Being at a Disadvantage without a SxS

[OregonSteeler]

With all the side x sides I see during hunting season, I sometimes wonder if not having one is a big disadvantage. For those who can afford them, they can get places faster, check out larger areas looking for animals, and even make a stalk faster/smarter if spotting game from a distance. *Note: I feel this pertains to rifle elk/deer hunting more than archery.

I do not have the funds, the storage space, or live close enough to an area where it's worth having a side x side. For as much as I would LOVE having one, I just can't justify the cost. When not archery hunting or focusing on deep timber areas, I mainly get around in my F350, The truck definitely gets the job done for the most part, but there's also so many negatives compared to a dedicated hunting vehicle.

For those who do NOT have a side x side (or quad), do you feel like you're a step behind everyone else who is buzzing around in theirs? For those who've recently went from not having a side x side to owning one, does it make you more effective/successful hunter?

I'll be hunting timber, sage, and a lot of open country in mid-November for elk this year and while doing my e-scouting, I can't help but wish I would have a SxS to scout here in a couple weeks and then to hunt out of.

 

[justin davis]

Nope. I actually had a sxs and sold it because I hardly used it

 

[wytx]

Atv is more useful for us and it is very useful. Some roads where we hunt you can not get a truck down them, the atv shaves a ton of time getting back into the elk areas or for getting your harvest out.
Could we hunt without it, yes certainly we could but at our age it is a help.

 

[Steve300xcw]

They are badass machines. However I have never felt at a disadvantage by not owning one and I doubt if I ever will.


Have wormed a cclb f350 into some dumb places while working. But they do limit you, expecially if you care about the truck...

Everybody should have a woods beater. Been some pretty good deals on rigs lately...

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I had 2 atv's for my wife and I to ride during the summer. I also used them for hunting and on my place here in sw Colorado (I have 10 acres. I went to sxs's because they are drier and can carry more. They are less expensive for me also...2 to 1 vehicle.
I use mine to hunt in too. BUT...only for transportation to where I am going to hunt, then I get out and really hunt. They are also great for carrying out my animals as mine has a tilt bed. I have a 2009 Yamaha Rhino, seats 2 and has a winch.

 

[Ross]

Never have felt that way. A quad sits in the garage all year with trax and have never felt the need to need it. My little taco gets me to 95% of the country. Don’t think because someone has a sxs or quad that they are more successful. Many other items contribute far more to success than what you drive.

 

[Pony Soldier]

I think atv are great. They keep people out of the woods. They just drive and drive and drive. I have only seen one parked in 50 years. Once they get in them, they never turn them off. The more people have them the fewer people I see in the woods.

 

[PVHunter]

More than once I've looked with envy at SxS or small 4-wheelers a mile or two up a path as I'm halfway to my spot and wondered how nice it would be to have saved myself that 30-45 minutes of walking. Ah, well.

 

[Customweld]

On Forest Service ground, in my area, I'm width restricted on almost all trails. I don't feel there is any advantage of a sxs in these areas. The late November, December seasons, in open sage with old wagon trails is a different story.

 

[intunegp]

They can be a blessing and a curse. I've watched them drive right by elk hidden near a road that I was watching from a nearby ridge. A lot of people seem to develop the habit of driving from high point to high point all day with the spotting scope and never see anything you can't see from the parking spot which I think leaves quite a bit of ground/animals unseen. For sheer speed and convenience of getting from point A to point B, they are probably hard to beat.

 

[Winternews]

I don’t have a sxs. I have 5 snowmachines, so I am not anti-motor. But I choose not to hunt with one. My parents’ generation didn’t seem to need them and part of what I enjoy about hunting is getting away from other people, so it’s working great for me. I’m in the minority on that and don’t expect to change anyone’s mind. And all my hypothetical sxs money is going into my flat bed single cab Tacoma fund… but I wouldn’t be too bummed about not being part of the sxs club. walk-in photos are my dad’s; bike photos are mine

 

[NealS02]

I definitely feel at a disadvantage not having one in terms of mobility. It means I put my truck in some dicey situations and walking a bunch more. Two years ago I was damn near stuck, without cell service, on a terrible forest service road that a SxS could have easily done. I considered getting one and have even thought about the horse/mule route. Ultimately, I decided there is plenty of country to hunt without a SxS if I plan wisely and work hard.

 

[Maverick1]

With all the side x sides I see during hunting season, I sometimes wonder if not having one is a big disadvantage. For those who can afford them, they can get places faster, check out larger areas looking for animals, and even make a stalk faster/smarter if spotting game from a distance. *Note: I feel this pertains to rifle elk/deer hunting more than archery.

