What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
08-31-2003, 06:17 PM
#12
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Vincennes, IN
Posts: 273
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
I just enjoy the show. Everything from sunrises, sunsets to the wildlife scampering around. Very seldom there is nothing moving so boredom usually isn' t a big problem. Reading, writing or playing games is surely the time that the big un will sneak by
08-31-2003, 06:40 PM
#13
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Sunapee NH USA
Posts: 41
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
Well...I usually am trying to concentrate on ways that I can keep warm! No matter how warmly I dress...I often find that I am fighting COLD. The biggest chalenge for me is staying in my stand due to being cold. I also have to fight confidence! Sometimes I feel like the deer are moving everywhere except near my stand. I have to encourage myself that it could happen right at my stand. Eventually it usually does...which builds confidence...and keeps me warm!
From the woods of NH.
BV
From the woods of NH.
BV
08-31-2003, 08:27 PM
#14
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Harford Co. Maryland
Posts: 1,574
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
Thundermug,
I' d venture to say that your acquaintances who listen to a Walkman to help pass their time away, have occasionally said that they " Haven' t had much luck in the deerstand."
I do believe that luck plays a role in a deer hunter' s success, but if a hunter is not 110% aware of his/her surroundings, they are putting themselves behind the eight ball. In the dry, fall autumn air, I would estimate that I hear 90% of the deer before I see them. Our sense of hearing is very important because it gives us an advance warning that deer are headed in our direction. Just think about how easily deer sneak up you you when it is wet and rainy... you' d better be looking at the right place at the right time!
Just the thought of somebody listening to headphones makes me shake my head and chuckle. If they like music or books on tape that much, they should spend their time in the library, not in the woods! As these other guys have said, nature usually supplies all the entertainment that a hunter needs. Between the wildlife and the landscapes, I couldn' t ask for anything more.
Please don' t take offense to this post. It' s just my two cents...
Jim
I' d venture to say that your acquaintances who listen to a Walkman to help pass their time away, have occasionally said that they " Haven' t had much luck in the deerstand."
I do believe that luck plays a role in a deer hunter' s success, but if a hunter is not 110% aware of his/her surroundings, they are putting themselves behind the eight ball. In the dry, fall autumn air, I would estimate that I hear 90% of the deer before I see them. Our sense of hearing is very important because it gives us an advance warning that deer are headed in our direction. Just think about how easily deer sneak up you you when it is wet and rainy... you' d better be looking at the right place at the right time!
Just the thought of somebody listening to headphones makes me shake my head and chuckle. If they like music or books on tape that much, they should spend their time in the library, not in the woods! As these other guys have said, nature usually supplies all the entertainment that a hunter needs. Between the wildlife and the landscapes, I couldn' t ask for anything more.
Please don' t take offense to this post. It' s just my two cents...
Jim
08-31-2003, 09:04 PM
#15
Join Date: May 2003
Location:
Posts: 437
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
Well, interesting responses to say the least. When I am out there I hunt. There is so much going on in the field that all are signals. I sometimes get distracted with the cold, which makes me tired, beckoning me to take a nap. However, where I hunt, the deer can come up on us anytime. When we are " fooling around" out there is where we miss our opportunities. So I think focus is the issue. If I want to read a book or listen to music it will have to wait until I am not hunting.
My only issue is coffee. Can the deer smell it and will it keep them away. I tend to think so. I have found out that the candy wrappers, bottles, accutriments, and whatnot, tend to make noise and oder, which the deer can sense and know something is different. I do take in the sunsets and wildlife, as for deeper meanings, is there any other needed than the act of hunting and participating in life?
My only issue is coffee. Can the deer smell it and will it keep them away. I tend to think so. I have found out that the candy wrappers, bottles, accutriments, and whatnot, tend to make noise and oder, which the deer can sense and know something is different. I do take in the sunsets and wildlife, as for deeper meanings, is there any other needed than the act of hunting and participating in life?
09-01-2003, 04:14 AM
#16
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Williamsport PA. USA
Posts: 293
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
No reading or music for me while on stand! I' m into watching every little movement and the creatures that create those movements.
The older I get, the harder it is to stay in the stand all day without taking at LEAST one catnap, but I can say that some of my most relaxing sleep has been in that treelounge!
I wish I had a dollar for every time I woke up from a nap in my stand to look down into the eyes of a deer! Yep, they are looking right at me! Evidently I snore just as loud in the woods as I do in the bedroom!
The older I get, the harder it is to stay in the stand all day without taking at LEAST one catnap, but I can say that some of my most relaxing sleep has been in that treelounge!
I wish I had a dollar for every time I woke up from a nap in my stand to look down into the eyes of a deer! Yep, they are looking right at me! Evidently I snore just as loud in the woods as I do in the bedroom!
09-01-2003, 11:36 AM
#17
Super Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Southeast Central Illinois USA
Posts: 6,969
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
I just look and listen. My ears seem attuned to every noise and that helps keep me alert. I suppose this is part of the reason I cannot stay on stand all day long, but I hunt so many days that I figure I make up for that. I just know if I started reading a book a big buck would come by and I would miss getting a shot, because of not being ready.
09-02-2003, 02:32 AM
#19
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Harford Co Maryland USA
Posts: 4,966
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
I can stay there being still if I have even occassional sightings. However, if nothing is moving and I' m just staring at the same scenery, I can get a bit bored after 3 or 4 hours. I bring a small, camoflaged pocket New Testament to read along with praying (eyes open of course). I look up after every verse.
09-02-2003, 06:32 AM
#20
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Moravia NY USA
Posts: 8
RE: What do you do to pass the time while sitting in your stand ?
I tend to do the same things as lazyarcher. My time in the treestand is a retreat from the real world. I work in a high stress job. I like to leave all the crap at home in the morning and simply enjoy the peace and serenity of the woods. Any technology gets left behind, except for the cell phone. Those items would be a reminder of what I' m getting away from. If I do manage to get bored, I' ll start watching all the squirrels and birds that seem to congregate around my stands.