A question for hunters

It's always amazing to me that some of the treestands we take down are really quite well constructed...one last year had a nice little awning and the guy had left a cooler up there, complete with beer. It wasn't cold, obviously, but I suppose he would've hauled in ice.

In the past year, we've sighted at least one adult cougar on our property, and numerous cougar kills, so we're hoping that knowledge of the existence of cougars (it's been in the local papers) will discourage poachers this year.
 
A lot of the stuff you asked about (camo clothing, under garmets that mask your scent ,tree stands) are used by bow hunters.
The deer needs to be fairly close to get a clean kill with a bow.

In Michigan you must wear blaze orange during gun season.
 
Why does Cabella's sell all that stuff to hunters?

Because hunters buy it.

If you ever watch any of the hunting TV shows, you'll see the host in the latest Realtree/Mossy Oak/SuperCamo gear w/ the latest RemChester UltraSuperMegaShortMagnum rifles. This is because the shows are SPONSORED by these companies.

Now, look at the professional guides on these hunts. What are they wearing? Most of the time: jeans, a t-shirt, & a gimmie cap & carry a .30-06 or .270. Even saw one in bib overalls & a pistol belt last week. Why? These guys (and ladies) know that SKILL beats GADGETS anyday. They KNOW how to hunt. And (in private) they chuckle at all the high-tech gear these TV hosts bring.

Another case of using hardware solutions (gadgets) to solve software (skill) problems...:rolleyes:
 
"still, I wouldn't want to be bambi in these times"

Me either...too many highways full of speeding eeeejits in minivans doing everything but paying attention to the road. Actually, I don't like being on the highway with them either. The woods are much safer for the both of us. :)
 
Wild turkey have the best "pattern recognition" of any animal, according to wildlife biologists. If that stump wasn't there, yesterday, it's a Bad Thing, and it's time to leave, Right Now! So, camo is a necessity, and a type that breaks up an outline so you don't look like a new stump is best.

Deer don't see colors; only shades of gray. I dunno why any deer hunter thinks camo is a necessity. Any dull-colored earth-toned material will do.

I got into serious deer-hunting in 1963 when I moved back to Texas. I've never used anything but a scoped rifle. Much better chance for a clean kill, with a scope. Nowadays, with tri-focals, it's pretty much a necessity.

In the south Texas brush country, you'll use a stand or forget it. The prickly pear and mesquite are often thick enough that you can't walk through it; you must be able to see over that 8-foot stuff and watch trails and the little clear areas.

In my area, you'll walk or do without Bambi. Go to where he might be hiding, kick him out of bed, look him over to see if he's worth shooting, and test your skill. Heck, just finding him is a test of endurance and skill. A running shot at 150 to 300 yards has been known to be an exercise in futility. :D If you're good, you eat.

I usually wear some old khakis, my ancient Russell Birdhunters and carry a few extra cartridges, a piece of rope and my knife. And some toilet paper, to mark the spot so I can come back and collect the carcass. It's embarrassing to have a deer down, in the back end of nowhere, and not be able to return and find him. :(

Art
 
That reminds me of when I was at Ft. Bragg and (when not busy killing people or breaking things) would spend Sunday mornings watching Bill Dance catch fish after fish. Then we'd go to Walmart and buy everything he used, and try our luck at the local lakes. After spending a huge amount of money fishing with all that crap, I decided to go back to fishing with live bait and a bait caster, and now I am catching fish again.

Gadgetry doesn't work. Skill works. I don't hunt for sport anyway, so most of my deer are killed because I'll be doing tractor work or cutting up a tree and will have a rifle handy when the opportunity comes. We just learn to carry a rifle with us when out in the pastures during deer season.
 
Ladybug,

90% of those products are directed at people who don't know how to hunt, or are just beginning. Almost none of them will help, and most of them will actually hurt your odds of bagging a deer.
Think of the lousy basketball player who buys the $200 sneakers or the bad golfer who buys the premium clubs. This is about retailers trying to convince people that money or technology can overcome lack of skill. It can't.

A few weekends stalking deer with a camera in the off-season is worth all of these products put together and more.
 
