New Hunter - Bare Minimum Necessary Gear

[SolaBeard]

If you're hunting the mountains, a good pair of boots.
After hunting season, a knee brace and a physical therapist.
Get a good ground blind. Not a tiny 1 man either.
The shooting sticks are great.
I bought Allen off of Amazon.

Is there a ground blind you would recommend?

 

[SolaBeard]

Savage Axis .270/6.5/.243/7mm-08
3-9x40 weaver scope (will come on rifle)
Cheap but reliable rifle and any caliber over .243 (wouldn't suggest over 30-06 for just starting out). Keep it simple nothing fancy

The Axis/Axis II is on my short list. Do you own one of these?

 

[knightrider]

Good thermals, boots, bibs, jacket, knife,rope,water, toilet paper, flashlight and gun! Camo is over rated i kill most my deer in sherpa lined flannel over shirts and whatever bibs i have in the truck. Don't overthink it

 

[DTM]

The Axis/Axis II is on my short list. Do you own one of these?

I bought my wife one in 6.5 and she loves it. I hunt with it very rarely, but it's accurate and reliable to 300 yards (have killed a few deer at 200+/- with it). I usually hunt with a browning x bolt in .270 or my savage 110 in .270.

 

[SolaBeard]

Good thermals, boots, bibs, jacket, knife,rope,water, toilet paper, flashlight and gun! Camo is over rated i kill most my deer in sherpa lined flannel over shirts and whatever bibs i have in the truck. Don't overthink it

I appreciate the simple approach. Mind if I ask what kind of gun you'd recommend?

 

[killingtime 41]

I'd watch everything cat man has on the YouTube.

Yes sir Catman is a good one. I've also watched him go from a kid. To one of the best hunters and outdoorsman around. His videos will help you out for sure. I haven't seen him on here in a long time now. YouTube is full of his stuff. He's also got a site of his own. He's sells hats and stuff.

 

[MickThompson]

Comfortable, uninsulated boots and good wool socks. I'd also add a shotgun for small game and turkey hunting. Some of my best deer spots were found on accident while hunting something else.

Permethrin is a good tip too. Deet just makes a tick crawl until it finds a spot you wouldn't spray. Permethrin kills them and stays in your clothes a while. Tick diseases are not to be trifled with.

 

[knightrider]

I appreciate the simple approach. Mind if I ask what kind of gun you'd recommend?

Personally when i carry a rifle its my ruger 308, but my favorite is my cva accura mr muzzleloader i find myself carrying it more than any other i own. I killed four with it this season, most my shots are 150 and under and the accura just flattens our little deer with a little puff of smoke the muzzleloader will give you two extra weeks of good hunting and its not difficult to learn at all plus its alot fun rolling smoke

 

[Hduke86]

Keep being active on TNdeer even in the off season. Most people get on here and fade away but they miss out of tons of good info. I'm confident if you hang around and people get a "trustworthy" vibe off of you that you could easily find someone that has experience that will show you the basics out in the woods. Be honest, say what mean and mean what you say and I can guarantee someone in the area from here will probably let you tag along.

 

[recurve60#]

You asked for "bare minimum" you can certainly hunt without a tree stand, a fancy store bought pop up blind, [some brush piled up in front of a big tree works] fancy designer hunting clothes and boots, etc.
Recurve nailed it, sharp knife, blaze orange and a good rifle.
The other "stuff" just makes a hunt a little more comfortable. The more comfortable you are the longer you might stay in the woods, the longer you stay in the woods your chances of being successful improve exponentially.

I dont have much after 40 yrs of hunting. Ive had it all and everything in between and I quit all that. Im still very successful with my list of goodies now.

 

[Henry]

If you're going to be hunting primarily E TN, Mapping Trophy Bucks would be a great book for you to learn some things. It'll help teach you how to identify terrain features on a map and how deer tend to use them.

Thank you for the book info.

 

[philsanchez76]

If you're going to be hunting primarily E TN, Mapping Trophy Bucks would be a great book for you to learn some things. It'll help teach you how to identify terrain features on a map and how deer tend to use them.

Yup that's the one I was gonna recommend too. But nothing beats just diving into the woods and trying to bump deer. Once you bump them a lot you'll start to understand why they are there. Also if you get a lot of snow one day,clear your schedule and go out and scout. You can follow their tracks back to their bedding locations and see how they are traveling through various topography. It's almost like cheating!

 

[Henry]

No one has mentioned this hunting basic: a good woman. I took mine out for her first time ever a couple days ago and she took a nice little buck. First time using this rifle. It went well.

This isn't a basic you take out with you, but knowing who your processor is, where your processor is, and their hours and a phone number in case you arrive later than their normal seasonal receiving hours. Also, knowing the property id or other id for online registering for the deer and the web address or having it ready on your phone. It took me what seemed like forever after getting my first deer to get the online stuff figured out. Be better than that.

Oh, and know how you're going to move the deer from a sled (how will you lift it by yourself onto a 4wheeler?) to the vehicle if taking it for processing (will likely need a second person if no other way rigged to lift it) or have your hanging up outside stuff figured out.

In other words, don't have anything planned for at least a couple hours after your hunting time is over the first time.

Another prep...walk a lot in the off season and lift weights in all sorts of odd positions because that deer will make you sore before the evening is over. We found my last one down in a nasty ravine with his ground side antlers wrapped around a tree. That was work getting him out. Was sore in places I didn't know existed. lol.

 

[Henry]

Awesome! I'll check it out. Thank you, sir!

Here are the first 30 pages of Mapping Trophy Bucks from Google Books: https://books.google.com/books?id=x...frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[SolaBeard]

Personally when i carry a rifle its my ruger 308, but my favorite is my cva accura mr muzzleloader i find myself carrying it more than any other i own. I killed four with it this season, most my shots are 150 and under and the accura just flattens our little deer with a little puff of smoke the muzzleloader will give you two extra weeks of good hunting and its not difficult to learn at all plus its alot fun rolling smoke

I'll look into this a bit. Thanks! Been eyeing the CVA Scout.

 

[SolaBeard]

Keep being active on TNdeer even in the off season. Most people get on here and fade away but they miss out of tons of good info. I'm confident if you hang around and people get a "trustworthy" vibe off of you that you could easily find someone that has experience that will show you the basics out in the woods. Be honest, say what mean and mean what you say and I can guarantee someone in the area from here will probably let you tag along.

I've learned a ton already, so I'm confident that will continue. It's been a very welcoming community which is hard to find—especially for newbies

And I totally agree. We should all strive to live like that.

 

[SolaBeard]

Yup that's the one I was gonna recommend too. But nothing beats just diving into the woods and trying to bump deer. Once you bump them a lot you'll start to understand why they are there. Also if you get a lot of snow one day,clear your schedule and go out and scout. You can follow their tracks back to their bedding locations and see how they are traveling through various topography. It's almost like cheating!

Never considered that. And I have the book in my Amazon cart right now.

 

[SolaBeard]

No one has mentioned this hunting basic: a good woman. I took mine out for her first time ever a couple days ago and she took a nice little buck. First time using this rifle. It went well.

This isn't a basic you take out with you, but knowing who your processor is, where your processor is, and their hours and a phone number in case you arrive later than their normal seasonal receiving hours. Also, knowing the property id or other id for online registering for the deer and the web address or having it ready on your phone. It took me what seemed like forever after getting my first deer to get the online stuff figured out. Be better than that.

Oh, and know how you're going to move the deer from a sled (how will you lift it by yourself onto a 4wheeler?) to the vehicle if taking it for processing (will likely need a second person if no other way rigged to lift it) or have your hanging up outside stuff figured out.

In other words, don't have anything planned for at least a couple hours after your hunting time is over the first time.

Another prep...walk a lot in the off season and lift weights in all sorts of odd positions because that deer will make you sore before the evening is over. We found my last one down in a nasty ravine with his ground side antlers wrapped around a tree. That was work getting him out. Was sore in places I didn't know existed. lol.

Honestly, I haven't considered many of these things at all (except for a good woman. Got me one of those ). I'll have to do some research on this. On a mild day—say 40-50 degrees—how long would you say I have to get to the processor before the meat goes bad?

Thanks, Henry!

 

[MUP]

Imodium. For those opening day jitters.

 

[Dixielandsam]

Hey guys! I'm blown away by how many of you offered suggestions, advice and insight when I asked about what kind of rifle and caliber you'd recommend for a new adult hunter. Your responses have been incredibly helpful. THANK YOU!

While I'm still considering what type of rifle I'll be going with, I'd like to also factor in what kind of gear I will need starting out to budget and prepare for next season. I know there is a huge variety of gear that ranges in cost and quality, so my goal is to compile a list of the bare minimum amount of equipment I'll need to get hunting while focusing on procuring quality, budget-friendly gear.

NOTE: I will primarily be hunting in East Tennessee (Roane, Andrerson, Morgan counties). I don't plan to hunt from a tree stand right away, so anything you'd deem necessary for a successful ground hunting venture is what I'm looking for. This can include clothing, gear, required training/permits, must-have creature comforts, etc.

I hope the responses on this post—along with my last one—will be helpful for future new hunters as well. I look forward to gleaning some wisdom and ideas from you guys.

Hey guys! I'm blown away by how many of you offered suggestions, advice and insight when I asked about what kind of rifle and caliber you'd recommend for a new adult hunter. Your responses have been incredibly helpful. THANK YOU!

While I'm still considering what type of rifle I'll be going with, I'd like to also factor in what kind of gear I will need starting out to budget and prepare for next season. I know there is a huge variety of gear that ranges in cost and quality, so my goal is to compile a list of the bare minimum amount of equipment I'll need to get hunting while focusing on procuring quality, budget-friendly gear.

NOTE: I will primarily be hunting in East Tennessee (Roane, Andrerson, Morgan counties). I don't plan to hunt from a tree stand right away, so anything you'd deem necessary for a successful ground hunting venture is what I'm looking for. This can include clothing, gear, required training/permits, must-have creature comforts, etc.

I hope the responses on this post—along with my last one—will be helpful for future new hunters as well. I look forward to gleaning some wisdom and ideas from you guys. Thanks in advance!

Scent blocker, binoculars, insulated hunting boots, wool layers, rifle, bullets, flextone grunt call, onX app, blaze orange vest and hat. That's about what I bring on a day hunt. Oh and a knife, butt out tool and some 550 cord.