How many really old guys,65 or older, are still hunting? Am 78 and still trying. Using supplemental oxygen kind of limits my ability to hunt like I want to as does being ground bound. Managed to take a turkey last spring and looking forward to Oct. 1 for deer season opening. Denny Sturgis Sr
I'm working on it, but not quite there yet. I know a handful here are right there with you !
Keep it up. It shouldn't limit you, but rather causes you to develop new and different strategies is all.
ChuckC
I am 65 in pretty good shape just sold my business so will have more time to hunt.Still using tree stands in the palmetto swamp.Ground blinds don't work well in the palmettoes.At my other property I use both and starting to like ground blinds.
68 and still out there.
Good luck, Denny! I'm not there yet, but getting closer every day.
Bisch
68 and still out there. Gave up my climbing stand last year, hunt mostly out of ladder stands now.
Good for you Denny.
I am 63 this Oct. I love it even more than when I was twenty.
What are you shooting these days? I still like mid fifties for draw weight.
Don't stumble. I'm 74 3/4 and right on your heels :)
74 and still going strong......although a lot slower.
71 here and going strong, although not quite as strong as a few years ago. Shot my doe last week with a quarter mile drag. Still put up my own ladder stands. Quit using the climber a few years ago. Ladders are just so easy. Dropped down in weight to around the mid 40s, some higher, some lower. The old prostate has been an issue but dealing with it and hasn't really slowed me down. All and all, I can be thankful for my overall good health. Since coming back to trad archery a couple of years ago, just can't seem to get enough time in the woods. It's what keeps me going. Hoping I have another ten good ones. Then I'll start using ground blinds.
Nice to hear from the elders in our midst, glad your still out there!
Iam only 60 but a career of res carpentry has my body pretty tore up,laying on my back as I type this with my back out, healing ever so slowly. Sucks.
BTW. I tend to stay on the ground more and more even though I would love to be in a stand, but do not trust my abilities in that anymore.
66 still out there and climbing trees.
awesome !!!
68, and still luvin' it. Don't use climbers much any more; ladders, but I have one hang on going in this week. Slowed down for sure.
Shick
70 and still out there. No more trees, had a hip done and Doc said no more skydiving, surfing, or trees. I do tend to stay near trails more also.
I'm just a pup at 63.......I hope I can still do it at 78.......best of luck to all you guys that have made that age and are able to do what you love.
68 and still after them
I'm 63 and still out there. You want to stay young, you need to keep active.
76 and still going strong. I just love it out there!
Where does the time go! At 76 I can still get up the mountain but may need some help packing out a big elk.
:clapper: You guys are an inspiration to us youngins!!! Keep at it!
73 and still going. I have an artificial heart valve, a pace maker. knee replacement and COPD but can't give it up
70 the begining of the year...tippit
Celebrated my 67th birthday this year by going back and hunting Nason Creek. Had not been there for 37 years and the hills have gotten a little steeper than I remember ...LOL
I'm 73 and still walking the mountains ( most days ) ;)
That is awesome to hear! You guys are a inspiration!!!!
We will all be here. Good to see all of you still out there.
66 and still having fun with bows and hunting.
72 and still going. I hunted 3 hours this morning and saw deer just about the whole time. The only one close was too close and never gave me a good angle. Maybe this evening.
:pray:
Jack
Had to switch to lefthanded shooting at age 70 due to tendonitis in left elbow. Elbow wouldn't take the compression of drawing my bow. Has worked pretty well, only had to drop in draw weight. Now shooting 45# PLX and a 45# PSR. No Problem killing deer and turkeys.
I bowhunted with my dad last weekend and he's 73. I actually think he's been dead for several years but the salt and alcohol in his bloodstream has preserved him so well that his mind doesn't know it yet. His bicep muscle on his right arm detached from the shoulder five years ago and I thought that might be the end of his bowhunting but I was wrong. He still kills a deer about every year. He actually killed one with a spear in 2013. He chucked the thing (no atlatl) about 10 yards and threw it through a little buck. Now that is hunting Old School!
Darren
I'm just 67 and still doing it. Slowed down some, but that has been a good thing. Seeing more and walking less is the way to do it.
Don't think I'd want to piss off your dad Darren. He sounds like a real hoot. Keep it up dad.
I'm only 60, but have a friend Jimmy that is 74. Last spring Jimmy came over to hunt turkeys from my tent blind. He left the house, headed out back. I talked to him for a minute before he left, walked in the house, got something to drink, then looked out the window to see Jimmy walking back toward the house. I thought the old guy must have forgotten something. Then I noticed he was carrying a turkey. He said he got in the tent, sat down, started to put his coat on and saw a turkey outside, and shot it all in about 5 minutes. So I guess old doesn't mean you can't hunt!
