2023 deer season regrets…

[Howboutthemdawgs]

What say you…
Embarrassingly I killed one doe on almost 700 acres. Such a mistake and I had almost all November and Dec to do so since I killed a buck on 11/3.

 

[jsasker007]

Buying a license was a mistake for me this year. Didn't see 1 deer. Not even one running away in the distance. NOT 1 DEER.

 

[Derek Reese 29]

Not shooting a doe early in archery season..had several encounters inside 10 yards but was stupidly waiting for a buck that never showed..also not prepping the food plot at my in laws sooner…

 

[b116757]

I didn’t hunt enough it is often difficult for me to slow down and enjoy life a bit more.

 

[Thomasc19]

Hunting all of October and missing the first weekend of November-My #1 buck walked out in daylight on November 4th while I was busy hanging with friends-not doing that again!

 

[Triple C]

What say you…
Embarrassingly I killed one doe on almost 700 acres. Such a mistake and I had almost all November and Dec to do so since I killed a buck on 11/3.

Same here. Had target of 10 doe to kill this year. Only 1 so far. Always passing on shots early in the season due to a number of reasons…mostly too hot to want to fool with processing. Waiting on bucks late Oct thru Nov. Holiday gatherings in Dec. Now here we are with only 4 days left in the season and only 1 doe on the ground.

 

[bwoods11]

I ate 6 tags. Had a couple close calls on nice bucks ! My regret was not shooting a couple does in easy range !

 

[fishin coyote]

Although have a few more days left in the season. I have no regrets about it so far

 

[Bill Loser]

What say you…
Embarrassingly I killed one doe on almost 700 acres. Such a mistake and I had almost all November and Dec to do so since I killed a buck on 11/3.

Embarrassed that you only killed one or because you killed one? I think the former but wanted to check.
My regret is not forcing myself to hunt other areas more. To easy to hunt out the back door sometimes.

 

[bueller]

I picked the right day but wrong stand. Target buck walked right past my food plot stand while I was in the woods about 100 yards away. Everybody says don't hunt food in the morning....blah blah blah

 

[Turkey Creek]

Not getting the elevated box blind finished sooner for the kids to hunt out of. Oh well they are set now to be cozy for next season!

 

[SD51555]

Buying a bear tag and the bumper acorn crop. I guess this is what we all wish for with our oak management and oak plantings. Now that we finally achieved that bumper crop, I didn't like it.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

I picked the right day but wrong stand. Target buck walked right past my food plot stand while I was in the woods about 100 yards away. Everybody says don't hunt food in the morning....blah blah blah

Ugh. Had the same thing happen. I saw ONE deer this year in 2 and a half months of hunting....and I saw him on my first sit way back in October. I had two stands I could have sat in that night and picked the wrong one. He was a nice 8 for western, MA standards. Walked by me at 40 yards (too far for a bow shot for me) and I saw him walk right underneath my other stand about 80 yards away that I could have sat in.

Checked my camera a few days later and yup....walked directly past my other stand broadside.

Regrets though? I feel like I did everything I could. Got my food plots in early summer. Hunted hard during our 6 week bow. Tracked during shotgun and muzzle loader when we had decent snow. Sat or still hunted when we didn't. Didn't see another deer for the next 2 months....but remained optimistic and never gave up hope.

In hindsight I guess I regret not hunting northern Maine this year. Should have just got in my truck and drove the 8 hours. But as Bill Loser said...sometimes it's easier to hunt out the back door.

 

[bwoods11]

Buying a license was a mistake for me this year. Didn't see 1 deer. Not even one running away in the distance. NOT 1 DEER.

Huh ? It was that bad ? What county ?

 

[SwampCat]

I regret what we - my family - has become as deer hunters. We have lost the excitement of deer hunting by targeting a few shooters - and when we see a deer, we almost immediately identify it as not the one we are after and immediately forget about the one we just saw. Even the 11 yr old grand daughters is spoiled. We are now big buck hunters - we are no longer deer hunters.

Thirty years ago, when my kids were teens - we got excited whenever we saw a deer - they were all potential targets. Not so anymore. We know each and every shooter buck - and when a deer shows and it is not the shooter buck - that deer is in the past. I think this big buck fanaticism is ruining our (my family’s) deer hunting excitement.

Me and my wife has not killed a deer in four years. We like to kill a deer. We like to track them. We like the camaraderie at the skinning pole. We enjoy processing deer - making sausage and canadian bacon and jerky and eating deer meat. We dont have enough does for everyone to kill one - because they are NEEDED for fawn production. We have a lot of bucks that will probably never be anything of quality - but yet we have become so engrossed with big buck hunting we have lost sight of all other aspects of the hunt itself

I am not really sure how or to what extent I am going to change our goals - but I want to instill some more excitement in our hunt.

