The things you wish you knew

[GoatGuy]

when you started hunting??

Curious.....

[Glenny]

I was like 13 years old so I already knew everything. :)

[nolimits]

Let's me see if I get it right: you wish you knew when you started hunting? Yes? ;)

[mwj]

patience....

[tuner]

venison works out to about $200/lb, when all hunting costs are factored in!!!

[shoot um]

I started duck hunting at 14 years old.

[silvertipp]

im not really saveing money by hunting

[Sideofabarn]

Stalking effectively while bowhunting
game butchering
the effectiveness (or lack thereof) camoflauge, particularly the newer break up styles
breaking up a hunting area into spaces more likely to harbour game...

[longstonec]

Dont eat fast food on the road. take the extra 5 minutes and premake some food! Took me two times to figure that one out.

Golden arches = SHIVERING COLD IN TENT
Proper meal = zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[finngun]

my duck hunting-- 1 box 1 kill..:mrgreen: i worried ..are they putting any pellets for the shells?? nowdays little better...:-D

[lovemywinchester]

Head shots are ethical from close range. If a deer is mortally wounded from your first shot and you are 30m away its not a good idea to shoot it in the front shoulder to kill it. If the wounded deer is leaning against a tree looking at you it may be a good idea to shoot it in the head or neck instead of ruining all that good meat.

[quadrakid]

Butchering a deer,its so easy.Took me30 years before i figured that out with the help of youtube.

[Gateholio]

Quite simply- How to find animals! How to pre scout, how to identify where they will be in the fall, how to go into an area "cold" that you don't know we and be able to look around, look at a map and have a decent chance of seeing something.

Also, only shoot bears UPHILL from the road! :)

[nature girl]

To wear good boots.
And when someone says were just going up the hill it will take 30 minutes. And your walking and its been 3 hours and you hear its way over there you have to go to. And you didnt bring anything to eat or drink. And I say just leave me hear. I seriously was so tired and I just wanted to lay on the bouldars that we were crossing and sleep. Man I was so exhausted walking thru the blowdown and then we turned around. And walked back to the truck. So, what I learned from that was always dont trust the other person when they try to trick you and say it will take a certain amount of time. And eat something first and take food and water with you.

[Sasquatch]

Never go on a hunting trip to the middle of nowhere without a supply of rolaids. Particularly if someone else is responsible for the food.

[dana]

The gutless method.

[lovemywinchester]

Never go on a hunting trip to the middle of nowhere without a supply of rolaids. Particularly if someone else is responsible for the food.

The best advice in the world. I buy the bulk pack of tums and have small rolls of rolaids littered around my truck, toiletry bag and clothes. A close second is earplugs.

[nolimits]

It took me awhile but I am beginning to slowly clue into this thread. I wish I had the courage to start boring you all.

[Weatherby Fan]

when you started hunting??

Curious.....

To have more patience,slow down,and buy quality gear in the first place,mostly optics and backpacks.

[Glenny]

my duck hunting-- 1 box 1 kill..:mrgreen: i worried ..are they putting any pellets for the shells?? nowdays little better...:-D

That was about my kill ratio. I was leading too much and holding too tight those days. Much better now.

[Husky7mm]

Water, Always have water with you......
Knife sharpener...... What a pain in the ass to field dress and quarter with a dull knife and nothing you can do about it

[Husky7mm]

Over shooting........ He looks far, better hold high lol oops

[silvertipp]

Dont listen to JELVIS

[MichelD]

When a box of cartridges says 150 grain bullets and another says 180 grain bullets and another 165 grains and you have a few from each box and some others left over from god knows where, they don't necessarily shoot the same out of your rilfle.

But for some strange reason when I was 17 it didn't seem to make a difference.

[Call of the Wild]

That BC is the place to be for hunting and what being a wrangler and guiding for mountain game is all about/provide. I would have moved to BC right after high school and worked as a wrangler to start. For the rest I enjoyed my learning curve and still do but I try not to imagine what i would have accomplished in the last 10 years would I have known then all the opportunities available in western Canada!!!!

[Husky7mm]

That BC is the place to be for hunting and what being a wrangler and guiding for mountain game is all about/provide. I would have moved to BC right after high school and worked as a wrangler to start. For the rest I enjoyed my learning curve and still do but I try not to imagine what i would have accomplished in the last 10 years would I have known then all the opportunities available in western Canada!!!!
For sure , but does it make you and yours a living?

[Sitkaspruce]

The gutless method.

X2

Also, that timber hunting on the Island is so much better with good knees and back. When I was young, there was deer everywhere here on the Island, we would fill up a truck in a morning. Now the fun of chasing deer is in the timber and with bad knees and back, it makes it hard for this old body to get "up there"

Interesting post.

Cheers

SS

[Call of the Wild]

For sure , but does it make you and yours a living?

