Logging/Recording your hunt details...

[CMF]

As I get older and details from older hunts get fuzzier, I decided to record some details for future reference. I decided on a spreadsheet so I can sort between species, states, etc. Maybe I'll eventually put more details into a journal form.

Does anyone else do this?
If so, what details do you include?

So far I have,
Dates and total days
scout or hunt
weapon type
primary species and additional
camp type(day hunt, bivy, spike)
game taken
state and unit
Summary

 

[GSPHUNTER]

I have photo album I started many years ago. The album has an area on the side where you can enter information about the trip. Mine include both hunting and fishing trips. I enjoy looking back on the many hunts I have had and time on the water. At his point in my life the album is the only thing I have to help me remember those times. It's something I can give to the grandkids so they can see what it was like for me, actually there are photos of them in there when we spent time hunting and mostly fishing together.

 

[RockAndSage]

As I get older and details from older hunts get fuzzier, I decided to record some details for future reference. I decided on a spreadsheet so I can sort between species, states, etc. Maybe I'll eventually put more details into a journal form.

Does anyone else do this?
If so, what details do you include?

So far I have,
Dates and total days
scout or hunt
weapon type
primary species and additional
camp type(day hunt, bivy, spike)
game taken
state and unit
Summary

If this is for future reference, especially for others (ie, kids hunting a particular unit in the future), you might also consider adding:

1) Screenshots of your OnX, with pins covering access points, good glassing locations, and routes.
2) Notes on wind direction, as well as any notes on thermals in given spots
3) Notes on volume and types of animal sign, and general game activity

 

[Q_Sertorius]

I record everything in my OnX.


____________________
“Keep on keepin’ on…”

 

[Pony Soldier]

My daughter got me a hunting log book that has most of that and I enter a few additional items. In addition I locate each kill site on a topographic map with year, and individual. It tends to show patterns and helps to remind me of places I need to revisit and places to avoid. I also note the bull ridges and the cow ridges as well as prominant trails.

Every year the maps come out for planning and scheduling and a "what if" discussion.

 

[CMF]

If this is for future reference, especially for others (ie, kids hunting a particular unit in the future), you might also consider adding:

1) Screenshots of your OnX, with pins covering access points, good glassing locations, and routes.
2) Notes on wind direction, as well as any notes on thermals in given spots
3) Notes on volume and types of animal sign, and general game activity

Good points. The kids were involved in the majority of the hunts, but I do include some detail in the summary that could tie back to the onx, in addition to the unit listed. And they'll eventually have access to the Onx.

 

[ShortMagFan]

I use the notes feature of my iPhone to record pertinent notes of every hunt. Fun to go back and read from time to time

 

[7RemMag]

I keep a log on the computer. More of a “journal” than a spreadsheet, but every big game animal and nearly every predator is on it with pertinent general information and a brief “write up” of the hunt and/or season.

My Dad has done the same for decades. While it’s generally more for storytelling purposes, it’s always been neat to look back and relive the memories and notice some of the trends.

 

[Plainsman79]

I log everything in a notebook.

Date, time (am,pm or all day), weather conditions, location, scout or hunt, animals spotted and numbered does/fawns, bucks and mature bucks, any other species seen. I also take note of anything in particular that happened, certain plants they were eating, bedding areas, other people.

If I kill an animal, I’ll try to write down every detail of the hunt, you’d very surprised how fuzzy details get over time.

 

[loganwayne]

I did it this year bird hunting. I wish I would have put weather conditions

 

[mtnbound]

As I get older and details from older hunts get fuzzier, I decided to record some details for future reference. I decided on a spreadsheet so I can sort between species, states, etc. Maybe I'll eventually put more details into a journal form.

Does anyone else do this?
If so, what details do you include?

So far I have,
Dates and total days
scout or hunt
weapon type
primary species and additional
camp type(day hunt, bivy, spike)
game taken
state and unit
Summary

I have kept a hunting journal for many years, and I also include
The Weather
Moon phase
Animal activity
Response to my calls or other people's calls
Things that went wrong, or right
Things needed for the next hunt or season

 

[Davyalabama]

..........you might also consider adding:

2) Notes on wind direction, as well as any notes on thermals in given spots
3) Notes on volume and types of animal sign, and general game activity

I have kept a hunting journal for many years, and I also include
The Weather
Moon phase
Animal activity
Response to my calls or other people's calls
Things that went wrong, or right
Things needed for the next hunt or season

Yep, these as well.

I don't use onx or whatever, I do use excel. I've gotten away from a written journal, though I should go back to it.
I think the writing, I would ponder more.

 

[D_wit22]

Looking back I really wish I would have. Guess better late than never. I’d love to know the number of whitetail harvests I’ve had since I was 12…

 

[Zdub02]

Tried for a season or two but never stuck with it. Tried journaling but couldn't organize things as well as a spreadsheet. Should probably try to start up again.

I included a lot of previously mentioned data like weather, moon phase, how many animal were sighted, if any were taken, etc.

 

[MTguy0341]

Wife just picked me up a journal for Father’s Day. Said for years I was going to start and wish I would have.

 

[Q_Sertorius]

If you failed to record some of the data, like moon phases, at least you can reconstruct that stuff from other records.


____________________
“Keep on keepin’ on…”

 

[buffybr]

I shot my first deer in 1965, and my first elk the following year. Back then I didn't even carry a camera with me so I didn't even get pictures of them.

In the early '70s I started a lined, small bound book where I recorded my reloading data, bullet casting data, and started listing a line for each elk that I killed; the year, bull or cow with number of points for bulls, where I shot it, and what rifle and bullet. It's on it's second page...

I went on my first guided hunt in 1999, for a Dall ram, mountain caribou, and a wolverine and I took some, but not enough pictures of that hunt.

In 2000 I went on my first South African hunt, and again I took a camera. A few years later, I couldn't remember names and other details of that hunt, so on subsequent hunts, I took a small spiral notebook for somewhat of a journal that I filled out each night.

I tend to get wordy when I write, so I've only done that journal on my African hunts, and not my other international hunts or hunts here at home.

I also have a section in my computer where I keep a copy of most of the pictures that I take. I have them organized by year with subsections of months and major trips.

I also have another section in my computer where I've listed all of the animals that I have shot and have had mounted. Listings there include the year that I shot it, the year the mount was finished, a code for the taxidermist, what rifle and bullet that I used, and the cost of the taxidermy mount.