Have We Forgot How To Hunt Deer?
You can't open a hunting magazine today without being bombarded with ads about the latest and greatest deer scent, deer lures, seed to plant green fields, designer camo, hi tech gadgets and much more. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, you get to an article and it's some so called Deer Guru talking about how he shot a Mega Buck at 250 yards with his rifle across a green field.
Is it any wonder why anti-hunters are able to sway as many people over to their side as they have been?
As a Country of Hunters, Have We Forgotten How to "Hunt" Deer?
I can't remember what year I started hunting (yeah, age will do that to ya), but it was sometime in the late '70's. My dad was strictly a firearms hunter. A hour or so in the mornings and an hour or so in the evenings. He showed me what he knew, but it wasn't a whole lot.
Fortunately for me, my dad had a man working for him who lived in the woods come deer season. This man volunteered to take me hunting with him most weekends. He showed me what deer sign was, where to look for it and in general, how to find and pattern deer. He killed deer with a bow back before it was popular.
The only camo I remember being available at that time was WWII and at that time, the "new" Woodland Military Camo. A few years after I started hunting, some camo came out called Ranger (the best I remember). This was a green pattern on one side and a brown pattern on the other. I worked all Summer to save up for a set of that Camo!
Later, Treebark camo came out and I believe that was the start of designer camo fad that grips the deer hunting industry today.
The point of this being, Hunters killed lots of deer before any of this new wave of "must have" lures, scents, camo and equipment came out.
Hunting the Old School Way
Once I started hanging around with the man who worked for my Dad, I got introduced to man hardcore hunters. Guys who'd stay in the stand until noon then come down for lunch and be right back in there by 1:30 or 2 and stay until dark.
These guys didn't have all the modern camo and accessories today and contrary to popular belief, they still killed a lot of deer.
The "designer" scent of the day was skunk scent. The camo of the day was any dark clothing that might be handy. Plaid patterns were popular. Very few of us hunted "food plots". The food plots we knew were planted by the State on the WMU. Otherwise, we hunted Mother Natures own food plots. Oak flats, Persimmon trees, honeysuckle bushes, pecan trees and many other "in season" foods.
The Modern Hunter - As Good as Old Schoolers?
I've often wondered how successful today's "Whitetail Guru" would be if you planted him or her back in the '70's with gear from that time. I bet their success rate would plummet.
Today, a new hunter thinks he must have the latest in calls, lures, camo and gear in order to be successful. In fact, if you'd take a look at all the ads, you'd think that you must have a lease and be planting food plots if you intend on being successful. Or pay huge amounts of money for guided hunts, guided hunts around food plots that are often on leased land!
A few years ago I happen to get drawn in on a controlled hunt. As I sit in the parking lot getting ready to head out, another hunt a few pickups down was throwing a wild eye fit. It seems he grabbed the wrong bag when he headed out that morning and the bag he grabbed didn't have his camo or scents in it. The guy ended staying in the pickup all day while his buddies went hunting even though he could have just as well spent the day hunting. But modern "hunting lore" had him believe he wouldn't be successful if he didn't have his little bag of designer camo and scents.
You may be asking yourself what my hunting gear is like. Where here ya go.
- A pair of worn Mossy Oak pants over my blue jeans. Many times they'll go all season being washed only a few times.
- A lightweight shirt. I don't care what color it is as long as it's comfortable. I have a couple OD green ones I normally wear. When it's colder, a black and green flannel shirt is worn and if it's really cold, a old Woodland pattern Military BDU jacket with a Remington black vest.
- I wear LL Beans Maine Hunting Boots unless it's below freezing, then it's any ole pair of pack boots I can find in my size.
- As for scents, I hardly ever use commercial scents any more. I will use a tarsal gland from a buck that is not from the area during the pre-rut to early rut.
- My bow is a Darton that is over 10 years old set at 63 lbs. Funny, when that arrow passes through the boiler room of a buck, he doesn't know it's not the fastest or most modern bow on the market. I use a glove or tab with Cobra pin site or I shoot instinctive. I tend to go back and forth every few years.
- I normally take a couple bottles of water with me and snacks if I plan an all day hunt. If it's cold, a Thermos of coffee comes along. I can't tell you the number of bucks I've shot during midday sitting in a stand, drinking coffee and smoking a cigarette or eating lunch.
- And in my pockets of my pants, fanny pack and jacket (if I wear one) are the essentials, ie; compass, map, drag rope, knives, cigarette lighter, cell phone (not always though) binoculars ( a pair of 5x32 Ranging or Tasco 10x32 binocs).
I prefer to hunt light. I know a few old guys who don't take this much stuff with them.
The point is, many hunters get distracted by all the junk they think they have to carry into the woods to be successful. If many of those who are not successful would spend as much time scouting and learning about deer as they did worrying over their camo, scent or food plot, they would be much more successful.
