Unpacking the Hunt Part ii

​Once I go on a hunt, and do it regularly, I’m more likely to fit it into my life. In an increasingly busy world, we can forget to take time out and enjoy it. The outdoors has more benefits than we realize, but the big one is it shows us how much country is out there. Walking places in the backcountry is often slower than it looks, and its very vast. There are many other places out there unexplored. There always is that area you want to look in next time- and it all makes you eager to get back to where we belong, on a mountainside somewhere high in the alps chasing game.
This then brings us back to the planning stages of our next hunt- hopefully, it’s not far away. With the last trip fresh in your head, it makes it a lot easier to plan for the next. You’ve got a much better idea about your gear, fitness and what can be improved. As Ryan Nicholson has said in our previous articles, any shortcomings as a hunter are quickly found out. The best we can do is improve on these for next time, and if we’re improving as a hunter, then hopefully we’ll be enjoying it a lot more. Once someone gets fixed in their ideas, that can be their downfall. Hunting tests us, from several different angles. The big one is mental toughness- this can be exposed straight away. Especially on walk-in hunts, this can force us to dig deep when we’re worn out and can’t go any longer. In those situations, you must tell yourself to keep going, and this is a true show of character. It teaches us to not give up easily. If we don’t test ourselves, we can’t improve. We need to take a while to reflect on our last hunt and what can we do better. Hopefully, your next hunt isn’t far away!