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Burned Out!!! Tips?

Jwiggins762

Jwiggins762

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2019
Messages
1,203
So season opened Oct. 15th for me, and i have around 20 sits. 0 kills and only seen 4 or 5 deer. Still learning public and its kicking my butt. Im starting to get burnt out, almost 2 years ago i made the decision to not hunt over food plots/feeders anymore. Thats also the last time I've killed a deer. Anyways what's some tips for you veteran hunters out there to not get burned out?
 
I'm right there with you. Just keep grinding. It can happen in an instant. I have been searching for more motivation as well and remembering those times when it all works out definitely helps. If your seeing sign and the occasional deer you are on the right path. Goodluck!
 
I’m not veteran hunter, but that was me a few years ago. Hunting hard all season (multiple times per week or at least every weekend) not seeing much but using every sit to learn something new. Fast forward. I am now starting to focus on quality over quantity. I am trying to focus on hunting when all the “stars” align - wind, cold front, moon, work schedule... last weekend I saw 11 deer on Saturday in Alabama. The only other day that came close was the day it snowed a couple of years ago. I’ve have hunted 6 times since the 15th but the 1st couple were observation/knocking off the dust from last year. I’ll take not seeing deer as long as I’m enjoying myself and using the time to benefit either my woodsmanship or mental health.
 
Man I can tell you keeps the “veterans” going. They keep seeing deer. They may not get a shot but they are regularly seeking deer. Again they may not be seeing them on every hunt but even if you see deer every other sit that’s going to keep you coming back.

This is my first year to have seen deer every single sit I’ve been out on and I can’t imagine getting burned out right not. Believe me in past years I got plenty burned out. Each year keeps getting better because I keep learning how better to find and pattern deer.


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Best advice I can give you is start walking. You ain’t gonna Learn squat sitting in a tree. Unless you are in a jam up spot, you’ll be hanging with the squirrels. Wear out some boot leather. Find feed trees, trails, rubs, bedding areas, jump deer, walk downwind, screw it all up. Don’t stop until the sign takes your breath away. Like @WHW says, ‘hunt sign that MAKES you climb a tree’ - how do you recognize it? Well, you gotta see a lot to know the difference. You already know what good sign doesn’t look like to this point. Go out and bump some deer man. Be too aggressive, move too much.

People may disagree, and it violates the deer hunter code of sit food or travel corridors and wait for deer that know you and every other hunter in the woods are there. They ain’t comin.

I was hardheaded about it. I finally committed to not climbing a tree unless I was supremely confident deer would be coming by, and if they didn’t, it would be a surprise. I suspect I now spend 80+% of my time in the field walking. Maybe even more. I see deer almost every hunt. Why? Not because I’m a great hunter or I’m in area with heavy deer density. It’s because I don’t hunt unless I know I’ll see deer.

Seems silly, or obvious. But most folks are not aggressive enough, either scouting or setting up. It’s just deer. They don’t bite. And if you ain’t seeing deer now, what’s worse - not seeing deer in a tree, or seeing deer running away as you’re walking by? At least with one of these options, you break the monotony/learn something/see a deer.
 
I'm pushing 70, if you want to kill a deer, hunt where they are and how you can make it happen( food plots/bait etc) If you want to test your skills, create some skills by scouting, and don't go expecting to kill or see deer every time you set up. Short hunts and enjoy what you can see while in the woods, walk away with something good from every hunt. My best hunts I have ever been on I did not see a deer, but what I did see made up for it many times over.
 
Agree with @kyler1945 but just do it wisely, and that will come with doing as well. Try to plan your walks into the wind if possible. Walk slowly, plan to walk to areas that you think will be productive. Terrain features etc. I started doing this during the last couple seasons and along with off season scouting it really has helped.
 

Archery Only?

Who here exclusively hunts with a bow? What reasons do you have for staying bow only? Have you ever regretted taking your bow instead of a rifle? I am bow only by both preference and necessity. I enjoy archery as much if not more than hunting alone. I love shooting and tweaking my bows. Archery...
saddlehunter.com

I committed to using a bow only last year and if it wasn't for the grocery store I would be vegetarian only haha. Turns out sitting in the corner of a big field and wacking deer on the other side with rile didn't make me much of a bow hunter.

But... I have learned more about deer (and turkey in spring) in a season and a half with no kills than I did in the last 25 years all put together with a rifle / shotgun. Its been good. And yes, sometimes a grind.
 
