Should i give up Deer stalking for a while?

Cass

Just wondering what yer opinions are.

I've been deer stalking for a good many years. The thing is for the last 3 years i've had "problems" that have either eliminated, or cut my season short before it even started.

Between a family member taking seriously ill the first week of the 2012/2013 season (for over 5 months), then logging taking place on my permissions in the 2013/2014 season (not one deer seen for over 4 months), and then my Mother taking ill over the 2014/2015 season i have missed most of those seasons.

The odd part is i don't miss it. I still shoot the permissions for other game and vermin both during and out of deer season, but i've found myself less and less inclined to go out for a deer. I don't enjoy it as much as decoying, rabbiting, foxing, etc.

I have my renewals & returns filled in but am holding off sending them back because i don't know if i want to go this year. The other thing is my Father is also in the same boat. He wants to change his guns (yet again) and go for more vermin orientated calibers, and stick to small game/vermin shooting for a while.

I can always get a deer license down the road but i'm wondering should i renew whether i intend to shoot or not or let it lapse, and see how things are in a few years?

BE interested to hear from anyone else in the same boat. IOW those that have "had enough" of deer stalking either permanently or temporarily.

sniperman

i have never been deer shooting,so cant give an opinion on that,sorry to hear about your problems,all i would say to you is keep doing what you enjoy best for as long as you can,i know i will.

Cass

Appreciate the response.

Everyone involved is well on the mend. My post is only an explanation as to why i'm considering giving it up. Didn't mean to play the violin .

Polo_Mint

Take time out for a year.

You will then know next year if you still have the hunger to do it.

You only miss things when they are gone as they say

Vegeta

Cass I'd keep the license going but maybe concentrate on the forms of shooting you enjoy the most, whatever that may be at this particular time. The license is free and the paper work is not too taxing.

My fear would be, and I'm cynical by nature, that some sort of stupid rule would come in. Lets say you don't renew the license and next year they announce there are too many deer being shot and put a moratorium on new licenses. I know that's real tin foil hat territory but you get what I mean.

I know myself that my hobbies are really cyclical, every 6 months I'll go nuts on fitness, then shooting gear, then reading/gaming, then travelling, then home improvement and round and round it goes

One shot on kill

Seems to me you've had enough time out.

Get your license and if you wanna head out do if you don't don't.
Get one in the cross hairs before you decide to give it up or not.

Snakezilla

Id keep it going Cass , you've nothing to lose and you never know when the mood will strike you to head out for a stalk ! Its better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it !

deerhunter1

Cass wrote: »

Just wondering what yer opinions are.

I've been deer stalking for a good many years. The thing is for the last 3 years i've had "problems" that have either eliminated, or cut my season short before it even started.

Between a family member taking seriously ill the first week of the 2012/2013 season (for over 5 months), then logging taking place on my permissions in the 2013/2014 season (not one deer seen for over 4 months), and then my Mother taking ill over the 2014/2015 season i have missed most of those seasons.

The odd part is i don't miss it. I still shoot the permissions for other game and vermin both during and out of deer season, but i've found myself less and less inclined to go out for a deer. I don't enjoy it as much as decoying, rabbiting, foxing, etc.

I have my renewals & returns filled in but am holding off sending them back because i don't know if i want to go this year. The other thing is my Father is also in the same boat. He wants to change his guns (yet again) and go for more vermin orientated calibers, and stick to small game/vermin shooting for a while.

I can always get a deer license down the road but i'm wondering should i renew whether i intend to shoot or not or let it lapse, and see how things are in a few years?

BE interested to hear from anyone else in the same boat. IOW those that have "had enough" of deer stalking either permanently or temporarily.

Hope all goes well for you. I sold my 308 rifle this year after 20+ yrs stalking, as you said with all the tree felling around my area as well,poor stalking conditions (weather) etc,a bit of lamping/poaching i was wasting good hunting time out stalking with little results. I purchased a 17hmr this year,plus sold my new browning 725 game and bought a 2nd hand Benneli semi auto, and started going back to my wild fowling,rabbit shooting, vermin/game hunting,which I now realize I missed badly, and brings me back to my younger days. Getting a real buzz from it and I now realize the good crack I have been missing, I doubt if I will get a stalking licence again, but I have some good friends that do it and I can go for a walk/stalk with them if needed.

grassroot1

Seems to me we need more stalkers that are happy with a deer or 2 a season and less of those that shoot 50 to 100 a season to be happy.
Keep your licence and your options open.

Cass

Thanks to everyone that has answered so far. It's good to get all angles and some ideas i haven't thought of yet.

deerhunter1 wrote: »

........... I doubt if I will get a stalking licence again, but I have some good friends that do it and I can go for a walk/stalk with them if needed.

I'm the same. I have friends that still shoot in and around my permissions and we've often traded days out with each other.

grassroot1 wrote: »

Seems to me we need more stalkers that are happy with a deer or 2 a season and less of those that shoot 50 to 100 a season to be happy.

In the last three seasons i've got about 12 deer in all. 7 of those were from 2 years ago and the other 5 from the previous year and last year.

