Cam runs and lifes for fun. It’s what he enjoys. Its his “high”. Its fun to him.

He will run until he dies

For me, hunting and the activities associated with hunting (food plotting, getting feeders set up and filled, etc) is an act of sanity that i really feel cleans my mind and refreshes my soul. My pastor just finished a series about being mindful of your soul and taking time to slow down, and for me this what hunting was but i didnt have the right words for it. I can go all season and not kill a thing and be perfectly happy just getting up early and staying out till dark and watching nature and revelling in the glory of God and His creation. I do see quite a few deer every sit, and enjoy seeing them, but my wife jokes and she is somewhat correct, that i dont shoot my “pets” and i never shoot anything. She isnt entirely true on the last part, but the thrill of just being is as much of it as the thrill of seeing or shooting a biggun.

It’s so many things to me. It’s a personal competition. It feeds my family (we don’t buy meat at the store). It’s an escape. It’s a hobby. It’s exercise. It’s a quiet time of prayer. It’s a common thread amongst good people. Hunting is being alone in the woods with a purpose, and it’s my favorite activity.

I hunt for many reasons. But hunting is only part of it for me. I enjoy being at the property and working on it in the "off-season" just as much as hunting season. Actually, sometimes I enjoy it more because I can move around freely and do what I want from mid-Jan thru Mid-August. I hunt property that's been in my family for over 100yrs, so it makes me proud to put in the work and see a deer herd that improves year after year. My daughter shot her first deer this year about 200yds from where I killed my first deer about 40yrs ago. I didn't even kill a deer this year, killed a long spike last year, and not for lack of opportunity. I'd just rather she kill them now. I'm teaching her hunting as much for the knowledge as her also understanding that there are ways she can provide for herself. We plant a garden every year for the same reason. It does also provide me the chance to get away from it all. But I also will fire up the hotspot and do some work while there if it means I can be there instead of at the office.

So for me, hunting is really just the excuse that facilitates the rest of it. I just feel more relaxed when I'm there, no matter what I'm doing. The days seem to last longer instead of blurring together when at home/working. I know many here can relate.

100% Cameron Hanes runs for fun. He truly enjoys it.

I know marathon runners who take 10 mile runs every morning and love it. I recently started running and I’m pissed off after a mile.

But, I do crazy things like sit in a freezing cold tree stand or duck blind waiting to get a shot because that’s fun for me. Ranch chores are fun for me. And they are not fun for many people.

Many years ago when I was working in construction the one thing guys hated was digging holes for footings with a post hole digger and a rock bar. I really never minded it and it was a “fun” part of the job. I got really efficient at digging holes, but not at much else because the other part of the job wasn’t fun at all. I also am of the belief that you get good at the things you enjoy.

Hunting for me is a passion. I think about it and prepare for it the whole off season. We also eat deer meat all year, so between me and the boy, we need to kill 4+ deer a year. So, yes, it's more than just recreation, but I don't have to kill a big buck every year for it to be successful. I get just as much enjoyment from my boy killing a nice buck, or my boy shooting a doe, or a doe myself as I do when I shoot a big buck. Of course, I'm always trying to get a buck bigger than my biggest buck, but isn't that true for any passion? Trying to do better than you've done before? I doubt that will ever change for me.

I’m going to have to go purely recreational. Your question just seems to ask how serious we take our recreation.

Killed my first deer in 1966; a mulie buck in Arizona while in the USAF. There were none on the farm outside of Muleshoe but I clobbered a lot of crop eating jack rabbits when I was a kid. That’s when I realized that coyotes were on my side and still won’t shoot one. I rigged a holster for my 22 single shot on the tractor. Separated from USAF and got back to Texas in 1968 but didn’t hunt for 3 or 4 years. Just didn’t have the money with kids showing up which created a different priority. Then I did some day leasing with mixed results.

Then, 38 years ago, I bought my 133 acres of recreational (junk) land South of Bowie. Good for nothing but hunting, fishing and shooting. I still have it but don’t know how much longer. Now 80 yoa and can’t do the work that it takes to keep the house, fences and land up so thinking about selling. That sucks. As soon as it warms up, need to change oil in tractor and 4 wheelers and I no longer enjoy doing that stuff.

Actually, I’m no longer obsessed with killing a wall hanger. I already have a lot of those from home, Western States and Africa. Now enjoy just hunting and working on the place. No interest in taking pictures of wildlife.

For me, it's spiritual. As a hunter, I have seen things occur in the natural world that 99.99999% of people will NEVER see or experience. It's also amazing how much sitting in a deer stand recharges my batteries. I may be exhausted at the end of the season, but I'm also completely recharged.

Romans 1:20 - For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

Psalm 104:24 - O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.

Love this, couldn't agree more!!!!

Like mentioned above, I enjoy the activities associated with hunting as much as the hunting itself. Planting food plots and trying different types of seed is one of my favorite parts of it. I look forward to that just as much as the kill. Hunting is more than just recreational for me, it's part of my everyday life. I either set hog traps or hunt plots everyday after work, year round.

The instant I need to "get away" from my daily life to "recharge" I will change the way I'm living.

