Quit hunting

Nameless Range said:

I've watched my dad's motivation to hunt wane to the point that I think the only reason he goes anymore is to get me to quit harassing him. He's 70, is plagued with arthritis, and I think that really affects him.

Personally, even if hunting became something that was cumbersome to my happiness and interest, I would still do it for the sake of the meat. I don't "need" the meat, but I value it so greatly year-round that it is still the chief product of hunting for me. That said, I think I understand some of why folks quit hunting. On public land it can be stressful and expensive. I've always enjoyed scouting for hunting more than hunting itself. Hot July days in the mountains, or hiking as high as I can in May - I value the solitude and exploration, void of the rat race that hunting can sometimes be. I hunt, seek enjoyment out of, and try to understand, chunks of land - more so than the animals upon those chunks.

In the same way having children redefined love for me, I am looking forward to hunting with them, and seeing how that redefines hunting for me.

Click to expand...

I can identify with a lot of this. I more or less have the career I have so I can better understand the whole picture of how nature works; that makes hunting a lot more meaningful to me. That said, while I'm no trophy monster, I have at least a few solid public land, general tag animals of each local species that represent a lot of hard work and dedication to the sport. I've started a transition to care a lot less about killing stuff, even though we eat a lot of wild meat, and more about helping friends who are new hunters and engaging my kids in the process. I passed on a herd bull at 60 yds this opening day because it didn't have a chance at making the wall inside my house and I didn't want to be done hunting. Five years ago that elk would be dead no doubt.

I think I could be just as happy vastly reducing my hunting to meat-centric endeavors and doing more backpacking and mountaineering again. That's where I found adventure before hunting took over, and I bet it would fill that void again. One of the primary reasons I will keep hunting at the forefront in the short term is to give my kids the experience that I had, hunting with dad/granddad/uncles/friends. Those are among the best childhood memories I have; we probably all understand why, whether or not we are able to put it into words.

I can't even fathom quitting hunting, just about everything i do and most of my disposable income goes towards gear, tags and travel for hunting. That said, my motivations have shifted and the kill is the least important. I covet meat much more than horns and derive a great deal of enjoyment and satisfaction in the planning and execution of a trip with or without bringing anything home.
I don't think i hunt as many days per year as i used to but my success rate has drastically improved in terms of animals harvested. I take that after 40 years, i figured out how to hunt smarter, not harder.

onpoint said:

Some "quit" because they lost their hunting partners. Some because they lost the places they hunted for years. Some because the crowds of outdoorsmen/women moving into this area just were too much for them.

Click to expand...

Most I know are because of this ^^. I have hunted solo more than I ever have and I am missing having a hunting partner. I started taking people from out of state pheasant hunting and muley archery hunting from out of state because it is really enjoyable to watch their reaction when a bunch of late season roosters explode in front of my brittany or we see a decent muley. Public land around here is disappearing quick and the crowds are getting thick.

I have slowed down. Hunted deer all my life and it is not as fun as it once was. I still apply to familiar units, but do not have the passion to hunt new units.

I hunted elk last year for the first time. Unsuccessful in filling the tag, but had a blast. Will still apply, but will have to use a packer or guide or younger family. Still exciting.

Oryx hunting is a blast and will always be my first tag I apply for. Used to draw every 9 years, but it is stretching out to 12 years (hopefully).

The excitement is what keeps you going. If it is not there for a species, I do not do it.

PS: Hotels are a lot more comfortable than a sleeping bad. Comes with age!

I see people quit for a lot of reasons. I don't think just one will do to summarize the "problem" if it is one.

1. People get old
2. Access is lost - public and private
3. Places that one used to hunt change - sometimes it is just that the brush grows up and there are no more birds or whatever. Change isn't always on the end of a bulldozer.
4. People move from one passionate hobby to another just as a matter of course.
5. Technology - there is a constant increase in technology that none of us are forced to follow, but nonetheless somehow wears on me (at least) as I get older.
6. Politics - in many hunting circles and almost all other shooting activities - if you are not politically right of Attila the Hun, then you are probably not welcome. Easily 50% of Americans do not feel welcome at a shooting range or even the hunting section of a sporting goods store. And it's getting worse, much worse, very fast.

Average age of hunters for Western big game is getting older.

