Staying motivated?
Kansas
How do you guys stay motivated to keep hunting. After 29 years of waterfowl hunting I havent been once this year. It was always my passion. However it has turned into a total crap show in these parts. Public is over run, and we lost all the private places we used to go. I havent sold off everything yet, but most will be gone. Quail are all but gone (just saw a small covey on my place a few min ago). I enjoy the habitat aspect of quail more than about anything. We used to go on a pheasant hunt or two but The last several of those I didnt even need to take my gun. That brings us to deer. Ive taken several nice bucks but I dont have the passion for it like I did bird hunting. I like eating them is one of my main reasons. However like this morning I had an alarm set to wake up and go out. I took a look at the radar that wouldnt have slowed me down when I was a duckhunter but I rolled over and went back to bed. How do you guys stay motivated? I feel kind of sad my son wont get the same waterfowling experience I had.
I grew up hunting public and thousands of acres of private that many other people also had permission on back when permissions were gained easily. I learned to be aggressive in hunting due to all the pressure. There are deer, birds, and fowl to hunt if you change tactics or locations. Tactics include getting a good dog to find birds. Also, I'm perfectly happy to shoot a few birds. In nearly 30 years of bird hunting, I've never killed a limit of quail. I'm perfectly happy to take 2 or 3 if the covey is healthy. If all the public waterfowl spots are full, go to a cove at a state park or a river that dumps into a lake during late season. You'll still kill birds and nobody will be near you. I enjoy a few duck and goose hunts all season, but never more than I care to eat. I suspect that many of these waterfowlers that kill hundreds are throwing them away in the ditch. All that being said, my drive has never wavered, even during a divorce, low bird years, deaths of close siblings and father, or loss of hunting spots. I do hunt certain species less, or not at all. I gave up squirrel and doe hunting. I buy a lot of new equipment and guns, and have quite a few dogs which makes me want to take them hunting even when I don't feel like it. Sometimes I have to talk friends into going, because it is always fun with friends. Some of these guys have gotten fat, soft, lazy, have controlling wives, or all of the above. Either way, I can usually put together several good hunts a season.
What you describe is what hunting was here a decade ago. Now the birds get pounded into oblivion the second they show up. Then they sit on the refuge and dont leave until after dark. 2010 I shot 195 ducks. Last year I shot 21 and 11 of those came on 2 hunts. Ive had more 0 bird days in the last 5 years than probably the 15 years before that combined. The competition for birds is fierce. For me the juice is no longer worth the squeeze.
Well, it sounds like you were in it for the killing. Kind of like marriage, if you're in it for the sex, you will eventually be very disappointed. I'm happy just to kill a few birds and be outside with my friends and dogs. Then I go back to my hospital job taking care of a few sick people that actually need to be there and a bunch of miserable people with no coping skills, and drug addictions that like to play the system for narcotics, a warm, bed, and free meals. The hospital job is what makes me appreciate the outdoors even more. My mowing business keeps me in shape and finances my hunting and everything else fun.
Ksgobbler, for my first decade I wouldn't have dreamed of going deer hunting over duck hunting, then I spent 3 decades pretty much focused on deer and wouldnt dream of going on a duck hunt in Nov, this yr... I've spent more days in Nov crappie fishing than I have in a tree. NEVER thought that would happen! Do what makes ya happy. If it's no longer hunting then so be it. Wake up and have sex with your wife instead.
