• Help Support TNDeer:

How many more years of deer hunting do you have left?

TheLBLman said:
As an aside, I've been in one of the better "trophy" TN deer hunting leases (or hunt clubs) for now decades. The average member is about 64 years old. This past deer season, more club members than ever before, did not go deer hunting a single time, and even the younger members didn't hunt as much as the prior year.

"Life" just seems to get in the way, more other things compete with deer hunting opportunities.

My own best long-term hunting buddy, didn't hunt a single time, the past two years, yet he had stayed in the hunting club, "just in case" he might go again. But he didn't & he hasn't, nor will he be staying in the hunting club. We hunters are simply dying out faster than we're being replaced by younger hunters, especially younger hunters who could afford to pay the now too high hunting lease rates.

And like I've said, my passion is still there, but, with many my long-term friends giving it up, it makes me more inclined to just hunt closer to the house, and less myself. Pretty "easy" to just get a deer or two for the freezer.
Click to expand...
Some of those hunters sounded like me a couple years ago . Lost my middle Tennessee leases due to owners passing kept one a few years after leasing from his daughter but she eventually sold it. But to the point TN RDG RNR gracious allowed me to get on his lease when an opening happened probably a 40 minute ride . Kept on the lease two years never set foot on it and I've seen some of the bucks that was on trail cameras but was losing desire rather quickly . Had my little spot that I went hunting maybe three or four times killed a couple but I just about had to force myself to go . Picked up a little this year and have more privite land to hunt that I don't pay for than I've had I'm my life . I really like to scout but I just can't hardly force myself to do very much of it but I won't go to a place unless I've at least walked it over trying to figure out the lay of the land and figuring wind directions before I hunt . Still have the want to just my body saying it don't want to smile ☺
 
Back when I was in high school my brother and I were invited to join a hunting lease with 3 old timers. They were honest and said they needed us for our backs to be able to do the heavy lifting. We were more than happy to oblige. Fast forward 24 years and all of them have passed except one and he is probably the best friend I've got even though he is 82 and I'm 40. He has 2 fake knees and 1 fake ankle so drive him up to a box blind that I have that is easy for him to get in and out of. Taking youth to your honey hole and letting them shoot some deer might not sound appealing but one day they might be taking care of you and putting you in your stand.
 
rtaylor said:
Back when I was in high school my brother and I were invited to join a hunting lease with 3 old timers. They were honest and said they needed us for our backs to be able to do the heavy lifting. We were more than happy to oblige. Fast forward 24 years and all of them have passed except one and he is probably the best friend I've got even though he is 82 and I'm 40. He has 2 fake knees and 1 fake ankle so drive him up to a box blind that I have that is easy for him to get in and out of. Taking youth to your honey hole and letting them shoot some deer might not sound appealing but one day they might be taking care of you and putting you in your stand.
Click to expand...
circle of life, none of us will escape it
 
I'm the same age BSK and I've been thinking about this question this year. I've got 2 grandsons that are 5 and 2 that live out of state — my hope is to get at least 10 more years so that hopefully I can have a few good hunts with them. But we are in Unit CWD — right now, none in our immediate area but it's coming. If we get to a point of high prevalence, I will either hang it up or try to find somewhere else to lease, which is hard to find. I figure either age or CWD will push me to stop — just need to get 10 more years in. I want to get a picture of those boys with a deer.
 
Snake said:
I'll be 69 next month and still use a climber but do have several ladder stands and loc ons on my property and the gentlemen that joins my property. Got permission on a new place this year and had to use my climber each time and I almost exclusively hunted it . Went a few times on my property and my neighbor's. Up until this year I could feel the desire leaving. I'd get up to go but would just set in the recliner . With this new place I felt like a kid in a candy store , always was like that hunting a new area . I have a very bad back, shoulder and knee so I'm not as mobile as I once was . Hunting these ridges I do tend to decide which way a deer may run before I shoot it 😂. On my property I can basically drive my four wheeler to the deer but on these other properties I don't have the luxury. Killed a young seven-point on the new area and although not that big a buck he about done me in. Dragging is just not for me actually let a couple other bucks go because of that but had one pushed my button I would have shot him and worry about getting him out after the fact ☺. If my desire holds up I'm hoping God will allow me atleast 5-6 years maybe longer. Who knows but when my grandson and hunting partner passed it bout took the wind out of my sails . Just got to take what hand your dealt with !!
Click to expand...
Kill those bucks and if you need help getting them out give me a shout. I will draft my two Son-in-laws if needed.
 
Great thread!
I'm 54 and was blessed to retire at 53. I am not in as good of shape as I should be but do exercise and try and stay healthy.

This past season was tough on me as my hunting partner wasn't able to go any. Our lease is three hours away and I think I hunted it 15 times alone, driving over, climbing a tree for an all day sit and then driving back. However, those 20 hr days did keep me from doing back to back days other than on some closer properties. BTW, I said it was tough but didn't say it wasn't a blast!! I wouldn't change a thing although if he had been able to go it would have been easier and definitely cheaper lol.

My wife did go the last couple of times and was with me when I killed a decent buck late season. This was the only times I hunted blinds vs. a climber.

I pray I never quit and I pray I am not too stubborn to make adjustments when physically needed. I also hope and pray I can measure success or what fun looks like differently as my age and mind dictates.

