A game of forethought, patience and mental fortitude — a look at the mental side of hunting
Hunting can be described as a chess match. We've all heard this in various forms through the media that we consume. It is a game of forethought, patience and mental fortitude. A battle of the mind if you will. Humans have been playing this chess match for ages and, yet, we still do not have this hunting game mastered. Hard to believe, right? Even though we have come leaps and bounds from where our ancestors started, that goes to show us how hard this act of hunting really is. The ability to outsmart our quarry is one that we have chased and continue to chase. Our need for sustenance and, nowadays, adventure continues to fuel us. We are not in total control and are bound by what Mother Nature throws at us. Unfortunately, what is thrown at us is sometimes the catalyst for us giving up and heading home. The mental game of hunting is a game that is often not easily won.
I am a big fan of going with the flow out in the field; however, I do believe that you should have some semblance of a plan for the day. This plan is a direct reflection of what you find through your pre-season scouting on top of what you have experienced so far. When something doesn't work out, don't just write it off as a failure. Use that to your advantage for next time. What did you learn from that experience? There is a reason that it didn't work out. Was it the wind? How about your setup? Maybe you moved when you shouldn't have? Did the animal come from a direction you weren't expecting? If they did, why do you think that is? These pieces of intel are going to be the tools you use in order to try to stay two steps ahead of your quarry. Remember: this is a chess match, so treat it as such. The more data that you can collect on an area, the bigger advantage you will have. We are stepping into their house and they know it better than you ever will. Spending the time to do the work beforehand is going to pay off big time come opening day.
This was the number one word that ran through my mind as a child in the field. My dad always told me that I had to have patience on a hunt. Through that, I got to experience some pretty cool encounters as a youngster and I still do. Patience is somewhat of a lost art today. Our lives are completely based on convenience. We get mad when our internet isn't running as fast as it should be. Black Friday now takes place on Thursday. Stores are opening before our Thanksgiving dinners are even on the table—and for what? So we don't have to wait as long? To me, that's just silly talk. Exercise your patience in the field and I promise you that more animals are going to be wandering around in your binoculars. Still, to this day, I will make myself sit on a hillside until a certain time has passed, whether that is for two hours or 12 hours. I try to not forget what those early lessons in patience taught me as a kid. The mountains have a song to play, but it is at a much slower tempo than we are used to. All you need to do is open your ears and sing along.
Mental fortitude, or mental toughness, is a big topic these days in the hunting world, particularly in the backpack hunting one. The sheer ability to grind things out will prove its weight in gold time and time again. I said earlier that what Mother Nature throws at us is sometimes the catalyst for us giving up and heading home. That is a real truth and one that I have fallen victim to in the past. It might be weather, lack of animals or just being homesick. The truth is that when things get hard, we get soft. Why should we have to deal with this stuff, right? Wrong. You waited all year for this. You planned and practiced. Denying yourself the experience that you've been waiting for is to deny yourself resolve. When you are sitting there in the middle of a thunderstorm, thinking about your warm bed, remember something: You asked to be here. I guarantee that if you go home, you will regret it.
The only way to build mental toughness is to put yourself into situations that you don't really want to be in. From there, you have to see them through. An example might be the thunderstorm scenario above. Don't go home; grind it out. You are going to want to be out there looking when that rain passes because that's when that big bear is going to appear. Sacrifice reward. Being uncomfortable here and there is a good thing. It builds character. Another time might be when you don't want to go to the gym. This is the time that you need to go. Just because you are tired and sore means squat. Stay the course and remain disciplined. That trait right there is going to help you out when your hunt gets tough. Going home is easy.
The mind is a powerful tool. It's why you are sitting here and able to read this article. Had our ancient ancestors not figured out how to hunt, who knows if any of us would be here. Through struggle and problem-solving, they learned how to be successful hunters. They didn't have the fancy gear or gadgets that we possess today. All they had were some makeshift weaponry and their know-how. Phrases like "mental toughness" probably were nonexistent. Things were just done and dealt with because they had to be. It was how life was and, ultimately, what shaped us into the species that we are today. There wasn't a whole lot of options on the table except for one. Survive. And survive, they did. How? Determination and intellect: the foundation for the mental game of hunting.
