Journaling

[rmyoung1]

That’s really cool. I might have to steal that idea.

so I’d have something to pass on to my kids someday.

That’s certainly part of my motivation. I hope they enjoy watching themselves grow up in the pages. Blurb.com makes it pretty easy

 

[F250]

Notes in a spiral ring notebook from each day of hunting or fishing. Going back about 4 decades.

 

[SilentBirdHunter]

I bird hunt most every weekday morning (retired).
I note in Google Calendar each hunt.

At the end of the year I like to tally up how many hunts each dog went on.
55 times for the pup, 14 times for the older lab in 2023.
I don't count number of kills as for me getting out each morning and watching the dog work is what I really enjoy.

I train retrievers most every weekday with an amateur group and also not that in Google Calendar.
What property we trained on, the marking setup (double/double, triple/single or quad) and the blinds run by each lab.
I also use Google Calendar to note my every other day hike and mileage as I slowly build up mileage with longer days.

 

[geetar]

I've considered starting a hunting journal. Mainly to have something of sentimental value to leave for my kids and grandkids.

 

[MNElkNut]

I, being a proud pocket-protector wearing engineer, use a spreadsheet to keep track of my and my kids hunting exploits. I also keep track of trips. I track family vacations, hunts, fishing trips, etc. Lastly, I have The Man Book! this is a 3-ring binder of photos of every trip, kills, and misc stuff. Kinda like scrapbooking for hunters except I do NOT create cutesy designs or anything. Just pictures.

 

[Ben Long]

That's awesome. Do you carry a journal while in the field with you? Or just jot it down on your phone?

I use a Rite in the Rain journal. But I will transcribe particularly memorable days on my laptop after I get home. My kill spreadsheet is on my laptop.

 

[Irrelevant]

I already struggle to find the time/energy to hunt/fish as much as I'd like, added another "should do" to my list is only going to mean I do less.

"Maybe one day..."

 

[Elky Welky]

OnX and endless phone photo storage has become my journal of sorts. I take photos all day when I'm in the field and add them to pins with notes about what happened and what I saw.

 

[Straight Arrow]

I built my hunting cabin 2002, same year first grandson was born; then my wife started a journal in 2010. We are now on our second edition. The journals list all who have visited and are full of hunting stories and other accounts of hikes, campfires, skiing, snowshoeing and other adventures. Of special interest are the stories written by now three grandsons, a granddaughter, and their cousins and friends. Their early written accounts and drawings are delightful! Each one has described the 5-yr-old right of passage beginning hiker climb to the summit of Battle Ridge ... complete with remarks about the breaks from climbing to snack on jerkey & juice, which they refer to as "terkey breaks".

 

[geetar]

In a previous post I mentioned that I would like to do a journal for my kids and grandkids to read. That may or may not happen but one thing I have done is buy a nice leather photo album that will last a long time and go to Walgreens and print some photos of some of my best hunting and fishing memories and put them in it. That's sort of my current way of journaling.

 

[MTGunner]

There are accounts, stories, observations and more throughout my journals and scribbling of things I have seen and experienced. There are photo albums from Africa, New Zealand, Canada, Spain and North America. It would take a librarian to catalog, categorize all my writings. If, if mind you, one would consider these writings. I have been published in SCI magazine years ago. I would like for my grandson and perhaps his progeny to discover what I have been fortunate to experience. MTG

 

[JCS]

Yeah he's got over 35 years worth of notes when he completed the entire Beartooth Mountain fishable lakes which is something like 360 lakes. I believe he is the only one or maybe only 2 that's ever done it.

Barometric pressures
Temps
Sun rise/set
Winds
Trail map descriptions
size of fish/quantity
Right down to the exact lure he used
And what he had for dinner

It's pretty freakin cool.

I've done all of the Wyoming lakes and almost half the Montana lakes. I got to broken up to finish..

 

[EYJONAS!]

I've done all of the Wyoming lakes and almost half the Montana lakes. I got to broken up to finish..

Incredible feat congrats! The commitment to those sort of goals is unreal.