I'm 69 and still going. I'm limited more by the after effects of a broken femur than by age.
I'm inspired by the guys in their late 70's who are still getting out there!
I'm 65 and still bow hunting.
You bet, still working and enjoying life in spite of mess the World and Washington DC find themselves in. Looking forward to hunting season with a new longbow from Northern Mist. Season is changing, colors too, so am I.
Believe in eating right, exercise and staying healthy. :thumbsup:
Where Is Roy from Pa? He's gotta be at least 120 something!
68 and I still bowhunt, blackpowder hunt, and modern firearm hunt...I still hunt out of Screaming Eagles, but no longer do 11 hours, from before dawn to late dusk...Used to love dragging deer. Don't love it any more...Bought a deer cart a few years ago, but it can be more trouble than it is worth in a new cutover or the woods...Enjoy hunting out of Double Bulls because I can snooze unnoticed by man or beast...
What I really like to do these days is waterfowl hunt because my best buddy and I can tell funny stories about the old days and laugh a lot in the blind...
Never gonna buy an ATV. I am too afraid that Too Short would find it and pour sugar in the gas tank and tie rattlesnakes to the handlebars...
70 and still pounding strong! :thumbsup:
Great to see that so many of you guys are still at it :thumbsup: by the sounds of it I should have at least 25 more years in the woods. Good lord willing and the creek don't rise :clapper:
I will admit...the older I'm getting I have to rethink just how far I want to venture into the woods. Dragging out a good size deer alone a quarter mile from the truck now takes me quite a bit longer than years ago.
As much as I love hunting alone, especially when I plan on still hunting most of the day, I find I really enjoy the company of a few hard core bowhunters I now share the woods with. God willing, I plan on hitting the woods every fall and spring until I'm physically unable to do so.
I,m 68 started bowhunting over 40 years ago .
71 here and didn't climb last year but used ladder stands and ground blinds. Could probably climb though. My only consolation to age is I bought a 4 wheeler to get me and a deer out of the marsh. It was killing me.
Only 64 so still wet behind the ears but will be out there as long as I can. A motorcycle accident in my not so bright youth has raised some ugly issues so don't climb since Arthur settled in with me but do like the ghillie and tree seat. Lord willing will still be around to show the grandsons a thing or two about real life.
Man, you guys are making me laugh. It's great to see that you still get in the woods and still have a load of humor to boot.
69, still hunt like I always have. Alone, long ways back and in the trees. Have tried to make myself slow down the last few yrs...impatent.
Keep it up Denny ! I can only hope to be where you are in another 18 years. :thumbsup:
65 in November, still going
66 and still at it. Gotta have something to look forward to.
Man you guys are all icons to me I'm only 29 and I can only hope I'm getting around as good as you guys at that age a lot of you older guys are still shooting a heavier # bow than myself lol keep it up fine gents !!
67,and cannot think of not shooting and hunting-I love to chase rabbits as we do not have to draw for tags for them---yet!
47 years......That's all I like to get to where you're at. ;) glad you're still at it.
My hats off to all of you. I've alway had the utmost respect for those who came befor me. I've been thinking a lot about the generation before me with the passing of Jim Daughrety. Thank you all for lighting the fire.
Denny, I hope to kill a whitetail with your old bow!!
75 and still trying
It's great to see so many of us ole pharts still out there. I wonder what the difference in percentages of 65+ archers in the compound world compared to the trad world.
65 put two stands out today, not real high but very comfortable Chippewa wedge locs.
Good post Mr. Sturgis hope all of yall have many good years to come. :clapper:
I'm 68 and will be in the woods in NC for the first time deerhunting this year Saturday morning. I'll be wearing my ghillie suit and hunting from the ground. Picked out a great spot this evening on a piece of farmland owned by one of the members of my son-in-laws church. We drove up from the Lowcountry of SC this morning and I'll be out well before sunrise Saturday morning overlooking a logging road with several heavily used trails crossing it.
Bill
QuoteOriginally posted by IndaTimber:
:clapper: You guys are an inspiration to us youngins!!! Keep at it!
X2
65 and still climbing trees for deer, but ground blinding for turkeys. Usually do all the climbing for my SIL's.
64 and still act like a monkey in a tree.....had a bone marrow in 1992, am very blessed. Have a safe and a great hunt this year everybody.
been bowhunting for 58 years. my mom made me a bow out of a maple stick when I was 5 years old and have been shooting a bow every since. Went on my first deer hunt with a bow 56 years ago., Before that it was wabbits and we ate cottontails on a regular basis.
God bless, Steve
65 is the new 35.
71-Going to try it again this year-Hope all goes well-Hap
turn 65 in November.
