How come we don't have a hunting/fishing forum here?

[turtlehead]

I think it's a great forum idea. It could cover gun and bow hunting, trapping, fishing, dressing, butchering (what's the diff between dressing an animal and butchering it?), etc.

Well I thought for sure Administration would have already seen this thread and made a yes or no comment or PM'd me about it. But maybe they haven't.

Turtlehead, dressing is when you extract the entrails from the deer or wild game out in the field upon harvesting. Butchering or processing is when you cut the deer or wild game up for storing in your freezer or for canning, etc.

I'll jot over to the administration and see if they are aware of our hopes!

[AngieM2]

R.H.


Eating my words. See that you've finally posted in the ADMIN forum. May I suggest you add the link to this thread so he doesn't have to look for it?



Angie

[Ross]

Can I just restate, that proving a need and having an ample supply of patience goes a long way? I am very fortunate to co-mod 4 boards here from new, all came with a proven need and patience. Ok the Sheep board to some serious whining! Chuck is an amazingly busy guy, its not a lack of interest on his part simply time constraints.

[beorning]

An initial clarification... I love to hunt and fish. I like being out in the woods or on a lake. I enjoy the excitement of catching or killing something, and I love to eat most game animals/fish.

That said, I've noticed that the concept of hunting and fishing for economy is pretty elusive in practice. I shelled out $20 for a fishing license this year. Likely spent another hundred on tackle, bait, gas, ramp fees, etcetera (and I don't have a boat, I just pitch in for my freind's costs.) If I go out fishing, I usually am out for around ten hours. On a good day, I'll catch my limit and go home with around 5-6 lbs of fish. (dressed) I can buy fish for $5 a pound all day long, so I make about $3 an hour fishing, not factoring any costs in. Add to that the limitation on how many fish you can possess, including the ones in the freezer, and you can't even really load up.

Same with hunting. I was going to go out for early goose season this year. Licenses and permits would total about $50. Gas to where I would hunt would be $60-$70. Another $20 for ammo. Ended up being a $250-$300 weekend to bag a couple of geese, if I was lucky.

Deer still seems to make sense, assuming I can keep myself from going nuts buying gear. And assuming that I actually get a deer. I mostly hunt public land, so it's a crap shoot.

Point is, while hunting and fishing are among the best things you can do to recreate, IMO, They don't tend to be as practical as you initially think they are. For me, they are often guilty pleasures that I explain away by telling folks about the money I "save" by doing either.

And I'm just playing devil's advocate here. I'd love to see a hunting/fishing forum. But I can also see why it wouldn't exist on HT.

[jnap31]

I have a lot of fish stories I promise I will tell if we get a forum.Wish I had the pictures to proove them of course the biggest ones got away though

Beorning, you do have a good point there. If a person doesn't watch his or herself they could really dish out a lot of money trying to catch wild game. But maybe that is why we need this forum. There's people out there who do it sensibly and maybe willing to share their ideals. For example, I have totally quit using compound bows to deer hunt with. They were fun when I was single and could afford high dollar bows and high dollar arrows. But now that I'm married I have to use all that money to keep the wife and kids happy. Now I use a either a homemade stick bow or a laminate recurve to hunt with. Price comparison is a big whopping difference and with a little practice I can still put meat on the table.

Another example. When I was younger I had a good ole fishing rig that I spent probably 2 years making payments on. I caught a lot of fish using that boat but I was a long ways away from ever catching enough fish to pay for that boat. Now days I fish off the bank and usually only fish during the spring spawnings. I catch a whole lot more fish then I ever did before and usually fill the chest freezer full. All on a 20 dollar fishing license and maybe a couple tank full of gas to get to my hot spot.

So it really depends on how you make your success out there in the field. I can't afford a gilly suit to go deer hunting in. But I can use my imagination, buy a 20 dollar leaf blind, cut a slit in the middle and use it as a poncho and tie on some strips of old camo clothes. "Presto" it works just as good as 150 dollar gilley suit.

Sure, I had to spend some money to put game on the table. But don't you have to spend money on tractors, gas, and various other farm equipment when raising your own veggies and meat. When you add up the cost of a tractor or tiller, the gas and oil that goes in it, the price of your seeds or sets, fertilizer, all your labor. Are you really eating that watermelon cheaper then what you can buy it in the store? You can spend a lot of money farming also.

[jnap31]

Originally Posted by r.h. in okla.

. But don't you have to spend money on tractors, gas, and various other farm equipment when raising your own veggies and meat. When you add up the cost of a tractor or tiller, the gas and oil that goes in it, the price of your seeds or sets, fertilizer, all your labor. Are you really eating that watermelon cheaper then what you can buy it in the store? You can spend a lot of money farming also.

If you use raised beds like some do and for water melons just lay down card board or hay for a mulch and dig your holes and make mounds like I did last summer for the melons You definitely will save money over store bought ones mine tasted great also, 4 kinds of heirloom melons.

[beorning]

good point, r.h.

I've just tried to limit what I hunt. My biggest problem is getting excited about hunting and wanting to go after everything that's legal to shoot.

I found an old browning compound bow in excellent shape at Goodwill for $30. For another $60, I had it tuned up and bought half a dozen arrows. I'll be hunting with it next year, after I get accurate enough with it to know I can hit a deer exactly where I want to. Unfortunately, This will add another $25 license to the fray. I'm hoping that the extended bow season here will pay for it.

One of my buddies is an equipment junkie. Has all the latest stuff. Updates every year. I try to operate on the premise that people hunted for centuries without scent-lok underpants and realtree. He does get more deer than I do, though... They just cost him around $10 a pound.

I'll try focusing on spawning time next year for fishing. I'll never own a boat. I've got too many buddies who have spent that money for me allready. It's always funny when four or five of us get together on a lake in three or four boats any one of which would accomodate all of us. Of course, if it isn't your boat, then you have to wait for an invite...

[HeatherDriskill]

You can definitley spend a ton of money hunting or fishing. You can also spend a ton of money gardening, raising animals, cooking, doing crafts, etc. It is all in your mind set!

Beorning, I buy a lot of my arrows from Ebay right after hunting season and christmas is over with. They sometimes go real cheap then. A lot of them I have to re-fletch or cut down to my size but I save a lot of money that way and I enjoy tinkering with the arrows on those long wintery nights when it's too cold to go anywhere. I also am switching back to wood arrows and am learning to build my own. Maybe someday I can just go out in my back yard and cut my own arrows from saplings!!!!!

Happy hunting to you. May you catch a new record buck or bass someday.

[beorning]

Thanks for the tips, and the good wishes, r.h.

Good luck to you as well, I'd be interested to hear how the arrow making goes. I always wanted to take a crack at making a traditional longbow and arrows. Maybe one day, when I find some spare time, I will.