31 - stumped

[Redman]

Hey AZOneCam,

 

You have obviously been hunting longer than I have, but I believe most hunters put too much pressure on each other ( I am one of those). It can be a demanding sport and it brings out the hard headedness in all of us. There is so much anticipation leading up to opening day, then when things don't play out as they did in our mind (that magical big buck does not step right out) it can be discouraging...even reading replies to your post, which I think are truly genuine advice, hunters have frowned on other hunters and they way they hunt.

 

Do what makes you happy, don't worry about what others are doing. This weekend I was out with a friend we got on the hill before light and were glassing, not long after the sun came up, the quads began to rolling down the road, two years ago, I would have been pissed and would have wanted to trek further away....but at about that time I glassed two bucks on the hill...... remember what you like about hunting and what you don't like......

 

Redman

 

 

 

 

[billrquimby]

>>>>>>>I had to rethink why I hunt. It's very easy to get wrapped up in scores, and for me, it took away from why I love to hunt. The magazines, videos, and websites can skew a guy into thinking he's got to kill a big one to feel succesful.

Maybe it's age, but I can honestly say I could care less if I fill my tag, and I really don't care what the other guy has to say about what I wrap my tag around!>>>>>>>>>>

 

 

Coues: You are at the point in your hunting career that I reached a long time ago. After seventeen years of editing Safari magazine and the SCI record books, and being around too many too-enthusiastic people who measured their trophies with tape measures instead of memories, I don't give a dang what size antlers my deer wears. I may or may not shoot the first legal buck I see. It all depends upon whether I feel like ending my hunt at that moment. I now enjoy just watching a game animal as much as I do shooting it.

 

I refuse to become like Prince Abdorreza of Iran, the greatest trophy hunter who ever lived and brother of the Shah. I was shocked when I interviewed him for my book, "Royal Quest." He was so obsessed with records that he bad-mouthed the booking agent, outfitter and PH after he killed a 49-inch Cape buffalo instead of a 50-incher. He did the same thing after shooting a 90-pound elephant. A 49-inch buffalo and a 90-pound elephant are comparable in international hunting circles to a 400-plus bull elk or a 120-inch Coues whitetail -- excellent trophies, but short of the No. 1 status the Prince felt he deserved.

 

Hunters go through several stages as they mature. Unfortunately, they eventually discover record books and become obsessed. Many of us, if we hunt enough, come to realize the size of the animal a hunter kills is no indicator of that hunter's manhood (or womanhood) or skill. Someone with a fat wallet or lots of political influence can get anything he/she wants -- including as many listings in record books as he/she desires.

 

The Prince was a prime example of trophy hunting mania gone awry. With the assistance of Jack O'Connor, Elgin Gates and Herb Klein, Abdorreza collected seventeen of the twenty-seven big game species in North America in one three-month marathon trip. This included all four sheep, caribou, grizzly and black bear, mountain goat, elk, pronghorn, mule deer, white-tailed deer, black-tailed deer, Coues deer, moose, bison, and mountain lion. If that sounds nearly impossible in ninety days, then consider this: He shot not one but two of each species--one for the Iranian National Museum in Tehran, and another for his own collection, and every one of his thirty four animals made the B&C or Rowland Ward record books! He also shot two javelinas and several wolves.

 

Hunting with diplomatic immunity and the blessing of each state's wildlife agency and the U.S. State Department, the Prince flew all over America and hunted with the guides that O'Connor, Gates and Klein had arranged for him. Each of those guides had done extensive scouting, and had game located by the time the Prince arrived in camp. Some of his trophies were taken in national parks and refuges with rangers helping guide him. Such an expedition will never be duplicated, thank God.

 

To answer the question posed at the start of this thread, when you get in a funk after hunting alone it is time to go home. Failing that, you need to shoot that little forkhorn, fry up its backstrap, sit back, watch the clouds float over the mountain, and ponder why you hunt.

 

Bill Quimby

[Snapshot]

I understand the "funk" you are in. I have always hunted solo for the most part. Even though my Dad and I always camped together, I mostly hunted alone. Since my dad passed on,the last couple of seasons have been hollow and empty, and I felt as I was just going through the motions and not really enjoying myself as I normally would.

 

Sometimes just the anticipation of an upcoming hunt can be half the fun, but can also be a let down if we are not mentally prepared to follow through on what we imagine our hunt will be. For me, hunting has always been much more than just a quest to tag an animal. It is a time to enjoy the mountains, the companionship and comraderie of hunting camp and a time to "recharge the spiritual batteries". Food for the soul, so to speak.

 

As some here have mentioned, the economy and other various factors play a role in diminishing our capabilities of the hunt, but things have a way of working out, and the funk will always pass.

[Dodger2]

AZonecam,

 

I feel your pain...what you described to me is exactly how I felt this year.

[Browning'sCustomMeat]

Been there, but I do love to hunt. Its just that hunting by myself gets me down, I usually hunt with friends so when i go out on rifle hunts a bug comes and gives me the funk when by myself. I start thinking about other things and then those run into other things and those to other things and so on.....pretty soon I'm not even hunting! I'm glassing right through the hillside, not even looking at it. A friend by your side, whether human or pet, keeps a person in check. A little conversation keeps your mind fresh and ready. Not sure if it makes any sense at all, but its my $.02.

 

-Jeremy-

[Coach]

Time for the follow-up. First and foremost, I want to give Cory Barker (CRB) and his wife, Michelle a huge THANK YOU! Within a couple of hours of posting this thread, Cory sent me a PM offering to help out if I got a chance to get back down there. Not only did he hike all over the mountain with me and glass his eyes out, his family invited me (a totat stranger at that point) to stay with them for the last couple days of the hunt. We may not have found the buck we were hoping for, but his hospitality and company made the last two days much more enjoyable.

 

I also just wanted to say a quick thanks to everyone who has posted on this thread with similar experiences. There is a lot of food for thought in many of the posts here.

 

Finally I want to thank Amanda for this site as a medium for getting to know other hunters and not just share our trophy pictures and stories, but our experiences - both positive and negative.

 

Happy Hunting,

Jason

 

[WFGinNM]

That is excellent.

[Snapshot]

That is excellent.

 

Yes indeed! Glad someone stepped in to help you out.

[bmf1321]

Glad it worked out for you. I have had moments too when I am unmotivated and kind of down on hunting. These Coues deer will definetly do it to you. Thanks to some members of this site, CRB and Redman, these down and out moments have turned around into good memories and campfire stories.

 

Solo hunts and excursions are great and I still like solitude but when the going gets tough it's nice to have others there to keep your spirits high.

 

CRB helped keep me going on a Mexico hunt in which I had a mishap with my rifle scope and missed a couple of big bucks. We hunted hard the entire time and saw a lot of bucks but I didn't end up tagging anything. I was taught patience and persistance on this hunt and while I didn't tag anything, I left Mexico with some good stories, memories, and a close mountain lion encounter that I will never forget.

 

I met Redman on a leftover tag hunt in which I spent some time scouting solo and hunting the first day solo without much success, just frustration. Spending time with him at his camp and hunting with him and his friends motivated me to keep going. I wanted to shoot the first thing I saw and ended up dumping a spike with a pretty long shot. Definetly not a trophy but the memories of the pack out, comraderie, and shot made it worthwhile.

 

I guess what I'm saying is that no matter how hard a hunt gets or how down you can be on hunting, or life, someone or something will motivate you to keep going. Plus hunting is where memories are made. Thanks again guys.

 

I'm glad I read this post. I was starting to get that "stumped" feeling again myself but got out yesterday with my girlfriend and glassed up enough WT activity to keep me motivated. The company was great too.