You see, the very best equipment you can have when deer hunting is between your ears! You and I were made to hunt. We are well equipped with the senses and means to kill a deer without all the latest and greatest inventions or mass marketed products on the market.
Why don't you just try it a few days this year. Go to the woods with your favorite blue jeans on, a favorite jacket and get out there after them. Forget the food plots, instead, head for the acorns or honeysuckle thickets. Once you lean how to really "hunt" deer, chances are you'll enjoy the sport much more. Let's get back to hunting deer, not hunting a place to put a food plot so the deer can hunt us!
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Don,
A wonderful take on today’s mega hunting craze. I remember the times I used skunk scent so heavy all I got was a headache! And I remember the first time I saw tree bark camo. What a sight it was. You are right about the fact that the face of hunting has changed. Unfortunately another important difference between today’s deer hunter and the older deer hunters I grew up with is what I’ll refer to as a sense of “jealousy” or perhaps “selfish” better describes it. Many (though thankfully not all) of today’s deer hunters are far to occupied to get kids involved with hunting. How many are willing to take their own kids hunting. What about the neighborhood kids, especially the ones from single parent homes who don’t have an active dad to introduce them to hunting. Unfortunately for all of us, most simply won’t take the time. And that fact is going to reach up and bite us unless we wake up. The number of kids who are becoming involved with hunting is declining. Many studies document the fact that the average age of hunters is increasing rapidly. Fewer and fewer hunting licenses are being sold. When the anti hunters you mentioned outnumber the hunters at the ballot box, you are going to see the face of hunting change forever. And today’s hunters’ attitude is going to ultimately be the straw that breaks the camels’ back. We are too self centered as hunters, caring too much about the contents of the “bag left home” that you mentioned, rather than the intrinsic value of the hunt itself. The challenge. I’ve always wanted to take a deer while wearing a pair of blue jeans rather than camo. The challenge of it! We have not only lost sight of the challenge of hunting, as you so well put it, but we have lost sight of the importance of bringing in replacements for us as hunters. The kids of today are far too involved with video games, drugs, gangs, etc. They need to become indoctrinated into hunting! And hunting needs them just as much! Take a kid hunting today. And visit http://www.savingourhunting.com to see how some people are giving away free lifetime hunting licenses to kids in order to reduce one more hurdle to parents who can’t afford a hunting license for their kids. Thanks for your time and for a well thought out essay on some of the problems facing hunting today. Gerald
I can’t agree with you more on the subject matter here Don. When I learned to hunt in the late 70′s, I also had nearly nothing for outfitting in style and or camo for cover. To this day, I still have not harvested as many deer as I did back then. It goes back to the idea of basics, or KISS, (keep it simple stupid theory). We tend to feed on the frenzy of the newest and cleverest ideas to help us obtain more deer in the freezer. When in reality all we need is warm clothing, food for the longer days in the field, and a weapon of choice. Back in the early days of hunting people did not have all the gadgets of today. Yet they brought home the meat and needs to feed a family. It is the advertising industries marketing strategies that make us desire these items. Popular shows on hunting channels make us feel that we are not up to par or well equipped without there goods. To be a successful hunter we need all the camo cover, scents, and other items to be a great hunter. I agree that if we spent more time reading the patterns of the animal we are hunting, we would have more success without all the gadgets in their bag of tricks they sell us. I look forward to your next posting on this subject matter.
@Gerald – First, thanks for stopping by. Second, I couldn’t agree with you more. That’s a nice site you have, I encourage everyone to go and browse through it.
@JM – thanks for stopping by and commenting. I agree. According to all the companies out there today, we didn’t know how to hunt deer before they came along. How did we ever manage before they came along and saved us from our heathern ways?
Every year I seem to go to the field with less and less gear. A weapon, grunt call (I have called them up by mouth though), binoculars, knife, compass, rope, etc. If I’m hunting close to the vehicle, I don’t even take all that.
Maybe there’s a movement out there to throw off all this uneccessary junk the companies are pushing on hunters? Who knows. Not all the young hunters can be that naive? Can they?
Don
Just getting into deer hunting for the first time and I have to say that I’ve been feeling pretty overwhelmed by all the advertisements and gizmos available to the modern deer hunter. Overwhelmed to the point of thinking that I needed to wait a couple of more seasons to start so that I could put together a hunting kit sufficient to prevent being looked down on by more experienced and better equipped deer hunters. I feel more confident after reading your article that my old military battle dress uniforms and boots will suffice for now and that my focus should be on hunting, observing, and reading about deer, not on whether or not I have all the appropriate kit. Thank you. I would appreciate your views on hunting techniques as well. I have no experience with tree stands or blinds and no one to show me yet. Are there other ways to hunt deer without a stand or blind and be successful? Best Regards, Lee
I use ASAT camo, a PSE 175 lb crossbow and Scent Away.
