Thoughts on hunting efficiently

RCB

WKR
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Apr 1, 2018
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CO
Folks,

I am still new to big-game hunting - started just last year. I've gotten lucky here and there, but after some reflection I think that I am a total novice at hunting efficiently. By that, I mean that I have spent too much of my hunting hours not being in a position where I am likely to encounter game - either because I am driving, covering ground on trails either to or from the truck, or spending time at camp. I thought I'd share an example of what I mean, based on a hunt from this year. Would love to hear what others have learned about efficient hunting. Would also love to hear if anyone disagrees with the lessons I have gleaned from my failures!

A friend (first time hunter) and I did a 2nd season CO rifle buck hunt. Late October. The unit had a ton of public land, ranging form about 7k to 10k feet, but also a ton of hunters, both for deer and for OTC bull. We did not fill our tags, and actually never even saw a buck on public land. Our failure could be chalked up to general inexperience, but looking back on it I think that out biggest failure was an inefficient use of time. Here's a list of ways:

First, we were camped relatively far from all the areas we wanted to hunt, which meant 30+ minute drives every morning and evening. That was partly dictated by the lack of available camping spots - nearly every flat spot seemed to have a camp - but still we probably could have sought out a spot closer to the action. 30 minutes driving isn't so bad, but it does feel like a waste after so many days. In the future, I think putting in the effort to find a camping spot closer to the areas we intend to hunt will be worth it. Or, hike in a few miles and set up a spike camp. You lose the immediate mobility of a truck, but at least you are that much closer to the action. If after 1-2 days the action is poor, pack up and move.

Second, we didn't use mornings and evenings efficiently. We got up before sunrise, sure, but after getting ready in the morning, driving to our hunt, and hiking out to where we really wanted to be, there was probably a good hour of hunting time that we weren't hunting optimally. Given that deer move most near the twilight hours, that's a real missed opportunity. Also, there were many days where we would start hiking out well before sunset, simply so that we wouldn't have to hike so much in the dark. That's just laziness. Again, lots of time spent covering miles and not hunting during prime hunting time. It's no surprise that our only encounter with deer on public land (turned out to be a group of does) happened when we parked our asses on a ridge overlooking a quality draw, and glassed until sunset. Lesson learned!

Third, we moved too much in the middle of day, largely because of bad planning on my part. Our typical daily routine was this: drive to a spot, hike out maybe a mile to some decent but not very big glassing country. The problem here was that, given the number of hunters, the proximity to the road, and relative ease of the country, there were usually multiple other hunters working the same area. I also didn't pick out very large areas, which meant that after a few hours, it seemed like we had exhausted the area. At that point, we'd hike back to the truck, drive to a new area, and repeat in a new area. The result of all of this was spending many legal hunting hours *moving between hunting areas* instead of *actually hunting*. The lesson I've gained from this is to have a full day of hunting planned out, every day. That generally means picking an area that (1) has enough country to spend an entire day at and (2) probably will involve a solid hike at the beginning and end of each day, to get away from the road (unless you're already camped out in the backcountry). You can always elect to move mid-day if the area is no good, but at least you're not *forced* to move because of having a poor plan.

I'm not saying a person needs to hunt hard every hour of every day. Seems to me that a mid-day nap for a bit can be very wise, if energy or morale is waning. And I'm sure moving once to a new hunting area in the middle of the day is fine. But moving 2-3 times a day seems excessive to me. But that's what we did. I'd love to hear more of what deer and elk hunters do in the mid-day doldrums. Would also like to hear more about the pros and cons of camping at a truck vs heading into backcountry. If any of the lessons I've learned are way off base, let me know!
 
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I think you've made some good observations.

If hunting efficiency is defined by effort per animal you've really only identified one thing (camping closer) that will decrease your effort. Most everything else will take more effort, but will hopefully yield more animals, thereby increasing efficiency.

I'm okay with expending more effort if it increases my overall odds of killing something.
 
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RCB

WKR
Joined
Apr 1, 2018
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CO
I think you've made some good observations.

If hunting efficiency is defined by effort per animal you've really only identified one thing (camping closer) that will decrease your effort. Most everything else will take more effort, but will hopefully yield more animals, thereby increasing efficiency.

I'm okay with expending more effort if it increases my overall odds of killing something.
Good point. I guess I was mostly thinking about efficiency in terms of animals per time. Given the usually very short seasons, I'm ok putting in a lot of effort and energy if it increases my chance of a good opportunity.
 

Ross

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Good observations of your days...imo the things that would help toward success find spots further in, commit all day to the spot no coming back out and drive to another spot this means the chosen spots are not far enough removed from 90% of hunters you can be successful this close but need to decide what is important to you and for sure get comfortable coming out in the dark and burning more batteries....good luck👍Mid day depending on the season I’m napping or glassing
 
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wvmnteer

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It seems you've already identified several areas for improvement. I will say that I hunted that same season in CO in 2016. I rarely saw the truck in the daylight.
 
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British Columbia
Well you were certainly efficient at taking note of what worked and what didn't...a couple more seasons like that and you'll be a stone cold killer. All very valid observations in my opinion, some people have great luck using other hunting pressure to their advantage but I've always had better luck loading up my pack and hiking in away from the main roads and trails. Yes you have to live a bit more spartan for a few days but isn't that what hunting is all about? ;) I too have done the pre-sunset hike out after having burned myself out hunting for 12 hours straight, a mid day nap can be a game changer especially during late season spring bear when days are 17+ hours up here.
 
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CBECK61

Lil-Rokslider
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Great observations I think your already on the right track. I tell guys every year that lots of great animals make it to next season because of that first and last 20 min. Before I go to bed I like to have a plan of exactly where I need to be by sunrise and plan out how long it will take to get out of bed, make coffee, eat food and get dressed and add a 20 minute buffer. Depending on the hunt you might see 40-80% of the animals in the first and last 30 min of hunting. It always pains me to see guys hike into great areas an hour to late and walk out an hour to early and then write the area off. My success rate went way up when I made a conscious decision to be in what I consider the best area at the best time. To me its silly to do all the other work if your not gonna hit that last 1 percent of effort to roll out of bed. I take great naps around 11 oclock on a lot of hunts.
 

Beendare

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Yep, right track.

Some of my experiences that may help;


Most of my best opportunities are at first or last light- or initiated then, and its rare that these are near a road- a good headlamp is your best friend

The more i get to know the species.Im chasing..... and how they react to the area they are in and hunter pressure, the more success i have.

learning when to be patient....and when to kick myself in the butt and cover ground... (though still a work in progress-grin) has increased opportunities.

most shot opportunities happen fast. Practicing for those opportunities in a realistic manner has helped me. YMMV

....
 

wyosam

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Aug 5, 2019
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I think a mid day nap is a great idea- I generally prefer not to come out of the hunting area for it though. If it’s nice out, I just find a good spot to glass, kick my boots off and lay my head on my pack. More than a few times I’ve woke up and started glassing and immediately found game. Being still and quiet let’s everything settle. I actually like midday if there is a bunch of pressure- everyone seems to head to the truck mid-day to try another spot ;) Remember that that “new” spot was covered with hunters all
morning, too. The more pressure is putting deer to bed before it gets light and keeping them there until dark, the more likely they are to stand up and have a stretch when you’re all driving to a new spot.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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