I do not have the funds, the storage space, or live close enough to an area where it's worth having a side x side. For as much as I would LOVE having one, I just can't justify the cost. When not archery hunting or focusing on deep timber areas, I mainly get around in my F350, The truck definitely gets the job done for the most part, but there's also so many negatives compared to a dedicated hunting vehicle.

For those who do NOT have a side x side (or quad), do you feel like you're a step behind everyone else who is buzzing around in theirs? For those who've recently went from not having a side x side to owning one, does it make you more effective/successful hunter?

I'll be hunting timber, sage, and a lot of open country in mid-November for elk this year and while doing my e-scouting, I can't help but wish I would have a SxS to scout here in a couple weeks and then to hunt out of.

Nope. You should change your mindset and thinking. Instead of approaching it as "gee, I'm at a disadvantage because I don't own a SXS" - turn it into an advantage. Take a map and outline all of the places that you would go if you had a SXS - and then don't hunt those areas; hunt the other areas on the map. The hunting will be better.

 

[mkonzen]

As much as people think they broaden your possibilities, I'd argue they limit them more. You end up hunting where trails are open to them rather than where is most productive. I'd say they are convenient as a 2nd vehicle if your backpacking and want to come out somewhere different than going in. Seeing something from a sxs is also unlikely. You have to get out and walk to where the game are at some point. Studies have shown the distance game will hive from motorized roads and how much these vehicles push them. You have to get that much further away from the trail to get to the game. Just my $0.02

 

[ReaptheHeat]

Depends on the weather and terrain. They will get you there faster for sure vs a truck/suv.

They REALLY shine in snow and mud. They are much easier to pick great lines with and avoid obstacles you would otherwise need to go through. Much better feeling when exploring new ground knowing your vehicle is extremely capable instead of using your only ride out. They are easier to get unstuck. Trudging through the later season snow/mud mix is so much better.

always pros/cons. You just need to use them like a tool. I use it to get to places I want to step off from on foot.

 

[flyfisher117]

Yes I feel at a disadvantage when I bust my ass to hike up a mountain before dawn. To arrive at my glassing point at dawn just to hear a SxS motoring up behind me on an illegal road/trail just for them to push every animal out of the area.

Otherwise no.

 

[HairyScandinavian]

It's going to depend on where you're hunting. There's no place I won't boldly (stupidly) take my truck but I'm fairly well equipped at recovery as well. I have a SXS and always contemplate taking it, but haven't yet. I may this year just to justify having it. Where we've hunted the last several years in Wyoming and Colorado there's only been a handful of situations where it would have helped, and a whole lot less comfortable everywhere else. Truck is always nice and dry inside and more room for a bunch of NR junk that gets toted for long trips, heater obviously is a luxury at times. I would absolutely never buy a SXS specifically for hunting. Small quad would probably be more useful getting around, but you sacrifice even more comfort and carrying ability for little things that are nice left at the truck.

 

[HairyScandinavian]

Nope. You should change your mindset and thinking. Instead of approaching it as "gee, I'm at a disadvantage because I don't own a SXS" - turn it into an advantage. Take a map and outline all of the places that you would go if you had a SXS - and then don't hunt those areas; hunt the other areas on the map. The hunting will be better.

This is a wise man with experience right there. ^^

 

[HairyScandinavian]

Yes I feel at a disadvantage when I bust my ass to hike up a mountain before dawn. To arrive at my glassing point at dawn just to hear a SxS motoring up behind me on an illegal road/trail just for them to push every animal out of the area.

Otherwise no.

Wife and I hiked 1.5 miles and glassed all morning on a ridge, midday we decided to move spots and hiked up our ridge to find a dude in a buggy sitting up there about 150 yards behind us, we never heard him drive up somehow. Scared the living crap out of that guy when we walked up. There were no legal roads so he shouldn't have been there, but still felt super dirty having to hike the 1.5 miles back to the truck lol. He did take a legal road I was unaware of to get within 1/2 mile so that's where we parked a few days later for a shorter walk.

 

[OregonSteeler]

A lot of it really depend on the terrain. I'd kill to have one on the rough roads of sage brush country where you can see for miles. I live in Oregon so the terrain I hunt varies a TON. I think a SxS is a waste on the coast but out east in the high desert, I definitely am at a disadvantage. What takes my truck 2hrs of head on roof banging, crawling speed; takes a SxS 30 min.