Saturday I was out in the field/woods for about 45 minutes and two bucks walked up on me. I watched them come in and was amazed at their beauty, and the fact that they COULDN’T SEE ME!!!
They came within 15 to 20 feet of me, not yards but feet! They didn’t know I was there.
The only problem was I let them come in two close before I realized that my crossbow was pointing off to my left and the deer were in front of me. Rather then having to reveal my ‘ambush’ site I stayed still until they left, in the direction that they came from, directly in front of me. Had they walked to my left, Bambi would be in the freezer now.
I say all this as a ‘novice’ deer hunter. I have never killed a deer yet. Should either one of those two walk out in front of me again, I’ll make sure to point my crossbow in their direction long before they get close enough to lock me up again.
Due to the ‘advanced’ scouting, of the day before, I knew exactly where I wanted to set up. I’m not looking for a ‘pig’ or a huge buck. I just want to meat in the freezer. My wife and I like the taste of deer meat.
It doesn’t take an Einstein to locate deer. It’s not rocket science. I don’t know why you try to make it seem like it is. It’s really rather simple to locate them, their food, their bedding areas and their trail and escape routes. Read a lot before going to the field. You will be successful quickly. This was my second day in the field for the 2009-2010 hunting season.
So, we know how to hunt, we do the scouting, look for the well-used trails, the acorn trees, berry bushes, young maple trees, water sources, bedding areas, and we apply all of this to give ourselves the best chance possible of intercepting a doe or a buck.
Of course we know how to hunt. What do you want us to do, kill them with our bare hands or a spear. That’s is illegal in Ohio by the way.
Guys,
I don’t think you have to spend money on expensive camo and other devices. I will tell you that the deer live on that property you hunt. You know what your neighborhood smells like. If you have taken a deer while smoking a cigarette, holding a cup of coffee, and eating a limburger cheese sandwich, you were a lucky man. Oh yeah, and you were downwind. Your habits (smoking, etc.) will cost you deer. Even a blind squirrel gets a nut, but that nut is up wind. Be quite, be still, and don’t stink, that will get you a deer.
Best of luck.
my husband got his first turkey a couple of years ago, in upstate NY. wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt!!! He did have 2 decoys and a call.
Hi there. I see it’s been over two year since your last response, but I would enjoy a response from you.
I am researching the cons of using the latest technology while hunting. I am looking for someone with some insight on the pro’s of gimmick-free hunting.
Ideally, I’d like to see a outfitting group who’ll focus on old school hunting techniques. Someone you can rely on to TEACH you how to perfect your hunting skills, (Just like the man who worked with your dad) rather than take you on a trip and let you rely on the gadgets you’ve brought along.
I would greatly appreciate any information (wisdom) you’d care to share with me on the topic of the “pro’s of old school hunting”.
Thanks
- V
No, not all of us young hunters are that naive. I’m 25 and have been hunting since I was 8 with a minimal, hodge podge collection of hand-me-down, mis-matched camo and gear. While, all of the cool new gadgets are admittedly, tempting and sometimes invoke thoughts of inadequacy, ultimately none of them have been necessary for me or my family to take nice deer year after year.
Thanks for a nice site. This is my first time stopping by and I expect to be back.
Justin
The discussion is important, but sadly I see not getting a lot of activity. Don and Gerald I too remember the day..(I started in 1965 at the age of 10)as my dad’s apprentice. He taught me during the whole season, and if we were lucky, I got to help drag a deer several miles to our back porch steps. One important thing he taught me which I still hold dear is that if you want to see deer, you need to walk like a deer. Get off the beaten paths to where the deer are.
I hear too many fellow hunters who ride their wheelers to their tree stand complaining about how bad hunting is now. How they hardly ever see anything. It’s sad too that they complain about seeing “too many hunters” as if this is the reason they don’t see anything. I remember up until the mid eighties hunters walked in the woods, and yes you saw them, but you also saw a lot more deer in a day too. Why is it we see less while at the same time biologists are telling us there are more deer?
It’s because the deer are smart enough to know they can lay low all day and nobody will come near them. Hunters are riding the wheelers, and walking the logging roads, and watching meadows, and the deer are just up there, out of sight.
In Vermont we have a youth season that the wildlife people claim is essential to recruiting and retaining new hunters. It makes no sense to me though, and in fact what is accomplishes is it gives first crack at our deer herd to inexperienced shooters who wound and watch them run away, mentored by neo hunters who drive to the stand and have no idea that if it runs away it doesn’t mean you didn’t kill it.
To make it even more fun, the wildlife department enacted a headhunter law that protects spikehorns from everybody but the youth hunters. This of course is to commercialize hunting, to grow bigger racks to get out of state dollars. Forget about the spiritual or the meat hunting aspects. Lets teach our kids to hunt for all the wrong reasons, and lets only let them hunt with us for a couple of days before the deer season begins.