|
|
Post by onebentarrow on Oct 18, 2021 13:03:19 GMT -5
I have read many posts about members going fishing just for catch and release or passing deer while hunting or just riding an atv just for fun. Don't get me wrong i am not knocking this it is just that i can not understand that thought process. I have never been able to do some thing (just for fun) like catch and release. I go fishing to get some thing to eat.
Now i do enjoy fishing,it is relaxing,fun entertaining and a great way to spend time with family and friends. If i do not catch any keepers that is ok i am not mad about it a little disappointed i could not figure the fish out. And hunting when i deer hunt i am looking to put meat on the table. I enjoy hunting emencely and if i do not get a deer i am ok with that but if a legale deer presents a good shot i am going to shoot. I have an ATV but it is a tool i use, i enjoy riding it but i use it to haul wood,drag deer out of the woods haul equipment to clean trails in the woods and things of that nature.
I do not know if this thought process is from the fact i never had a great paying job and had to justify every penny spent and its benifet or the fact that i was a work a holic (had to always be doing something productive) when i was younger or a combination of these.
Please understand i am NOT looking for sympathy,these are just the facts of my life.
Now my question. How do you justify catch and release,how do you justify passing deer,what do you get from it? What benifets do you recieve from these actions? Is the monetary expenditure not a problem. How do you justify the time spent verses the reward.
Also how do you justify a lease? I can not because i can buy a years supply of beef for that amount of money.
Again i am not slighting anyone for there hunting fishing atv riding i am curious. You all are my brothers in the out doors i want to learn how you think so i can better understand you and your needs in the outdoors as you under stand mine
Side note. Maybe some under stand now why i did not let him walk and why that statement feels like a knife in the back and why i am as elated with that 4 point as you are with that 10. Beleve it or not to some of us,it is not about (THE HORNS)
SENCERELY
ONEBENTARROW
|
|
|
|
Post by Mack Apiary Bees on Oct 18, 2021 13:18:24 GMT -5
When I was young I hunted deer to put food on the table. Didn't let many deer pass, but today I don't have to kill a deer to put food on the table. I prefer to have venison, but not demanding. Good mix of beef and deer. So I prefer a 1.5 yr. old doe so I pass until I see a doe with one fawn. If that doesn't happen I will take any doe after gun opening weekend. Last dozen years I've taken cameras to shoot a deer.
Fishing: 90% time I just enjoy the time away from work. Mental grounding. Just to enjoy the beauty of mother nature.
|
|
|
|
Post by tine-n-spur on Oct 18, 2021 13:51:27 GMT -5
I have read many posts about members going fishing just for catch and release or passing deer while hunting or just riding an atv just for fun. Don't get me wrong i am not knocking this it is just that i can not understand that thought process. I have never been able to do some thing (just for fun) like catch and release. I go fishing to get some thing to eat. Now i do enjoy fishing,it is relaxing,fun entertaining and a great way to spend time with family and friends. If i do not catch any keepers that is ok i am not mad about it a little disappointed i could not figure the fish out. And hunting when i deer hunt i am looking to put meat on the table. I enjoy hunting emencely and if i do not get a deer i am ok with that but if a legale deer presents a good shot i am going to shoot. I have an ATV but it is a tool i use, i enjoy riding it but i use it to haul wood,drag deer out of the woods haul equipment to clean trails in the woods and things of that nature. I do not know if this thought process is from the fact i never had a great paying job and had to justify every penny spent and its benifet or the fact that i was a work a holic (had to always be doing something productive) when i was younger or a combination of these. Please understand i am NOT looking for sympathy,these are just the facts of my life. Now my question. How do you justify catch and release,how do you justify passing deer,what do you get from it? What benifets do you recieve from these actions? Is the monetary expenditure not a problem. How do you justify the time spent verses the reward. Also how do you justify a lease? I can not because i can buy a years supply of beef for that amount of money. Again i am not slighting anyone for there hunting fishing atv riding i am curious. You all are my brothers in the out doors i want to learn how you think so i can better understand you and your needs in the outdoors as you under stand mine Side note. Maybe some under stand now why i did not let him walk and why that statement feels like a knife in the back and why i am as elated with that 4 point as you are with that 10. Beleve it or not to some of us,it is not about (THE HORNS) SENCERELY ONEBENTARROW I share many of your thoughts so I understand where you’re coming from. I do not on my own land I hunt a friends property, I use my ATV to drag deer out of the woods, age and medical issues make it a necessity. I have a Boone and Crockett deer but, I harvest what the law allows with no regard to antler size because venison is a large part of my diet. It’s the same way with fish I keep,clean,cook and eat all that is legal. |
|
|
|
Post by whitetaildave24 on Oct 18, 2021 18:44:19 GMT -5
It’s just about being out there for me. I’ve passed plenty of deer just because that’s what I felt like doing. I try to wait for a mature buck, but if the moments right I’ll kill a fork horn. We fish nearly every weekend during the summer, but rarely keep anything. We just enjoy fishing, but don’t need them and most the time don’t feel like messing with them after a day on the water.
