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What did you learn this year hunting

I learned that i love saddle hunting and i paid more attention to my approach to my hunting areas this year. So far my season is pretty good,although i got a lot less time in hunting than i hoped,but that happens every year.
I paid attention to deer i saw in the dark on my drive to my opening day spot. I was going to hunt a swamp bottom but two groups of deer i saw when i drove around the area were headed to high ground. So i decided to get on a ridge point between a couple of oak groves. I was thinking about dropping down a bench on the leeward side of the ridge,but i wouldn't have been able to see the top of the ridge from there. While i was debating my next move a nice buck popped up on the ridge upwind from me,on a trail from the one oak grove to the next. My biggest racked buck yet.
I also learned it is good to be lucky.20201121_213948.jpg
 
I learned I did not hunt enough. I love the woods.
I will saddle hunt for turkeys just to spend more time in the saddle and scout for next season.
I learned 2020 was a very weird year especially for hunting.
 
Additionally I learned I can sell things I don’t think I need or want then buy them back.— no judgement please
I learned howto stay clam when I gaff out
I learned a very simple method for a squeeze when you gaff out— thanks YouTube guy — it worked
I learned gravity dictates comfort
I learned more about rope and knots then I thought possible
 
I learned that:
  1. One sticking and rappelling down is much better than I originally realized;
  2. I am constantly refining my equipment, techniques and my preconceived notions about different aspects of SHing;
  3. Although my goal is to always try to kill a nice buck, I am also spending more time and effort on my gear refinement to develop a system I can use anywhere, anytime and anyplace II may end up hunting;
  4. Having gear that works and is easy to take anywhere opens up your hunting success probability exponentially;
  5. There is a freedom to Saddle hunting that doesn't lock you into locations, stands and other routines of hunting which brings enjoyment back and keeps things fresh and new;
  6. The guys from THP would rather hunt deer like turkeys than like deer. Which is cool!!!
 
In SE WI if you don’t kill a mature Buck prior to the opening of Gun Deer you probably won’t kill one.

Those orange blobs walk everywhere and i’ve bizarrely seen them in public parking lots gearing up to walk in 35 minutes prior to the end of shooting light??? Not sure how you think you can get in anywhere, set up, and actually kill a deer in 35 minutes but especially when you’re doing it during that magical last half hour of the day???

Mature Bucks have been pushed miles away from the quiet, out of the way spots i bowhunted (and saw mature bucks) prior to the gun deer opener and the orange invasion.
 
I want to echo OP’s #1- don’t overthink things. I set up near most “obvious” signs and saw lots of deer including big bucks. Missed a giant in WI then shot my personal best in MN. With that first WI miss, I also learned to keep reminding myself to aim low, armpit vs center of lungs (big guy ducked me hard at 25 yards). A great year all around, especially on public.
 
First year saddle hunting.. I learned
1. I love saddle hunting. For all the reasons listed throughout this year, here.
2. Its tough getting your final setup. Having bought/sold 2 sets of sticks, 2 saddles, and 6 backpacks this year as an example.
3. This site is the best site to learn from, and youtube has the best videos to learn from.
4. Research, research, research is the way to go, for anything but ESPECIALLY equipment. Ropes, knots, carabiners, saddles...etc. Asking is okay, but not a substitute for your own research.
5. Milkweed is awesome.
6. Its an absolute rush like no other when it all comes together and you have a bow harvest in your saddle. Doe, buck it doesn't matter.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS YALL!!
 
I learned not to get skunked on bow season or your wife may become madder than you thought she could about how much your hunting. .... I had a great time and saw more deer and bigger bucks than ever but even though I put in the time and continually practice, sometimes the 10% of hunting that is luck just doesnt fall your way. But keep your head up and enjoy every minute of it. On to gun till my freezer is full then the bow comes back out....
 
I learned that:
1.scent control makes a big difference in the amount of deer you see.
2. Hunting higher makes a huge difference in getting out of their peripheral vision.
3. Hunting less often can make a big difference in how many deer you see. Not pounding the same spot over and over.
4. Ground hunting is awesome when the time comes for it.
 