No I think living off guiding for good especially with a family one day would be very hard. But up to my mid twenties I sure could have worked as a guide and the rest of the year worked in the oil patch just like I've done. At this point it's almost too late with a house, a mortgage, a good job making it a career and the money situation different now.

I can't complain since I hunt a lot and managed to start hunting for mountain game like I dream to do when I was young. Life is very good so far!!

[Ioneth]

Don't rely on some else to remember they way back.

[Husky7mm]

Good man ! Live your dreams!!

[Husky7mm]

Always start off with everything you have having a full tank of fuel!

[Gateholio]

The gutless method.

x2!!!!!!

It's changed my life! :)

I showed it to a new hunter on a bear last week, and he was pretty happy to see it.

[BCBear]

glass glass glass glass glass

[RENO]

when you started hunting??

Curious.....

everything I know now and have learned over the years, and Goldbond!is not for old guy's only.LOL

[ufishifish2]

Just because you can see a cranker Billie, and it is within rifle range doesn't mean it will be easy to recover, even if it looks easy. Looks can be decieving when looking at a cranker!
Oh yeah, and always bring a knife sharpener when hunting bison! ;) Thanks GG for saving my a$$ :)

[000buck]

I wish I knew that the critters don't like being out when I do, the number of times I woke up and said screw this its raining and went back to bed...... had a lot of tag soup in those days.
I wish I had a mentor, I am the first hunter in my family, I wish my dad knew what I know about teaching my son the ways, the time spent and the quality of the experience.
I wish I had more time....

[J_T]

When you grow up in a hunting family and develop certain skills and approaches, don't lose site of the benefits of hunting with others. We learn from everyone good, innovative, or bad we learn new approaches and everything adds to our own skill set making us a more complete hunter.

[Stone Sheep Steve]

I wish I knew how serious that I would end taking hunting....which would have resulted in buying good gear only once.

Having HBC back then sure would have helped.

Other than that I pretty much taught myself by trial and error...almost as much error as trial.

Oh ya...and to not get into an industry where the falls are so busy.

SSS

[pronghorn]

Patience for sure

[frenchbar]

^^^yup .more patience for sure!

[Rhyno]

The value of glassing and the amount of boot leather it can save.

[SavageShooter]

That generally only 10 percent of the land holds 90 % of the animals. Used to expect to see game on every road and hill I hiked. Tough to stay patient and alert when you haven't seen an animal for days. Find the sign and hunt it slow.
Still have trouble following my own advice though.

Oh and also just because an area looks good to me doesn't mean there are animals there. It takes quite the combination of elements to successfully hold game in an area consistently.

SS

[Husky7mm]

I wish I had a mentor, I am the first hunter in my family, I wish my dad knew what I know about teaching my son the ways, the time spent and the quality of the experience.
I wish I had more time....
Ditto to this, and still burning fuel and wearing out boots trying to figure where and when to get the most out of my limited time!

[bugler]

How to find and call elk like I can now. In the early 80's it seemed there were always bulls bugling all around us and we had no real clue how to get a look at them. I have often thought "if I knew then what I know now!!" about those days.

[Glenny]

Slowing the H down.

[todbartell]

wish I would of paid more attention to the things my dad was showing me

[blackbart]

If it flies, floats or f*c*s it is cheaper to rent.

[saskbooknut]

Ya can't eat the ones that don't leave tracks - lots of 'em. Find the "place" to hunt that has lots of sign.

[.330 Dakota]

The 44 Rem Mag is NOT the most powerfull gun in the world,,lol,,,my 1st rifle, and my 1st attempt at moose,,,and my 1st blood trail,,,and my 1st kill,,,age 14,,no Dad,,no guidance,,,pure luck and determination

[Big Lew]

Quote from "SavageShooter"
That generally only 10 percent of the land holds 90 % of the animals. Used to expect to see game on every road and hill I hiked. Tough to stay patient and alert when you haven't seen an animal for days. Find the sign and hunt it slow.
Still have trouble following my own advice though.

Oh and also just because an area looks good to me doesn't mean there are animals there. It takes quite the combination of elements to successfully hold game in an area consistently.

So very true....I don't know how many animals I could have had a decent chance at if only I had been patient, or hadn't let my guard down....still trying to rectify those 2 problems.

[guest]

How much Fun and a challenge it is to hunt Billy Goats, Rams and BIG Alpine Mulies ............ wish I would have started that 35 years ago.

CT

[oldtimer]

Never shoot anything in the middle of a swamp.!
Always try for an uphill shot.
Pass on all you can to your kids and grandkids cuz watching them will be the best time of your life.
Mike

[trapperRick]

I started hunting when I was 7 years old and the thing is my dad let me learn many things the hard way,, (ok maybe I did not listen very well ) like how to dress for the weather only takes cold COLD wet feet a few times to figure out that my dad know more than I thought he did and as I aged it was funny how much smarter he got. So number one listen to the OLDER GUYS it still works today

[Ryan Olson]

TP is a very important thing to remember. (dont eat Tacos the night before the hunt)