Before I had developed a passion for deer hunting, I had friends that would say, "I wish deer hunting was 365 days a year!" Well, for people like you and me, it is. We make it a 365 days-a-year challenge. When the season closes for bow hunting, I am beat. I use all my energy and mind power to figure out the best possible way to land my target buck. So, after the grind comes to a close, I take a good month to catch up on my family and personal life, but come February the grind starts again.

In Minnesota, February shed hunting is tough, so I usually don’t put all my focus on shed hunting. I'm not saying that I'm not keeping my eyes peeled, but I'm mostly scouting for late season trails and signs to aid in next season's hunt. I'm a big believer in scouting. Well known hunter, Dan Infalt, always says, "You should scout twice as much as you hunt." At first, I didn't agree because who really wants to scout more than they hunt? Well, the more I thought about it and the more I was out there hunting, I would have to say I now agree with him and have stuck with his theory. The more opportunities you're out there the better chance you will have to shoot your target buck, right? That statement is not wrong at all, but not only that, when you scout it gives you the best understanding and knowledge to pinpoint that big buck you've been working hard to put on the wall. I started to get out there and scout like crazy, and I soon fell in love with the process of scouting.

After I scout late season, I start to plan for my next season's hunt. For example, this year if all goes well, I will be putting all my efforts into Kansas hunting. I am hoping I'll get it done early season, but if not, I plan to take the entire month of November to get it done. I've planned as if it will take that long because in all honesty, we all know hunting isn't easy. I go through many different scenarios. For instance, if I punch my buck tag in Kansas early in the season, I could then focus on hunting in Minnesota, and then get the job done in Wisconsin during November as well! Whichever way the ball bounces, I'm okay with it because I'm excited for each opportunity.

As much as I love when the season is open, I love the off-season just as much, if not more because of the anticipation of hunting that next buck. Nothing makes me more ready for the season than scouting and knowing that my target buck made it through the season or knowing that even a bigger buck is on my cameras on a daily basis. It's moments like these that make hunting a 365 days-a-year process worth investing my time in. For hunters like you and me, what keeps us pushing through that Monday through Friday grind is knowing that on the weekend we get to go in the woods, and just scout sunrise to sundown. All the many hours you spend scouting, shooting, and dreaming about the opportunity is all worth when that buck comes in shooting range. These are the reasons we hunt, and these are the reasons we have the passions that we do.

-Dillon Lee, Fall Obsession Field Staff