Lastly, I have one grandchild. He's in my avatar pic. I have accumulated quite a bit of stuff for him in 2.5 yrs and look forward to spending as much time as the good Lord and his parents will allow me to in a tree, box blind, ground blind, or against a tree on the ground.

Again, great thread and I have enjoyed all of the responses!!
 
Last edited:
TheLBLman said:
Interestingly, a lack of nearby processing places has become another deterrent to deer hunting, especially for those wanting/needing to travel. My longtime favorite deer processor (Yoder Brothers in Henry County) shut its doors last year, and I found myself purposefully not killing deer simply because I either didn't have time to mess with them, or just didn't want to.

It's a shame when it's become illegal (in many TN counties) to cross county lines with a harvested deer. This alone has caused many to just quit deer hunting, and greatly devalued deer leases outside one's home county.
Click to expand...
We have two now in Minor Hill down the street from each other ......
 
Steverino said:
We have two now in Minor Hill down the street from each other ......
Click to expand...
Yes, some new processors have popped up, but most are relatively small & new, and not sure to what extent can count on being there next year.

This past Thanksgiving weekend, a friend of mine shot a deer Friday afternoon. Bad shot, we backed out, came back and found it early Saturday morning. My new deer processor in Clarksville was already full up by mid-morning, and said they couldn't take any more deer before Monday. I then called Flowers in Nashville, plus a couple more ---- ALL were full up, and none could take any more deer any sooner than Monday!

This was mid-morning on Thanksgiving weekend.
I had planned to kill a doe that weekend.
Decided not to, since already had a deer with no where to take it.

Worse, instead of going hunting, as previously planned, Monday morning, got to the processor in Clarksville before daylight, only to find 5 trucks full of deer in line ahead of me.
Sat there until nearly 8am when they opened.
Guy came out and said, "I can only take 16 deer today. That's it".
Got my friend's deer in there, but the trucks behind me were quickly turned away.

What's happened is that the rules regarding transporting CWD deer have contributed to many deer processors simply closing down, shifting more business to those processors in non-CWD counties. But CWD is spreading, and coming to a county near you, ultimately causing more processors to close than start up.

Bottom line:

Dealing with a "harvested" deer is not as "convenient" for me as it once was,
and this does effect both my desires to go as well as my opportunities to go deer hunting.
 
Last edited:
If the sport of deer hunting has a rosy future, it may be more dependent on the recruitment of women hunters, than any other single factor. Recruiting more women hunters may be the best way of getting more boys & girls into hunting.

But if we don't have a certain "critical mass" in terms of the total numbers of hunters among us, at some point, the sport of hunting is essentially outlawed, illegal, and/or too expensive, for most people.

We are already just a small minority of citizens, and our government would prefer the only "hunters" be government employees, employed to control wildlife where and as needed. This is the direction we're headed if our numbers keep trending smaller (as a percentage of the citizenry).

The track we're on now, I'm afraid most federal lands will become totally illegal for ANY type of hunting. This includes places like Big South Fork, LBL, and all national forests. With the stroke of a pen, they can become just like the Smoky Mountain National Park, in terms of all hunting being made illegal. And who will complain? That 2% of hunters, when the other 98% aren't effected?

It's not where we're at for the moment so much,
as the direction we're TRENDING.
But for the future of hunting in America,
we need to be VERY concerned and politically engaged.
 
Last edited:
At 70, I still have the desire but after losing my last piece of private land to deer hunt, I'm likely done. I have no will to fight the public land bunch and with arthritis in my hips and hereditary hemochromatosis it makes it hard to hunt by myself. Coming up I always seemed to be the young guy and about all of my hunting buddies were considerably older than me. Well, most now are simply too old to hunt or have crossed over the river to rest in the shade of the trees. The wife and I still like venison so we might be depending on a little charity to get some. With that said, I'm blessed beyond measure and cherish the many memories of the hunt over the last 50 or so years.
 
I am really surprised at the ages in this thread. It seems that the overall demographic is older than I guessed (realized).
Maybe it is just the folks responding to this thread.
 
Wobblyshot1 said:
At 70, I still have the desire but after losing my last piece of private land to deer hunt, I'm likely done. I have no will to fight the public land bunch and with arthritis in my hips and hereditary hemochromatosis it makes it hard to hunt by myself. Coming up I always seemed to be the young guy and about all of my hunting buddies were considerably older than me. Well, most now are simply too old to hunt or have crossed over the river to rest in the shade of the trees. The wife and I still like venison so we might be depending on a little charity to get some. With that said, I'm blessed beyond measure and cherish the many memories of the hunt over the last 50 or so years.
Click to expand...
We don't eat them like we used to so I basically stopped shooting does the last couple of years although I did shoot one the other week for summer sausage and snack sticks. I see you're in Rutherford county too so hit me up next year and I'll be happy to kill one for you.
 
Gravey said:
We don't eat them like we used to so I basically stopped shooting does the last couple of years although I did shoot one the other week for summer sausage and snack sticks. I see you're in Rutherford county too so hit me up next year and I'll be happy to kill one for you.
Click to expand...
Mighty nice of you Gravey . I now tend to not believe what @gasman & @cbhunter have said about you 😂 J/K brother , they think highly of you 😉
 

Latest posts

Back
Top