My dad ran a business and farmed in his spare time. He and his folks, my grandparents, loved to fish. We fished a lot, often spending weekends setting lines in the creek that ran thru my Great Grandfather’s land, occasionally in the river near my Great Uncle’s land who also loved to fish. Every fall, the elders and cousins old enough to hunt got together to dove, quail, and prairie chicken hunt. Holiday meals often included game that had been shot that day. I wasn’t allowed to carry a shotgun until old enough to go thru Hunters Ed, but I always went along, I couldn’t wait to get my turn to join in. Game was plentiful, limits were most always met. In Sept, doves flew in by the hundreds, you couldn’t keep the guns loaded fast enough. There were multiple coveys of quail everywhere you hunted, coveys as large as 30-40 in each. In November, Dad, my uncles, and other hunters went West to hunt pheasant either opening or the 2nd weekend every year. Dad would come home with tales of good hunts, good times with family and friends, he’d always bring the kids home tail feathers from the birds they had shot. I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to go. I took Hunters Ed in 5th grade, got my first gun that Christmas, a Marlin .22 to hunt squirrels and rabbits. When bird hunting, like my brothers before me, I started with a bolt action single shot .410 Dad had. When you can limit out dove hunting with that gun, you were allowed to hunt quail and chickens with the elders instead of bird dogging for them for a change. The second year I routinely limited out on dove every day I went. The same fall we ate my quail, doves, rabbits, chickens, squirrels and fish at the family gatherings. I would have been deer hunting too, but they were scarcely seen back then. Once old enough to have my driver’s license, I went hunting and fishing all the time. I paid for my own gear after getting jobs and paychecks (starting @13 yrs old). When I was 16, I joined some friends in Western Kansas for my first pheasant hunt. I never did get invited to go along with Dad and the uncles, so I found my own group to hunt with. I fully understood why Dad and his group wanted to keep the group as it was, it was their weekend get away from the routine, they got to let their hair down and enjoy the time afield. I found the same with the group I hunted with. That first year, the 14 of us shot our limit in 3hrs walking out birds from the same field NE of Hays! Those of you bad at math, we had shot 64 pheasants and hadn’t walked the 2nd half of the field! The hunt was amazing! The 2nd day, we did the same, limiting out before lunch SE of Russell. I came home after lunch with my 8 birds and a bag full of tail feathers. I gave my Dad and an uncle that lived near us tail feathers when I walked in the door. The look on their faces was priceless, they knew why I did it. I seldom bird hunt after starting deer hunting, commercialism and leasing took many of our hunting spots away out West. Birds got scarce. I was talked into trying deer hunting with a bow. Few people were doing it, I was hooked right away. Chickens are gone, doves are fewer, never mind the steel shot and stamps, quail are few and far between. Never found waterfowl hunting fun, being cold and wet to shoot birds unfit to eat is not my cup of tea. Turkey is fun to call in, but sitting in wet tick infest grass makes it a no for me. Now commercialism is ruining deer hunting just like it did with pheasants. I have five hunters hunting yards away me, when I started bow hunting the closest hunter was five miles away. I saw 30 different deer on every stand visit. I’m lucky to see that many different deer in a season now.
I will continue to hunt and fish as long as I am physically able to, and have a place to go. I am past hunting until I limit or tag out. Now days, I am lucky to be able to get a chance to go. This is the first year in my life that I have not went fishing once, haven’t taken the time to do so, or didn’t care to when I had the time. I guess that is what getting older is.
For me it's the "not knowing" what's around the bend, or coming down the trail next, or trying to find the X...which I'm really not that good at, but I enjoy the day to day and the sights and sounds. I don't have too many hobbies other than the outdoors, and I have nobody to answer to, I get to go whenever I want when I'm home and I try not to waste many of those days. I'd hate to add up the hours/fuel/time I've spent outdoors, but it wouldn't matter because to me it's priceless. I don't want to die with money, I want to die with experiences.
Try to enjoy the small things, and remember that there's WAY more to life than hunting, you've got a lot of good going on too!
Matt I hate that you have lost a little drive in hunting. Have you thought about traveling a little to get birds?
Since about 8 yrs old I’ve been fascinated with whitetails but around age 15 or so I started thinking about getting bigger deer so at about age 19 I started traveling by myself to Missouri until Utah got old enough to go about 18 yrs later. That was a good outlet for me and it lasted till I was 42 and that’s when I found Kansas. Lol now if things don’t get better pretty soon in Kansas I’m going to try and talk my family into moving to Iowa.
I’ve always felt lucky that I don’t get tired of something once I fall in love with it. I can eat fried chicken and deer meat every single day and the taste seems to get better every time. I can make love to Erica and it seems to get better every single time. Now I’m not quite as young as I used to be so awhile back a part of me, even though it still worked, seemed to lose a little motivation. I did a little traveling though and found this pill I use sometimes and….Whooeeee life is dang good.
Now I got to admit though something has changed in my hunting a bit though in the last 3 years. Maybe I’ve lost a tad on the motivation part but I blame that on Ella. I’ve gotten so close to her for some reason I’ve been starting to feel sorry for some animals and even deer sometimes. I’m pretty sure right now if an old one with big horns came up I wouldn’t have no trouble at all cause the excitement would override that. The last doe I shot up there was in 2020 and the numbers on that place was pretty good then so I took one out at last light on the last day of season. She went just a little ways and fell and I could hear her gasping for air for a bit. That sound got to me for some reason and it didn’t help that I shot a very young buck by accident the next year. I haven’t drawn back on one since. Utah has shot a few down here for meat and I’ve been given a few for meat as well so all has been good in that regards.
