How many people have been transitioning their hunting?

[MuleyFever]

I have been thinking about this lately. With big game tags getting harder and harder to get, has anyone been transitioning to small game, upland and waterfowl?

Personally, I have been thinking about this lately. I have been thinking that it wouldnt be such a bad thing to start looking to waterfowl or upland trips. Or just making one of my trips out of state for javilina or free range exotics.

Anyone else?

 

[grfox92]

I have been thinking about this lately. With big game tags getting harder and harder to get, has anyone been transitioning to small game, upland and waterfowl?

Personally, I have been thinking about this lately. I have been thinking that it wouldnt be such a bad thing to start looking to waterfowl or upland trips. Or just making one of my trips out of state for javilina or free range exotics.

Anyone else?

I haven't thought about replacing big game hunting with anything else. But definitely have been thinking about doing more bird, small game and waterfowl for sure.

Sent from my SM-G990U using Tapatalk

 

[324matt]

I live in Illinois where the Missouri River meets the Mississippi River. For decades this was a great place to duck and goose hunt. As of the last 5-7yrs it has gradually changed and you don’t see near the waterfowl that you used to. Waterfowl hunters are transitioning to predator hunters, which is cramping me because I have had access to thousands of acres of farmland to hunt coyotes, that are now being hunted by the new guys. Here in Illinois “deer leases” are a very expensive thing with people paying 3k-15k a year to have a chance to shoot a decent buck. Growing up in Michigan with access to thousands of acres of national forest and state land, I refuse to pay to hunt a whitetail here, or anywhere. The competition for hunting permission on land here in Illinois (which is mostly private land) has made me realize that I’d rather go out west big game hunting for a 10-15 day trip once a year. I enjoy the western atmosphere, the drive, the scenery, and the weather.

Guys from around here used to go to Iowa or the dakotas to hunt pheasant, but the bird numbers have dropped due to big ag practices and predators. I don’t feel right shooting birds at a “hunting club”

There is a ton of small game here to hunt, but for the time and effort, rabbits and squirrels aren’t my thing.

For exotics, I havent put much thought into it. My one friend paid to go shoot pigs in Texas last year and had fun, but paid almost as much as I would for a big game tag out west.

Do what you want to while your here. Time is short and goes by fast.

 

[D.Rose]

I just been trying to figure out different ways to hunt whitetails. Different states, terrain and scenarios. Just switching it up from a compound to hunting with a recurve the majority of the time has been a fantastic way to boost the fun factor for me. When I have my recurve in hand my hunt starts at the truck and everything from stumps to whatever I have a tag for are in trouble. I can take my stick and string, shoot a few squirrels and deer, and absolutely have as much fun as anybody in the woods. So basically what I am saying is figure out what you have available and find a way to make it fun.

 

[cnelk]

Ive transitioned my method of take to align with the surety of getting a tag for Big Game.

The means I might use Archery, ML or Rifle depending of tag allotment.

More small game, upland birds/waterfowl doesnt interest me

 

[Brendan]

I try and put myself in a scenario where I'm not so singly-focused on one thing. Think about it, if all your eggs are in one basket it's much easier to really disappoint yourself if it doesn't go well. For me, that's applying in different states and different animals, but also doing more waterfowl at home (It's been surprisingly fun, but damn a duck is small compared to a deer!) and trying to enjoy getting out for deer at home. But let's face it: those have all been crowded too.

It also means having hobbies outside of hunting that I get enjoyment from too. I had a renewed interest in fly fishing this year, got the gear to start tying, and I've been spending a bunch of time biking (mainly XC MTB and training) this year although I'm sure a switch is going to get thrown once I hit September...

 

[FLATHEAD]

I've shifted focus from that out West one big game tag to more Whitetail
hunting here in my home state. Good for 3 bucks.
Probably do some predators and Moorhen as well.
Also, Fall/Winter is good Speckled Trout and Redfish action here on the Gulf.

 

[Mosby]

I have. I stopped chasing elk tags in multiple states and used that money to buy two new bird dogs over the last couple of years. I didn't draw an elk tag this year but I can go bird hunting any time I want and can hunt into January. I'm not saving any money. Bird dogs are expensive to buy, train and feed but I'm hunting a lot more and that's what I was looking for.

 

[Carr5vols]

Not small game but this year my buddies and i are doing early rifle bear in colorado. Very cheap tag, throw in some grouse hunting on the mountain on same trip makes for a nice hunt. If your in our unit archery elk i apologoze our scatter guns are going to be sounding off pretty regular on grouse.

 

[wyosteve]

I've also done less elk hunting and spend more time chasing feral pigs and aoudad for my big game fix! Haven't shot a deer or antelope for years.

 

[5MilesBack]

It would be really hard for me to find anything even remotely close to bowhunting rutting elk every year. So no, I'm not replacing that with something else.

 

[roadrunner]

Too busy to worry about replacing big game hunting with something else. If I don't have a big game tag, I just don't go.

It's not important enough to me to go OTC every year just because...

 

[def90]

I have been thinking about this lately. With big game tags getting harder and harder to get, has anyone been transitioning to small game, upland and waterfowl?

Personally, I have been thinking about this lately. I have been thinking that it wouldnt be such a bad thing to start looking to waterfowl or upland trips. Or just making one of my trips out of state for javilina or free range exotics.

Anyone else?

Depending on where you live it’s not exactly easy to find a good waterfowl spot either..

 

[Sadler]

I’ve thought about this before and settled on bear hunting more if I can’t get an elk tag. I can buy two bear tags in eastern Washington and if I fill those, I can get one for Idaho.

 

[displacedtexan]

I've mostly been an upland hunter.

But I don't have the dog power for a week long out of state trip.

That, coupled with my love of the mountains is what is moving me to start western hunting.

 

[Blockcaver]

Got our first good bird dog in '97. Was looking for something in addition to the 100% serious hardcore bowhunting I was doing at that time. Also was looking for hunting that my wife and I (and the dog) would enjoy together. We ended up bird hunting multiple states every fall....even bagged 17 species of upland birds over the Vizsla in 10 western states. Still managed to arrow an elk and some other species every fall.

The bird dog also got me into shooting sporting clays and shotshell reloading which I totally enjoy as hobbies, short of today's component shortage.

25 years later we still bird hunt a lot...now with Vizsla #4. I still bow hunt a bunch completing an archery superslam last fall. And right now I am headed out to go shoot sporting clays.

 

[William Sublette]

I have been thinking about this lately. With big game tags getting harder and harder to get, has anyone been transitioning to small game, upland and waterfowl?

Personally, I have been thinking about this lately. I have been thinking that it wouldnt be such a bad thing to start looking to waterfowl or upland trips. Or just making one of my trips out of state for javilina or free range exotics.

Anyone else?

Your going to have to.

Most big game hunting will effectively be a once. Or twice in a lifetime event in the near future

 

[Yarak]

I deer hunt to occupy my time til Jan-Feb when I start trapping and then March brings spring turkey season
Big game hunting is a bonus but happens few and far between years nowadays

 

[Z71&Gun]

I’ve thought about this before and settled on bear hunting more if I can’t get an elk tag. I can buy two bear tags in eastern Washington and if I fill those, I can get one for Idaho.

That seems like the right answer. Transitioning to waterfowl or upland hunting out of frustration can only lead to more frustration. Also, you can scout for next year while bear hunting.

 

[CJohnson]

I was big into waterfowling when I was a younger man, but I don’t really enjoy it anymore. It’s cheaper to go on one or two DIY elk hunts than it is to maintain all the “stuff” you need for a good duck hunt. And, there’s really no comparison between even an OTC Colorado rifle unit and the boat race at any given boat ramp during duck season.