Hunting and fishing are just things I enjoy doing and don’t need to justify, either monetarily or physically, and bring something back every opportunity that presents itself. To each their own though. I‘ll be right there in line to congratulate anyone on their catches and kills, so long as it’s all within the law.
|
|
|
|
Post by deadeer on Oct 18, 2021 19:25:42 GMT -5
Do what makes you happy. I try to harvest enough deer to hold us over for the year. Sometimes we get more, sometimes less. Since deer is a short window for me with only a few bow hunts, then a week of gun and a week of mz, I cant be too picky. With fish, it's a 3 season adventure, so can be more selective.
|
|
|
|
Post by bowonlykindofguy1 on Oct 18, 2021 19:33:07 GMT -5
I let deer walk every year,only because my wife doesn't like venison and one will last me for 2 years. But I grew up hunting in the 70,s and 80,s when it was buck only,and you were lucky to take one. So I guess I enjoy hunting deer and seeing nature more than killing a deer I don't need. That is my reason I guess
|
|
|
|
Post by duff on Oct 18, 2021 19:37:25 GMT -5
We all have personal reasons for why or how we spend our time and or money. As many individuals there are will result in as many responses.
I release as many fish as I keep. I fish quite a bit and eat plenty. I guess the old motorcycle saying of I live to ride and ride to live is the same for me but put fish instead of ride.
|
|
|
|
Post by esshup on Oct 18, 2021 23:57:08 GMT -5
I'll let deer walk because a tag was filled or I'm waiting for a bigger one. Some fish are released because I am fishing private waters and there is a cull slot limit or a "no take" for some species/size of fish. My ATV is a tool, as I get older, more things demand my time and my "free time" seems to be in shorter and shorter supply.
|
|
|
|
Post by genesis273 on Oct 19, 2021 4:32:56 GMT -5
I let fish go because I don't necessarily like eating all fish. I'm not that great at cleaning them either. If I were better at it I would probably eat more. I know practice would help but, I hate wasting the meat. YouTube can only teach me so much I guess.
As for letting deer walk, turkeys too for that matter, sometimes I just simply don't want to kill anything. I'd rather enjoy their beauty. Other times it's because of conservation efforts. I have never had a large deer heard on my permission piece. The county block I hunt on receives a lot of hunting pressure from neighboring hunters as well. So, I have not allowed myself to shoot any does in the past.
I don't own an ATV because I can't justify the cost. It's not something I enjoy riding for fun nor do I have the land (I only live on 3 acres) that requires it.
|
|
|
|
Post by span870 on Oct 19, 2021 6:29:38 GMT -5
I'd imagine a lot of mine has to do with getting older. When I was younger, if I hunted something had to die. As I got older and bought my own house with a small farm, I believe I got to the point where you just get tired of stuff dying. I may take a deer every couple of years but I can find more excuses at this point for letting one walk then I can pulling the trigger. Being a self absorbed "trophy hunter" at a younger age killed the desire for me. I couldn't tell you the amount of money I have wrapped up in my hounds at this point. Definitely could buy a nice truck. I haven't shot a rabbit, well couldn't tell you the last time. My dogs have caught more rabbits in the last couple years than I have shot in the last ten. I tell myself if I shoot em I can't chase em anymore but to be honest I have properties that are over run with rabbits and taking some out wouldn't hurt a thing. Truth is, I just don't like killing stuff or seeing stuff die anymore. Will I be out there with a gun this and every year? Absolutely. Now turkeys. I'll smoke one every year. Has to meet a criteria and it's a high standard to meet. Gobble all the way in. 20 yards or less and has to be in woods, no field birds, no decoys. I will let 5 mature birds walk before I kill one. I think I'm more okay with it because it's an actual one on one challenge the way I hunt. We both know exactly where each other is at all times and I have to make him come to an exact spot, not hiding and waiting.
