Where is this ship headed?

[Happy]

Been mulling over the trends in hunting and wonder what others opinions are.
A: Are we loosing the skills and effort required to become good hunters by substituting technology, as well as new practices such as food plots and feeders.
B:  All this good and wonderful because it is helping recruit new hunters and makes hunting more enjoyable.

I really don't care what others do as it has no bearing on my life but I feel a stronger draw to option A.

[LaLongbeard]

What some people call "Turkeyhunting" nowadays is a joke. When your whole hunt involves some kind of gimmick or crutch your missing the best part of the sport. Other than getting the much needed hero pics for Facebook there can't be much enjoyment in it. I think even with all the new people taking up the sport as many will be dropping out after they burn out on the fad. Eventually they'll find another fad to chase and the increase of new hunters will start to decline.
Before all the corner cutting and ready packaged crutches were available it took time to become a turkey hunter and a lot of people dropped out when they realized how much effort was involved. Remove the effort or difficulty and you have made turkey hunting appealing to the masses.
You still hear a lot of the "We need more hunters or they'll take it away from us" if Obama didn't do away with hunting then  I think we'll be fine without a new batch of wannabes most of which don't vote anyway.
I think there will always be a small group of true Turkey hunters that will keep the old school skills of Turkey Hunting alive fewer every year maybe but always some

[coyote1]

I agree with you both.

It's an instant gratification society. No one wants to take the time to become proficient with anything be it calling, weapon or hunting skill. Look how many folks these days pick up a crossbow to hunt deer and miss the entire experience of archery. I believe most of this younger generation will give up on hunting in the not so distant future. I wouldn't trust 98% of the kids I know within bullet shot of me with a gun anyway. It's sad but the way it is unfortunately.

[Spitten and drummen]

I kind of look at it like bowhunting. Technology has increased so much along with a heavy dose of hollywood production , that the want it now generation does not really get the experience that older hunters get. Im saying that when I started turkey hunting , the kill was not the most important part. It was playing the game. I like to shoot turkeys as much as the next guy , but I learned many years ago , its how you kill them that makes the difference. Im old school in that regard. Facebook and social media contributes somewhat to hunting now. Guys and gals are only satisfied with the kill. Pressure is on them to one up the next guy. I kill my limit most years and call many for other folks but I feel that my hunt is a success if I get to work a bird. The older I get , I realize that out time here is short and I try to savor every moment when im out there. You never know if that will be the last bird you will ever work or the last deer you stick.

[bbcoach]

I don't agree with either.  Hunting is a dying sport.  In a hundred years, between animal rights groups and non involvement of the younger generations, hunting will be almost obsolete.  Food plots, feeders, decoys, TSS don't guarantee Instant Gratification.  We are a dying breed.  I am 61 years old and I love matching wits and enjoying God's splendor every chance I get.  I want turkeys in my lap and deer inside 300 yards.  I do plant food plots, supplemental feed and utilize decoys but I do it to enhance the hunting experience.  I hunted close to 75 days during deer season and probably 25 days during turkey season last spring with zero kills.  Could I have killed, absolutely but I chose not to.  For me it's about the splendor, my goals and the shear enjoyment of hunting.  My

[longspur]

When I first started turkey hunting 1996,39 years old I just wanted to kill a turkey. Had no guidance or advice from others. In 3 or 4 years I became very good at it. I've killed them just about any way you can think of. Except off the roost, something in me just wouldn't let me do that. Gradually I learned how much more fun and satisfying it was to kill them the traditional way. Especially a big ole high pressure Tom that everybody and his brother have been trying to kill for 2 or 3 years. So maybe some of the people that just want to kill one will grow out of it. No skill whatsoever in sitting by a field in a blind waiting on a turkey or hiding behind a fan and crawling up to him. If that makes you happy then that's fine. It used to make me happy. As I implied  in another thread, OG made a turkey hunter out of me. 

[LaLongbeard]

Hunting is not dying. A hundred years from now there will still be hunting too much money involved. I have hunting magazines from the 80's singing the same tune, hunting will be out lawed by the year 2000 blah blah and etc. New hunters overall ducks,quail,deer,dove etc combined may be down but not turkey hunting. Turkey hunting is the new fad and I think mostly because there's nothing else to hunt in the spring to disperse the numbers. There's plenty of new turkey hunters every year too many in some cases

[Bowguy]

The sports are losing guys that know anything. It's all about a dead animal nowadays, no matter how it happens unfortunately.

[Delmar ODonnell]

I believe it was Dan Infalt who said that 10% of hunters kill 90% of game. I know he's mainly a deer hunter, but I think this applies across the board. I like to think that those 10% are the good woodsmen, who become part of the woods, as opposed to an intruder in them.

