Too Many Hunts?

[spotnstalk1]

How many hunts in a fall is too many hunts?? Obviously, finances, vacation time, work & family obligations all play a part and will be different for each individual. But assuming you're a typical working class american like we are, working 40-50 hours a week, only scouting for 2-3 days on the weekend, and then being able to hunt for 10...maybe 15 total vacation working days in the fall, how many hunts is too many?

Do you prefer to keep it simple and focused, with only 1 maybe 2 hunts? Or are you the type that likes to spread your vacation thin and cram as many hunts as you can possibly hunt into the fall? How many total hunts do you schedule in a fall?

 

[Calbuck]

I always try to plan it all out for a couple hunts, but so far have had 3 last year and 4 the year before..all in different states. It was kinda rough but I thoroughly enjoyed myself and expect that will be how my falls are spent from now on. I'm going to look a little harder at a couple tough draws though going forward.

 

[Musket Man]

I dont like having more then 1 that is hard to draw.

 

[Ikeepitcold]

We had 5 tags last year between my wife, daughter and myself plus one outta state and one was one. In a life time Nv bear tag. It was very difficult to find good animals with so many tags. I would like to have 3. One for each of us and that's it. Much more easy to focus and spend more time scouting.

 

[kiwi]

I like to hunt big game about 50 days a year. During my NZ fall I hunted about 20 days (red deer, chamois, sika and tahr) and for the US fall I will hunt elk and a second species over about two weeks.

 

[tttoadman]

As long as their is a little time between, and I have allowed for some token family time, I go as much as possible. I have 5 weeks of vacation a year, 3 floaters, and 12 sick days. I use it all.

 

[kidoggy]

to many hunts is a swell problem to have

 

[gonhunting247]

I hunt all the OR hunts and at least 2 out-of-state hunts per year, plus all the kids hunts. It gets kind of hectic, but I have too many hunts I want to go on while I still can, to cut back. If I could scrape up a little more leave time I'd try to squeeze in one more, but for now that's all I can manage.

 

[SGM]

To me the key is getting on hunts you enjoy and want to do. If that means 3 hunts or 1 hunt that is fine. For me that usually means 2 hunts in Colorado, 1 ML season the other 2nd season. Also do a January hunt in Mississippi. I never want to plan a hunt that is so hectic that you are running crazy and really do not enjoy yourself. Also I like to get a week or 2 or 3 weeks break between hunts so I can prepare and focus on that specific hunt. That does not include one day runs for small game and water fowl of course.

 

[2rocky]

In CA we have a long 8 week Deer Season with OTC tags. We have seen the deer numbers plummet so missing a few weeks of the local season to do an out of state hunt, isn't a big deal....

This year my father drew a guided Deer tag in Nevada, While I drew a New Mexico Elk Tag. There is 5 days between the last day of Dad's hunt and my opening day. Then he has an annual Pheasant hunt he does with buddies in North Dakota during my hunt dates.

I can handle 2 out of state hunts if there is some down time between. The year I had 3 good draw tags, I didn't fill a single one.

 

[JimP]

I don't think that there are ever too many hunts in one year.

I remember years ago when you could draw all the once in a lifetime tags in the state of Utah and a newspaper article about a man that drew 3 of them. Bison, moose, and a sheep tag in addition to a elk and deer tag In the article they also mentioned that he was going to head to Africa that year for a safari. They asked him just what he planned to do, and his answer to that question was that he was going to purchase a bigger freezer.

The nice thing that he worked for US Steel and had accumulated extra vacation time and sick leave that he could use however he wanted. This added up to around 6 months off that year, and I am sure that he used it.

 

[JScams]

Freezer is now empty....Better more than none imo

 

[spotnstalk1]

I'm leaning towards too many than not enough this year. 4 quality backcountry hunts. It helps that 3 of the 4 I've hunted in the recent past so I don't need to commit scouting days to them. Which I think is important when stacking multiple hunts in a fall.

Love everyone's view on this. Thank you for commenting!

 

[Slugz]

Whole reason I started oilfield work. 35 days on 35 days off. I'm senior enough now to ensure my schedule revolves around September as we focus on archery elk and fill in around that every year. Obviously a lot easier living out west with a shorter drive time and ease of scouting.