As far as fishing. It's just something to do when I absolutely can't find anything else to do and I'm not going to waste anymore time to clean fish.
|
|
|
|
Post by buckbuster13 on Oct 19, 2021 10:26:43 GMT -5
The movie The Deer Hunter comes to mind, when I pull up my gun or bow and just let the animal walk.
|
|
|
|
Post by steiny on Oct 19, 2021 12:30:28 GMT -5
At one time in America hunting and fishing was primarily for subsistence, now they are now mostly considered a "sport". Like any sport, the real challenge and much of the fun is in trying to improve and get better at your craft. If some game makes it to the plate in the process, great, but it's not a disaster if is doesn't as it is no longer subsistence. If you took an honest look at what you spend $$ hunting or fishing, you'd be much better off to work a couple extra hours and buy your food. If you feel like you need to bring home meat every time out, you're missing a lot of the fun.
Having said the above, I'm hugely into processing and eating all of the fish & game we harvest. Also believe it's near sinful to kill game and not use it or waste it. Not a big fan of the "hunters for hungry" type programs either, as I think it kind of encourages killing for fun. I do a lot of travel hunting and huge percentage of the traveling hunters only want to take home a rack and donate or give away the meat. Seems a bit wrong to me.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ahawkeye on Oct 19, 2021 13:01:34 GMT -5
I understand what you are saying but I like to let the little deer walk as far as shooting a doe or not it just depends how far from the truck I am. If I'm at one particular spot, if it's not a bigger buck I'm not pulling the trigger, I'd rather hunt than butcher deer so a doe has to be big enough to justify processing fees. Fishing is a different story, dad catches a bunch of fish so I don't need to fish for food so to speak. I like to spend time with the kids and not have to worry about cleaning fish or just bass fish with dad and not worry about cleaning fish. It makes things more simple and less like work. In fact I think that last statement about sums it up as far as fishing goes.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ahawkeye on Oct 19, 2021 13:07:01 GMT -5
At one time in America hunting and fishing was primarily for subsistence, now they are now mostly considered a "sport". Like any sport, the real challenge and much of the fun is in trying to improve and get better at your craft. If some game makes it to the plate in the process, great, but it's not a disaster if is doesn't as it is no longer subsistence. If you took an honest look at what you spend $$ hunting or fishing, you'd be much better off to work a couple extra hours and buy your food. If you feel like you need to bring home meat every time out, you're missing a lot of the fun. Having said the above, I'm hugely into processing and eating all of the fish & game we harvest. Also believe it's near sinful to kill game and not use it or waste it. Not a big fan of the "hunters for hungry" type programs either, as I think it kind of encourages killing for fun. I do a lot of travel hunting and huge percentage of the traveling hunters only want to take home a rack and donate or give away the meat. Seems a bit wrong to me. I agree, that's the good part about fishing, it's baaaaaad juju to kill something that someone will not eat. Coyotes are exempt from that though! |
|
|
|
Post by medic22 on Oct 19, 2021 13:54:54 GMT -5
I still hunt to put food on the table but I've set my own rules to follow in that process.
1. I don't knowingly shoot fawns or button bucks (unless it's a reduction hunt)
2. I don't shoot spikes (unless it's a reduction hunt)
3. I don't shoot a 2 year old before gun season unless it makes me really really happy at that moment.
Shoot whatever makes you happy. Just do it legally and ethicly and don't complain about not seeing big bucks when you shoot the first spike.
Beyond that, I don't care what someone shoots.
|
|
|
|
Post by featherduster on Oct 19, 2021 17:15:00 GMT -5
ARROW: do you own your own property to hunt and fish on?
