Hunting & Fishing Hunting, generally

[garandman]

This won't make me "pop-u-lar" on any gun board, but then I don't look to the internet to make friends. I do that face to face.

Lemme start by saying I beleive hunting is a great pass time, and is completely, and in some ways uniquely, American. I have a half dozen friends (uhhh, real, face to face friends) that REGULALRLY hunt on my property, and I'm glad to provide the opportunity for them.

I have ZERO issue with hunters and hunting, generally. They are good people, many of which I count among my best of friends.

That said, lemme just throw out a few random comments why its not for me, yet anyway. Some day I hope to try it. (This thought process came from a pic of someone using a suppressor to hunt with. And FTR, I'm 100% FOR machine gun and suppressor ownership. I own 2 and 3, respectively)

East coast hunting is typically 100 yards and less, due to dense brush undergrowth. When I shoot rifle, I'm typically looking at 200 yards+, and under 2" groups (typically prone or with some sort of rest) Offhand, I would find it pretty darn hard to miss a deer at what are the typical east coast ranges - 50 yards and down.

Using a suppressor even gives a greater technological advantage.

Now bow hunting seems more of a challenge to me. Or maybe pig hunting like Rambo did - drop from a tree with a Kabar onto the pig and stick it in the neck.

I don't care for the taste of deer meat, and other yummy meat is plentiful in the frozen section of my local grocery store.

I enjoy the woods immensely. But don't really need huting to enhance that enjoyment. I do enjoy carrying a rifle in teh woods - just seems right somehow.

And I'm rather of a negative opinion of deer generally - they have often wrecked my cars and destroyed my landscaping.

So, hunters, please respond with either why you enjoy hunting, or a pic of your best doe / buck taken recently.

And good hunting to you all.

 

[blksno]

Re: Hunting, generally

I hunt deer because I CAN'T shoot anyones cows. Time spent in the field with my father/cousins/(and soon to be, niece) takes precedence over killing something. A $45 west river deer tag provides me and my family with 1 Any Deer and 2 Any Antler-less Deer. More than enough to feed myself for a year. I feel like I am paying $45 to spend 2 weeks in nature looking at wildlife through cross hairs and when its over I actually get to harvest my own food for the freezer, If I don't score, it was still worth the cash.
I shoot upwards of 4-6 deer a year as well as 2 antelope and obviously can't eat that much myself. South Dakota (as well as other states) realize the abundance of deer we have as well as the number of people we have that are below the poverty line. We supplement with programs like Sportsmen Against Hunger and Feed the Need, that allow us to donate our deer to local lockers at a free, or reduced price. South Dakota hunters have now donated more than 345,000 pounds of venison to needy families. That's 1,380,000 meals of meat for the hungry.

You've seen my pics, but I'd like to see some more and HEAR MORE INPUT from others as to why and how they hunt. Speak up fellas!

 

[Remsen]

Re: Hunting, generally

I think you're oversimplifying everything that comes up to the point of pulling the trigger, garandman. At least where I hunt, the bulk of the effort, skill and sweat comes from getting up to the point where you have an animal in your sights. It takes a lifetime of experience (and a lot of luck) to be able to get to the point where you have that 100 yard easy shot. I'm not sure what the hunting is like in your area, but getting a deer or a turkey or whatever it is that I'm hunting within shooting range is one of the greatest challenges around. One of the draws of hunting for me is that the shooting skills are actually a fairly minor component of a successful hunt. Being able to find the animals, track them, get close enough for a shot, etc., that's what makes hunting unique and enjoyable for me. If I want to take shots at distance, I go to the range.

 

[FARGO]

Re: Hunting, generally

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: c_bass16</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I hunt deer because I CAN'T shoot anyones cows. Time spent in the field with my father/cousins/(and soon to be, niece) takes precedence over killing something. A $45 west river deer tag provides me and my family with 1 Any Deer and 2 Any Antler-less Deer. More than enough to feed myself for a year. I feel like I am paying $45 to spend 2 weeks in nature looking at wildlife through cross hairs and when its over I actually get to harvest my own food for the freezer, If I don't score, it was still worth the cash.
I shoot upwards of 4-6 deer a year as well as 2 antelope and obviously can't eat that much myself. South Dakota (as well as other states) realize the abundance of deer we have as well as the number of people we have that are below the poverty line. We supplement with programs like Sportsmen Against Hunger and Feed the Need, that allow us to donate our deer to local lockers at a free, or reduced price. South Dakota hunters have now donated more than 345,000 pounds of venison to needy families. That's 1,380,000 meals of meat for the hungry.

You've seen my pics, but I'd like to see some more and HEAR MORE INPUT from others as to why and how they hunt. Speak up fellas!

</div></div>

+100000000... well said!

