I've been elk hunting since I was a teenager, and I've never shot an elk. Not a single one, and with elk season coming up, I've been thinking a lot about that little personal factoid. Part of me is frustrated by it because, after all these years, you'd think I would have figured it out by now.
But here's the thing. I realize and fully admit that I haven't really made elk hunting a priority in my life. Outside of going out and hunting each year, I just haven't dedicated that much time to it in the grand scheme of things. I haven't spent my summers scouting. I haven't put in countless hours learning new areas or studying local elk movements, and I haven't dedicated entire seasons to being out there every chance I get. I just go hunting in places I've gotten to know over the years, and there's a big difference between those two things.
This year is no doubt going to be more of the same for me. I'll get out for a day or two, head into some areas I'm familiar with, places where I know there are elk, and hopefully bump into something. And who knows? Maybe I'll get lucky and fill my tag on opening day.
That would be awesome, but I also recognize that if it happens, a fair amount of luck or chance will be involved. There's nothing necessarily wrong with that, but it did get me thinking about something I've always appreciated about hunting.
The Relationship Between Effort and Success
When you get to know successful hunters, especially those who seem to consistently find success year after year, there's usually something they have in common. They put in the work.
They spend time scouting, learning the terrain, and understanding the specific animals they're hunting. When hunting season arrives, they're out there putting in the time, day after day. They grind it out until the last possible moment.
Sometimes that means hunting for seven or ten days straight. Sometimes it means going into the same areas over and over and coming home empty-handed until eventually something comes together. And sometimes, despite all that effort, they still don't get anything.
But that's hunting. There's always an element of chance involved. You can spend months getting ready for a hunt and come home with absolutely nothing to show for it, while someone else can head out on opening morning and shoot an elk before breakfast. It happens all the time.
But there's still a very strong relationship between how much time and effort you're willing to put into hunting and how consistently successful you're going to be over the long run. And I really appreciate that about hunting.
Hunting is unique in that it has a brutal way of exposing the difference between what you want and what you're actually willing to do to get it.
Wanting Something and Making It a Priority
I want to fill my elk tag. I've wanted to for years, but wanting something and making it a priority are two very different things. Apparently, I haven't wanted it that badly.
Looking at how I've approached elk hunting historically, it's obvious I haven't made it the priority it probably needs to be if I want to be successful. That doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing or that I've never seen an elk before. I've had a lot of fun encounters, but it's hard work to get into a position to harvest an elk, and I just don't put that next level of effort into it.
And that's okay.
I've got other things going on in my life. I've got a family. I've got responsibilities. There are other things that I've decided deserve my time and attention more than elk hunting.
Spending an entire hunting season chasing elk just isn't something I'm willing to do right now, and never have. That doesn't mean I don't care about hunting. It just means I've chosen where I want to spend my time, and I think that's an important distinction.
Because if I haven't been willing to dedicate myself to something, how disappointed should I really be when I don't succeed?
I'm not saying I can't be disappointed. Of course I can. But there's a difference between being disappointed in an outcome and being disappointed in the effort you put into achieving it.
I can't expect the results of a commitment I haven't really made.
One of These Years
One of these years, I really want to give elk hunting everything I've got. I want to spend the preseason scouting, learn an area inside and out, and dedicate an entire season to it just to see what happens.
Not because I think I'm guaranteed to shoot an elk, but because I'm genuinely curious what would happen if I gave it that level of effort. What could I learn? How much better could I become? What would the experience be like?
I've only come close to something like that one time, and it ended up being one of my favorite hunting seasons ever.
I look back on that season with a big smile because I actually put in the work beforehand. I spent a number of days hunting, and I was into elk every single day, chasing the same herd bull that just never let me get close enough.
I never got one over on that bull, but I consider it one of my most successful elk seasons. I remember thinking how crazy it was that just a little extra effort made such a difference.
If I could repeat that experience, but dedicate even more time and energy to it, I think it would be amazing. When that season of life comes around again, I'm really looking forward to giving it a go.
But for now, I'll keep doing what I do. I'll go out for a day or two, enjoy being in the woods, and hopefully find myself in the right place at the right time.
If I come home empty-handed again, I'll understand why. It's not because I'm a bad hunter. It's because I haven't given myself as many opportunities to succeed.
What Hunting Teaches Us
I think this whole "level of effort" thing is what makes hunting special. Hunting is about a lot more than whether or not you come home with an animal.
It's an opportunity to learn something about yourself. About your patience, your dedication, your priorities, and your willingness to accept the results of the decisions you've made, because the outcome isn't always going to be what you hoped for.
Sometimes that's because of circumstances outside your control. Other times, you have to look at yourself in the mirror and acknowledge that maybe you could have done more than you did. I think there's something valuable in recognizing that.
Anyway, that's just something I've been thinking about as I look ahead to elk season, and I'd love to hear what you think.
Especially if you've spent years chasing an animal without finding success, or if you've experienced the opposite and finally had everything come together after putting in a tremendous amount of work.
What is it about hunting that keeps bringing you back?
Emory, By Land
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