Ever feel like "The good old days are gone"?

[Gr8bawana]

Lamenting about "the good old days" is a waste of time, they are never coming back. Enjoy what we have now with family and friends. At 57 I'm hoping to have maybe 20 good big game hunting years left.
It gets harder to find time to hunt with the kids as they've grown up and work and have lives of their own. I've retired and can hunt anytime so I make it a priority to make the best of every moment we get to spend in the outdoors with my kids and my older brother who was my main hunting partner growing up. Making the "good old days" right now when I look back in 20 years.

 

[geetar]

 

[KB_]

Good Ol days are right now as far as i'm concerned.

 

[Woodrow F Call]

For a lot of people, the draw is doing something you enjoy with people you enjoy doing it with. You might find others to enjoy it with...... My FnL hunts now more than ever, but that's because of all the people that he hunts with. Used to be his old man, now it's me and a few others that make it fun for him.

 

[jlong17]

Isn't that why we hunt? To take us back to a sense of the "good ole day's". I'm an adult onset hunter, so the last 5 years is all I've ever known about hunting. I hunt primarily to provide quality food for my family. But I also hunt because something deep within yearns for adventure, excitement, and a touch of fear. My childhood (and current) heroes were Lewis and Clark. I wonder what their "good ole days" were? Sure there is little left to discover and the animals are fewer, but the adventure/excitement/fear is definitely still out there to be had... And you don't have to cross America to find it

 

[88man]

I sorta value and remember my hunts in the following order > Who I did the hunt with > Then the area/location> Then the hunt quality or game quality.
I have been on alot of great hunts with some great partners in some awesome areas and good hunting experiences.
Sitting on a bunch of points with a few friends in the same boat. The best is yet to come.

 

[2rocky]

Thank you all who replied... I'm grateful for this tone of discussion. I think it is easy to get mired in self pity when I read about folks with 20 points in CO while I'm still in the single digits.

Randy, I have embraced your attitude of hunting while I can... In other aspects of like I have learned that I don't have to accept circumstances if I can do something about them.

I do have goals I want to achieve. Hunt all 11 Western States, and kill an elk and a deer in each. Get a P&Y Rocky Mountain and Roosevelt Elk to go with my Tule.

Thanks All...

 

[Mallardsx2]

The days of knocking on doors on the east cost and a handshake and going hunting for anything are coming to an end. I know that for sure.

Its a whole different world than it was 25 years ago.

 

[Dave N]

The days of knocking on doors on the east cost and a handshake and going hunting for anything are coming to an end. I know that for sure.

Its a whole different world than it was 25 years ago.

Ain't THAT the truth!

 

[Irrelevant]

In my mind every year is better than the last. It might take some extra motivation to do the same things it did a decade ago, but I enjoy it more than ever. I agree with Randy that making a list is a great way to stay focused and start turning those to does into dones. But I'll add that every time you check something off that bucket list add another to the bottom.

 

[JEL]

I am 57 and have done a lot of hunting, am in a happy marriage and have raised 3 sons into productive members of society but I think my best days are ahead. I will always try and think that way. It also helps that I am retiring soon from a 30+ year career and have just purchased the family farm. I am very much looking forward to whatever path lies ahead.