Did you get skunked? I did.
 

This was my first year hunting. I have been lurking and asking questions here since about August and have gleaned a ton of knowledge from the august group here. But, it did not pay off for me this year. 1 pristine, unused tag card to go into the scrapbook this year!

I had to hunt public land all but 2 days. I never saw a legal deer, so it was not an issue of not being close enough, missing or being picky. Maybe they busted me before I saw them (possible with the unpredictable wind and hilly terrain). I heard plenty of them before first light or after dark on my way out.

I can't say it was a total waste, I spent 10 beautiful days afield, saw a ton of wildlife, had a hawk perch on a branch above my shoulder (3' away), saw a great horned owl and had a chickadee pick fur from my glove while siting on the rib of my shotgun. So, I DID get close to wildlife, just nothing with antlers and white tails.

Resolved: Next year I will learn to shoot black powder so I can get out earlier, and I will spend more full days in the woods. I will learn to be stealthier and read the sign better. I will get some better clothes so I can keep concentrating on the task at hand. I will spend more time scouting before the season so I know where they are and where they aren't. This year I spent all of my time in one part of the gamelands, preferring to know all about a particular piece of land (about 50 acres) than try to scout all 5000 acres.

Well, better luck and more skill next year!

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Even if you didn't get a deer you probably enjoyed being in nature a lot more than being at work.

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Hope you have better luck next year!
Thats why its called hunting and not shooting. <img src=icon_smile_cool.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

As long as you enjoy the experience it isn't a waste of time .I don't have to kill something to enjoy hunting .Lots of luck next year .

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Everyone starts from the ground floor and works their way up the ladder.At least you are honest and willing to learn which in the long run will produce nothing but success for you.Good Luck.

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

I got skunked too with my bow, not rifle, i just wish i had someone to bowhunt with who had somewhat of an idea what they were doing. I am going by trial and error and they deer are getting the best of me everytime so far.


Check out my drawings and big bucks page on my website. Sign the guestbook too.

www.geocities.com/mvp_bballer/

JC

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Thats why its called hunting!!! Don't feel bad Chubber. I had an uncle who hunted 40 years before he got his first deer. I persosnally hunted several years before getting one, course there were not near as many deer 45 years ago, as we now have here in PA.

I hunted VA several years in the early 90's, and only got one small doe, and a bob cat. Now the bobcat is a trophy, and much harder to come by (if hunting for them), than a deer, and I love & appreciate that cat, but it still was not what I was looking for.

If you stick with it, it will fall into place when you least expect it to. The early muzzleloader season is a great time to be out. The deer still are so spooked up, as later when more people go afield, and you can hunt them on a bit &quot;more even ground&quot;.

If you can afford it, by all means get into the black powder thing. Its a ball! I love it, and especially down there where you can use the precussion, or even inlines. Here in PA we MUST use flintlock's. You pull the trigger, count to five, for it to fire, and hope it goes off.......................

Only an armed nation (state) is a free state! <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle> The people of a disarmed nation (state) are SUBJECTS, NOT FREE CITIZANS!![<img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle>

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

I got skunked to but i still got a couple more weekends to go i probably wont get out again though. But, a bad day hunting is better than a good day working.

LIFE IS SHORT, HUNT HARD

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Sounds like you enjoyed yourself this year which I think is the whole point of hunting.

Sounds like you have got some pretty good ideas about how to improve your odds of harvesting a deer next year.

Robin.

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

I know the feeling. I finally got my first deer this year after 2 yrs of trying. Keep after it and good things will happen. Hunting is more than the kill.

Dan Blair

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Hey Chubber, last year was my first year, and I got skunked, too. I think there are a minimum number of stupid things that must happen (learning points) before you get one. I sure had enough stupid things happen to me last year. (Beside that, hunting public land is very challenging. I think you're smart to get out there as early as possible during muzzleloader.) The deer get smart pretty quickly. It may not have had anything to do with you. It doesn't take them long to go nocturnal on public hunting land. That's why statistics say your best chance is on opening day. Your chances tend to go more south the farther past opening day.

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Chubber I was close to getting skunked myself this year, finally got a 4 point. Do not get frustrated, I know you enjoyed yourself and learned a lot. When you quit learning it is time to quit hunting.

My big issue this year was a lack of property to hunt, I had a great place for bow, over 200 acres, but due to not being able to do any preseason scouting due to my moving down here right before the season started I was not prepared. I wound up with only 12 acres to hunt gun and still got a litlle 4 point. Read my post to Va. Hunters, maybe you will be interested. If not that is fine, hang in there, every year you learn more and you will get one, once you get the first it usually snow balls from there. Good luck next year.

The Tazman

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Thanks for the words of encouragement everyone!

Sometimes it is a little intimidating on this list with everyone posting about how good their season is and how full the freezer is.

But, I will keep learning, trying new things, scouting and practicing.

The deer haven't heard the last of me yet. I enjoyed my time off in the field and loved to get out to the woods, even if it did mean getting up at 3:00am (4 hours earlier than normal) and being dead tired when I get home.

Some people do things that are easy, others doe them because they are hard.

Chubber

RE: Did you get skunked? I did.
 

Chubber,
Sounds like you got more out of this season than you realize! I see a hunter learning growing and you have a game plan for next year already in place. You are ahead of alot of other hunters. In this game you never have all the answers. It's a constent learning process.

EAT What You Harvest, Mobrandy

[Deleted]
 

[Deleted by Admins]

Sounds like you've got a better plan than most beginners and the right attitude, now all you needs a little luck , try going early , early .I bow hunt thick woods and I have to get in tree by 4:30 am or I scare them away .was going at 6 then game camera showed the party started at 5- first light so 4:30 is it ,good luck

If newbies didn't get skunked...
 

there'd be no deer left.

Hunting, truly, isn't easy. You don't get gifted with a deer.

A deer doesn't surrender to a newbie on the first day.
They don't surrender easily on any day.

Some newbies retire. They thought hunting was going to be easy, without thinking or knowing how hard it was.

That's why PA gives out more deer tags, than are collected by getting a deer. They know.

This thread was started almost 15 years ago and the Original poster has gotten old and retired from hunting when the recoil from his shot gun got to much for him.
:busted:


:D Al

I doubt that the OP is old, he started hunting in 2002. Wow what happened to the former member 4 posts up who has 27,500 posts who got the status of deleted member? How can a hunter post that much?

What I would like to know is why this new member "blessed n born to hunt" has now brought up three threads this week that are ancient, including this 15 year old one, after being asked not to do it yesterday the second time he did it. He gave some lame excuse on that one, but it's obvious he knows what he's doing because you have to go way back into the archives to bring an old thread like this up!

Ok, thanks for the info topgun, i bet, blessedbornhunt will get banned!

I doubt that, as even though there are a ton of rules on this website, there aren't any that say what he's doing violates anything other than maybe common sense, LOL! :rolleye0011: