Doc

He did not mention the challenge of hunting with primitive equipment and how that fits in with the act of hunting. There is the requirements of extra dedication when using historical designs of hunting equipment. Generally speaking it does require extra woodsmanship and understanding of game to be able to get within effective range of these kinds of low-tech weapons. And of course that extra hunting ability and lore is something a hunter has to receive an additional level of pride on the more rare occasions of success. It is pretty satisfying to watch someone's eyes widen when they see the crudeness of an old self-bow that brought down a deer (buck or doe, it doesn't matter). Using these weapons to put food on the table is a feat that adds fulfillment and greater satisfaction to the hunt. There is also the additional feeling of personal achievement when you take the role of the manufacturer, and some remote engineer working at some office in the city, out of your hunting success and understand that your achievement was based more on your individual efforts. My first bow kill was done at the age of 11. I went up on the hill and cut a hickory stave, and shaved it down to shape with an old draw-shave that I found in my Dad's shop. A baling twine string and some old fletchless willow arrows and I was ready for hunting. I raised Hell on the pigeon population up in the hay mow of our barn and brought home three pigeons for my mother to cook up. Yeah that was the beginning of a life-long activity of hunting. And I believe the crudeness of the equipment added to the value of the success. There are other pluses to using historical equipment that regard our culture and heritage that this fellow only touched on, but I certainly did enjoy his video. It is a subject that we hunters often ignore and overlook. Thank you OldBrian for the link.

I have shot deer for members of my family that would not be able to eat venison if I hadn't have gotten it for them. Personally, I am not really all that fond of venison. I enjoy a good black angus steak or roast far more, or a nice grain-fed, greasy old cow-burger....lol. But the predator in me still enjoys the hunt. Regarding the original topic of "hunting social media", I have to note that before all that we had piles of hunting magazines that served pretty much of the same purpose. All those bowhunting magazines that I subscribed to all those years all had the latest and greatest equipment and go-fasters, and secret hunting methods and techniques. I remember that there was a lot of B.S. peddled in those mags. But when I started bow hunting, there was not hardly anyone else doing it. This was back in the early 60's. So I devoured all the info that I could find. I can't say that any of it really did any harm, and most of it was interesting. I think the hunting social media fills that same purpose today. It's all fun as long as most of it is taken with a grain of salt and a ton of reason and logic.

Could you imagine what the actual cost really is per pound. If you start factoring in the amortized cost of all the hunting weapons, and the ammo, and the transportation costs.......Oh my the cost quickly becomes staggering. What did I leave out? I wouldn't add in my time because it is recreational time. But how about out-of-state hunts with guides or outfitters and such. No, I don't think it is a very good idea to try to work out an all-inclusive dollar per pound amount. That could get to be a bit discouraging. It is just a very expensive hobby.....lol.

Those are some pretty attractive looking dishes that you have been posting here. I do have one question though......What is quinoa. it looks like a form of rice....but not quite.

I did some deer drives when I first started hunting. It was fun. Then I started getting the idea that I wanted the deer that I get to be a little more "one-on-one". I wanted the success or failure to be mine alone, based on only my actions and efforts and skills instead of a gang-thing. I guess we all have our little quirks about how we approach hunting and what we need to have satisfied in our hunting results. But anyway, deer drives became a thing of the past for me, but I'll bet they are still fun for those that do them.

I think another contributor to the condition of stationary hunters is the evolution of outdoor hunting clothing efficiency. I remember when I started hunting, it wasn't too long before the threat of frostbite to my fingers and toes had me on my feet still-hunting through the woods.

I often wonder if all this season extending and increasing bag limits aren't really having a negative effect on hunter numbers. In our locality, opening day does not draw the crowds it used to. The number of shots heard are significantly less. We now have empty or near empty public land parking lots where they used to be filled and overflowing out on th the main road. Could it be that now with all the extensions of hunting seasons, the hunters keep putting off going out thinking that they have plenty of time to get their deer? Somehow the physical evidence of the number of hunters is not aligning with any claims of a higher hunter population. I will admit that my observations are extremely localized and not really any adequate scientific sampling.

I once saw a hunter standing about 100' from our house. I went over to remind him that he was too close to the house to be shooting. When I got there, I saw that he was wobbling around. His eyes were the worse shade of blood-shot that I have ever seen. His speech was so slurred I could hardly understand him, and he was resting the barrel of his shotgun on top of his boot. He was totally bombed out of his mind and was a clear danger to himself and anyone around him. He mentioned that he had a son hunting with him and pointed to another hunter at the far end of the field. I walked him over to the guy and we agreed that this guy should be home instead of out with a gun. They both headed out to the road where their car was parked. This idea that the woods is a good place to be drinking is really no joke. I know that this guy could easily shoot someone or himself. He figured he was fine. fortunately his son agreed with me and took his gun and him back to their car. That was the worst case that I had ever seen, but pink-faced, red-eyed hunters are not really all that scarce. Scares me to death to be out there hunting in the same woods with them.