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KyleR has it right and especially if you are hunting public.Scout daily.There is no better information than most recent information.If you are being too conservative in fear of bumping deer.Here is what i know from years of public hunting in my area.If you think you are gonna just fall into this perfect place where no one is going and no one is bumping deer then you are gonna be sorely disappointed.Too many hunters for that not to happen especially in states with really long gun seasons such as Ga Al Sc or Fl.Get aggressive Log lots of good spots to hunt and hunt them on good winds.You will see more deer.The old holing up waiting them out approach SUCKS
 
I have a farm I hunt. Yes it's not public but it might as well be for the challenge it presents. There are cattle all over the place and the farmer is constantly moving crap around the property so the deer are almost never in the same place twice. I've hunted it 4 years. Every year deer came same spot. This year, trail cams had nothing. Have to figure it out all over again. I was getting frustrated until I changed my perspective. I decided to look at it as a challenge and if I saw deer that was the icing on the cake.
Yesterday poured over topos and set up a place I've never set before, saw three deer opposite me on the other side of the fence.
My advice would be to look at maps and find the funnels/bedding areas/trees that drop food/etc but find them in the difficult areas to access, then go there. As it's been said many time lots of public land hunters are lazy. Go the extra mile and go deep. Also, since you'll (presumably) be going deep make sure your scent control game is on point.
 
Whenever I start to feel burnt out or am not seeing the deer I want to be seeing I leave the saddle gear in the truck, grab my bow and start covering ground. It's extremely refreshing and SO MUCH FUN. I try to do this on when there's not a lot of other hunters in the woods, as to not piss them off and also so I don't bump deer to them. Just in the last 2 weeks I've had a threatening letter left on my windshield and another guy tell me I'll never kill a deer from the ground with a bow. Little does he know I've shot 2 from the ground this year and missed another 2. Yesterday evening I walked the upwind side of a thicket, circled around to the downwind side and caught a 10 point sneaking out the back door. I got drawn back on him but no shot due to the thick brush. Don't be afraid to try something new or off-the-wall, and try to learn something every time out.
 
Jwiggins762 said:
So season opened Oct. 15th for me, and i have around 20 sits. 0 kills and only seen 4 or 5 deer. Still learning public and its kicking my butt. Im starting to get burnt out, almost 2 years ago i made the decision to not hunt over food plots/feeders anymore. Thats also the last time I've killed a deer. Anyways what's some tips for you veteran hunters out there to not get burned out?
Click to expand...
The more homework you can do the better. Public land truly is all about learning the land and taking what the woods will give you
 
In addition to all the great advice above, most of the best deer I’ve shot came in when I was in a “this feels like a waste of time” mood, or I was burnt out. So many times things have felt perfect and nothing developed, or I’ve been on long sits that started to feel pointless and a deer shows up. Yep keep grinding, but yep also make sure you have confidence in your spot, and scout until that happens.
 
kyler1945 said:
Best advice I can give you is start walking. You ain’t gonna Learn squat sitting in a tree. Unless you are in a jam up spot, you’ll be hanging with the squirrels. Wear out some boot leather. Find feed trees, trails, rubs, bedding areas, jump deer, walk downwind, screw it all up. Don’t stop until the sign takes your breath away. Like @WHW says, ‘hunt sign that MAKES you climb a tree’ - how do you recognize it? Well, you gotta see a lot to know the difference. You already know what good sign doesn’t look like to this point. Go out and bump some deer man. Be too aggressive, move too much.

People may disagree, and it violates the deer hunter code of sit food or travel corridors and wait for deer that know you and every other hunter in the woods are there. They ain’t comin.

I was hardheaded about it. I finally committed to not climbing a tree unless I was supremely confident deer would be coming by, and if they didn’t, it would be a surprise. I suspect I now spend 80+% of my time in the field walking. Maybe even more. I see deer almost every hunt. Why? Not because I’m a great hunter or I’m in area with heavy deer density. It’s because I don’t hunt unless I know I’ll see deer.

Seems silly, or obvious. But most folks are not aggressive enough, either scouting or setting up. It’s just deer. They don’t bite. And if you ain’t seeing deer now, what’s worse - not seeing deer in a tree, or seeing deer running away as you’re walking by? At least with one of these options, you break the monotony/learn something/see a deer.
Click to expand...

@kyler1945 you are really good at words. @Jwiggins762 if you could only take one thing from this thread,” It’s just deer. They don’t bite.” It don’t matter if you bump a deer. Yeah you may not kill it that day, but you learned what conditions that deer used to bed in that spot. A lot can be learned from bumping deer.
 
Take a day or two off to access where you are are hunting and things you can do better. Just relax, and enjoy being in the woods. It wa my first sit all season today and I took my 13 year old out we saw a few does and some turkeys, it just takes time. Once you bust the bubble, it seems that it all comes together.
 
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