nhrugga
New Member
I usually just pour over the success stories just chompin' at the bit to someday add a big buck story or post a sweet rack picture. I started looking at this section and realized maybe I do have a little to add. My unsuccessful hunts really boil down to one thing "major inexperience".
I was really thinking hard about this the other day after listening to a podcast where the host was interviewing John Eberhart. I was grocery shopping and at one point in one of his stories he described me to a tee! He was talking about, what I like to call a full on "DUB". He mentioned the way he watched this guy walk in and he just sort of watched in amazement as this guy seemingly just stacked the odds against himself by making all of these bad mistakes. I stopped shopping for a moment and hung my head... I truly realized just how bad I was as he listed these mistakes off. I realized that though the guy he was talking about wasn't literally me, however in a figurative sense I have definitely been "that guy". The brief shame passed, I keyed in on the fact that John was self taught and had no family or close friends to learn from and I picked my head up and continued to listen just attempting to soak up more knowledge so I can truly prevent being that guy ever again. In one of the SH podcasts the guys talk about learning from bad hunts as much as the successful hunts. So what follows is my version of something maybe successful hunters can learn from.
Last season I finally had the time to get out and hunt more than a handful of days. I was determined to make the best go of it. I invested in a few more tangibles to get going but I lacked in the one area I really truly needed; a clue as to what I was doing. I was convinced I was going to do it right. I started scouting early..haha 2 weeks before firearms season. To make things even better (read aloud as "worse") I talked to a college buddy that grew up hunting and he let me borrow a tree stand he just used out back to practice flinging arrows from. I set out to put it up in the same general area as another hunters stand a whopping 3 days prior to opening day for firearms. I liked the spot and felt good about my chosen site. The public land I was hunting is small and relatively close to my house so it gives me more opportunity to rush home from work and climb into the stand. I talked to local residents to assure them that I was an ethical and safe hunter, which is the one thing I can cling to. I requested permission in advance to track any deer I may shoot so that I wouldn't be blindsiding anyone. They were all good with me so I was definitely feeling confident. One woman told me that her brother in law actually hunted this same property for years so I should talk to him. I told her most definitely I would definitely like to zip a text or call in advance so as not to walk in on him hunting the tree stand close to where I had set up. The first night I went out for firearms season he left a note on my windshield and I promptly called and after no answer I sent a text introducing myself and letting him know I was available to talk.
Two days later, about 10 minutes after sunset, I hear someone shuffling behind me and as soon as he is in range he says "How's it going??" in a tone that just clearly expresses some sort of angst. I thought to myself OK, here we go?? I gave him a half-hearted reply and then figured the day was over so I climb down to introduce myself. Turns out its the brother in law of the woman I had spoken to and he has some choice words for my stand placement. "Any F'in reason you put your stand 30' from mine, I mean what kind of A-hole does that?" Long story short, I ate humble pie for a bit, admitted I'm still learning and I didn't mean to step on toes but it's a small area. I offered to take it down that night and even let the statements go about "you could have just used my stand". Like I would ever assume to just use someones gear. I let him come on strong for about 6 "A-holes" and finally I started losing my temper. I was literally seconds from tossing my pistol and knife out to the ground and laying my shotgun down and just asking him how we could resolve this dispute. I shifted my stance looked him right in the face and told him that at this point I was getting irritated and that I was through with hearing him call me an A-hole out the side of his neck. I told him I wasn't going to apologize any further. I was ready to just throw the "public land" blah blah blah "I can put my stand in the same tree as yours if I wanted to..." etc... I think he reconsidered rather rapidly and understood that I may be a rookie but I'd be damned if I was going to be intimidated and chased away from my god given right to do what I was doing.
Friends have told me that my face shifts sort of demonically when I lose my temper..apparently there was a plan by some of my own teammates to tackle me in my younger rugby days if I made that face in a match. In the end, things smoothed over rather quickly and he started feeding me information about which bucks were around and how I should play the wind in this tricky spot etc..He stressed to me about how much effort he puts into his hunting and just what he considers each time he gets up to go. Before you know it we were in the pitch dark beside my truck as he tried to get me to buy a duck stamp and not to worry about the rest, but he had everything I needed to go duck hunting with him etc.. He turned out to be somewhat of an ally in the end after a rather quick heated and highly contentious confrontation.
Since that encounter I have read, watched, eaten, drank, breathed everything I can about hunting. I have overflowed my cup numerous times in my thirst for knowledge and I have made major changes to the way I am approaching the coming season. I scouted early on and have learned a tremendous amount about how the deer move. I have changed my strategy (hence the saddle purchase) and even picked up the crossbow (trick shoulders never allowed me to pull a bow) to extend my hunting season past the tiny firearms season in NH. I am practicing scent control, I will be taking shots from all angles when my saddle arrives. I am getting in better shape physically in preparation for the upcoming season. The only downside to the last bit of preparation is that I have lost a lot of natural insulation and will now need to purchase more gear to substitute.
The lesson I hope to offer is that even us DUBs may not be beyond saving..I am insanely passionate about this and I want to learn and I desperately wish to succeed. My confidence now, is such that I went ahead and grabbed the one-time only special archery tag for the upcoming season so that I can take an additional antlered deer when the time comes. If I had to put a price tag on this years harvest it would start at a little over 2 grand for the first deer...but seriously the whole experience is well worth it to me. Also, dont tell my wife that last thing. I am exploring hunting later in life than I intended but it just adds to my love of being out in the woods. It gives me more reason to venture into the wilderness. When I become proficient I plan to add some travel to up my game, so to speak. If you see a DUB out there ruining yours and his hunt...feel him out and if it's worth your time give him some knowledge, share some ideas, clue him in on youtube, hunting forums, and podcasts.
