i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
10-18-2004, 03:12 PM
#1
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 1,932
i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
I feel most of my stands are in good places like funnels, good trails, rub lines etc. I see deer not every time I go out. A few days can pass and i dont see anything. I have had shots but i either passed them up, shot wasnt right, or I missed. As for not seeing any deer from my stands is this a normal thing? I am running a great streak here havent gotten a thing in three years.
10-18-2004, 05:12 PM
#2
Dominant Buck
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Ramsey , Indiana
Posts: 22,545
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Relax DH ,
I've taken a single shot in 4 years , and missed my target . [&o] Nothing abnormal about what you described , just part of deer hunting . Don't give up .
I've taken a single shot in 4 years , and missed my target . [&o] Nothing abnormal about what you described , just part of deer hunting . Don't give up .
10-18-2004, 07:11 PM
#3
Typical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Rockaway,NJ.
Posts: 621
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
I went a lot years without a buck. I scouted for the best spots. I got in earlier then other hunters Stayed longer, still hunted, Tree stands, Ground blinds but nothing panned out! If I was on stand for a drive the drivers saw and killed the bucks. If I was the driver the standers did all the killing! I killed my share of does but couldn't find a head set to save my life! Then finally 4 years ago I broke the streak. On my way back to my truck just before dark I walked up on a nice 5 point and dropped him. Since then I killed 7 more bucks. I didn't change the way I hunt I just started finding myself in the right place at the right time. Hang in there it's all a part of what deer hunters go through! After all those years without a buck knocking that 5 point down was one of the greatest feelings ever! When you do finally get one it will be that much sweeter after the years of missing!....Good luck and shoot straight....Jim
10-18-2004, 08:35 PM
#4
Fork Horn
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NYC NY USA
Posts: 498
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Well, deer are so plentiful that people are hitting them in cars. So if you aren't seeing at least six to twelve deer a day, something is terribly wrong. Don't listen to these guys. They are just bad hunters who... HAHAHAHA. Had you going there for a bit.
The truth is, these guys are spot on. Depending upon where you hunt, you may not see a shooter deer for an entire season. Some regions just don't have a lot of deer - or the deer could be hanging out at home until dark. It sounds like you are doing the right things. Just need a lot of patience and diligence. Also, you may be moving too much - or perhaps you are moving around from place-to-place too much.
1. Get to bed very early, as early as you can - like 6:30pm the night before your hunt. It is very important that you be well rested. I say get to bed at 6:30 pm because I have a hard time falling asleep the night before a hunt (so excited). But get to bed and go right to sleep.
2. Wake up, go to your chosen spot, and be sitting STONE quiet in your stand about 1 hour before sun up.
3. Make it an experiment. Try not to move until, say noon. Feel your body drift away so that you lose touch with it. But do not move. Sit stock still and let nature move around you. Let your mind wander throughout the woods seeking game. Try to see and hear your quarry as it approaches instead of letting it sneak up on you because of a lack of focus.
4. Stay on stand until dark-thirty.
If you hunt public property then out of ten+ times of hunting like this, you may not see a real shooter at all. But the great thing is, after sitting for so long, so quiet, so focused and so joined with your environment, you pretty much reach nirvana with each hunt. Sometimes dark-thirty shows up so quickly it seems almost impossible that you could have been on stand for so long. Taking game is the icing on the cake - but it is not the cake. Take a good long look around as you hunt. Smell that crisp fall air. See the leaves and just be there because soon you will be dead.
The truth is, these guys are spot on. Depending upon where you hunt, you may not see a shooter deer for an entire season. Some regions just don't have a lot of deer - or the deer could be hanging out at home until dark. It sounds like you are doing the right things. Just need a lot of patience and diligence. Also, you may be moving too much - or perhaps you are moving around from place-to-place too much.
1. Get to bed very early, as early as you can - like 6:30pm the night before your hunt. It is very important that you be well rested. I say get to bed at 6:30 pm because I have a hard time falling asleep the night before a hunt (so excited). But get to bed and go right to sleep.
2. Wake up, go to your chosen spot, and be sitting STONE quiet in your stand about 1 hour before sun up.
3. Make it an experiment. Try not to move until, say noon. Feel your body drift away so that you lose touch with it. But do not move. Sit stock still and let nature move around you. Let your mind wander throughout the woods seeking game. Try to see and hear your quarry as it approaches instead of letting it sneak up on you because of a lack of focus.