I have cut back on hunting activity that is what most would feel is a true Western hunting experience. I lack the core strength and balance and also I like pastries. So, now I hunt more on rolling hills rather than along high elevation mountain ridges. I camp at trailhead or stay in a motel rather than bivvy in 2 or 3 miles from the trailhead like a decade ago. I seek out a buck or bull in the top 50% of antler or horn size of what is in the unit rather than pass on anything less than top 25%. Heck, I would give up a lot of inches of horn or antler when two critters are side by side so I can bag the smaller non-typical.


The horn porn and "elite club atmosphere" turns off Joe Sixpack, too. I hire a guide about 1 out of 4 hunts now rather than 1 out of 20. I pay to get on private if a lot of tags are in play since I like a more serene experience rather than put up with ATVs and slobs in an attempt to try to be best hunter on the public lands.

I never get the satisfaction of a harvest with a guide as if was solo nor from a hunt that was on private as if was on public. I do still rely on draw tags and leftovers or OTC. I will likely head to Texas next spring to hunt aoudad again and will be the equivalent of a landowner tag for private land access. I might buy a landowner tag to chase a big mule deer someday but not a burning desire.

So, I do not pass the purity test of the 100% draw tag hunting only on public lands standard. I see this in the same way that archery hunters go down the rabbit hole to end up with the one archer thumping their chest saying they are the only true hunter as they made the stone arrowheads for placing on their cedar arrows to shoot using their yew bow with deer sinew string. I prefer a big tent when gathering together people of similar minds rather than requiring a set of criteria that a small minority indeed can attain. Hunt ethically and I am happy to share a cold brew whether you chase bushy tails only or are on your way to the North American 27 using cedar arrows.

Another issue is the under-participation of females which in turn impacts the recruitment of the next generation of hunters. Even more impact if a single parent household headed up by a female. Hunting seems to view female enthusiasts as a complication. A camp full of dudes can step behind a tree to use the restroom. Jokes can be a bit rough.

Finally, the cost to have a quality hunting experience for big game out West as a non-resident is a significant expenditure when add up costs door to door and factor in the ante cost to get into the gear game. Is not easy to spend less than $1000 a year if apply and hunt out of state. That is a chunk of take home for the average American household and if add in another member of the household then is an even larger portion of the discretionary budget. No way you hunt as a non-resident to save on the cost of meat for the dinner table, either.

I can’t remember what I did yesterday, but I can tell you all about the hunting trips I’ve been on. The exact memories of my first buck I shot with my Dad, my last buck I shot while hunting with my Dad. He’s gone now but those memories will never die until I do. I’ve asked my sons if they will hunt once I’m gone. I haven’t really had a good answer from them. I love to hunt with my boys, but I’m feeling like I have a few more good hunts to go on and it will be time to pass the torch.

I pretty much quit after my first wife died, for about ten years. There just wasn't enough of me left to get going. Then I moved to Phoenix- no hunting around there. Moved to Canada- didn't need the hassle of moving guns across the border. Moved to Montana. Now I've gotten back into it. It's tough sometimes to get up the energy to go (I think that's because I'm getting thoroughly sick of hunting alone, especially since I don't know the territory), but once I'm out it's always worthwhile. I have come to grips with the fact that I am entirely clueless about elk. Still haven't seen one. I don't have the money for good gear or guided hunts, and probably never will. I'll keep dragging my old gear out as long as I can drag my old butt out.

Hunting is way more than the kill of an animal, for me it's all about the experience of being out there in the woods or water. There are just so many places I'd like to experience. At this point, I don't think I'll ever "quit" hunting. I will always be a hunter

I know guys that stopped hunting when they had kids, never understood that.

Personally, waterfowling was my first love but I grew tired of it, the same birds at the same places. I was hunting ducks for my dog's sake. But I was still passionate about big game. Then in 2010 my 2 kids left the nest within 2 weeks of each other. My daughter off to college and my son in the Army. Suddenly I lost my hunting buddies and lost the desire to hunt completely. After a few months I decided to snap out of it and did my first NZ diy hunt. Also I had lost my dog to old age so now I had no desire to duck hunt but big game was still a passion.

Finally I decided to spice things up and go after my childhood dream of hunting all the North American species of waterfowl. Now I'm more passionate about waterfowl than I am big game. They are easier to pack out than an elk and won't cripple me. I still get the big game adventure of traveling the continent but without the expensive tag fees of big game. I still love big game but I'm definitely switching gears. But even as I say that I'm planning a tahr hunt in NZ. Every time I go I tell myself " I'm too old for this, this is my last time " but here I go again to the Southern Alps for the 5th time.