But I can tell you one thing for sure. If I ever get to the point where I can’t pull back on one,which I sure hope doesn’t happen, I’ll still be out there watching them. I’ll do some traveling around to find me a camera and with that in hand amongst the whitetails life will still be good.
I mainly hunt for my dogs. I have seen it coming, and figured I would make it till my oldest dog couldnt go anymore. Maybe I need to get in the hunt test game, or switch them from bird dogs to blood tracking dogs as their seems to be no shortage of work for a blood trailing dog. Im not saying traveling is out of the question, but my wife is ill and wont be getting better. It is a slow steady decline with the body being strong but the brain deteriorating. Her oldest brother passed the day after easter from it at 46. The middle brother is 43 and in a nursing facility. We are just starting the journey but we are trying some experimental stuff.
Is it an autoimmune disorder Ksgobbler?
No a rare form of Alzheimer's
Well this here Matt changes the whole ballgame and you’re a tough man just to even step foot in the woods. Couldn’t imagine going through with what’s going on with her and y’all’s family. Very sorry to hear about this and praying they come up with something that helps.
I'm very sorry to hear it. This explains everything. Taking care of my dying dad and brother was one of the most difficult things I've done. There was a guy on this forum that took me goose hunting to get my mind off things when my dad was on his way out, and it helped.
I hate to hear this too. There is some great advice provided above. The older I get, the more I understand what I've seen from some of the people I now consider "the old timers." I have so many memories of hunts with family and friends that hold a special place in my heart. The one thing I have found that works for me is to keep things interesting without stressing. I have found that throwing in a few destination hunts or at least planning for them, really keeps me motivated. The mystique of the unknown drives me. Also, when I get down on my optimism, I will mix in something new, even locally. Life is full of negatives and of people who are miserable and lurking to bring you down with them. I have just learned to ignore that and to always keep a positive mindset. The only way I have ever found success is to push through the difficult times and that includes that voice in my head talking me out of heading out on similar days. I think listening to your body as we age isn't a terrible thing, but try your best to keep the fun in all of it. I have so many firsts in mind that I would personally like to do with the years ahead. I also try to keep in mind that this could be the last season afield. We are just not guaranteed anything. Give thanks for the blessings you have and if you open your eyes to God's beauty, the game becomes a bonus.
I understand where you're coming from and I find myself the same way with hunting pheasant. For the past 25 years I rarely missed a weekend and usually went once during the week, this year completely different. The two biggest reasons are lack of birds (I know there's still some to be had) and the current dog I have. The past two bird dogs I've owned were great but the one I've had the past four years pretty much drives me nuts. Sweet dog but he loves to run/range. It's all I can do to keep him somewhat in a huntable range. I bought a Garmin to help keep track of him and I find myself staring at that thing most of the time and it has completely taken the joy out of it for me. Went to South Dakota a few weeks ago but missed the Kansas Opener for the first time in 25 years. It's the main reason I waited so long in life to get into bow hunting (started 3 years ago), because I didn't want to be torn between sitting in a tree and following bird dogs around. But, the past two years I've found myself picking the tree over the dogs.
Matt, I can see how hunting would be taking a back burner with your wife's condition. If you do not feel the drive right now don't over think things. Just do what you need to do. My brother went through a similar three or four year ordeal with his wife and I could see it took a toll on him. She passed this year at the end of July. The prior year she could not be left alone and had to spend her last two months in a nursing home. Fortunately, one of their daughters saw to it that my brother could get away at least one day a week. I hope you can do the same for your own health.
I turned 71 in September and definitely know what you are talking about when it comes to lack of birds. The 1988/1989 season I shot about 200 quail in Chase County, and there were plenty left at seasons end. I have not shot one in Chase County in over 10 years. After the quail population plummeted we got more into Pheasant hunting. As, my brother said a few years ago. We hunted them near St Francis, Garden City, and areas in between.