 

[JCH]

Re: Hunting, generally

I would hunt with a suppressor if my state would allow it. The simple fact that most hunters use only one shot to kill the animal being hunted means that the only thing the suppressor is doing is saving my ears and reducing the recoil from the super-sonic round I just used. Also if the suppressor is reducing recoil that allows most shooters to shoot more accurately and precise than with an unbraked rifle. This means a more humane kill because the bullet is placed much better.

I eat what I kill provided it is meant to be eaten. I kill coyotes to keep their numbers down and because I like the thrill of being the hunted and getting the upper hand on one of the best hunters out there.

Even when i don't shoot something while hunting I have accomplished some of what I want, a peaceful retreat without honking car horns and ringing telephones. I just enjoy sitting in peace and not knowing what is about to step out of the timber, whether a trophy animal or a Boone and Crockett skunk that is walking under my tree!

 

[sandwarrior]

Re: Hunting, generally

Number one being out in the wild. I very much miss it when I go back to Nevada and smell the sage. No such thing in Minnesota. When we get to go up North for a week then there's pine. But I get it all when I go home.

Next, the hunt itself. There is a lot of work that goes into that. The hardest part is after you take the deer and have to clean it, skin it and butcher it.

I butcher my own because on more than one occasion I've had a butcher not understand the correct way to cut and take care of my meat. Not to mention getting charged extra for sausage that was mine to begin with and I paid a hefty price for in their 'price per pound' rate.

I enjoy seeing individual deer, looking at the herds, and seeing good populations. I also take pictures when I'm out there of the land, birds and trees, landscapes that are unique and even other game I don't have a tag for that I want to shoot someday.

That's deer hunting. My favorite kind of hunting is bird hunting. I use some natural technology that is unbeatable! A dog. They can smell the birds and trail right to them. Stand staunch with their heads high and wait for me to come flush the birds out. Then I use more technology in the form of a very nice Browing Citori shotgun that I routinely hit and kill birds with. No rocks and slings or bow and arrows for me. Then back to natural technology as the dogs retrieve my birds. AAAHH German shorthairs, my favorite. They hunt all day, don't get overheated near as bad as labs, setters and 'peakes on warm days. They pretty much do the hunting for me. I just walk around and do the shooting. But good dogs of any hunting breed are a pleasure to watch. Labs and 'peakes busting ice time after time bringing in downed ducks. Big setters retrieving geese on a cold sunny day in a cornfield. Busting snow on steep hils on the last chukar hunt of the year. To me it just doesn't get any better than that. And even when we're out chukar hunting in some snow, seeing the big mulies that finally come out of their high hiding places. Getting to the low ground for a temperature and mood change. Watching them fight for dominance with the buddies they hung around with all summer. big proud racks. Yeah you could say I like to hunt and I like to see what's around me when I do. And because a deer hit my vehicle, an elk too, doesn't mean I hate them. It means maybe I still need to pay MORE attention to what's around me.

 

[glocksig40]

Re: Hunting, generally

Tradition passed down from generations starting with the need to provide food for the family. My family has always hunted and the tradition has been passed down. I do not need this meat to survive but it is still a part of my upbringing to kill the animal to provide for my family. I love the taste of the meat as well. I grew up in the woods and its a part of who I am. Im sure if I grew up in the city(where I live today) I would not have those feelings or beliefs. It is not a sport or thrill for me to pay thousands of dollars to go kill an animal raised by a deer rancher. I also dont care to kill something I wouldnt eat such as big cat, elephant or the like, but if someone wants to, i have no problem with that.

 

[skinney_7]

Re: Hunting, generally

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: garandman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Using a suppressor even gives a greater technological advantage.</div></div>

isn't that how America has gotten to be so great!!! now we have high power scopes, LRF, NV, Thermal imaging, hell now we even have AC and heaters in our vehicles, i shoot everything with a suppressor, more power to it.

 

[garandman]

Re: Hunting, generally

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Remsen</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I think you're oversimplifying everything that comes up to the point of pulling the trigger, garandman. At least where I hunt, the bulk of the effort, skill and sweat comes from getting up to the point where you have an animal in your sights. . </div></div>


Round here, pretty much everybody just goes and sits in a tree stand, chambers a round, put the safety on, and waits. Or falls asleep (as a few of my friends have)

 

[garandman]

Re: Hunting, generally

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: skinney</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: garandman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Using a suppressor even gives a greater technological advantage.</div></div>

isn't that how America has gotten to be so great!!! now we have high power scopes, LRF, NV, Thermal imaging, hell now we even have AC and heaters in our vehicles, i shoot everything with a suppressor, more power to it. </div></div>


How about hunting with pressure switch / heat signature activated claymores, then? LOL

I could just sit here in my house, and wait for the boom while watching the Food Channel on TV.

If I get lucky, the claymore might even sorta field dress the deer for me.

(I'm kidding....relax, everyone...)

 

[skinney_7]

Re: Hunting, generally

hmmm... that gives me an idea.