How many yearly hunts to kill "your buck"

[angrybroadhead]

I heard some say the otherday that it takes, on average, approximately 21 days if hunting a grizzley to finaly find, stalk and kill one. It made me think about the hours I hunted last year and never got "my buck".

How many sits do you think it takes for you to get "the one you want" that year? I am not talking the 180 in Llano...just the nice deer you are after that year...no matter if the big one is 110 or 225.

I hunted a Ron last year and never had more than a spike in range. Just curious abou everyone else.

[Codie]

I average "my buck" about every 4 deer seasons! I don't shoot deer that are immature, which usually puts the odds WAY over into the bucks favor

[Osceola]

I've gone 3 years without shooting a buck.If I get a TC picture of one I like he is the only buck I hunt for that year.

[angrybroadhead]

For those truly waiting fir the right one, what size buck are you waiting on?

[Lafitte23]

I've never shot a buck so I'm still counting. Now hogs....second sitting.

[JMG]

2 years ago, it was about 40 days of hunting to get him. Saw him 5 times but never gave me a good shot or at least one that I was comfortable in making. From opener to December, 30th. Last year, one I was thinking of hunting, could have taken a shot first day but decided to give him another year. Just hopes he makes that mistake again on this years opener.

[Danw]

I've gone 3 years without shooting a buck.If I get a TC picture of one I like he is the only buck I hunt for that year.

X2.

[Huntin Addict]

I put in over a 1000 hours on stand in two years to kill my axis buck, and that was with a boom stick. I think I would still be sitting there if I had used a bow.

Last year we picked out 3 or 4 bucks that we considered shooters, and as far as we know all of them are still walking around except for one. He fell to my uncle during rifle season. Most of the deer we were looking at taking were from the mid 120's and up, 4.5 years old and up.

[J-Bone]

I have hunted a couple deer over a course of two seasons, but I think the most effort I have ever put in to a single deer was my 201 from 2008. I made 70 sits for that deer between opening day and when I got him in mid November. I also started scouting in early August, and made a few (10 or so) sits during pre-season too. Funny thing was, the afternoon before opening day he came into bow range. I was a matter of less than 12 hours of being able to kill him, and had to make 70 more sits before I got the next opportunity.

[Ol Thumper]

I've gone years without killing a buck but my mind has changed somewhat now, I will hunt a specific buck still but if a solid deer walks by he's getting hammered. Everyone has their own oppinions on a true trophy and mine is any 4.5 year old I will hang on the wall and be proud of, if it takes me a year or 3 to find him im ok with that, however my kids have free access to whatever they want to shoot, I cant make them try and be trophy hunters at the ages of 10 and 12, it'll take the fun out of it for them and honestly I get more excitement watching them hunt than I do for myself.

[BrianL]

Too many years to count. I want a 140+ with my bow. I think my last buck was 03 or 04. I set on average 20 days per year. I have only seen 3 bucks in that time I would shoot, and haven't had one in bow range I could get drawn on. But one of them I saw was LARGE to say the least. Maybe this year, but if not, the does still taste better.

[big_smith]

The first 4 years on our lease I did not take a buck, and hunted at least 30 days per season. Year #5 I killed my buck opening morning 5 minutes after the feeder went off. This year I hunted 30+ days and most of them were without a deer sighting at all. I finally killed my buck The weekend after Christmas. This was my target buck and I would have gone home empty handed if I had not seen him.

Then I went to NM on a mule deer hunt. I hunted 7 days from daylight until dark without seeing a deer. Finally on day 8 I shot my buck. Not much of a buck, but a buck no less.

At the lease we aim for 130's or better and at lease 4.5yoa. In NM I was looking for the first forkey I saw that was legal and within range. The buck I shot was 5 points and very mature. I had trouble getting him in the truck, but his horns were nothing to brag about. I was just as happy with my scrub muley, as I was with my 11pt P&Y from the lease. Although both are dear trophies as they were both earned.

[Chance Love]

Don't really know an "average". I have set my sights on a particular buck during the off season, and then was lucky enough to kill him within the first hour of the first sit, on more than one occasion. Likewise, I have set my sights on a particular buck as mentioned, and put in over 80 hours to get him. And sometimes I don't get the one I am after. Most of the time I am looking for a 6.5+ year old deer that is over 140". But that really depends on where I am hunting. Some places, the first mature (5.5+) buck will get it.

[Mayhem]

didnt kill one this year, but on average from the start of season in oct, i dont usually kill this the last week of mule deer season wether its a whitetail or mule deer..

[slayer]

haven't shot a buck, not counting cull's in 4 years. Had one last year, sit 20 times, lease is to far away to sit more than that. Had him dead to rights about 3 weeks before season. We were hog hunting and he came in an posed for us. Didn't see him one time while in stand. Will be after him again this year, going to use different tactics, more ground blinds, less tripods!