In my opinion, no technology can expedite the process of becoming a good woodsman. It takes time, patience, and an insatiable will to learn every time you are in the woods, and a good mentor never hurts either. As a matter of fact, I would say that when this new technology is used as a crutch, it severely limits the ability to become a better hunter. ("Scent Control" technology for deer hunting instead of knowing how to play the wind; plopping a decoy down 15 yards in front of you instead of being sure to have a good setup)

I'm only 24, and have so much to learn when it comes to being a woodsman and hunter, but I have gotten to the point where I feel like I am more part of the woods, and it is almost a spiritual experience every time I go. Success rates aside, I feel sorry for the people who were introduced to the idea that only gizmos, gadgets, and kill rates were what is important instead of becoming students of the outdoors. Hopefully, shows like the Hunting Public and Pinhoti Project, which get away from the advertisement heavy cable shows, will help show people there is a different way to hunt. We as hunters play a big part of that as well. Personally, I know I can do a better job of trying to share my love of the outdoors with others.

[SD_smith]

I believe it was Dan Infalt who said that 10% of hunters kill 90% of game. I know he's mainly a deer hunter, but I think this applies across the board. I like to think that those 10% are the good woodsmen, who become part of the woods, as opposed to an intruder in them.

In my opinion, no technology can expedite the process of becoming a good woodsman. It takes time, patience, and an insatiable will to learn every time you are in the woods, and a good mentor never hurts either. As a matter of fact, I would say that when this new technology is used as a crutch, it severely limits the ability to become a better hunter. ("Scent Control" technology for deer hunting instead of knowing how to play the wind; plopping a decoy down 15 yards in front of you instead of being sure to have a good setup)

I'm only 24, and have so much to learn when it comes to being a woodsman and hunter, but I have gotten to the point where I feel like I am more part of the woods, and it is almost a spiritual experience every time I go. Success rates aside, I feel sorry for the people who were introduced to the idea that only gizmos, gadgets, and kill rates were what is important instead of becoming students of the outdoors. Hopefully, shows like the Hunting Public and Pinhoti Project, which get away from the advertisement heavy cable shows, will help show people there is a different way to hunt. We as hunters play a big part of that as well. Personally, I know I can do a better job of trying to share my love of the outdoors with others.

Nicely put. As a younger guy myself, I do have a problem with finding other hunters my age that hunt like I do. I hunt hard and every single day I'm not working during almost every season open. It's all about keeping up with the new fads on social media anymore. There are some of us that can do it with a mouth yelper and some miles on the boots, but not many. I'm actually looking forward to 20 years from now because once all you geriatric folks go off to meet the lord that'll leave a lot of woods for me to cover hahaha just kidding on that part guys!

[Mossyguy]

In my opinion, no technology can expedite the process of becoming a good woodsman.

The problem is it seems these days you are known as a good woodsman only by the trophies on your wall and what you post on Facebook...

[LaLongbeard]

Glad to see at least a few younger guys that haven't fell into the kill at all cost fad. I hope shows like the Penhoti Project will change the hunting show industry which has a lot to do with the fad.

[SD_smith]

Glad to see at least a few younger guys that haven't fell into the kill at all cost fad. I hope shows like the Penhoti Project will change the hunting show industry which has a lot to do with the fad.

Between the Pinhoti Project and The Hunting Public I think are both great for the future generations.

[2eagles]

The "ship" is running aground with all the bickering. Decoys, blinds, crossbows, TSS and even the camo pattern topics usually get an argument started. Like it or not guys, Facebook and other social media are what a lot of younger people relate to and learn from. I mentioned Old Gobbler's Facebook page on this forum a month ago and the replies surprised me because most sounded like I want you to hunt with the devil himself. These newbies often don't know a thing about hunting, but want to learn. They don't know 30 yards from a city block. I see it a lot when a group of kids are shooting at a duck 80 yards high because they had no one to mentor them. We started a new 35 year old hunter last year and the things we take for granted, he didn't have a clue. I'm planning on taking a young hunter turkey hunting this year to help him shoot his his Tom. Smile boys and girls this hunting thing is supposed to be fun!

[RutnNStrutn]

I don't agree with either.  Hunting is a dying sport.  In a hundred years, between animal rights groups and non involvement of the younger generations, hunting will be almost obsolete.  Food plots, feeders, decoys, TSS don't guarantee Instant Gratification.  We are a dying breed.  I am 61 years old and I love matching wits and enjoying God's splendor every chance I get.  I want turkeys in my lap and deer inside 300 yards.  I do plant food plots, supplemental feed and utilize decoys but I do it to enhance the hunting experience.  I hunted close to 75 days during deer season and probably 25 days during turkey season last spring with zero kills.  Could I have killed, absolutely but I chose not to.  For me it's about the splendor, my goals and the shear enjoyment of hunting.  My