I continue to bird hunt because I love getting out watching my Brittany do what she loves most . About 4 years ago I developed some serious back problems, and that caused me to realize my hunting days may be limited. My doctor kept telling me that surgery was a last resort, and I needed to deal with it through Physical Therapy. After three years of physical therapy, I was to a point of thinking my life was over. I was to the point where I could only walk a couple 100 yards before my legs would quit working. I went to my doctor and she said maybe I needed to quit hunting. I told her she might as well tell me to quit breathing. She said she guessed it was time for surgery. I had surgery at the end of March. I went pheasant hunting the last two Saturdays (both days my brother shot his limit). I have to use a cane while hunting, but at least I can go. I got one pheasant Saturday, which is something that I thought might never happen again. I tell all this as it has made me realize how hunting and fishing is a part of me. With my back, I had to give up golf, and bowling, which really only leaves hunting and fishing. When I can no longer do those things I know my personality will let me go on not being able to enjoy the outdoors. I know most people are not as driven as me. So, just be yourself, and do what makes you happy.
Praying for you Matt. The outdoors will always be there when you are ready to go back.
It’d be pretty danged hard to be motivated to do anything, I can’t really offer any advice on how to overcome it.
However, things change just because it’s not “it” right now doesn’t mean it won’t be again in the future.
One of the best quotes I ever heard was “have you ever loved something so much you hated it?”. Took me a while to figure out what that means, but it’s like anything else worth pursuing… sometimes parts of the journey sucks.
I’m sure everyone here has had trials/bad days or even while seasons while hunting. I’ve hunted ONCE this year… I went one other time and just sat in the woods against an oak and left my xbow in the truck.
Maybe trying a different method would rekindle the interest? I shot my compound for the first time in 3 years today… hurt a little more than I would have liked, but I believe I can get it done if a deer comes by. It felt good to shoot again even if I only shot 6 arrows. I’m also going to actively pursue traditional archery and learn left handed. I know it sounds weird but my shoulder doesn’t bother me when I draw left handed.
My main passion has also changed from hunting to spending more time with my wife/kids… nothing wrong with walking away from it all together and pursuing other interests.
I’ll say a prayer for you and your wife.
Hang in there. I went through something similar the past 2.5 years. It’s tough, but faith, other family members, the outdoors and some of the guys on this site will help you.
Damn KS that is enough to make a guy stop and take stock of things. I hope the exp drugs work for your wife. My wife had a hysterectomy in Oct and thank God is doing fine. Scary for a while. I wish you both the best.
I have been doing this thing now for around 38 years. Seems like every year I loose more and more ambition to go. I have a 9 year old son (late at being a father)that now has the bug so I hope to rekindle my passion while taking him out. We made a platform for our blind the other night so its getting better. My father about 20 years ago up and quit bowhunting cold turkey. I remember thinking there is now way I would do that, but if it wasn't for my son I probably would be doing that too now. Funny thing is he is back to bow hunting, but with a Xbow. He sits in his blind about everyday and tells me about all the deer he had walk by. He could care less about drawing blood! I was also a die hard pheasant and waterfowl hunter. Of course lack of pheasants in my area forced me to quit. Waterfowl was awesome as at the time there was just me and about 8 other friends who hunted. Had all the crop fields and river bottom all to ourselves for years. Now all those fields have some out of state guide sitting out in them and the ducks no longer use the river as every 1/4 mile there is spread of either youtubers or guided duck hunters on every bend of the river pretty much everyday all season. Funny thing is ducks no longer use the river as all the local sandpits that held birds (refuge) got leased up and birds don't use them anymore. Sad! Hope some day i can show my boy a good duck hunt on the river, but it looks highly unlikely unless things change.
Thanks guys. We have a long road ahead as we are early in the journey.
Sorry to hear about your wife KSgobbler...family matters most of all
I'm 50 and have been bowhunting now almost 25 years. The last 10 years it's become harder to be motivated. I used to take a full week off during the rut, combine that with the weekends. I now can't do that. I schedule my days off during the rut, but take a couple days off, then go to work for a couple , then a couple more off. Usually 2 days of hunting and I'm exhausted and burned out. The wife doesn't like to spend the weekends home alone, as we are empty nesters, so I try to be around home for the weekends more. I feel like I'm the one rutting during the rut, I get so worn down, I quit working out, my diet is crap, I just don't reap the benefits of a rutting buck :(
Find what inspires you and makes you happy. That is all that matters.
I seem to battle the 3 w's. Wind, weather, wife
