School me on deer hunting equipment…

[Crazy Carl]

About half of the admittedly small number of deer I've taken died gawking at the redneck sitting in the tree in jeans & flannel shirt, smoking a cigarette.

Also be aware that a whole lotta hunting gear bags way more hunters than game. Start simple & figure out what you actually need.

Always take both a roll of TP & a pair of dry socks with you in thicker storage/freezer bags. Might not always need em, but you'll be glad of em if you do.

 

[Tailhunter]

Of course it is free unless you are on a guaranteed no kill no pay commercial hunt. The hunt is what costs money, and you would pay the same amount for the hunt whether you kill something or not. If it costs you the same whether you do bring home a dead deer or do not bring home a dead deer, the dead deer is free. Any processing or cooking cost after you get your free deer is just meal prep and does not figure into the cost of obtaining a dead deer.

Interesting way to look at it.

If I didn’t kill, I wouldn’t hunt. And I dang sure ain’t paying somebody to sit in their treestand and commune with nature.
It is all a cost to end up with the end result.

No different than going to Walmart or FoodLion, just tastes better.

 

[Charlie]

Interesting way to look at it.

If I didn’t kill, I wouldn’t hunt. And I dang sure ain’t paying somebody to sit in their treestand and commune with nature.
It is all a cost to end up with the end result.

No different than going to Walmart or FoodLion, just tastes better.

I would not hunt either if there was not a chance that I might kill a deer. I went years without killing one when I first started, but there was always the chance. I still went hunting and did enjoy it. It has gotten much easier these days since the deer population has dramatically increased where I am. Some areas evidently are not as swamped with deer, and hunting is not as much of a sure thing. Going to Food Lion is pretty much a sure thing if you are trying to find food. Stalking a bag of onions or hiding behind a display in Aisle 3 waiting for the canned fruit to appear is not quite the same as going into the woods after wild deer knowing that you might not see any deer or that you might miss the shot.

 

[VA_GENTLEMAN]

I older I get the less I want to drag deer. If I could get a freezer situated in a field and have the deer fall in it, the better I’d like it.
Younger times I’ve hunted in 7 different states and loved the challenge.
Any more I just grocery shop. I’ll kill 6 to 12 depending on my needs. Don’t care if they are all doe.
Hunting is fun, killing is better.


The easiest way possible. 😉

Yeah.. them mountains get taller and the hike gets longer every single year.

 

[Tailhunter]

I would not hunt either if there was not a chance that I might kill a deer. I went years without killing one when I first started, but there was always the chance. I still went hunting and did enjoy it. It has gotten much easier these days since the deer population has dramatically increased where I am. Some areas evidently are not as swamped with deer, and hunting is not as much of a sure thing. Going to Food Lion is pretty much a sure thing if you are trying to find food. Stalking a bag of onions or hiding behind a display in Aisle 3 waiting for the canned fruit to appear is not quite the same as going into the woods after wild deer knowing that you might not see any deer or that you might miss the shot.

Might kill, no thank you.

When I start missing or go all season without seeing deer, than I have done something terribly wrong.

Like I said to me it’s grocery shopping. Thank the Lord they have always been waiting for me on isle 7.

 

[Tailhunter]

Yeah.. them mountains get taller and the hike gets longer every single year.

Speaking of steep mountains. Oversized hills, what ever you want to call them. 😉

I’ve hunted some in Ohio that you could stand on the side of, stretch your arm out straight in front of you and touch the ground, they were that steep.

Man that place has some nice deer.

 

[VA_GENTLEMAN]

Speaking of steep mountains. Oversized hills, what ever you want to call them. 😉

I’ve hunted some in Ohio that you could stand on the side of, stretch your arm out straight in front of you and touch the ground, they were that steep.

Man that place has some nice deer.

I know exactly what you are talking about.... I'll ridge hunt and stay just below the crest so I don't throw shadows over a hollow... (holler) many a deer have been taken shooting at more than a 45 degree angle.

Uh... and fallen trees and limbs hidden under leaves makes for a fun ride all the way to the bottom.. Like Arnold did on Predator.

 

[1075tech]

Just got here in January and moved to the house in June. I've seen many doe and a decent 6 point walk across my back yard. I have a couple of trails in the woods next to the house. Too early I think for any scrapes. But I haven't seen any old ones either.

I'll set up a ground blind at the edge of the woods just off the driveway where I can see the trail.

Just bought my license today. Until I get to know the area better and maybe meet some people, I'll just sit and hope for the best

 

[beamernc]

Just got here in January and moved to the house in June. I've seen many doe and a decent 6 point walk across my back yard. I have a couple of trails in the woods next to the house. Too early I think for any scrapes. But I haven't seen any old ones either.

I'll set up a ground blind at the edge of the woods just off the driveway where I can see the trail.

Just bought my license today. Until I get to know the area better and maybe meet some people, I'll just sit and hope for the best

Did you do the hunter safety course? Or have it from another state? If not, they can cite you for that.

 

[1075tech]

Did you do the hunter safety course? Or have it from another state? If not, they can cite you for that.

Another state.

Took it in 1980. In high school. Instructor had us do a live shoot. Brought our shotguns to school and put them in the principal's office if we rode the bus. Left them in our cars/trucks if we drove. Did the live fire on the soccer field.

 

[Moylan]

I didn't study every post here, so apologies if my suggestion is a repeat. I have been deer hunting for I guess 7 years now, and I only shot my first deer with my rifle last fall. All the other deer I've taken have been with a muzzle loader (also one with a crossbow, but I only crossbow hunted for one or two seasons). Muzzle loader season, at least in my area, is the perfect time for deer hunting. Usually pretty decent weather. The deer have only been bothered by bow hunters and are generally still pretty cool. The rut is firing up nicely. It's a great time to be in the woods.

I got an American made Thompson Center rifle for maybe $300 or so, got me some pyrodex and some barnes bullets, a few other little odds and ends, and I had my whole kit pretty cheap. I use the iron sights. The longest shot I've ever taken at a deer was about 45 yards, so a scope is not important. I can't say I enjoy cleaning the muzzle loader. But apart from that, it's definitely all good. I just hunt on the ground, no stands or bait. But I am blessed to have a lot of oak trees, so during muzzle loader season I've got food everywhere.

 

[bondjamesbond]

Gravity gets stronger the older you get
I just shoot the dumb deer since the smart ones stay away from me

 

[Charlie]

I might add that, in my part of the state near Wilmington, the best time to shoot a big buck with a firearm is during ML season or the first week of gun season. The rut is in full force in early October, and the bucks have not been harassed too much by gun hunters. A local vet collected a bunch of fetuses from does killed by a club and determined that most had been conceived around the first week in October. I used to keep records of my deer kills and found that most of the big bucks I have killed locally were during ML season or early gun season. I have never been too excited about stabbing a deer with a sharp stick and have rarely ventured after deer during archery season.

 

[DC Bigdaddy]

A good comfortable chair and a accurate rifle to you. Sit down, be still and wait. But, you have to be where the deer are to start with.