No longer hunting?

[mooretitan]

I still try and get out but life has been rough the last two years and have become really busy raising kids. I have not pulled the trigger on an animal in a year. The stress of life has taken a lot of that fire out. Now I still gets my kids out as much as possible and really enjoy helping them. This last year we have a few coyotes, pigs, deer and elk taken by them. They love to go so it keeps me going.

 

[CoStick]

Definitely numerous other things I enjoy more, but I love time in the mountains in the fall.

 

[87TT]

Let me check.......................................................Yup, still breathing so yeah still hunting.

 

[Rich M]

My dad is 80+ and he's still hunting - prefers duck to deer, but will deer hunt if he doesn't have to walk too far. Been hunting with him for about 47 seasons so far. Once dad goes, might just hang it up. We'll see.

 

[IsThisHeaven]

Had a bad experience in Wyoming last fall. That was my third time hunting the West as an adult on top of the time I hunted Wyoming as a kid. It has gotten progressively worse. That combined with the greatly increased cost and hassle has completely killed my desire to hunt big game anywhere really, but specifically the West. My son likes to hunt white tails around here so I will do that. If it wasn’t for my son I would never hunt big game again.

I really enjoy turkey hunting and will continue doing that. I love bird hunting with dogs. If I had no kids I would travel the country bird hunting from September 1 to the the following March.

 

[hh76]

My father is 81. He still gets out bird hunting a few times a week, but I think that is more about getting out with the dog and staying active. He now keeps score with "birds he could have shot back in day", rather than actual birds shot.

For deer, he pretty much gave it up, other than the gun season. He bow hunted a fair amount until he couldn't draw his bow, then got a crossbow, but never liked it. The only reason he goes now is to hang out with the kids and grandkids. He hasn't shot his gun in probably 10yrs, and usually has some sort of excuse of why he didn't shoot a deer he saw. Honestly, though, I think he just enjoys watching them more than shooting them.

One of the sad things I've noticed over the years is that he is running out of hunting/fishing buddies. Only one or two are still hunting, and they really don't get around too well anymore.

As for younger hunters that have given it up, I just don't know that they were really into the hunting as much as the hanging out. Once life got busier, they didn't make time for it.

 

[87TT]

At 69. this thread is getting depressing.

 

[IH8Cali]

I'm pretty much done after this season. I buy 2 beef, a goat and a hog every year now so I don't need the meat. Hunting became a "thing", and i'm just over all the drama. I'll help others when/where I can but I don't need it personally. Getting back into sucking at fly fishing though!

 

[cnelk]

I dont know anyone that has quit hunting. I do have a friend who turned 82 three days ago and I dont see him stopping or even slowing down when it comes to hunting.

I actually plan to hunt as long as I can as I get older.
For the past 13 years, I have specifically learned places close to the road that elk will frequent, just for that reason.

Hunt smarter. Not harder.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

I have relatives that I used to hunt with very year that don't hunt very much anymore. They seem to be too busy with kids, jobs, or other interests. It bums me out a little but at the same time once I started going without them and hunting the way I want to hunt my success rate has been astronomically better. I miss hanging out and camping with them though.

I can see a day coming where I can no longer hunt near home every year due to difficulty getting tags and that's probably when I will start to lose interest pretty fast.

 

[Rick M.]

I know a lot of people who hunt it up hunting out west when you couldn't buy mule deer tags OTC.

They are all old now and some of them have passed on but they have/had HUGE bucks on the wall from their adventures in the 60s and 70's.....

My dad is in his 70's and hunts as much as he did when he was 40....just all depends on your drive. He never cared for hunting out west. He was always more of a small game, turkey, and whitetail hunter. He gave up small game hunting when our beagles died off.

That last sentence made me sad. It exemplifies the fleetingness of life.

 

[DooleyVT]

At 69. this thread is getting depressing.

So true. It made me think about an "end" to my hunting career for the first time. I have SO many hunting memories I would love to make still. And maybe that's what bothered me about all of it is that he didn't have the desire for more adventure.

My grandfather is 92 and still rides his Harley as often as he can just for the adventure and it's so inspiring

 

[Gobbler36]

I can’t say at this point my drive has tapered off even a little but the one thing that’s discouraging to me is the crowding on public land. 1/2 the importance to me is the solitude I find in the backcountry.
I e got 3 boys that are getting into it so it will be interesting to see what different agencies do to get back a quality experience

 

[Jbehredt]

I'm pretty much done after this season. I buy 2 beef, a goat and a hog every year now so I don't need the meat. Hunting became a "thing", and i'm just over all the drama. I'll help others when/where I can but I don't need it personally. Getting back into sucking at fly fishing though!

Bad news. Fly fishing has also become a thing. With even more annoying people taking it up.

 

[hh76]

Bad news. Fly fishing has also become a thing. With even more annoying people taking it up.

One of my goals this summer is to start hiking further in to remote streams. Last two years there have been far too many fisherman when too near a road.

 

[KurtR]

Lost the desire for big game like i had for a few years i still shoot deer every year as its out my back door. With the new dog and waterfowl has always been #1 its hard to take a week and go elk hunting. im sure i will so i can hang out with my brother but we have been planning out of state goose hunts to get to do that. I would rather be training my dog running dog games than out scouting for deer.

 

[ShakeDown]

My father stopped hunting regularly about 10 years ago, when the last of his sons left the house. He still came out to camp but really stuck close to base.

The past two years he has had a resurgence, shooting a cow last year as well as a solo Audad ram!

 

[M-Wig]

Most people I know who have stopped did it because their wife would throw a fit every time they went.

I love to do it now as much as ever, but at least once a year I feel like leaving all my crap in the woods and finding a new hobby.

 

[IH8Cali]

Bad news. Fly fishing has also become a thing. With even more annoying people taking it up.

Well aware, the difference is I can day-trip it on a Wednesday and pretty much have the spots I like to myself. The weekends? Forget about it. Every sphincter in a Rzr is bombing every trail and there's so many rod vaults around you'd think we were under siege. They're probably guides though...

 

[bozeman]

I've watched my dad just narrow it down to turkey hunting....he's 67 but still likes to chase the gobblers in the spring. I can see the loss of appeal for elk hunting on down the road, but not yet, not yet.