I was really thinking hard about this the other day after listening to a podcast where the host was interviewing John Eberhart. I was grocery shopping and at one point in one of his stories he described me to a tee! He was talking about, what I like to call a full on "DUB". He mentioned the way he watched this guy walk in and he just sort of watched in amazement as this guy seemingly just stacked the odds against himself by making all of these bad mistakes. I stopped shopping for a moment and hung my head... I truly realized just how bad I was as he listed these mistakes off. I realized that though the guy he was talking about wasn't literally me, however in a figurative sense I have definitely been "that guy". The brief shame passed, I keyed in on the fact that John was self taught and had no family or close friends to learn from and I picked my head up and continued to listen just attempting to soak up more knowledge so I can truly prevent being that guy ever again. In one of the SH podcasts the guys talk about learning from bad hunts as much as the successful hunts. So what follows is my version of something maybe successful hunters can learn from.
Last season I finally had the time to get out and hunt more than a handful of days. I was determined to make the best go of it. I invested in a few more tangibles to get going but I lacked in the one area I really truly needed; a clue as to what I was doing. I was convinced I was going to do it right. I started scouting early..haha 2 weeks before firearms season. To make things even better (read aloud as "worse") I talked to a college buddy that grew up hunting and he let me borrow a tree stand he just used out back to practice flinging arrows from. I set out to put it up in the same general area as another hunters stand a whopping 3 days prior to opening day for firearms. I liked the spot and felt good about my chosen site. The public land I was hunting is small and relatively close to my house so it gives me more opportunity to rush home from work and climb into the stand. I talked to local residents to assure them that I was an ethical and safe hunter, which is the one thing I can cling to. I requested permission in advance to track any deer I may shoot so that I wouldn't be blindsiding anyone. They were all good with me so I was definitely feeling confident. One woman told me that her brother in law actually hunted this same property for years so I should talk to him. I told her most definitely I would definitely like to zip a text or call in advance so as not to walk in on him hunting the tree stand close to where I had set up. The first night I went out for firearms season he left a note on my windshield and I promptly called and after no answer I sent a text introducing myself and letting him know I was available to talk.
Two days later, about 10 minutes after sunset, I hear someone shuffling behind me and as soon as he is in range he says "How's it going??" in a tone that just clearly expresses some sort of angst. I thought to myself OK, here we go?? I gave him a half-hearted reply and then figured the day was over so I climb down to introduce myself. Turns out its the brother in law of the woman I had spoken to and he has some choice words for my stand placement. "Any F'in reason you put your stand 30' from mine, I mean what kind of A-hole does that?" Long story short, I ate humble pie for a bit, admitted I'm still learning and I didn't mean to step on toes but it's a small area. I offered to take it down that night and even let the statements go about "you could have just used my stand". Like I would ever assume to just use someones gear. I let him come on strong for about 6 "A-holes" and finally I started losing my temper. I was literally seconds from tossing my pistol and knife out to the ground and laying my shotgun down and just asking him how we could resolve this dispute. I shifted my stance looked him right in the face and told him that at this point I was getting irritated and that I was through with hearing him call me an A-hole out the side of his neck. I told him I wasn't going to apologize any further. I was ready to just throw the "public land" blah blah blah "I can put my stand in the same tree as yours if I wanted to..." etc... I think he reconsidered rather rapidly and understood that I may be a rookie but I'd be damned if I was going to be intimidated and chased away from my god given right to do what I was doing.
Friends have told me that my face shifts sort of demonically when I lose my temper..apparently there was a plan by some of my own teammates to tackle me in my younger rugby days if I made that face in a match. In the end, things smoothed over rather quickly and he started feeding me information about which bucks were around and how I should play the wind in this tricky spot etc..He stressed to me about how much effort he puts into his hunting and just what he considers each time he gets up to go. Before you know it we were in the pitch dark beside my truck as he tried to get me to buy a duck stamp and not to worry about the rest, but he had everything I needed to go duck hunting with him etc.. He turned out to be somewhat of an ally in the end after a rather quick heated and highly contentious confrontation.
Since that encounter I have read, watched, eaten, drank, breathed everything I can about hunting. I have overflowed my cup numerous times in my thirst for knowledge and I have made major changes to the way I am approaching the coming season. I scouted early on and have learned a tremendous amount about how the deer move. I have changed my strategy (hence the saddle purchase) and even picked up the crossbow (trick shoulders never allowed me to pull a bow) to extend my hunting season past the tiny firearms season in NH. I am practicing scent control, I will be taking shots from all angles when my saddle arrives. I am getting in better shape physically in preparation for the upcoming season. The only downside to the last bit of preparation is that I have lost a lot of natural insulation and will now need to purchase more gear to substitute.
The lesson I hope to offer is that even us DUBs may not be beyond saving..I am insanely passionate about this and I want to learn and I desperately wish to succeed. My confidence now, is such that I went ahead and grabbed the one-time only special archery tag for the upcoming season so that I can take an additional antlered deer when the time comes. If I had to put a price tag on this years harvest it would start at a little over 2 grand for the first deer...but seriously the whole experience is well worth it to me. Also, dont tell my wife that last thing. I am exploring hunting later in life than I intended but it just adds to my love of being out in the woods. It gives me more reason to venture into the wilderness. When I become proficient I plan to add some travel to up my game, so to speak. If you see a DUB out there ruining yours and his hunt...feel him out and if it's worth your time give him some knowledge, share some ideas, clue him in on youtube, hunting forums, and podcasts.
