If I’ve learned one thing about bowhunting, it’s that mindset is huge. The technical aspects of it all are important, but if your mental game is off, none of that matters.
The 2023 archery season was one of those seasons that served as a reminder of all of this. My backpack may not have been heavy throughout much of it, but my mind sure was. The takeaways were monumental for me and I want to share this shift in my bowhunting mindset with you here.
Going into my first hunt of the Fall, my head was anything but clear. I thought it would be ok, but it wasn’t. It caused me to think too much about things and soon I was drowning in my own thoughts about the field, work, and at home. I wanted to be there, but I also didn’t. How silly right? On a solo backcountry hunt, this is not the right bowhunting mindset to take into the field.
One of my biggest goals for the 2024 season is to live in the moment and not worry about things out of my control. This is a flaw of mine and it has been my entire life. I have a tendency to stress out about things that don’t deserve my mental energy, and frankly, it makes no difference if I worry about them or not. They cloud my judgment and my actions. In the words of The Beatles, I need to “Let it be.” The only thing I should be “worrying about” on a hunt is hunting.
We all have expectations ahead of the season. And some are quite inflated. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s important to be honest with yourself. I get to do this bowhunting thing a whole lot and sometimes, the fact that I get to do it so much leads to inflated thoughts of what my time in the field should look like. I’m not proud of that.
The truth is this. Bowhunting comes with more variables than can be equated by even the best in the world. Because of that, I think that each hunt should be approached as an individual. Each individual is different. Not to mention we ourselves are individuals and the two should work in harmony. There is nothing wrong with having personal goals, in fact, I think that is healthy. It gives us something to work towards. However, there is also nothing wrong with just bowhunting and letting a hunt play out as it may.
As a hunt progresses limits have a tendency to not have as deep of roots as they did before opening day. All of us want to be successful, and I’m no exception to that. Before the season I told myself I didn’t want to take longer shots on critters. I wanted to focus on trying to get closer. This is something I have never had an issue with, but if I have an animal within my bubble, my initial reaction at that moment is to shoot and not worry about getting closer. This has both paid off hugely and brought me to my knees in the past.
So, I’m saying it right now. My new limit is I don’t want to shoot past my pins. Meaning if my pins cap out at 60 yards, then that’s my wall. No dialing out to 90 yards and dropping long bombs unless it’s a follow-up shot, which I strongly believe in doing if need be. Stopping the game at long range might result in a filled tag, but it robs one of the interactions you could have had getting closer. Consider this me stopping the heist and a major shift in my bowhunting mindset.
Another thing that happens as a hunt progresses is the decay of our mental game. At least it’s like that for me. Each day that ticks off the clock it can get harder and harder to keep going. Motivation seems further away than it once was. And sometimes success appears damn near unreachable. Not an ideal approach for getting from point A to point B.
Something that I really want to lean into for the future is waking up with the mentality of “today is the day.” Things can change quicker than you can track and a hunt can go from trudging through muck to living the high life at the top of a mountain. And that’s the other thing I want to remember. This whole thing, no matter a filled tag, is the high life. Being able to go into the mountains and “struggle” is a gift. I should be struggling with a smile, not a frown.
This piggybacks off of the “clear head” section, but I think it’s worth mentioning. With a cloudy head comes a lack of focus. Things like shooting, fitness, etc. can EASILY fall through the cracks when your vision is muddled. Do this enough and you’ll pay the price come season. I sure did.
At the end of the day, there can be no compromise within reason. My family is the most important thing in the equation of course. Outside of that, my passion needs to be at the forefront. I love bowhunting beyond the words I can type out here. It turns my crank, enriches my life, and refuels me. In order to get the absolute most out of my time away from my beautiful family, I need to truly embrace that and live bowhunting. Rain, shine, tired, it doesn’t matter. I need to make sure I’m shooting every day, paying attention to my fitness, and doing as many boots-on-the-ground scouting trips as I can. No compromise.
After jotting all of that down, I feel like it’s a New Year’s resolution type of post. But, hey, this is the time of year to be thinking about that stuff right? It’s a time for new beginnings and stacking motivation for the coming year. I don’t look at it as a reset really. But more of a next chapter after learning from the previous. It’s a progression and I can’t wait to see what comes next. Happy Holidays everyone.
Check out my book Becoming a Backpack Hunter: A Beginner’s Guide to Hunting the Backcountry.
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