During the off season while sitting around flipping through glossy catalogs and watching hunting videos its easy to get caught up in the gadget thing. We boys love our toys. The marketers are well aware of that.
It doesn't take long on the first hunt of the season to realize that we've been rooked. I wish I had the money back I've wasted on such gadgets . . . it would probably pay for a 6 month African Safari.
 
One of the advantages of being an Old Fart is that all those toys weren't in existence when I was learning about hunting. If I didn't need them, then, why would I need them, now?

:D, Art
 
One of the advantages of being an Old Fart is that all those toys weren't in existence when I was learning about hunting. If I didn't need them, then, why would I need them, now?
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I'm with you, Art. When my dad first took me hunting 30 years ago, the right equipment included newspaper wadded up in the boots (strangely, it does help keep the feet warm), thermal undies, and a few sour balls to help pass the time. I still wear the coat that he handed down to me that day. :D
 
I use Camo clothing and tree stands, as a bow hunter yuou find it's allot harder to get a whitetail within 20 yards than it is to get one into rifle range. I do however try to control my scent etc as best I can. I do not however go along with all the products on the market, such as scents, scent lock suits, coverup scents, etc, etc, etc. I think most of the products on the market are being manufactured more to catch inexperienced hunters money more than help harvest a deer. I used to hunt with a young guy that when he showed up at our camp he had more stuff than any sporting goods store I had ever been in, if someone made it for deer hunting he had at least one of everything. After a couple of season he finally came to understand that this does not make a hunter and that spending time in the woods, knowing the animals habits etc. is more important than how much STUFF you have that is supposed to make you irresistable to deer. I alway's try to tell new hunters to do their home work and keep things as simple as possible and to use common sense like keeping the wind in your face, scouting game trails etc works better than all the stuff you can buy at your local walmart, basspro, or cabela's.
Just one hunters opinion. :D
 
I know one guy who SWEARS that he has a buddy who has...

A heated deer stand. Not a cabin, but an honest to god deer stand.

With carpet. You MUST take your boots off.

And furniture. Nice furniture.

And electricity. For the TV and refrigerator.

He said they go out there, open a window, put a rifle on the rest, and then sorta keep an eye out for deer in one particular location while they watch football. If a deer is darwinistic enough to wander into that portion of the world, then they have to remove it from the gene pool.

I've been told that I've got an invitation should I ever desire to partake in "civilized" hunting.
 
You might think I'm kidding, but four years ago, a lawyer friend who came into some big money let me hunt his stand. He's rightfully proud of it. It is one of those small one-room office trailers like you'd see at a construction site. It is on a welded pipe frame that has electricity, heat (no a/c, but nobody hunts in the heat anyway) and a place built in for hoisting the kill up for cleaning. It took a large crane just to lift the building onto the welded platform built for it. I might one day take a photo and post it. It is rediculous, but very comfy to hunt in. The Axis deer come right up to it so you literally could hunt with a pistol. You'd have to see it to believe it.
 
Now my question is... where exactely is the "sport" in all of this?
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Har! :D I could ask the same question about the 15 year old girls who hang out in the mall wearing designer clothes, $100 haircuts and $200 shoes, trying to bag a male of the human species. :D

BTW Glockgirl, camis work both ways. You ain't never seen a poacher so scared.
 
Well I for one bought some cool stuff at Cabela's. Its hard to find a heavy weight wool sweater these days, or a silk turtleneck. Cabela's has that stuff, not to mention the Safari jacket I picked up for a buddy on his way to Africa. Ever been to their store in Sydney? Stopped in to shop, had a caribou sandwich for lunch. Bought a fleece vest and some fishing lures.

I don't use tree stands, or camoflauge, as I hunt in Colorado where you have to wear 500sq inches of blaze orange.

De-Scenting your boots isn't a bad idea regardless of what season you hunt in, but you can get the same effect by not hunting in the clothes you wear at camp while you are gassing trucks, frying bacon, etc etc.
 
Prez LBJ's "ranch hands" went a step farther than just a lah-di-dah plush "stand". There was a high fence around an oat patch, planted right by the elevated mini-palace. Just before daylight, one of the flunkies would close the gate to the patch, leaving the deer trapped inside.

Open a window, poke the gun out, and pick one. Poor old Lyndon missed deer season in 1963, though; Mrs. Oswald wouldn't return his rifle.

:D, Art
 
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