1. Did some ground hunting this year and it's a lot of fun. Learned it's a nice change up from lots of sitting in a saddle and it will be a tactic I mix in moving forward.
2. Learned that when ground hunting, setup somewhere you can stand up! Yesterday I missed a nice buck 2, yes 2 times because I was under some limbs and couldn't stand up and I underestimated the amount of golden rod stems between me and the buck's vitals.
3. First year doing some mobile hunts vs. all presets. Learned that my new setup is too heavy with 4 helium sticks and a cranford ROS, and I need to get setup for one sticking or another lighter weight method.
4. First time using toilet paper pieces to mark last blood. For a long blood trail it's unreal how much this helps and how.much time it saves.
5. Most importantly, I learned to stop waiting and hoping. Last day of archery season in PA I saw a buck following a doe 500 yd away about 2 hr before dark. First time ever trying it- I got out of the tree and went after him. Even though I didn't see him again at least I gave myself a chance at him.
 
raisins said:
1. I need to be quicker to move on from a bad spot. If I scout a few days on a WMA and only see 1 or 2 deer and never find an area with a lot of sign (a random walk would have found some at that point), then the place doesn't have many deer and I should probably move on and not spend weeks trying to find that golden spot that probably doesn't exist.
2. The combo of people baiting for deer and poaching makes most smaller WMAs in rural areas of WV unhuntable for mature bucks. Also, areas where people live interspersed within the larger national forest are similar. I talked for an hour with a self-admitted poacher that confirmed this (and that there is no fear of getting caught). Maybe he was trying to justify what he does, but basically everyone in that area shoots deer all year for lack of something better to do. He tried to act like a good poacher because he only does it for meat and takes does and not bucks and he uses all the meat.
3. During the rut, I need to be more willing to hunt areas where bucks would cruise even if there is not much sign there (but there are does) and even if it is somewhere they wouldn't be outside of the rut (main logging road trail or in the open on a field edge at noon).
Click to expand...

@raisins you totally nailed what I have been learning too! I don't know why I think I can find a magical bubble within some of these bad spots that hold the biggest and most awesome deer. Sometimes ya just gotta cut bait right?

Also think your point about going against your instincts to hunt rut spots that may have no sign. My best buck ever this year was cruising through a spot that had nothing in it for sign. No rubs, no scrapes, nothing. He was just going in between bedding areas and that's the only way I could explain it.
 
1. Basemap works much better for me. Wind cone and setting ideal wind for every stand is great.

2. Saddle hunting has taught me to slow down my climb up the tree. Since i use cranford steps, they are much safer and although i'm older, it is easier to go up without breaking a sweat because i have to take more time to install every step.

3. Game wardens/biologists do bent the rules for their friends. Since i have worked in law enforcement, i knew it was true in the police force and definitely department of corrections but didn't see it in the warden world until this year. Sad.

4. Aluminum arrows are still the best choice for whitetail tree stand hunting. Never have they failed me.

5. I really hate Archerytalk. It has changed this year.... so i guess you guys have to put up with me now.

6. Hunting multiple locations is the key to seeing more deer. I did not hunt twice in the same stand yet this year.
 
Lessons learned -
1) Practice tree ascents a few more times with bulky clothes. The first couple outings up were, let's call them "learning experiences"...
2) Do more in-season scouting. Work really put a squeeze on my hunting time this season, so I hunted spots I had found during my winter/spring scouting excursions without re-scouting to see if the sign from last season was showing up again...
3) Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS) - I have a tendency to over analyze gear and ground. Just need to let it go and follow my instinct and what the sign is telling me...
 
I've learned:

-The basics of building my own arrows and moving to a heavy arrow setup
-Cyber scouting is king if you cant get boots on the ground
-To move to a new spot if one area doesnt produce. I like to give the spot a morning and an evening hunt, preferably back to back.
-I am not going back to a tree stand.
-To trust my gut on where to setup
-More about taxidermy and deer poses and what the process is.
-To Hunt from the ground
-To use the wind
-To use a camera for photography and videography
-To sharpen my own broadheads and knives
 
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