I miss the old way of deer hunting.

[JimmyHoffa]

Kind of funny; but wet shoes and clothes, iron sites, foggy scopes, green box ammo, etc barely seemed like any upgrade was needed back when every trip quite a few animals seen and shots presented.  Wasn't until the numbers of animals dropped that gaining an edge seemed a necessity vice luxury.

[bigmacc]

I miss the old days, just like everyone else. 
But…
I really prefer my new sub-moa bolt action rifle to a 30-30 lever gun
I really prefer my Kenetreks to wet tennis shoes
I really prefer Kuiu, Sitka and Kryptek to damp flannel and jeans
I really like using my spotting scope and binoculars to spot and stalk (instead of Dad sending me on a death march through a draw while he watches to see what I scare out of it)
I seem to get lost a lot less now that I have a GPS
My Eberlestock daypack makes my rifle a lot easier to carry than a leather sling
I haven’t been chased off anyone’s private property since I started using OnX
My sleeping bag is light enough that I will actually carry it on a hunt now
You would have to beat me with a 2X4 to get me to carry binoculars on a strap around my neck again
My backpack doesn’t rub little holes in the small of my back like my Army surplus pack did
I haven’t had to hitchhike out of the woods since I started buying new trucks

So… like you guys, I really miss the old days.  I’d go back if I could… but I’d really like to bring all my gear with me  .

(Dang.  I miss my mullet though..)

I hear you Pathfinder and I,d go back if I could also, but I wouldn't change a thing, including the mullet, I had a few of those  too through the years.....when I had hair

[DeerSkin]

Good old number 11 

Couple Nice looking whitetail Pathfinder101 👍

[bigmacc]

One year back in the 70,s it was another one of those very warm years in the Methow, sunny and hot for the end of October/first of November, it was another one of those years that we spent most of the time hunting in t-shirts and tennis shoes. We we seeing deer, mostly locals averaging 60-70 a day but very few bucks and those were yearling spikes and small 2 points. We decided to go into a spot we knew of at a much higher elevation that very few people knew of, everything but the weather was indicating the rut was near and this spot was an old "ace in the hole" my family had going back to the beginning (1917). We all got up at around 2 A.M and hit the trail, it was about a 5 mile hike in to get to the area. We made it in at daylight and 4 of us got spread out. We spent most of the day in there and between all of us only seen about 35-40 deer with no bucks. We met back up in the early afternoon, had some sandwiches and started our hike back out while it was still shooting time. We made it maybe a mile when my buddy spotted some movement along a ridge to our left, we put the binos on it and it was a big 4 by 4 just kind of "jogging" through the thickets parallel to us at about 200 yards. My buddy said "I'm gonna take him", he got down on a knee and dropped the buck. We all started to walk up to him when about 100 feet up the hill all hell broke loose, 9, yes 9 bucks exploded out of a jakepine thicket, all the bucks were hauling tail for the top of the ridge, all we seen were horns and they were all BIG, we were all scrambling to get our rifles ready as one by one they went over the top of the ridge. There were 3 bucks left to crest the ridge and disappear when another buddy gave out a yell(and I,m not kidding), he knee jerked a yell of "STOP" , well I,ll be darned if those 3 bucks all stopped and looked back at us and within seconds we all said "I got the middle one, I,ll take the right and the other said I got the one on the left". We all fired and all 3 bucks went down, one got back to his feet and was dropped immediately. We made it to the bucks and we had 2 dandy 4 by 5,s and a real dandy 6 by 7. There were a couple bucks that went over the ridge that were even bigger than the ones we got, couldn't tell you how many points but they were big, heavy racks. We never would have even seen those bucks if by buddy would not have shot that 4 point who was out for a jog that day, turned out to be a great season, we got a lot of fishing in after that, in 70 degree weather too by the way. We still go into that spot once in awhile and I have taken my granddaughters in there many times, we always stop in that spot of the trail and I throw a rock into that thicket and I tell them to get ready to yell "STOP"

[bigmacc]

Its all these memories that make me say how sad it is what has happened to the Methow as far as hunting goes. Ive said many times, that in its day, I would have put it up against anywhere or any state as far as quantity and quality goes for top shelf mule deer hunting. What this state and its Dept of Wildlife has let happen to this herd is just plain horrible. Sorry, I know a lot of folks are to young to know what I'm talking about and I know there are some in positions of power that can't wait until folks like me are not around to tell these stories of the great hunting there was in this state, the abundance of quality animals and the great opportunity that was available right here in our own backyard. What we are seeing now and have been experiencing over the last 25 years will soon become the norm and in another 25 years IT will be the "good old days", this is what they want and will get, we will go out to hunt and seeing 2 or 3 deer during the week will be a good week of hunting, a balance will be set to opeese the antis and the hunter, the politics that are being played will sway heavily in favor of those who are against hunting but will not shut the door on us as hunters. As said, those of us that "hang in there" will see our handful of animals during our trips and a few will kill there animals and then those days will be the "good old days", and so on and so on. As a hunter with memories of a time when game animals where nurtured in this state and where taken care of and managed to put forth a quality product for the sportsmen and women of this state(and they were),  it is very sad.....just my opinion and  ...It could be turned around but politics in this state will not let it happen, we as hunters in this state are outnumbered and pretty much powerless and is getting worse for us with every passing year.

[no.cen.wa]

  So sad, bigmacc your right, at least we got to see it when it was good!

[Calvin Rayborn]

Most boys these days are too tacticool for school;  Think it has a lot to do with the Internet and social media, no offense to the forum   

[bigmacc]

So sad, bigmacc your right, at least we got to see it when it was good!

Yes we did and what some need to know is, it wasn't that long ago, or at least for some, not that long ago(age). Some on here are 20, 25, 30 or even 40 years old. Fact is, hunting in this state was exceptional even 20 years ago, when some of you were born for that matter. 25, 30 or more years back, heck, you guys would have been living the dream of hunting right here in your own back yard. Seen my 1st sheep released up the Swakane 50 or so years ago(by mistake, told the story before ), seen elk the size of clidesdale horses, (which was just normal) hanging in garages up at Camp Grisdale on the Peninsula in the 50,s,60,s and 70,s, seen mule deer in the Methow and the Entiat that would rival any other state as far as horn size and especially body size, seen many, many killed that were 30" and wider and 300lb plus. I have said it a few times, I have known and still call "friends" many folks that were part of the Department of Game back in the day, what we have nowadays isn't even close to what it should be, this fact is a shame for future hunters of this state. Sorry to be negative. I have young ones that will only know by stories and pictures of how great the hunting was at one time in this state.

[ljsommer]

The only positive heritage I have to hunting is my grandpa, who hunted elk and deer in the mountains of WA successfully for years. I have two of his elk antlers hanging in my house.
My dad (alcoholic, left when I was 4) was a poacher and of the worst sort. Out of season, night hunting with a spotlight. Not a cool guy.

My grandpa died when I was in my late teens and I never got the chance to be introduced to hunting by him due to his physical health.

Fast forward to today - I am not sure how many folks from previous generations understand how little people in their 20's or 30's care about hunting. I have friends that love guns, love to shoot (and shoot very well), love hiking and camping, strong, fit, tough, but I can't pay them to come hunting with me. Not one friend. Their reasons are usually the same: "I work with guys that hunt 3 weeks a year, and they only bring something home every 4 or 5 years".
To them, the odds are so low and the time commitment so high that they just can't rationalize it.

On the other end of the spectrum, breaking into an existing camp/group/clique as a new hunter is extremely difficult. Honey holes are jealously guarded secrets which is partially why this sport has historically relied so heavily on familial tradition.

I am sure if I lived in Idaho, Wyoming, or Montana this would be a very different conversation, but my friends see how much time, effort and money I've poured into this sport since I picked it up a few years ago and they see that I've got nothing to show for it and man, it's a tough sell. Which makes starting my own "hunt camp" tradition extremely difficult.

[ljsommer]

Oh, but I have to echo what others have said about modern gear - having top tier rain gear means I can hunt 10 hours straight in a downpour and have a blast, sneaking around like a (warm, dry) ninja.

[Bill W]

I'll just say I started hunting in 1960 and I miss the old way of deer hunting also.

[Pacific Ghost]

Hey bigmacc.  Just sent you a private message.

[Dave Workman]

Its all these memories that make me say how sad it is what has happened to the Methow as far as hunting goes. Ive said many times, that in its day, I would have put it up against anywhere or any state as far as quantity and quality goes for top shelf mule deer hunting. What this state and its Dept of Wildlife has let happen to this herd is just plain horrible. Sorry, I know a lot of folks are to young to know what I'm talking about and I know there are some in positions of power that can't wait until folks like me are not around to tell these stories of the great hunting there was in this state, the abundance of quality animals and the great opportunity that was available right here in our own backyard.

'bigmacc,' you're a marvelous storyteller and no slouch when it comes to historical perspective.
Lived through it myself and the same thing has happened to the Teanaway. Back in the day, some monster bucks came from the Okanogan, Chelan and Teanaway, and your assessment of the management problems.
When an agency seems more interested in boosting a predator population so city people can wander around on the weekends and listen for some howling than they are in providing quality opportunity, real and abundant opportunity for the people who pay the freight, something is genuinely wrong.
Today, it's almost as if hunters are considered a necessary evil, because shooters and hunters actually provide operating funds. Where are the two- and three-week deer seasons with full weekends at both ends?
Where are the two-week elk seasons with three full weekends?

You look at the regs pamphlet. What is this year, 136-138 pages? Page after page of "special permit hunts." More hoops for hunters to jump through. When I was a kid, the regs pamphlet was pretty easy to understand and you could study it in an evening...while you were looking forward to opening weekend.

I wrote about this stuff years ago at the old F&H News.