Are you a generalist or specialist?

[KurtR]

I hunt every thing but waterfowl with my dog is top of the list by a far margin. I help guide for pheasants for a little extra side cash so I get plenty of that. I am lucky I drive 5 minutes to hunt both whitetail and mule deer and antelope. My son and I were deer hunting this year watching about 10000 mallards working a field he asked if we could duck hunt that night as it was his tag we were filling. Out of state elk hunting is pretty much on the back burner at this point just not worth a week of chasing ducks and geese.I spend all summer running my dog in hunt test and have been bit by that bug real hard.

 

[Button]

I’m down for all fishing and hunting

 

[alecvg]

I voted generalist, as I do hunt many species, including occasional small game and waterfowl- that being said I focus on mature animals- and spend 95% of my time on elk and mule deer. I try to fit in one short antelope hunt per year, and anything else is only if my deer and elk tags are
filled.

 

[Huntin_GI]

I hunt every thing but waterfowl with my dog is top of the list by a far margin. I help guide for pheasants for a little extra side cash so I get plenty of that. I am lucky I drive 5 minutes to hunt both whitetail and mule deer and antelope. My son and I were deer hunting this year watching about 10000 mallards working a field he asked if we could duck hunt that night as it was his tag we were filling. Out of state elk hunting is pretty much on the back burner at this point just not worth a week of chasing ducks and geese.I spend all summer running my dog in hunt test and have been bit by that bug real hard.

My dog is just getting to where I am confident enough to take him to his first hunt test but that wont change the fact I would rather eat elk than geese. Leads me to wonder if I was wasting time and money on a gun dog.

 

[KurtR]

My dog is just getting to where I am confident enough to take him to his first hunt test but that wont change the fact I would rather eat elk than geese. Leads me to wonder if I was wasting time and money on a gun dog.

That’s the other bonus ducks and geese have been my favorite meat since I was a little kid. Fat on mallard breast in cast iron will start fights on my house for the last piece

If the hunt test bug gets you it’s an addiction. I plan my summer on where tests are now

 

[Marble]

I hunt whatever I can, whenever I can, all the time. Probably 3 days a week normally, more when I'm not working.

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[Blockcaver]

I primarily hunt big game with the bow. That said I have a good bird dog and we chase upland birds a fair amount of days in Sept - Nov locally as well as out of province if the border is open. Used to hunt rabbits with the bow in Jan and Feb when I was a CO resident. I still call predators on occasion too.

 

[grfox92]

I moved away from the Whitetail woods last July out to Wyoming. Before I moved out here I would consider myself a whitetail specialist. I exclusively hunted whitetails for 20 straight years.

The last six or so years if I had my sights set on a buck he was in big trouble. Unfortunately those last 6 years were some of the busiest of my life having kids and flipping a house. I was still able to shoot a nice buck almost every year.

Now that I'm in Wyoming and we have pronghorn elk and mule deer, And I'm inexperienced in all of them I would be considering myself a generalist hoping to become a specialist of archery elk.

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[S.Clancy]

Im a generalist, I dont think that precludes me from harvesting mature/trophy animals, depending on what you consider mature/trophy. I think it's unrealistic to pass any mule deer over high 150s-160 or a bull pushing 300 or above.

Now, if you're trying to kill a true BC deer or elk then you may have to sacrifice some opportunities, but true BC quality animals are few and far in between and are a perfect combo of age, genetics and habitat.

 

[Zappaman]

Uh... my wife doesn't cook... and she doesn't like some of what I hunt and cook (goose, duck, squirrel, and a few other critters). So I just eat those when she's out for the evening, or when we have larger parties where some folks dig the "alternative" menu (and she gets grilled chicken breast)

But in general, I tend to hunt WHAT is near me I guess I'm a generalists in these terms as the beaver I brought home this year is still in the "maybe" category for her.

Last few years quail and turkey have declined here in Kansas (where I live anyway, guys up north say there are still plenty of turkey-- but not here). So I decline to hunt these birds as I feel it's not cool to hit a species when it's down-- same with prairie chicken in Kansas too BTW.

But deer are in massive abundance here so I take my max (4 a year) as well as a few gifted to me from a few "horn hunters" I'm buds with. I TRULY consider myself a "lucky as hell hunter" to have this abundance of excellent whitetail meat 10 minutes from my back door. If I lived in bear country or "up north" I'm sure I'd be eating those critters... so it's about what is in the field I have to hunt.

To me, it's about our diet and eating a wholesome and delicious meat that both my wife and I agree whitetail IS good stuff (given of course I prepare it to her liking).

 

[Rich M]

I dont hunt everything, but instead target specific critters. Usually deer, ducks, maybe something diff every couple of years. If we had upland bird hunting id do that too.

 

[MTPipeliner]

Pretty much hunt whatever I can whenever I can. Fish when I can’t hunt, both open water and ice fishing.

 

[Will_m]

I generally don’t kill anything.

 

[Coveyleader]

My wife has no influence on what I hunt, never has, never will.

 

[Zappaman]

My wife has no influence on what I hunt, never has, never will.

I agree... and I buy her jewelry EVERY time I go hunting out west- it helps

 

[Centralcoastca]

Definitely generalist, I go in phases though wherever the opportunity comes and the mood is there. Year to year I might chase quail constantly to rarely, rabbits all the time to never. Some years I’m fishing like crazy And only make time to go after the big game seasons to this year I hardly fished at all. It keeps the freezer full of variety and keeps things interesting, but it would probably be a heck of a lot cheaper to specialize…

 

[bowieknife50]

Used to hunt everything for a long time. Deer, turkey, squirrel, rabbit, birds, elk and mule deer rarely since I'm an Eastern tenderfoot. Then I got hounds.

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[Roofer1]

If I had more time would love to do more. But running a business, family, ... all that kind of stuff limits what I can and can't do. It's LOTS of whitetail and a trip west to the mountains when I can.

 

[WCB]

I fall into the jack of all trades, master of none category.


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"...but oftentimes better than a master of one"

I grew up in a family of generalists when it comes to hunting/fishing and IMO above average in all of those pursuits. For the most part "hardcore" or "purists" of any form are agonizingly boring.

 

[Dos Perros]

I used to be a bird hunter, and when I say that, I mean somewhat picky dude who liked to hunt behind fire breathing setters and pointers, only killing pointed birds, shooting double barrels, that kind of thing. Not necessarily gentlemanly, but somewhere between elitist snob and blue collar meat hunter sending lead for any reason. I got into big game hunting as my dogs were getting too old to hunt, and now they are dead. I'll get out for a weekend or two a year of proper bird hunting, but I'm a big game hunter now. Someday I'll have another brace of setters but with young kids I have my hands full.