Amen. To quote one of my favorite hymns, “In the rustling grass I hear Him pass; he speaks to me everywhere.”

This, exactly. Any day in a blind, or in the field, or filling feeders, or fixing fences, or cooking a warm meal on a cold day, or watching college football, or hanging out in the cabin and shooting the breeze is better than a day at the office.

If it’s more than recreation what is it?

I agree I put quite a bit of time and effort into hunting in the off season, and even during the season with field to table processing etc. but I do it all for the enjoyment, which makes it recreational to me.

It may be considered recreational to some, I guess it just depends on how you look at it. To me I consider stuff like golf and fishing in that category. I love to do both but neither one is part of my daily routine.

For me hunting is very relaxing. Gets me away from work , time to share with family. I am patient so enjoy sitting in the blind . I usually will take a couple of deer be it a cull or doe just because we really like the meat and eat it all year. I am always looking for a mature trophy buck but if it doesn’t happen no deal breaker. I see deer every day where I live and they always amaze me how they act . I still enjoy working and filling feeders cutting brush getting ready for the next year . I will say though those 50 pound sacks of feed get heavier every year, nope they are the same I am just getting older. I will say the older we get the more our thoughts change about hunting. I met a couple hunters some years back that were in their 70s, asked them when the last time they had shot a nice deer . They both responded many years ago that would ruin a perfectly good hunt now. Didn’t understand that years ago , I do now. I am not there yet but I get it. However I can’t imagine very many hunters passing if a 200 class buck stepped out in front of them.

Chance of the final result has to be there, or I would not go out. If I do not go out, I miss it all. Would like a chance at killing a slightly bigger deer than the last one I killed or one with unique antlers. I do not care anything about killing a slick 8 or a traditional 10 point unless they have some size to them. Consequently I am having a hard time being motivated to go hunt because the chances of seeing what I want to shoot seem to be less and less each year. Biggest I have killed is 148, but I do not currently have a lease that will produce one bigger than that. (or at least I do not think my lease can. I never planned on giving hunting up and probably will not, but it is a wrestling match right now.

Hunting is fun and I love the outdoors. Clean air and watching wildlife and enjoying God's creation. Always take a camera and a gun. Use the camera a lot more than I do the gun unless pigs or yotes show up. Doesn't get much better than that.

The deer stand is a great place to clear the mind and reset the priorities.

This ^^^^^

For me it is now about filling the freezer. Heads, hides and horns no longer hold any appeal for me. Quality protein in the freezer does.

For me it's the challenge of going against the ultimate competitor, nature. A great whitetail buck is programmed to survive to carry on the species. Food, water, cover, does and avoiding danger is all they're about. To kill a great one is a challenge and I get an intense sense of accomplishment when it all comes together. I don't compete against other hunters, but I do compete against myself. It's the same with the large boars I target. So for me, it's something a lot more than recreation. My last one did put 110 lbs of packaged venison in the freezer. I used to donate all my deer meat to needy families. Bought a freezer, that changed.

I'm at the lease 12 months out of the year. Riding the Ranger, keeping rifles zero'd and shooting long range for the purpose of being a better hunter, cooking, eating, fishing, hanging with my hunting partners, working on stands and feeders, enjoying 16k acres of prime panhandle caprock Red River land between the five of us and dove hunting......... that's recreation.

DITTO - been at it for over 60 years - early on it was just learning about hunting and deer. Then it morphed into dreaming about killing true trophy bucks.

Then it morphed further into having killed trophy bucks to enjoying helping others (family and friends and lease members) to kill THEIR trophy buck.

Now with 7 grandkids I am all about teaching them and helping them enjoy what hunting is all about and help them shoot a trophy buck - so end of the day ANY TIME I am hunting is fun no matter what the goal - I love it

I’m at the time where I just enjoy getting out in the stand to watch the critters. I’d just as soon watch a really nice Buck grow over the years into his full maturity. I’ve actually been seeing this one particular deer over the last four years grow into a monster. Also, it really is a lot more fun to see my grandson going on is his first hunts than actually taking a deer myself. Over 50 years I’ve killed more than my share of whitetail bucks, it’s time for the next generation to come along.

Been hunting since 1961. I have progressed through the stages and now find myself being satisfied just being in the field, Not saying I will pass on a great Buck but shooting is no longer my objective. I am blessed to have my own quarter section and have been focused on maximizing it's potential for all of the native residents,

My small unique give back is I am a hunter ED instructor and I find it so rewarding teaching our young folks about my favorite pastime and the safest way to enjoy it!!!

I am retired now and I hunt or should I, say I'm in the field every chance I get. All year long, Establishing food plots. half cutting mesquites for the quail or disking alternate areas to improve natural growth,

I hunt bow, muzzle loader and rifle. I am in the woods every day from October to January 15th.

My primary focus is to do what I can to get my wife and grandsons on a better deer every year,

I will only take a Buck larger than my current best. Although I make sure we have at least one deer is in the freezer at the end of each season.

I love this outdoor thing and cherish every minute I am in the field,

I thank God he is allowing me in my final years to do this full time, The thing I have loved all my life!!!!