Maybe this should be a spinoff thread, but in reference to Matt saying many expect to see “dozens” of deer in a hunt, how many do most actually want to see? For me, around 6-8 deer per sit is all I want, especially if I can see 3-4 bucks. Much more than that and the hunt almost becomes tiring; constantly trying to check around me for new deer without spooking the deer already at my stand. I figure the more I am seeing beyond that number, the more likely one is to smell me or see me, and (other than peak rut) the less likely a mature buck will want to be anywhere near that many does and young bucks.
Too many, especially does, also tends to cause all the deer to seem the same with no unique attributes. Like trying to catch a catfish but a school of tiny bream keep stealing your worm. Like anything, proper balance is very difficult to obtain though. Most places I have hunted my whole life have had far too few deer, then a few tracts have far too many.
