I did all of my "planned hog killin'" this season from the ground wearing bluejeans and a black columbia hoodie. Could walk up in the middle of a herd feeding out in the woods and they didn't have a clue I was anywhere around until they herd the series of BOOMS!

i am 53 years old been hunting since teens. i am excited about hunting as much now as then. enjoy the time spent with your pards. time goes by fast.yes hunting has changed but it is still a big part of my life think about it everyday

My wife bought me an underarmour camo shirt. Am I part of the problem?

since it was a gift, you are off the hook, but you need to have a talk with your wife about it.

That is nothing new buddy.....in the Republic of South Africa, by law, all private ranches/property must be high fenced. It has been this way for decades.

hunting turned commerical before most of us where born when firearm mfgs started selling guns against each other.

With that being said... if your not wearing Columbia your not only going to be cold in the winter time, scorching hot in the summer, but with will be fishless and deerless on your excusions. True story

Glad I will not be fishless or deerless!

Buckshot_Burton, first let me say that I am a hunter and come from a family of them for many generations. I am in my early 40s and have seen the change 1st hand. When I was a kid our lease was 10 miles from our house and our payment was a bottle of whiskey and $10 for a doe and $15 for a buck! We hunted the 'house pasture' of a 3,000+ acre ranch near Natural Bridge Caverns. When we lost that place (owner needed to have a pasture for his grandkids to hunt), the owner was in tears when he told my dad, they had become that good of friends!

For several years we hunted a couple of very small places including our family farm for a couple of years with very limited success. The next place we got on was about 3 miles as the crow flies from the original place my dad hunted for several years. I was about 14 and the price was $650 per man and my dad bought two spots! That was almost 30 years ago and at that time it was a lot of money. We hunted there for 5 or 6 years and the price was $1,000/ gun when we gave it up. Keep in mind that was 25+ years ago and this place was off of Bulverde Rd on the Cibolo Creek in Bexar County!!! Gas was around $.80 per gallon and minimum wage was probably around $4 or under!

Today I lease in SW Sutton County for $1,750 per gun. 25 years later and I pay 75% more then 25 years ago. Diesel is now right at $3 / gallon and very few people work for minimum wage anymore and I can't even tell you what it is because when we hire new hands they start at $10+ / hr and do not have a clue about the work we do! My point is that although I know commercial hunting has become big, especially in Texas, I do not think the price of hunting is any worse then it was 25 or 30 years ago comparitively speaking.

I also guide in S TX and know a little about commercial operations and the people that choose to go this route. Somebody in a post above hit the nail on the head when saying it is all about time!!! We live in a world now where both husband and wife work full time plus some so that we can support the lives we live. Add to that the fact that our children are involved in sports, band, and other activities and that limits people's time even further! I know because I live that exact life.

Most of these hunters that choose package hunts simply do not have the time to go to a lease and do all the work it takes! Some simply love to hunt the same as you and I do and only have a small time frame in which to do it so this is the route they choose. I look at this as paying the additional money for 'this work' that is done for them! Pretty simple answer I think.

Here is a break down of what I'll spend this year.

$1,750 lease
$1,050 Diesel (15 trips at $70 each time...I will spend more!)
$900+ Feed

$3,700 TOTAL

Keep in mind I didn't put gas for jeep, food, beverages, blinds, feeders, wear & tear for vehicle, or any other costs involved to enjoy my lease! I'd say that it easily could exceed $5K! For $5K on a package hunt I could kill a much better deer then I will on my lease and be wined and dined doing it, so to each his own!

Sorry for the extremely long post but this issue does stir me up somewhat.

See I'm telling you there is something to the Columbia Stuff!!!

even got a green one to blend in w/ the pines. I swear I could model the stuff if I haven't been hitting the Jack all night whoopin' up on some old farts elderly gentlemen @ 42.

I remember the days when a hunter wore jeans, a plaid flannel shirt, old school woodland camo jacket and trucker cap with no logo, carrying his trusty, open sight, lever action 30/30 to the woods. Oh wait, that used to be me.

And that's the bottom line.............sadly.

What's your giddy up now?

Hasn't it always comparatively speaking? Brush county always produced big bucks and always cost more to hunt down there. Where many of us hunt didn't even have a huntable population of deer 30 years ago.

Jimbo, were on our lease when I was growing up? That's exactly the way it was for us. The only box on the the place didn't have a roof, and I thought it was NICE. Never heard of a deer feeder either back then.

I miss those days, but we see a lot more deer and a lot bigger deer now. And at 43, I don't want to sit on a 2 x 6 15' up in a tree in crappy weather.

I'm only 19 but I agree with this 100%. For the longest time we had a old f150 that had been rolled and totaled then rattle canned camo color for our 4wheeler. I've always hunted in blue jeans and a T-Shirt, the only time I wear camo is when it's cold because I got a heckuva deal on a thick camo coat.

It seems like now, especially with alot of guys that are down here at A&M, that hunting is turning into a rich guys sport where whoever has the most money wins. The people pay tons of money for a lease that they go to and shoot a monster buck with no effort at all in scouting or anything and then brag about it to impress people.

To me hunting is about enjoying the outdoors, having fun, relaxing, and the thrill of the hunt as well, not about who has the most money

to me it's about doing the most I can with the resources I have to make the experience as enjoyable as possible. (whether it be land improvements, the taming of deer, money, etc.)

Kinda the same but the cap isn't a trucker cap anymore, the jacket is Realtree and I carry a .270 with a scope.

I get a chuckle out of that also.

Buckshot, don't let the small stuff (i.e. how other people hunt) get under your skin too much. There is absolutely nothing you can do that will change anything. While you may not agree with the way other folks hunt, they may not agree with the way you hunt either. So, forget about it and count your blessings that you were and still able to enjoy the "good old days".

Well said my friend. I have noticed lots of folks here in College Station have that mentality towards hunting and it being a contest about braggin rights and whatnot. Im not judging anyone at all. Thats just not what hunting is about for me. My grandpa and dad used to tell me all time growing up, that hunting isnt about just going out and shooting a deer. Its about being out in nature, spending time with your family, and soothing your soul. And if you do shoot something, well, then thats just an added bonus.

Scope? I remember back in the day when we used to just whack em in the head with a rock.

I agree. And if people enjoy the good ol' days, they should just head out there with their plaid shirt, open sight rifle, folding chair, and sit under a tree. No one is stopping you from doing that. You can still enjoy "those" days if you don't let how other people hunt affect you.

Our old lease used to consist of an old work trailer, an outhouse, and no running water. Although I really like being able to flush now, and I can shower after splattering blood all over myself.

hard to go back to the old days, in our parts the deer just aren't there like they used to be; before doe seasons opened back up and everyone took the feeder route.

[quote=MikeHoncho
Its about being out in nature, spending time with your family, and soothing your soul. And if you do shoot something, well, then thats just an added bonus. [/quote]

This right here sums it all up for me. This is what deer hunting is to me.

Back when you could use your 1 buck tag on a basket rack buck if ya wanted to and call it a season....