[redman5850]

I'm just curious as to which season you guys prep and hunt the most ( muzzle loader, bow, rifle..etc, and for deer, bear, turkey...etc). For instance I'm limited to very little time, I take a week for muzzle loader and a week for rifle to deer hunt. I get some weekends in here and there during deer season and small game too!!

 

[ronn]

i prep 24/7/365 for deer. even when i'm turkey hunting i thinking about deer and scouting. i'm always scouting even if its from the truck or the car going to the store with my wife. i'm looking at the terrain and for animals, thinking about the whats and wheres. i shoot the bow quite a bit at the house and take rifles to the range every now and then. i don't get a ml license any more and will just bow hunt through that 9 day season. i got a feeling it won't be long before i try only bow hunting for a season.

good question

 

[wmi]

That is a tough question. For me it is prep time every time I am in the woods because I am always patterning and observing deer movements for the knowledge even if it does not pay off that season it will sooner or later in the future. As far as season I work harder in the early season while deer are still pattern-able. During the rut everything shifts more to chaos with different bucks moving in and out. Later season deer start to fall back to old habits and core areas so early season work comes back into play. Successful deer hunting is year around work and observation. This question has really got me thinking. I guess the real answer is I'm at the point where I hunt more by my gut instincts and what the woods and tracks tell me.

 

[redman5850]

I'm at the point where I hunt more by my gut instincts and what the woods and tracks tell me.

You know that is a great self observation because when all else fails, that's all you have left!!!!!

 

[huntr-]

Hunt hard and often year round for anything to keep your skills sharp. It really doesn't matter the game . What is important is the chase and what you take from it. I don't limit myself to one animal or species , only to have fun and enjoy myself.

 

[kemster99]

my deer season starts in sept goes until mid jan. then it is small game (hogs) until march--turkey from march til may. so i get 4 months of down time, which i spend working on my deer lease. also taking the wife fishing. probably spend the most time preping for deer season. already counting down to opening day of 2010 bow opener. lol. keep the stalking skills honed chasing the hogs.

 

[BruceBruce1959]

Hunting season is also 24/7/365 for me as well, the more I learn and observe the more I realize how instinctive I've become.
I'm always in a hunting mode It amazes me to see how wildlife live during the off seasons by how they travel, the places they eat,
the places they sleep, the directions they use for travel and then how they have the ability to change all of that during the
hunting seasons.
It just seems like at some point I'm going to be able to see an obvious pattern but If I don't that will be fine becuase
throughout the journey I've seen, learned & enjoyed all these gifts from God & I wouldn't change any second of the time I spent doing it.

P.S. I spend more time preparing for the opening of Vermonts Archery season,
that's when all the hunters enter the woods and when the deer begin their change.

 

[onehorse]

To be honest with you, I don't do that much scouting as the area in which I hunt is not only an hour and a half away, but also off limits until the season actually is under way. Also, in recent years, I find that I have to "pace" myself so that I am not physically burned out by the time the rut kicks in. I guess at this point in my hunting career, I'm depending on experience, gut feelings and running on the fumes of my former self, AND living in a state that has lots of decent deer.

 

[kemster99]

after reading my post, again. guys i think i have a problem. lol might need to find a therapist. lol

 

[ronn]

gut instinct is for sure something to take into account but in order to learn to trust that instinct scouting/reading sign plays a major role in developing that instinct.

i use to hunt with a guy, a lot, that if we entered a block of woods from different start points we would end up in the same spot just from reading sign and knowing deer habits. you can call it instinct or a gut feeling but i think of it as second nature. processing the info, adding up all the sign, and adding in knowledge of habits, with out consciously doing so.

 

[huntr-]

gut instinct is for sure something to take into account but in order to learn to trust that instinct scouting/reading sign plays a major role in developing that instinct.

i use to hunt with a guy, a lot, that if we entered a block of woods from different start points we would end up in the same spot just from reading sign and knowing deer habits. you can call it instinct or a gut feeling but i think of it as second nature. processing the info, adding up all the sign, and adding in knowledge of habits, with out consciously doing so.

I may be vane but I think I resemble that remark.

 

[ronn]

you might resemble that is