That being said, I think more is better. Regardless of the interweb and all the info out there.....it will never replace boots on the ground.

 

[mallardsx2]

The major problem for me is that anytime I take off of work is unpaid… So yes there has to be a balance For me.

 

[llp]

I'm a little surprised people are planning on so few hunts. Yes, I work for a living, and only have 4 weeks vacation, which I tie together with weekends, etc. With my wife and two sons, the busiest year we ever had was 43 tags total, or about 11 each. It was a very busy year, and some were doe / cow tags, but we all had a great time, and I was the tag holder or "guide" for each of those hunts. Only a few were true trophy / LE hunts, and I made the most out of each, taking a moose in Wyoming, elk in NM and deer in CO that year. Could I have shot a buck / bull with 10" larger horns if I spent more time on just that one animal - maybe, but by no means a given.

This year I have an Alaskan bear tag, WY elk, AZ pronghorn, NM Coues deer, UT elk tag and am still waiting on draw results from NV, MT, and late WY and AZ draws. I do expect to pick up at least one and probably two more tags (WY antelope, AZ Coues), but you never know.
I will be busy, but not overly so. And this doesn't count the fact my wife has two primo tags, one a 4th season mule deer in CO and a LE elk tag in UT. I get to guide those hunts, of course. It is actually a light year for her, but she is ok with that so far.

If you want to make it happen, DO IT. It helps to live in the west so I don't spend too much travel time, but it is 12 hours or more to AZ and NM for me, so these aren't weekend hunts either.

Enjoy! (I plan to.)

llp

 

[Alabama]

I'm a little surprised people are planning on so few hunts. Yes, I work for a living, and only have 4 weeks vacation, which I tie together with weekends, etc. With my wife and two sons, the busiest year we ever had was 43 tags total, or about 11 each. It was a very busy year, and some were doe / cow tags, but we all had a great time, and I was the tag holder or "guide" for each of those hunts. Only a few were true trophy / LE hunts, and I made the most out of each, taking a moose in Wyoming, elk in NM and deer in CO that year. Could I have shot a buck / bull with 10" larger horns if I spent more time on just that one animal - maybe, but by no means a given.

This year I have an Alaskan bear tag, WY elk, AZ pronghorn, NM Coues deer, UT elk tag and am still waiting on draw results from NV, MT, and late WY and AZ draws. I do expect to pick up at least one and probably two more tags (WY antelope, AZ Coues), but you never know.
I will be busy, but not overly so. And this doesn't count the fact my wife has two primo tags, one a 4th season mule deer in CO and a LE elk tag in UT. I get to guide those hunts, of course. It is actually a light year for her, but she is ok with that so far.

If you want to make it happen, DO IT. It helps to live in the west so I don't spend too much travel time, but it is 12 hours or more to AZ and NM for me, so these aren't weekend hunts either.

Enjoy! (I plan to.)

llp

That's over 4K in just NR tag fees alone (counting your wife's tags) That would leave about negative 2k in my budget lol. That's not even counting the travel expenses, food, required gear upgrades, etc.

 

[mallardsx2]

Cant hide money!

 

[480/277]

June 6, 2009 I had a heart attack and flat lined. In the final seconds before I lost consciousness you are as honest with yourself as you can be. At that point,you can't lie to yourself. The three things I thought about , in this order 1 Ted my lab 2 my wife 3 a 21 year old bottle of scotch I never opened

I did every hunt I wanted while I could. I had no regrets. If it was my last day I was at peace. I wish you all the same and say, GO NOW WHILE YOU CAN!

 

[Fink]

I usually plan on 1 good two week elk hunt somewhere. Coming from the midwest, I'm a minimum of 12 hours away from any elk tag I may draw, so it's difficult logistically to make multiple trips. But, I can move enough vacation around that if a second tag pops up, I can easily commit another week to it, on top of my original two weeks.
If I wasnt addicted to shooting ducks, I'd probably do two elk hunts a year, but I can't give up the ducks. I've already really cut back on my whitetail hunting, to make room for more western hunts. Sitting in a tree doesn't do it for me like it used to.
All up, including spring hunts, I'll hunt about 100 days a year. Unfortunately, all those 100 days can't be week long hunts.