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Too Picky

Kansas is a big state, just saying. It's not like some does put the buck's picture on the back of a milk carton with a caption "Have you seen Joe?" Will a picture give away where he was killed? Now if it's just "I don't post kill pics", that's a different story and I think almost everybody will respect that.
Where I was hunting trail cam pics and kill pics are never posted to the internet. They are very private about such things.
 
One of the things that I’ve been working on is managing my expectations. It’s important to me that I set goals that are reasonable for my skill level and the places that I hunt. There’s a lot of hunting media right now that is setting unreasonable standards. Even simple things in the common vernacular like “shooter buck” skew many people’s expectations. There are a few YouTube channels that were promoting this perspective and may have recognized the trend they were participating in and have since diversified and are now posting content that’s more in line with the average hunter’s experience.

it’s really good for each of us to set realistic goals and then pursue them diligently. One hunters goal might be to kill a 200” inch buck - which means passing on the 190” buck that passes by your stand. If that’s your goal you’ve gotta be prepared in advance for that choice. Another hunters goal might be to kill a deer with the long bow - which means you leave the compound bow at home AND you don’t hesitate to let an arrow fly when a spikehorn walks in.

So whatever your goals are, don’t be ashamed and don’t be too proud to stick with your intentions and make it happen. The great thing about hunting is that each and every one of us has a different relationship with the process. Hunting can be whatever you want it to be.
 
One of the things that I’ve been working on is managing my expectations. It’s important to me that I set goals that are reasonable for my skill level and the places that I hunt. There’s a lot of hunting media right now that is setting unreasonable standards. Even simple things in the common vernacular like “shooter buck” skew many people’s expectations. There are a few YouTube channels that were promoting this perspective and may have recognized the trend they were participating in and have since diversified and are now posting content that’s more in line with the average hunter’s experience.

it’s really good for each of us to set realistic goals and then pursue them diligently. One hunters goal might be to kill a 200” inch buck - which means passing on the 190” buck that passes by your stand. If that’s your goal you’ve gotta be prepared in advance for that choice. Another hunters goal might be to kill a deer with the long bow - which means you leave the compound bow at home AND you don’t hesitate to let an arrow fly when a spikehorn walks in.

So whatever your goals are, don’t be ashamed and don’t be too proud to stick with your intentions and make it happen. The great thing about hunting is that each and every one of us has a different relationship with the process. Hunting can be whatever you want it to be.
Well said sir
 
Get a doe tag and shoot that for meat. Also if you are going to pass a buck, you have to do it with the understanding that you might not another chance at a better buck, so you have to be willing to have tag soup. Shoot what makes you happy.

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...kinda like hunting with a stick bow. Walking in the woods with that thing in your hand, there's the possibility of seeing the biggest buck of your life and you brought the wrong tool for the job
 
...kinda like hunting with a stick bow. Walking in the woods with that thing in your hand, there's the possibility of seeing the biggest buck of your life and you brought the wrong tool for the job
That would depend entirely on your skill level with a traditional bow. :)
I shot the biggest buck of my bow hunting life, in 1991, with a custom recurve and have yet to shoot a bigger buck. He was 240# standing weight and 191# field dressed.
Recurve Buck.jpg
 
...kinda like hunting with a stick bow. Walking in the woods with that thing in your hand, there's the possibility of seeing the biggest buck of your life and you brought the wrong tool for the job
It's not the wrong tool for the job if the hunter does their part by positioning themselves properly. I have already told this story in another thread but I had a target buck at 30 yards this year with no shot as he was facing the tree head on. Something off the side of the ridge got his attention and made him nervous. He turned to leave and stopped at 35 quartering away. I absolutely could have killed that deer with my compound but not having that bow is not why I didnt kill him. That missed opportunity happened in the pre-season when I went into that spot to hang a set of sticks that I could just pop my platform or stand on when the time was right. It was the last pre-set of 7 or 8 I did that day and I was tired. Rather than prepping and hanging the right tree I opted to put the sticks on the easy tree nearby. Had I sucked it up and put in the work to prep the right tree that buck would have been broadside at 17 steps instead of head on at 30. If beating the deer on his turf is what you want most from a hunt, a trad bow is never the wrong weapon. Not every hunter has that mindset though and that is perfectly ok.
 
