I have gone to West Virginia and Ohio some over the past 7 years. Usually it was during our season, but this year it was after ours was over. I have also been to Canada, North Caroline and the above 2 states in September before our season once each.
I am 62 and although I have a tree umbrella, I seldom go out in the rain. I will go in a blind since getting a couple in recent years.
I rifle hunt in rifle season, but once killed a p and y 10 point on opening day in Chester county.
During early archery I usually hunt 2-3 days a week(couple afternoons and a sat morning), the last 2 weeks of the season I try to get out as much as the wife and kidos permit. I typically take 5-7 days off work during those weeks.
on average.... Rifle bear 2 days, rifle deer 2-3 days, flintlock 5-6 days, spring turkey 4-5 days.
This year allot of my outdoor time has been spent training my 6 month old Brittany. My goal with him is to have him steady on grouse some day, we shall see? usually run him 2-3 days a week for a couple hours. Since Christmas we have flushed 10 grouse in 14 hours in the woods. I have not had this much fun in the woods since I was introduced to a bow. he is showing some promise and im planning to keep him on grouse throughout the year.
I like to take a trip every couple years. Hunted NM 3 times, ohio, new York and maine. Heading back to elk country this year, either montana or Oregon.
garden, wood, groundhogs...... endless reasons to get off the couch. I love being outdoors and allot of the time my wife complains about it, "cant you ever just sit down and watch a movie".
Ohio's season starts a week before PA's and I Start hunting that week. I will bow hunt evenings before work at least 3 days a week and on my two days off every week until my vacation. After my vacation I start all over again hunting as many days as I can before or after work and on my days off.
I love gun hunting to and usually get out almost every day during gun season and muzzeloader season in Ohio. I hunt 2-3 days a week in extended archery season until it ends in Febuary in Ohio.
Can't give an exact number but I guess I spend well over 400 hours sitting in stands archery hunting from late Sept to Feburary. I easily spend twice that much time if not more scouting shed hunting and checking my cameras.
Like bushy I can't get enough of it, it's a 365 day a year deal for me, I never stop scouting.
Then there is turkey season, I hunt Ohio & PA as much as possiable, I can hunt several mornings because I work third shift, just depends on how little sleep I want to go on.
Also do lots of work in the garden all summer and I split about 4-5 cords of wood with a maul during the summer. Yeah I'm pretty active.
I also spend lots of time in the summer exploring creeks around the house with my 5&6 year old boys they call it going on adventures and we try to camp a few times on my days off but there is a campfire every night I have off all summer, the kids love campfires.
Mike
I have good hunting for deer, squirrels, and groundhogs out my back door. I work nearby so I can hunt almost every evening and on Saturdays.
I'm in the same boat as treerat. I used to hunt Pa, Oh, and Wv. But, with two little ones now, I had to cut back. Now it's just Pa and Oh.
During the season, I hunt everyday the first week or so. I work shifts and my days off usually fall during the week. I hunt evenings on daylight or night turn and mornings on afternoon shift. I'll hunt mornings and evenings on my off days. The 2nd and 3rd week of the season, I only go out a few times and usually only hunt evenings then. Starting around October 20th, I go everyday up until my 2 week vacation and then I head to Ohio for that.
This time of year, I get out as much as I can to scout or shed hunt. I start putting trail cams out in Pa and Ohio around mid July. Also start hanging stands in both states around the same time. I also put a lot of miles on my truck and waste a lot of gas in July and August riding around in the evenings looking for deer in fields.
I got several trips planned to Ohio in the next 2 months to scout and shed hunt. My cousin informed me about another 100 acre property that he got permission on, can't wait to scout that!
Hopefully when my son gets a little older (only 10 months now) I'll be able to get out a little more.
Ben
Tree Rat kudos to you. Two weeks dark to dark in a stand. I could never spend that much time in a stand. A combination of ground and stand maybe. There are only a few days I hunt dark to dark during my vacation.
Do any of you participate in activities other than hunting that involve the outdoors? Backpacking, cross country skiing, rock climbing, orienteering, geocaching, etc?
I take a week or maybe a little bit more off of work during bow season, but that week may or may not be consecutive days.
The same goes for fishing - I'll take off a week or so to do some fishing/kayaking in the late spring/early summer.
At least one day per weekend this time of year is spent hiking in the woods. That is my absolute favorite time of the year to be checking out different areas. Finding old scrapes and rubs (and sometimes even fresh ones) and checking out how the trails are relating to food and bedding areas gives me ideas on how I'll hunt those areas the next fall.
A third week off is spent on various skeet fields in MD, VA, and PA. That third week off equates to a bunch of Fridays off for travel time to the tournaments.
The rest of my year outdoors is spent in the vegetable garden or splitting and stacking firewood for the next winter. Except of course when the wifey pulls out her "Dave's list of crap he hasn't finished in the past 30 years." :^)
I'm screwed........
I guess I am lucky that I made my hobby into my job at least somewhat, and I get to live where I hunt. It is great dealing with other hunters all the time.
I also hunt all turkey season in May as long as I have tags. I called in birds for 3 guys and 2 of them scored.
I love to shed hunt in the winter when I am home and have time. I went from finding 2 a year to finding 8 last year and 15 the year before.
I do not get any paid vacation per se however, I amass a lot of hours working approximately 4 sports expos in the winter, UBP Club campouts in the summer and attending various meetings. I then take comp time in hunting season, so I have to work even less hours so they don't have to pay me overtime.
I also have a place to hunt in Georgia with my brother and I am thinking about starting to hunt there while I am on vacation at Christmas time visiting my granddaughters.
Those wives are like elephants - they never forget. :^)
Heck, me 'n Mary Ann have been joined at the hip for almost 37 years and I'm dang sure she'd remember down to the year, month, day, hour, minute and second that item #1 appeared on "the list". :^)
And BTW, so does Chris - maybe even two. :^)
Mike
Like Mike and Ben, between scouting,walking properties, hiking, picking mushrooms, backpack training and actual hunting it is a year round occurence. It's a miracle I haven't gotten lymes disease.
Mike
I am pretty sure I have scouted more since mid November until now than I have in the last few years combined.
Mike, I do the same thing! yuppie treats at 10,12 and 2 haha