I have watched quite a few deer rubbing their antlers over the years, and in each case the bucks were on the move from somewhere, to somewhere only pausing along the way to make a rub. They did not seem to be feeding at all.

And one of the details is that you used the term, "you guys" indicating you were intentionally excluding yourself from that gang of polluters that use gasoline to powered transportation. As far as your condemnation of cars as being "stupid invention", I must say that this would certainly be a pretty backward world without them.

Wait a minute.......When you say "you guys" am I to believe that you do not drive cars. Knock off the hypocrisy. Do you put your money and actions where your mouth is, or just blow off blather about..."you guys" while puffing out all the hydrocarbons that everyone else does? When are you going to start bicycling back and forth to work. Or do you intend to get a horse and buggy? Climate control talk makes you feel real good but really means absolutely nothing unless you start doing things that you demand of all the others that you rail against. In the meantime, you might start trying to pay a little attention to details of what you are proposing.

I think one other big factor is the proliferation of ammo hoarding. When a little ammo manages to land on the shelves, people grab it up by the arm-full. It might be that the ammo manufacturers like things this way.

It is not even close......my Bow is the weapon that gives me the most satisfaction and fulfillment. No, it is not the most efficient or the most productive, and that probably is what the attraction is. I do hunt with both, but the gun is more of a carnival atmosphere and the sole reason to use a gun for me is simply meat-gathering. When it comes to matching wits with the critters and taking on additional challenge, the bow has always been my weapon of choice.

Could it be that humans feel a need to respond to ancient predatory DNA. Perhaps responding to a time when hunting to survive was a way of life for our species? Ha-ha-ha.....Now that is an interesting theory.

Hard to believe isn't it? One thing they did not mention is expansion of factories or additions of resources and facilities. This is going on far too long.

So are the ammo people ever going to get on board with matching the production to the demand? What the heck is the matter with them. Look at the amount of money they are passing up.

I understand the advantages of having both eyes opn, but I never adapted. Left eye automatically closes. That is true even with my bow shooting too.

I don't have it all right in front of me at the moment, but I believe the wording included "during the firearms season".

Thinking way back to a time before I was even old enough to hunt, I often recall the things that inspired me to even want to hunt. As a youngster there were some of the books that I read about the mountain men and the relied their their abilities to outwit critters and live off the land in ways defined their place in nature. At that age I was too small for those things to be a part of my daily life, but they all provided the goals for hunting and other outdoor activities. They all seemed like things that young men grew up to be a part of. And indeed back in those days, I was not alone in those feelings. Our entire culture in that small farm area was about outdoor activities and our place in nature. The trapline that I ran at the age of 11 taught me even more about how to become involved in nature, to study it and become a part of it. I also grew up wandering the hills and valleys of the Finger Lakes where huge forested lands were a constant part of my life. All this was a part of my life for as long as I can remember even before I was of hunting age. How could I have not become a hunter?

We talk about political divisiveness like it is a new new invention of the decade........Ha-ha-ha. You should have herd the kinds of red-faced arguments that the adult males used to have around the Thanksgiving Day dinner table when I was a kid almost 80 years ago. I still remember that huge vein that used to expand down the forehead of my father as his face turned red and the volume of his voice elevated as he was arguing about the Democrats. And then the same kind of impassioned response would come from the other end of the table. All of us kids sitting ate the "kids" table wre convinced that there would be violence breaking out any minute. But you know as heated as those political arguments got, there was laughing and joking that always happened afterward. Has anything really changed over the years? Political debate...... it is healthy and keeps the brain activated and exercised.

My Brother-in-law asked a simple question that I had no answer for. He asked how long does it take to fill up a battery for an all electric car. I know that filling my car with gas is a rather brief interruption in my life that uses maybe 5 minutes total foe each fill-up. But if I had an all electric car, and my batteries were getting low, how long would my car have to be side-lined at a charging station before I could resume my driving? Another question that puzzles me is, what is the average life of the batteries that these cars use? And what does it cost to replace them when they refuse to take a charge? How about the massive disposal cost and difficulties that occurs with these. I have to confess total ignorance when it come to these batteries, but do we have any electronics wizards here that know the answers to these questions? Are electric cars God's gift to the planet that we are being told?

We have discussed why we are hunters a long time ago. But now we have many new members, so I thought it would be interesting to sample attitudes among hunters again. So the question is simple. Why do you enjoy hunting? What are the elements of hunting that push your buttons?

I have a dark gray ghillie suit that does the best job of concealment of anything I have tried. It is a loose-leaf almost a Tree-bark color. The only problem is that it is difficulty to shoot a bow with it on. Very easy to have unexpected interferences.

I guess I can't see any reason why not. I'm in that high risk age bracket. Is there some reason why I shouldn't?

It used to be a massive event at the DEC region 8 complex at Avon until they just decided to dissolve it. Thousands of area people became acquainted with hunting and fishing and trapping at the event. Thousands of young kids were introduced to outdoor activities that they would normally never hear about. But for some reason, the DEC didn't feel it was a good thing for them to be associated with.