Ps. I shot that red ruddy on January 2, it was not taken out of season.

Sitting out a year or bird hunting completely cemented in my mind I don't plan on EVER giving up hunting. If I die at 80 years old on a God forsaken slope in Hells Canyon, running a couple of drahts, that's just fine with me.

I still go hunting as much as I can but now days most of the shooting I do is with a camera.

antlerradar said:

I still go hunting as much as I can but now days most of the shooting I do is with a camera.

Click to expand...

Anymore, trips I take out to your country for mule deer have become mainly photo junkets. So I guess I have "quit" in some respects, just can't seem to stop packing my .270 along though....................
One illustration of a "why".....

That's an impressive waterfowl spread. Congrats to you

glass eye said:

Ps. I shot that red ruddy on January 2, it was not taken out of season.

Click to expand...

nice old A-5 :hump:

HighWildFree,

I can see how this has happened after my seeing the cultural evolution from hunting being a primarily family and locally cultural tradition in each respective area, to a socially recorded and shared competetion.
Yes I understand that you may feel that you are suffering from something personally, when I can assure you that it is more of a systemic problem facing hunting altogether.
Your sacrifices spent helping friends to try to have a successful hunt (free guiding as you call it) is in my opinion very refreshing in an age of hunters needing to "get it done and get it on film" regardless of anything.

Personally I had seen this evolution in slow motion without knowing it and without ignoring it.
In the late 1980's up to mid 1990's our family and friends hunting group would conduct deer drives on family and friend properties with no hint of things changing for the worse.
By 2000 we went from having more ground to hunt than we could drive in a week to eventually not having enough ground to last 2 days worth of driving.
Eventually when guys could not make a solid week of hunting with us they quit showing up and quit taking vacation during our traditional gun week.

fast forward to present and when my eyes really opened:
This year I expanded my cable TV lineup to include several sportsmen's channels and outdoor "hunting" channels.
Immediately I see the commercialism of hunters not being 'allowed" to shoot an animal that was not in the frame and since these hunts were occuring on sponsor provided Outfitter lands or even on Ranches.....
You guessed it............ no shot is taken and often tag soup is served up in his "to go" cup for the long ride home.
Understand all that are reading this.....I am only giving my view of the industry because it has turned something basic into a marketplace.
What has become epidemic is that former "goals" of harvesting a quality animal have become "unrealistic" and comsuming expectations measured in inches of bone and spread.

I am heading out bow hunting next week and if I see a fat doe she is riding in my truck..........if it is a legal buck same deal.

HWF .....In closing it is my sincere hope and prayer that you can get back to the basics of hunting and get your hunting self "whole" before you can help others.
Waylon Jennings said it best........"we been so busy keepin' up the Jones............"
You know the rest of the song I am sure.

10Dogs

MTTW said:

I will probably quit after I get done checking out all of the places I am interested in. I should have put a dent in it if I stay healthy into my 120s. I totally cannot understand some people's reluctance to learn new areas. It is what I live for. I turned 56 the other day, and my desire to hunt is as strong as ever.

Click to expand...

I'll spend my 56'th in a couple days chasing antelope and turkeys out of a small canvas spike tent. Hunted huns with my veteran yesterday and roosters this morning with my little wire faced girl. Would like to think I'll be doing it til the end. Reality sometimes plays cruel jokes. My mom's husband, 87, was born in a mud roofed place at the foot of the Crazies. Spent his whole life on a horse allover this country - guiding elk and sheep hunters in the AB, Spanish Peaks, Gallatin Crest, etc. His body and eye sight gave out. Now he reminisces - a lot................
Enjoy it while it's here.

This year I expanded my cable TV lineup to include several sportsmen's channels and outdoor "hunting" channels.
Immediately I see the commercialism of hunters not being 'allowed" to shoot an animal that was not in the frame and since these hunts were occuring on sponsor provided Outfitter lands or even on Ranches.....
You guessed it............ no shot is taken and often tag soup is served up in his "to go" cup for the long ride home.
Understand all that are reading this.....I am only giving my view of the industry because it has turned something basic into a marketplace.

I quit watching all outdoor porno a few years ago. My cynicism needs no help - besides, if you get enough, no need to watch it on video. C'mon - I mean hunting!:hump:

Quit. Small four letter word. Until you do it. mtmuley