Mindset is more of what I was referring to.
If the big bucks you were after show up at 35 or don’t set up perfectly… even if you do set up perfectly, things don’t always play out like you anticipate. Meaning, if you would have had a weapon with further reach .. you would have killed him. Trad stuff is a commitment.
I’m 54 and past the point of killing animals with trad stuff because I’ve been there done that. Hunting is personal. I’m not knocking stick bows.

I hunt with a longbow, compound, smoke pokes and even rifles sometimes. I’m just bringing logic into the conversation. Don’t take it the wrong way.
 
Mindset is more of what I was referring to.
If the big bucks you were after show up at 35 or don’t set up perfectly… even if you do set up perfectly, things don’t always play out like you anticipate. Meaning, if you would have had a weapon with further reach .. you would have killed him. Trad stuff is a commitment.
I’m 54 and past the point of killing animals with trad stuff because I’ve been there done that. Hunting is personal. I’m not knocking stick bows.

I hunt with a longbow, compound, smoke pokes and even rifles sometimes. I’m just bringing logic into the conversation. Don’t take it the wrong way.
I dont disagree with that at all. It comes down to whether the hunter values the kill more than beating the deer at his game. It's not a right or wrong scenario at all IMO. My second encounter with that buck this past season he was following a doe. She came by broadside at 17-18 steps but she veered off and the buck cut the corner rather than following in her foot steps. He passed by at 35 in spot with a lot of limbs. Not sure I could have killed him with the compound that time or not. There was one spot I think I probably could have if he stopped right if I had bleated at him. First encounter was early season and had him at 50 broad side in the open. Had I think 11 other deer come in that evening and all of them were inside 20 at one point or another. He never got closer than about 45. The only one of those encounters that bothers me is the last one where I had him at 30. The other two hunts I feel like I controlled what I could control and it just didnt work out. I have gone back over those hunts a bunch of times and dont feel like there was anything that I could have or should have done to change the outcome. Those were three different encounters from three different locations. This season he won but this coming season, he best be on point or he will get to ride in the truck. Your comment about hunting is personal is spot on. I want to shoot him 20 or less but if wins due to something outside my control or consideration, I'm ok with that. I am not ok with him winning because of something I could have controlled. I think it is good for them to win sometimes. It keeps our appreciation for them high and keeps the fire stoked for bettering our game. Oh and btw, my drivers license says I am 56 and I am past the point of the kill being the driving force behind why and what I hope to get out of hunting. I identify as 29 though, screw 'em if they cant take a joke. ;)

Super long way to say I agree we all need to hunt our hunt but I think we also need to be happy for folks hunting their hunt wherever they happen to be in their journey.
 
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Late summer


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Mindset is more of what I was referring to.
If the big bucks you were after show up at 35 or don’t set up perfectly… even if you do set up perfectly, things don’t always play out like you anticipate. Meaning, if you would have had a weapon with further reach .. you would have killed him. Trad stuff is a commitment.
I’m 54 and past the point of killing animals with trad stuff because I’ve been there done that. Hunting is personal. I’m not knocking stick bows.

I hunt with a longbow, compound, smoke pokes and even rifles sometimes. I’m just bringing logic into the conversation. Don’t take it the wrong way.
I'm not taking it the wrong way and I'll admit to seeing deer at distance or at odd angles and thinking...."If I had my compound with my heavy arrow setup, I could kill him from here". :rolleyes:

At age 67, I feel like I'm playing "catch up" with my traditional kills and need to leave the compound at home. I've killed plenty of deer with a compound and enjoyed every one of them. As you referred, traditional gear is a commitment and I'm comfortable with that commitment. :) The only regrets I have from this past season, is my not taking the shots that were right in front of me. If nothing else....this season's experiences has taught me that I'm not a trophy hunter and having meat in the freezer means more than large antlers on the ground. :cool:
 
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