| The Mental Game |
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| Written by South Cox | ||
| Tuesday, 01 July 2008 | ||
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I’ve gotten quite a few inquiries over the years about solo bivouac hunting and how I overcome my fears. Spending time; hours, days or a week or more alone can be challenging for anyone. Living in a society where close and frequent contact with other people are the norm year around for one’s whole life, suddenly finding yourself alone in unfamiliar surroundings with no one to depend upon but yourself can be disconcerting, to say the least. The time I get to spend out in the mountains alone often makes my most treasured memories. But, it wasn’t always like that. I struggled when I first started hunting solo. Actually, my first solo bivouac attempt was aborted. I was only 17, but had all of the ambition youth are known for. I’d backpacked into the Yolla Bolly Wilderness from a campground base camp. I didn’t know anyone at the campground, but the presence of other people was comforting and the thought that I might bail out on my mission because I’d get lonely never even crossed my mind.
As the afternoon sun began to wane, doubts began to creep in. It was a big wilderness I was in, a far different environment than the campground I’d stayed in the last few nights. I began to look around. Hmmmm…. There isn’t as much deer sign as I thought there would be. Perhaps I should be checking out a different area. At least that is how I justified reversing my course a day ahead of schedule. I made double time back up to my truck and slept soundly that night, surrounded by the comfort of a bunch of neighbors.
One could look at that first experience as a failure, but I prefer to look at it as a learning experience. The next time I went out for a solo overnight, it was
That radio accompanied me on the first half dozen or so solo trips. It was just one of several tactics that I found helped me become comfortable doing solo backcountry trips. Most importantly, for myself, I determined early on that I have a pretty vivid imagination. Little sounds in the middle of the night can be morphed into all kinds of terrible and scary things. For this reason, I won’t watch even remotely scary movies. I figure my imagination is good enough on its’ own and doesn’t need any assistance, especially on a solo bivouac hunt. As I mentioned above, I also bring along a note pad. I frequently take notes on the hunt for future stories or write my wife.
I think the most important thing to do is start off small. Don’t set yourself up for a week long solo trip your first time. Hunt from a base camp with a buddy and do bivy hunt from there. Bring along a 2 way radio if you have doubts. Checking in with your hunting partner may set your mind at ease and will provide a safety link in case of an emergency. After a few such hunts, you may have the confidence to set out on a longer, solo venture.
One of the easiest ways I’ve found to talk your way out of a hunt prematurely is to get discouraged from a lack of game sightings. Spend your time doing your homework when researching and scouting a new area. If you are going in cold, be prepared to cover a lot of ground to find yourself a honey hole. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to give yourself a timeline, before you leave the trailhead, on how long you will dedicate to that area before you pull out if you aren’t getting into game right out of the gate.
A few years ago, I was on a solo hunt in Colorado. It was an area I’d hunted a number of times and had always been able to get into good bucks. That year, I’d run into 4 other hunters who’d camped only a couple of hundred yards from me. Between them and I, we had the deer pretty well scattered after just a couple of days. I was getting pretty discouraged after four or five days of this. I checked in with my secretary back in the office and found out one of my key employees had quit with no notice, and I was the only one who knew how to do his job. I thought about how the hunt was going, deer sightings down; I couldn’t find any of the big bucks that normally inhabit the area. It had been days since I’d talked with anyone since I’d been trying to dodge my neighbors. I began to question whether my time was being used effectively. In the back of my mind, I knew my client would be understanding and could wait the 5 or 6 days until I got back. But the hunt was kicking my butt and the problems at home got that monkey on my shoulder chattering in my ear. The next day I’d packed up my gear and was headed home. To this day I cringe whenever I think about that decision. I’d quit, plain and simple and it drives me crazy to think of it. I’d left two valid tags on the table, an awesome mule deer tag and a pretty good elk tag. Hunts can end for all sorts of reasons, but the memory of that season will ensure that for me, it will only be because I’ve filled my tag or run out of time. I hope you can learn from my mistake and won’t shorten one of your precious trips prematurely. Set as favorite Bookmark
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Comments (2)
  written by Tom Sorenson, July 02, 2008
Hunting alone is one of the things I miss since we've started to film our hunts. I still remember every second of my trips into the wilderness by myself (or so it seems I remember every second). There is something so peaceful, and once the original fear was overcome for me, there was a reassurance in nature - I always slept on the ground in the open and up on a ridge where I could see come first light of morning. I'm finding out that there has long been many people like myself - I used to think I was the only one on the mountain doing what I was doing, but likely there was someone else out on a ridge somewhere around listening to the same coyotes howl and the same wind whispering through the trees. I think I owe myself another trip like that.
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written by Matt M., August 19, 2008
I’m sad to say it, but this happened to me on opener in California. I had a plan, read as much as I could, then my hunting spot got closed because of the fires. Now, I had to find a new area that I had never been too. The drive to the trailhead I tried to get pumped up, and said; "I will not leave early". Not knowing the area, NOT being in the best shape, it wasn't hard for me to talk myself out of it. I learned a lot though. Scouting is key, because then you have an idea of the area and confidence. I also went for the whole deal at once, and need to first take some baby steps (with someone else as company) to learn my equipment and gain more experience. But, most important is being in shape. My legs and lungs hurt (asthma and the smoke didn't help), but those are just more excuses. I'll try again but first I need to spend some money and get better equipment and more strength.
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| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 01 July 2008 ) | ||
some years later.
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