I'll be 80 next March. I don't even buy green bananas anymore, I might not have time for em to ripen. :archer:
"Only" 64, but I will be out there again this afternoon. I usually hunt alone, sometimes over a mile from my truck, usually from a hang on that doesn't stay in the woods. I carry a cell phone in case of emergency. I plan to be out there as long as Denny and Ron.
I am 65, and will turn 66 in October. I still hunt and climb into elevated stands. I have a few health issues, that on a given day, will interfere with hunting but not on a regular basis. For a time the irritable gut was almost a showstopper, inspiring my son to assign me my "Indian" name - Squatting Bear. Fortunately, things are better, and I can hunt regularly.
I'm 67, and I put my tree stand up in anticipation of Oct. 1 opening day.
Hey "Squatting Bear". Sounds like you and I are blood brothers. Sure makes for some interesting hunts, doesn't it. But I won't let that "problem" keep me out of the woods. Wonder why I'm not seeing any deer though?
68 and still going. Unfortunately, this year is a wash - I just had shoulder reconstruction which I have been fighting for the last 3 years. Once rehab is done, I should be in shape to get back out there hunting mule deer, maybe elk. I do keep up waling 4 miles a day up and down hills, and keep my time under 1 hour and 15 minutes. God lord willing, I will be doing this for quite a few more years.
Will turn 71 in November. My equilibrium has gone south so like Ron I have to use a cane to get around but if given the opportunity I will be in the woods in a heart beat. Still want to try to do one more Elk hunt, hopefully next year.
I am taking a good friend to deer camp in the middle of October for a week of hunting. He is 71 and battling esophageal cancer but can still out shoot most guys with a stick bow.
Gabe
62 and still going strong. I just returned last night from our yearly 7 day back-pack elk hunt in a Colorado Wilderness with my son and son-in-law. We got a cow elk, boned her out and back packed the meat and our camp out in multiple trips 6 miles each way. It took 2 days to pack everything out. I'm really exhausted today but still smiling from ear to ear. I too hope to be doing this for a LOT longer.
Yeah, highlow, we are blood brothers or "some other kind of brothers". It does cause some interesting hunting moments. However, we are lucky to be able to continue to hunt, even if we have to abandon a stand midway through the morning. There are a lot of older guys still hunting with some severe health issues.
Old guys rule!
68 and still spending lots of time in the woods. Just finished 20 days of elk hunting (no killing) averaging 10 miles a day in the high country. Turkeys and whitetails will be on the agenda in a few days. Every day's a holiday, every meal's a feast.
To All
I dont think I have ever laughed so hard at a thread on this site..ever, I have tears in my eyes from chuckling uncontrollably..
You guys are an inspiration, as to how much we love this sport, and nothing will keep us from it.
Thanks again
This really hits home. I turn 62 in a month and heavily debating retirement. It's gonna be tight money wise but I'm not sure how long ill be able to hunt and this has a huge bearing on my decision , I've bowhunted 40 plus years and really worry about the day I can no longer bowhunt. Love hearing from you guys that are still after it..
Be 61 in a couple of months. Took my first Turkey with a Recurve last week!
Sorry dang trying to post from my phone didnt work so well
I just turned 69 and began my 48th year of bowhunting. I've had to drop down in bow weight a little this fall, but had no trouble hanging 15 tree stands in Wisconsin and Iowa. Luckily I have a strong son (JJB) to help with the deer dragging! I try to stay active and just turned over 2,500 miles on my bicycle for this summer. I hope to be in the deer woods for many years to come! :goldtooth:
Bernie
I am 66 and don't consider myself old yet.
Well this 76 year old Tradie hunter as lost 23% of heart function , am on my second Pacemaker , sleeps with an $7000 ventilater and getting a colonoscopy done in the morning . Aint life a delight . LOL
Going Elk hunting Oct 5 (coveted tag in archery only area) on Vancouver Isl .
Cheers from the Country that has everthing except the Stanley Cup ....
While at a 3-D event I was fortunate to plug in to an electical outlet which provided the necessary power for that $7000 ventilater .
I was woke up by the sound of laugher and arguing at three in the morning . Peering out in faint light I could make out the last three elibrated campfire buddies discussing wether to or not to pull the plug . LOL
Cheers, still no Stanley .....
I think the work you're looking for is inebriated, but you could've just said they were drunk. :campfire:
71 and still going out there. Just have to slow down a little. Setting treestands takes a little more time, but I'm in no hurry.
Hey highlow , you are correct the "work" I could have used is drunk . LOL
Cheers and still no Stanley ....
So while in the op room and conversing with the docter on where to take his Dad hunting the nurse slips on a mask over my mouth and nose . The discussion continued for a while . I think . LOL .
Cheers and still no Stanley ....
I usually proofread carefully. Missed that one. How'd the "procedure" go?
68 and lovin it more....consider that whitetail requires a lot of sitting we should be able to do it a long time. One problem is remembering where my stands are, remembering where I parked the truck and what day is it!!