4. Stay on stand until dark-thirty.
If you hunt public property then out of ten+ times of hunting like this, you may not see a real shooter at all. But the great thing is, after sitting for so long, so quiet, so focused and so joined with your environment, you pretty much reach nirvana with each hunt. Sometimes dark-thirty shows up so quickly it seems almost impossible that you could have been on stand for so long. Taking game is the icing on the cake - but it is not the cake. Take a good long look around as you hunt. Smell that crisp fall air. See the leaves and just be there because soon you will be dead.
10-19-2004, 12:13 AM
#6
Typical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Rockaway,NJ.
Posts: 621
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Swampmonster.....I was so relaxed reading your post that I almost fell asleep right up to the soon you'll be dead thing!....LOL woke me right up!
10-19-2004, 07:24 AM
#7
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Central Ohio
Posts: 206
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Hang in there deerhunter1224. In the area I hunt, I went three years without seeing much of anything, much less a shooter buck. I did everything right and hunted harder than the next guy, but just didn't have any luck. Then, for whatever reason, I finally started running into deer. Part of that is probably increased familiarity with the land, which makes it a lot easier to be in the right place at the right time. I still don't see shooter bucks every year, but I'm seeing deer and that is half the fun.
10-19-2004, 11:24 AM
#8
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Columbia, Md.
Posts: 1,211
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
I agree with Swampmonster about getting out early. I try to be setup in my stand at least an hour before twilight. It lets the woods quiet down so you will see more animals. Try to sit still and practice scent control. I have had squirrels crawl within 2 feet of me before stopping to figure out what I am.
As far as not seeing any deer, move to Maryland. You will practically trip over them here. LOL. I don't see many large bucks, a lot of spikes and fours but I have found some spots were I see eights and an occasional ten. The large bucks are smart so you don't get a lot of chances at them but there are so many does here that some counties have unlimited doe tags.
Don't get me wrong, some days I go out and don't see a thing but that is all part of hunting. If it was too easy, it wouldn't be fun. Even on the days that you don't see anything, it is nice to get out into the woods and just be with nature. Listen to the sounds around you. Make it a game to identify what is making those sounds before you look for it. Just relax and let the day go by without any pressures. I know people that go hunting just to get away from work and family. One of my friends has not shot anything in three years but still likes to get out.
You said that you have seen deer, passed up shots on deer and missed some. Sounds like a normal day out in the woods to me. If you are looking for monster bucks, it all depends on the area that you are in. Your area might not have the right enviroment or deer genetics to make big bucks. Read as much as you can about hunting. Make everyday out a learning experience. I know a few people that have had beginner's luck but most that I know spend a long time before they get a wall hanger. Took me 19 years.
As far as not seeing any deer, move to Maryland. You will practically trip over them here. LOL. I don't see many large bucks, a lot of spikes and fours but I have found some spots were I see eights and an occasional ten. The large bucks are smart so you don't get a lot of chances at them but there are so many does here that some counties have unlimited doe tags.
Don't get me wrong, some days I go out and don't see a thing but that is all part of hunting. If it was too easy, it wouldn't be fun. Even on the days that you don't see anything, it is nice to get out into the woods and just be with nature. Listen to the sounds around you. Make it a game to identify what is making those sounds before you look for it. Just relax and let the day go by without any pressures. I know people that go hunting just to get away from work and family. One of my friends has not shot anything in three years but still likes to get out.
You said that you have seen deer, passed up shots on deer and missed some. Sounds like a normal day out in the woods to me. If you are looking for monster bucks, it all depends on the area that you are in. Your area might not have the right enviroment or deer genetics to make big bucks. Read as much as you can about hunting. Make everyday out a learning experience. I know a few people that have had beginner's luck but most that I know spend a long time before they get a wall hanger. Took me 19 years.
10-19-2004, 01:46 PM
#9
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Sackets Harbor, New York
Posts: 2,509
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Taking game is the icing on the cake - but it is not the cake. Take a good long look around as you hunt. Smell that crisp fall air. See the leaves and just be there because soon you will be dead.
10-19-2004, 02:18 PM
#10
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 728
RE: i am very unlucky deer hunter or is this just hunting
Thats just deer huntin at least for me. I have no access to private land so Im stuck with public lands, cant do any of what swampmonster said cause Im to busy makin sure I dont get shot and constantly lookin for hunter orange so I dont shoot anyone, there is no relaxation there and as far as nirvana it aint gonna happen where Im at.