 

[Mortenson]

Only regret was forgetting to pull a few tents before the heaviest snow in history just fell. That's gonna cost. Otherwise, we were very lucky this year.

 

[Turkey Creek]

I regret what we - my family - has become as deer hunters. We have lost the excitement of deer hunting by targeting a few shooters - and when we see a deer, we almost immediately identify it as not the one we are after and immediately forget about the one we just saw. Even the 11 yr old grand daughters is spoiled. We are now big buck hunters - we are no longer deer hunters.

Thirty years ago, when my kids were teens - we got excited whenever we saw a deer - they were all potential targets. Not so anymore. We know each and every shooter buck - and when a deer shows and it is not the shooter buck - that deer is in the past. I think this big buck fanaticism is ruining our (my family’s) deer hunting excitement.

Me and my wife has not killed a deer in four years. We like to kill a deer. We like to track them. We like the camaraderie at the skinning pole. We enjoy processing deer - making sausage and canadian bacon and jerky and eating deer meat. We dont have enough does for everyone to kill one - because they are NEEDED for fawn production. We have a lot of bucks that will probably never be anything of quality - but yet we have become so engrossed with big buck hunting we have lost sight of all other aspects of the hunt itself

I am not really sure how or to what extent I am going to change our goals - but I want to instill some more excitement in our hunt.

I hear what you are saying. Are you limited to only a single buck tag where you hunt? I know that only amplifies the situation. KS only allows one buck tag and I can see how people get to the point where they refuse to shoot maybe a deer that isn't a monster simply because they will have to give up the chance to hunt the rest of the season. I like how Nebraska allows for 2 buck tags. I could always shoot whichever buck caught my eye and then hold onto and usually eat the other tag in hopes that Mr. Big would come along.

 

[Catscratch]

I regret not hunting more.

I don't regret these 3 kids all shooting deer on the place.

 

[SwampCat]

I hear what you are saying. Are you limited to only a single buck tag where you hunt? I know that only amplifies the situation. KS only allows one buck tag and I can see how people get to the point where they refuse to shoot maybe a deer that isn't a monster simply because they will have to give up the chance to hunt the rest of the season. I like how Nebraska allows for 2 buck tags. I could always shoot whichever buck caught my eye and then hold onto and usually eat the other tag in hopes that Mr. Big would come along.

No - we are allowed two bucks - but the emphasis for a special buck (my fault and my son’s fault), has taken a lot of the fun out of it. I have plenty of smaller bucks we could shoot without affecting the number of larger bucks at all. It is pretty easy to tell, here, since they are at their peak at four or five. It is not like a 3 yr old 7 pt is going to make a 140” four yr old.

But I dont know how the grand daughters will adjust. All their young lives they have had this “big buck” or go home hunting practice thrown at them. While we usually kill a 140” deer every year - 350 acres will only produce so many big bucks - not enough to go around. Me, my wife, and my son dont shoot one so we can “save” it for someone else. The big buck syndrome has tainted our hunting - made it boring. I need to get some excitement back in our deer hunts.

 

[Catscratch]

No - we are allowed two bucks - but the emphasis for a special buck (my fault and my son’s fault), has taken a lot of the fun out of it. I have plenty of smaller bucks we could shoot without affecting the number of larger bucks at all. It is pretty easy to tell, here, since they are at their peak at four or five. It is not like a 3 yr old 7 pt is going to make a 140” four yr old.

But I dont know how the grand daughters will adjust. All their young lives they have had this “big buck” or go home hunting practice thrown at them. While we usually kill a 140” deer every year - 350 acres will only produce so many big bucks - not enough to go around. Me, my wife, and my son dont shoot one so we can “save” it for someone else. The big buck syndrome has tainted our hunting - made it boring. I need to get some excitement back in our deer hunts.

KS had a "left over tag" for a while where a guy could shoot 2 bucks. I didn't like it for the exact same reason that Turkey did like it. I shot a smaller than I wanted buck to scratch that itch, then hunted the rest of the season for a trophy. Just like Turkey my 2nd tag was usually eaten. What I didn't like was that it encouraged me to shoot younger than I wanted bucks and I feel it hurt trophy management.


Now for the flip side about making hunting fun for the family. SwampCat, my kids always looked at trailcam pics or deer in a pasture and said "big enough for you to shoot dad?". I always gave an honest answer which 99% of the time was no. BUT... when they and their friends hunt ANYTHING is fair game. Absolutely no hit lists, no savers, no expectations. Grab a granddaughter and her best friend, plop them down in a stand and have them shoot the first deer they see. Hoop and hollar, clean it and cook it's tenderloins right then and there, take pics and show them to the best friends mom, pop a bottle of carbonated grape juice (looks like wine) and share a toast with them. You'd be surprised how quickly antlers don't matter any more.