|
|
|
|
Post by onebentarrow on Feb 23, 2022 15:51:05 GMT -5
ARROW: do you own your own property to hunt and fish on? I some how missed then when it was posted. I do not own my own land. I hunt a good friends place. |
|
|
|
Post by budd on Feb 23, 2022 17:16:30 GMT -5
I'd imagine a lot of mine has to do with getting older. When I was younger, if I hunted something had to die. As I got older and bought my own house with a small farm, I believe I got to the point where you just get tired of stuff dying. I may take a deer every couple of years but I can find more excuses at this point for letting one walk then I can pulling the trigger. Being a self absorbed "trophy hunter" at a younger age killed the desire for me. I couldn't tell you the amount of money I have wrapped up in my hounds at this point. Definitely could buy a nice truck. I haven't shot a rabbit, well couldn't tell you the last time. My dogs have caught more rabbits in the last couple years than I have shot in the last ten. I tell myself if I shoot em I can't chase em anymore but to be honest I have properties that are over run with rabbits and taking some out wouldn't hurt a thing. Truth is, I just don't like killing stuff or seeing stuff die anymore. Will I be out there with a gun this and every year? Absolutely. Now turkeys. I'll smoke one every year. Has to meet a criteria and it's a high standard to meet. Gobble all the way in. 20 yards or less and has to be in woods, no field birds, no decoys. I will let 5 mature birds walk before I kill one. I think I'm more okay with it because it's an actual one on one challenge the way I hunt. We both know exactly where each other is at all times and I have to make him come to an exact spot, not hiding and waiting. As far as fishing. It's just something to do when I absolutely can't find anything else to do and I'm not going to waste anymore time to clean fish. Same here, I grew up hunting in the early 80's-90's. Everything that came in front of me died, deer meat is what kept our family fed. Brother and myself killed a couple hundred rabbits over the hounds every winter, 100 or so squirrel every fall. Funny but I feel good watching those rabbits run by now, leaving a squirrel in a tree, watching that doe/fawn/small buck walk by. But when I go for meat, first chance I get it's like a business. Get the job done and move on to the other chores. I do enjoy catch and release fishing in the winter, but always manage to keep a gallon of fillets in the freezer. Snowmobile and 4 wheeler are tools, I dont joy ride. $hit breaks and I dont have the extra funds to fix. Dont let friends or my own son use either for joy riding. I think having been in financial situations where I HAD to make that kill or catch that fish, make's passing up those same animals that much more enjoyable today, and being able to watch them and not just see meat....but I get where you are coming from. |
|
|
|
Post by Sasquatch on Feb 23, 2022 18:00:01 GMT -5
I think I certainly understand your thought process.
For me the time invested in deer hunting does nag at me, and for most of my hunting career I would zap the first thing I saw. Part of the reason for this was I started hunting in the mid-ninties in Decatur county. Soon they really ramped up the doe permits, a little too much, and I sat in the woods a lot during some pretty cold seasons and barely saw anything when we really needed the meat. For years after that when a deer poked it's head out of the brush it got it, even when I was hunting better numbers of deer. Also, later on I had kids to feed. Those early years where we nearly starved are one of the reasons I have little patience with the people that beat up on folks for shooting a deer that doesn't meet some arbitrary trophy standard. Mind ya business.
These days I'm a little more relaxed about it, though I still have that nagging pressure that "I'm not getting anything done," while I'm sitting out there.
I still enjoy the privilege of "being out there." I saw three nice bucks last year and didn't get a clean shot at any of them. Frustrating, but I wouldn't trade the experience. I took my brother hunting ( he doesn't get many chances ) and gave him the primo spot, and he ended up killing a nice one, and I didn't. But I was over the moon for him. If ever that changed, something is wrong. Thank God I can still get out there.
Catch and release fishing was/is easier, as I rarely had time to fish so it was a holiday to start with. Most warm weather was/is occupied with work.
|
|
|
|
Post by Woody Williams on Feb 23, 2022 18:49:03 GMT -5
I think as we get older, more experienced and we "mellow out". I've told my son and grandson that it would not bother me one bit to not kill another deer. The last 4 years that my grandson has come down to hunt with me has rekindled my desire to go hunting...but not necessarily to go kill something. I'm in it for him. I would MUCH rather see him or my son kill a deer than me. Since he pretty well just gun hunts with me and I will hunt archery season I try to steer clear of the better stands saving them for him.
When he gets here I always give him stand choice and if I know a certain deer is using an area I'll put him on it. So far he has killed two small bucks and a whopper doe. The one unsuccessful year was because he passed deer up and like some of us, he ate his tag.. Dont get me wrong if I'm out there with him, sitting a stand and a buck comes along that I cant say no to I'm dropping the hammer. The one I killed in 2020 went to the grandson's freezer as that was his tag eating year.
If my grandson quit deer hunting then I'd quit too.
|
|
