I'm at the point that I love being out there and watching them, but killing just doesn't mean as much as it used to. I'm content to film them now for the most part and look for the one in a lifetime. Both bucks I killed last year were old, 5 1/2+ with less than ideal racks. I filmed much better racked bucks and let them walk.
Now, if I was still able to use a climber, I'd still be bow hunting hard. That was the most fun I had in my "hunting career".
Like many I went through the stages. I started off killing every buck I could, then I became a little more selective. then I started bow hunting and using a muzzleloader on occasion. Now I'm in the "true sportsman" phase, as I've heard it called, of just enjoying the experience and getting more joy from taking a kid hunting and them killing a deer that anything.
From my reading, this is a pretty common progression in a "hunting career".
