not getting a deer , my first time out went pretty much by the numbers . On other trips however ... []

Just a few examples:
1) Forgot to cap the muzzleloader after entering the field , found out just in time to discover that the biggest buck I've ever seen was startled and very angry by my presence . Seriously thought I was gonna be on the news that night , fortunately he smelled the overwhelming odor of human waste and decided that I wasn't worth it . []

2) Got 15 feet up a tree only to discover that I have a lot to learn about mounting a climber to a tree , ended up dangling by my harness with a weight(the stand) tied to my feet . Note to self: Lose weight , get in shape , and read the instructions , fatass ... [:@]

3) Lost my truck . Don't ask ... [&:]

4) Made the amazing discovery that guns are useless without the bullets that are still safely locked in the gun cabinet 45 miles away ...

4) Why is it that the one thing that will help you see in the dark is also the one thing you forgot to pack ? [&o]

5) There is no such thing as checking your list too much , even if you don't think so ...

texas8point

Most important after sighting in your rifle.........a COMFORTABLE chair.

CamoCop

double check all of your gear prior to heading into the bush. this includes your treestand! the slightest squeek while hunting has an over powering effect of causing profanity!

DannyD

I froze my butt off because I got fully dressed at the truck and then walked a mile into the woods, up and down the mountains. I was a ball of sweat when I arrived at my spot. It was 18 degrees and I cooled off pretty quick. then froze becauseI was wet.

Dress as light as possible for the trip out. Wear clothing that pulls the moisture away from your body such as polypropylene etc. Then get fully dressed when you stop sweating

spuddog

Well here's the list, but not in order of greatest impact.

1. Not enough practice with my gun
2. Using a 30-30 in wide open Colorado mountains
3. Not enough ammo (I sighted in right before, but had scope issues and had to sight in again, ran out of bullets and had to walk to truck to get my 9mm to make sure I could finish the job, but didn't need it)
4. Day 1 scope came lose walking up the mountain. I thought I had checked it. Lucky I didn't have a shot that day, I'm not sure I would have had the wisdom not to take it.
5. My budies went home ofter the first day and I stayed up by myself. I took my first deer alone and many of my mistakes could have been avoided if I would have had a mentor with me. Hungting alone isn't the smartest thing, but I see how it could be addictive.
6. Panic from not knowing and not being sure. This, goes away with experience and practice
7. Thinking I could drag a deer out using parachute cord

There are others that I will keep to myself

Enjoy!

jmfa1957

This isn't from my first time out, but it does illustrate a learning experience. My worst, most unforgivable and most recent mistake was in not practicing enough with a new rifle last month before going hunting. Because of this,I left a wounded deer in the woods. I was pretty cocky about my new rifle, a CZ 550 in 6.5x55 with a Zeiss scope. I had worked up some 140 grain handloads that at 100 yards would touch each other. Most of the animals I have shot have been about 100 yards away (I guess) so I sighted the rifle in at 100 yards and assumed I was good to go.

Unfortunately, I did not make time to see where my handoads would group at various rangeshunting before going ... afterwards, when it was too late,I found that my handloads had about a 6" drop at 200 yards when sighted in at 100 yards. They still grouped nicely though... D'oh!

I lined up a steep downhill shot on a doe that looked about 100 yards, centered the crosshairs between her eyes, and touched off a round. NOTHING - - a clean miss, and she didn't even blink. She just stood there posing. I sensed that something was wrong but couldn't quite figure out what. I was using shooting sticks, was good and steady,and the shot "felt" good, no wavering. Confidence shaken, I decided to forget the fancy stuff and put one in her rib cage. I lined up on her breadbasket, shot, and had the terrible experience of watching her twitch a little and then run like hell. She never stopped, just kept going and that was that. We found a very small blood trail that eventually disappeared. We searched until dark, when a mountain lion joined us (at which point we surrendered the field to the cat, as cats are known to scratch and bite.)

We searched the area the next morning with a dog and found nothing. There was no evidence that Kitty Cat found her either. My buddy said it looked like I nicked her low, probably a flesh wound from which she would recover. I sure hope so - - I've never lost an animal before and it felt rotten to leave a wounded critter in the woods.

Lessons learned:
[ol][*]Sight in a couple of inches high at 100 yards to maximize the point blank range of your rifle.[*]Remember that what you can do ona bench rest doesn't equate towhat you can do in the field. Practice accordingly![*]Downhill shots are tricky; bullet drop isn't the same as it would be for shooting across a level field.[*]Maybe it wasn't 100 yards after all... I'm putting a range finder on my Christmas list.[:@][*]Dogs often make good hunting companions; mountain lions usually do not.[/ol]

Shootstuff4570

i definetly agree. i havent been hunting for very long, but the first mistake i made was not dressing for the weather. i thought i was tough. i could make it through the weather............yeah right.....i got my butt kicked by the weather. it turned out that it was like 5 degrees and really really windy and snowy and i didnt last an hour. so make sure u dress for the weather.