I enjoy the bit of venison, and only shoot for the pot. Whenever i had an extra bit i'd give it to friends or family. However they seem to have lost interest in it, and once i've enough for myself my season is over. Whether that is the first week or last week of the season.


As above i could get that from one stalk with a friend. I know the license is free and easy to hold onto, but my thinking behind this notion and the reason for the thread is if i go this route i'll be selling my .308 rifles, and trading down for varmint calibers. IOW i won't have the minimum standard needed to re-apply in the following seasons.

So it's not just a case of do i or don't i as it'll mean a series of changes to the gun safes. Hence the reason i said i'd ask ye lads.

dodderangler

Sorry t hear about the family member mate.
IMO from your posts over the few years you don't be out after deer all the time and take very few a year which is good so it seems it's just handy for you to have.
Could be a day when your at home bored and have few hours free and can head out hunting so them moments are handy to have the licence. Few hours and possibly get lucky and have food for a while then so keep it mate.

270WIN

i too gave up deer stalking a few years back and went back to me dogs and gameshooting. to be honest i think deer stalking is very time consuming. I still missed it though and sold my 223 lately and bought a 270 again. I only ever shot a couple of deer a season and i am only going to go stalking in sept/oct/feb. The part i hate is renewing the deer licence every year... permissions etc..i would say keep up the deer licence anyway and get a 243 or a 22/250 to keep your "deer" options open.

Tawny Owl

It can be very unrewarding travelling to a lease or permission time and time again fuel and time are not cheap, and nothing to show for it, like you Cass I went the other way, I bought the .243 to get started 2 seasons back,I was the Secretary in a Club to over 40 members rough shooting and giving away my dog that I put nearly 2 years of hard work into, to heading out alone to stalk Deer,I had many of those days returning with nothing, your better off getting back into the rough shooting, as from your first post its seems to be your main passion,but as said hold onto a rifle in case you get that calling again to hunt deer, Can I say I am sorry to hear about the Family and I do hope it all pans out for the better, you have given me some great advice and a few warnings too since I joined Boards.ie Ha Ha, so enjoy the moment and I do hope it all works out for you and the Family.

Cheers Mate.

Markhor

If I were you I would not give up deer stalking or your deer rifle.
I have been shooting deer for the past 40 years, I am now 60 and I plan to hunt until I am unable to.

I have been in a similar situation as regards some of my family's health conditions but I continued to hunt throughout the difficulties.

Recently I got two more rifles for fox shooting etc. and I am making another trip to Africa for some hunting there and it is my intention to go to Scotland this winter to hunt a roe deer as I have not done it before.

So I would say to you not to give up anything, in fact go and get some more firearms and do other forms of hunting as well as deer stalking, it will make your life more interesting.

Often when people start giving up stuff it can be a slippery slope to opting out of much more.

Keep your .308, use it when you can and get yourself a heavy rifle and go to Africa or elsewhere in the world, it will enhance and invigorate your desire for more hunting.

Best of luck.

Grizzly 45

Sorry to hear about your problems,didnt know you were going thru all that.
FWIW.I'd keep the liscense going on both the let and the rifle.Drop down maybe to .243 if you need a varmit caliber?Reason,You never know what the future holds and its always possible that someone somewhere gets a crazy ass idea to legislate on a non problem and makes your life harder for people to reapply or get a liscense again.you dont have to be out there every weekend and if you are only going to go pot hunting it isnt and shouldnt be a chore.However,if a passion is becoming a chore,then its time to quit, be it a relationship or a hobby,job, or way of life.:)

cookimonster

Hang on in for this season and see how you feel......

From my own experience life is short and opportunities fleeting, unless you or someone else is suffering from what you, do continue on doing what your doing. Things may not be as they are in the future and rash decisions made in times of crisis and stress can have negative outcomes. What seems like poor times will be nothing but memories in latter life (speaking from experience)

Or

My rule of thumb, if you can't get out of bed or off the sofa for it then bin it.

What ever the decision I wish you all the best in your endeavours.

Burning Bridges

I have given up my lease, travel was a major reason 200km round trip, each deer i shot probably cost the guts of €200-300

Cass

When i wrote this thread i was looking for opinions and genuinely was not seeking a "self pity party", but i want to thank everyone for their comments and well wishes. It's much appreciated.

As i said above it's a simple case of not enjoying the deer stalking as much as before. Between the last few poor seasons, and wanting to get back into more vermin/game/rough shooting i thought i'd make the change and go for guns that are more suited. However from all the comments above i can see the advantage of holding onto the license not least for the fact that as Vegeta said something could come in in the future and prevent me from getting back into it as easily as we can now.

The best option, as ye all said, is to hold onto it and decide down the road. IOW better to have it and maybe not use it than not have it and want it.

Thanks to all for their responses.

deerhunter1

Cass wrote: »

When i wrote this thread i was looking for opinions and genuinely was not seeking a "self pity party", but i want to thank everyone for their comments and well wishes. It's much appreciated.