Still going at 67 1/2, have grandkids that I have to teach. Lots of fun.
Good morning highlow , done ( room for a few puns here ) and now packing for my Elk trip .
Cheers from the Country that has everything except the Stanley Cup ...
I'm not wanting to wish time away but can't wait to have twenty more years of knowledge. You guys are an inspiration to all us young 40 yo's who "think" we're getting up there. Thanks for a great thread and keep on keeping on.
Great to see you old timers still hunting and enjoying life! Will be 73 in November. Been shooting a bow since age 10. Got first deer in 1963. Hunting more from ground, but still use the trees. Good luck this season guys!
62 here & 100% recovered after shoulder surgery 2 years ago, still shooting 65#'s
Almost 74 and still at it!
71,just booked an elk hunt in NM next year. The older I get the more I need to get away to the wilderness. Hate spectator sports, never owned a recliner nor been on facebook. I don,t tweet but I do toot ever now and then. Retired but still try to work a 1/2 day every day and being retired it can be any 12 hrs I want it to be. Cousin Arthur Itis nags me some
66 and still hunting and enjoying the outdoors
I would like to plan one more Sheep Hunt before cashing in the chips!
65 and still going. Hang my treestands, hunt alone mostly, always have felt more at home in the woods than anywhere else.
And what's this crap about "really old guys"??? Old doesn't start until you hit 100 and then you negotiate. I have no idea what really old is. Even Greybark ain't really old. See you on the 5th Ken
Only 58 here, but loving this thread. One thing I'm trying to do now, so I can get to where most of you are, is always have a cart in the truck. Seems like I been carrying a deer stand on my back forever. Before lightweight became vogue/smart. Can sense back/neck muscle warning signs. No more deer dragging either! Plan for success!
You got it Jock. I don't consider myself "really old" but definitely not young. I keep telling myself I'm only a day older than yesterday, even when my birthday says I'm a year older. Mental attitude has a lot to do with it. Getting old isn't a lot of fun in many instances but it beats the alternative. Watching the weather right now and if the rain holds off, I'm heading out for another sit. Not wasting time sitting on the couch. :archer:
I am 83 killed a nice mule deer doe this yr. BUT I did use my 50# compond, been at it a long time.
Still don't know what I'm going to do when I grow up, but at 71 I know I plan to do a lot of hunting. My hats off to you really old guys.
66 and still at it. Don't consider myself "Really Old" yet..
Being young is only in my mind. Sometimes the rest of my body disagrees! :)
QuoteOriginally posted by Bill Kissner:
Being young is only in my mind. Sometimes the rest of my body disagrees! :)
:readit: Ain't that the truth......
I will hit 65 in Dec. Cherish every moment outdoors, in the woods or on the stream.
67.5 here and still hunting..
I'm the ole timer on the right with the purty old bear take down.....
(http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f165/ROY-CHRIS/bobbyandI.jpg) (http://s47.photobucket.com/user/ROY-CHRIS/media/bobbyandI.jpg.html)
Well this is depressing. Only 4 more years and it looks like I'm going to be considered "Really Old". How can that be?
But from the sounds of things there are plenty of people still getting after it when they are really old. I'll just try to keep pace...
You are only as old as you act. The only problem is that my wife says six year olds shouldn't be allowed to run around the woods unsupervised.
68 and just got in from Oklahoma. Passed on a spike but I'm all in for the next couple of months God willing. :shaka:
Blood pressure meds to lower my BP, heart meds to slow my tachycardia, 40 pounds overweight, can't sleep without 4mL of melatonin and will be 72 this month.
I may not be as good as I once was, but I'm still as good once as I ever was.
Danny
Adding to my previous posts the meds i`m taking are to slow down ay Atril Fib and the result was a slowing of my heart beat to the point of stalling out . Hence the pacemaker to speed it up . At times I don`t know if i`m coming or going . LOL
In the morning am headed out for two weeks of Elk hunting have two young bucks to memter and any packing out LOL
Cheers from the Country that has everything except the Stanley Cup ...
I am 73 years old and still hunt and always will.
I love bow hunting and stalking deer. Usually hunt alone and I like it that way. It allows me to be more quiet.
You "seasoned" bowhunters never quit!
Y'all give us all something to strive for!
I would just like to congratulate the (men) who have posted there age and their desire to still hunt. I have watched my father (70) mature but he still has the desire to hunt but health issues sometimes slow him down or cost him opportunities. These guys that are in this age group still have the moxy to get up in the morning to do something they love as compared to some of our youth who dont know much before noon. Its alarming to me what a large percentage of our society has become and its even sometimes hard to tell the genders apart from their attire and actions, (not to metion intestinal fortitude) so kudos to the these guys who spit in the face of age and health and sittin on the porch be dammmed.