Nice thread.

Thanks bud.

any tips to deal with deer hunting frustration?

im set on getting my first one with a bow, and im starting my 5th season without ever getting one.

it really pisses me off to see pictures and hear stories about how everyone is getting deer while im starving season after season,

i feel like if i can shake that paranoia out of my head while im in the stand, of other people getting deer i will be much better off.

the next person to show me a 10 pointer with their shit eating grin selfie i might have to slap across the face.

i just need that 1 deer then i can chill out

This post was edited by LeadFoot on Oct 1 2017 06:59am

I have had a few seasons where I didn't get any, but not many. We always have deer here, so they aren't too hard to come by, but a nice one is. I just try to stay determined. I hunted one buck for 3 years and waited until last day or day before to kill something else, opening morning the 4th year, when I came in it was hanging in my neighbors yard. Part of the hunt is just the experience being outdoors alone communing with nature and watching the other animals do their thing too. Maybe you need to find a higher traffic area if you aren't seeing deer. If you are missing them maybe you need to practice from your stand and figure out where you can comfortably shoot and get a kill shot.

Still too hot here to get out bow hunting yet this year.

worried about spoil? im still going for mine ill get it in the freezer asap

im seeing all kinds of deer like i never have this season

seen 9 within a 300sqft radius the other day! (but they were 70 yards out...)

ive missed a few point blank shots already... my bow string stretched and threw me off using another bow now. the mama does are pissed off and avoiding my good stands

i got 3 deer beds with tons of fawns and yearlings on site. i have to get one this season! there are two monster bucks i can see that are 500+ yards out and never come near me. and i noticed they always look where their own scent is going. (usually toward me)

farmers busted me yesterday. all the crops are about to be down near me soon though. i think that will bring them closer

This post was edited by LeadFoot on Oct 21 2017 11:06am

I like to gut my deer asap, wash the body cavity out, and hang and skin it. I age my meat for 3-5 days sometimes more but it has to be between 34 and 37 degrees for me to do it outside, so timing is crucial. I can shoot a deer pretty much any day here, we have a nice herd of about 80-120 deer that are constantly coming in and out of the property. The problem for me is I don't have a meat locker to keep them consistent temperature. If I could I would let it hang and bleed out and age for 10-14 days before cutting it up into my steaks and such. It takes all the "gamey" taste out of it. I cook with garlic too, real cloves take the gaminess out too if you cant age it much.

i finally got a mama doe the other day. couldnt find her that afternoon and she sat until morning for about 16 hours. temps were 50 dropping to 30

i was really worried about spoil but it turned out to be a pretty clean kill and field dress. i hung it for about 24 hours ish until i got worried about spoil and threw most of her in the freezer. temps got up to 49 and i could sorta see some parts get dark and it started to smell a tiny bit.

about 48 hours later i cut some scraps that was still hanging off and cooked up a pretty solid meal so i think i got pretty lucky and saved the meat! i didnt notice any gamey flavor but maybe im not too picky.

she ran a good 120 yards and i barely had ANY blood trail even with a point blank lung shot. im lucky i found her

Congrats man. Ya, I'm really cautious about spoilage. I hate to waste any of the meat, or any parts I can use for that matter. You can make a paste out of the brains even to tan the hide and make it soft as hell.

i got the meat stripped and the fat about 70% gone i spread fire ashes on it to dry it out. i keep forgetting to get salt. first deer dont really know what im doing even if it turns out pretty raggedy ill still be proud of it.

idk if the brains are still good i boiled the head for about 4 hours with the brain in. idk how to even properly get the brains out. i thought about painting the skull and hanging it.

any tips appreciated

This post was edited by LeadFoot on Nov 15 2017 07:24pm