As i said above it's a simple case of not enjoying the deer stalking as much as before. Between the last few poor seasons, and wanting to get back into more vermin/game/rough shooting i thought i'd make the change and go for guns that are more suited. However from all the comments above i can see the advantage of holding onto the license not least for the fact that as Vegeta said something could come in in the future and prevent me from getting back into it as easily as we can now.

The best option, as ye all said, is to hold onto it and decide down the road. IOW better to have it and maybe not use it than not have it and want it.

Thanks to all for their responses.

Good luck on what ever decision you may make

dr.fuzzenstein

I used to stalk deer, but they got a restraining order out against me.
I'll get me coat.

deerhunter1

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

I used to stalk deer, but they got a restraining order out against me.
I'll get me coat.

:D:D:eek:

patsat

If you feel like taking a break then take a break. But keep your licenses, then if you ever wish to head out for a day on the spur of a moment you can.

It would be a shame to leave that Rpa not see any deer stalking action, if you need someone to bring it out for you and shoot it I'd kindly offer my services!

Longranger

I was stalking deer for a while but permissions got nigh on impossible to get in my area so I thought feck it, I'll pack it in for a couple of years and see how things go. Sold my rifle and other bits and pieces and thought little more of it. Last month I got a call from a friend who just nailed two huge permissions where he alone could hunt, and asked if I wanted go in it with him this coming season. Now I have no stalking rifle or anything else for that matter, and won't be able to afford one for at least a year. Needless to say,I'm not a happy camper. Take a break by all means, but for the love of God, don't let your gear go! Good luck mate...
LR

Cass

It would seem the stalking Gods have the same opinion as yourselves.

Got a call yesterday at lunchtime from a land owner where i shoot. He asked me to call up. I grabbed the Father and drove up. When i got there he asked me to jump into the jeep and took me on a drive. Turns out he took it upon himself to make sure that all the farmers/land owners around were on board with me shooting the entire lands. Now i already had permission on a lot of the lands, but there were two or three that had no problem with me crossing their land, but did not want any shooting on it.

The farmer got me the signatures and even took some of my blank forms and said he'd get the other lads to sign them and send them back to me. He also told me that only my Father and i would have permission on the lands. It stems back from the last few years when i would call the Farmer if i saw anything "odd" going on. Turns out on two of those occasions after we rang him, he and An Gardaí caught lads stealing from his land with the last one trying to steal his tractor. So what he was doing was a thank you for the "security" we provide while out stalking/hunting.

Then to top it all off we arrive home and within an hour the Father gets two phone calls. One from a friend that he done his CPC course with and another we both know. Both were making sure that we knew that we had permission to shoot their lands. Only us again. So on top of the existing permissions i now have another 6 new ones. So i've a busy few weeks ahead to check out the lands and am actually looking forward to this season.


Thanks to all that answered and contacted me via PM. It's good to know you can talk & think these things out with lads that know their stuff.

dr.fuzzenstein

make sure to tell people NOT to wear hats like this:

grassroot1

Cass wrote: »

It would seem the stalking Gods have the same opinion as yourselves.

Got a call yesterday at lunchtime from a land owner where i shoot. He asked me to call up. I grabbed the Father and drove up. When i got there he asked me to jump into the jeep and took me on a drive. Turns out he took it upon himself to make sure that all the farmers/land owners around were on board with me shooting the entire lands. Now i already had permission on a lot of the lands, but there were two or three that had no problem with me crossing their land, but did not want any shooting on it.

The farmer got me the signatures and even took some of my blank forms and said he'd get the other lads to sign them and send them back to me. He also told me that only my Father and i would have permission on the lands. It stems back from the last few years when i would call the Farmer if i saw anything "odd" going on. Turns out on two of those occasions after we rang him, he and An Gardaí caught lads stealing from his land with the last one trying to steal his tractor. So what he was doing was a thank you for the "security" we provide while out stalking/hunting.

Then to top it all off we arrive home and within an hour the Father gets two phone calls. One from a friend that he done his CPC course with and another we both know. Both were making sure that we knew that we had permission to shoot their lands. Only us again. So on top of the existing permissions i now have another 6 new ones. So i've a busy few weeks ahead to check out the lands and am actually looking forward to this season.


Thanks to all that answered and contacted me via PM. It's good to know you can talk & think these things out with lads that know their stuff.

I am giving up rough shooting..........
I await the permissions

German pointer

Just came across this thread as I was out of the country the past week. Glad to hear you are not giving it up.

4200fps

The more that gives it up the better

Cass

Interesting take. Do you not like/agree with deer hunting or believe there are too many at it? Something more than a couple of words would be helpful.

4200fps

As a lot don't understand the meaning of the word conservation. It just gave the majority of the folks who cannot get up out of bed something to do in evening/night to increase their income. A lot of the deer zones are wiped out, any that are even well thinned out should be given time to recover. Im not gonna give it up as my permissions hold very reasonable numbers. I'd shoot a handful of deer for the table during the season and the rest of my time will be spent in search for a trophy head. I'm getting as much fun outa searching/hunting for a medal deer as opposed to shooting silly numbers. Keeping your grounds managed and keep the scum out is the only way to do it

dr.fuzzenstein

^^^
Is that via Google Translate?