Do you have to actually shoot something and clean it and eat it? Or does it count if you just get up at 4AM to sit in a dark section of woods and freeze yer yarbles off while holding a shotgun? Cuz if it is the second I am definitely a hunter. If you have to actually SEE a deer because the sun has come up enough, then, not so much.
Is looking for deer hunting and shooting a deer harvesting? Good, then I am a hunter but a poor harvester.
It's hunting not harvesting. If you want harvesting be a farmer. Check my blog, success is deeper than than food on the table! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteIt's about the trying.
ReplyDeleteTo be successful, you need scouting and patience. You should have scouted more this year.
What is the point of sitting there for the first two hours in the dark?
ReplyDeleteWe had a deer in the middle of the street in front of the house the other night. Maybe it followed me home from the hike, where they're practically yelling at me to get offa their lawns, dammit.
"Hunt" means to determine an objective, to locate and track a quarry through it's native habitat, and to achieve your objective.
ReplyDeleteYou might "hunt" with a sketch pad or camera, if you want a list of sitings or inhabitants of an area, or want a personal record of what you have achieved.
If you start out thinking you want a deer to bring home - anything short of that starts to sound like "vegetarian" (a neighbor claims this is an old Native American term, for "bad hunter"). Or, a generous soul might call it "practice" or "skunked" (but that might just be when fishing in Iowa. Dunno.)
The discomfort, the preparations do not signify. It is locating the quarry and achieving your goal that makes one a hunter. Keep track of the details, though, that all counts toward the storytelling, later.
I enjoy hunting even if unsuccessful; sometimes skill and experience don't matter because there is a certain amount of luck involved. Like my dad used to say, it doesn't matter how good a shot you are if you don't have a target.
ReplyDeleteHunting without harvesting equals "hiking with guns".
ReplyDeleteYeah, your pretty much just sitting in the dark freezing the family jewels off. Then again, I've done the same thing,so don't feel bad.
ReplyDelete