Every hunter knows how it feels. You spend months getting ready for the season. Then it is over before you know it. You think about all the mornings, the long times you had to sit and wait, the miles you walked, the things you learned and the memories you made. These are the things you hold onto until the time you can go hunting.
Some people call it the "off-season". If you really like to hunt, you know that is not true. The outdoors is always there. We do not stop just because the hunting season is over.
For a lot of hunters, the time between seasons is when the important work gets done. This is when you make plans to fix up your property, get your gear ready, and start getting ready for the season. The good things that happen during hunting season often start months before you even get a chance to go hunting.
The Work Before the Season
The hunting trips that everyone sees in the fall are planned out during the months when nobody is talking about them.
The off-season is when you walk around your property and learn about the land. You find trails looking for signs of game, cut back trees to make it easier to shoot and take notes from the last season. You put up stands, move your equipment around, check your straps and gear, and make sure everything is ready before the season starts.
It is also when you plant food for the animals, fix the feeders, make the habitat better, and think about how the animals will use the land in the future.
You take out the cards from your trail cameras, watch the young bucks grow, learn where they travel, and get excited when you see a deer you know.
These days may not end with a picture of the animal you hunted. They are a big part of what makes the season successful.
Gear Made for Every Season
Just because the hunting season is over does not mean you put away your gear.
The off-season has its challenges. Hot weather, unpredictable weather, long days outside, and a lot of work behind the scenes.
Whether I am checking my cameras looking for places to hunt, putting up stands, planting food or working on my property, I still use my DSG gear.
The DSG Ultra Lightweight Long Sleeve is one of my things to wear during the warm months. It is great for walking trails, checking cameras, fishing or getting ready for the season. When you are outside in the heat, it is nice to have something that's lightweight, breathable, and comfortable.
For the days when you have to do work, the DSG Field Pants are perfect. From pushing through bushes and clearing trails to putting up stands and working on the habitat it makes a big difference to have gear that is made for women.
Not every day outside is about getting something done. Some days it is about enjoying the places you love. The DSG Foraging Leggings are great for those days. Looking for sheds, hiking, scouting, walking around your property or just relaxing outside.
That is the thing about this lifestyle. There are so many ways to stay connected to the outdoors.
Women Belong in Every Part of the Process
For a time women who liked to hunt had to use gear that was not made for them. We made it work because we loved to hunt. Having gear that is made for women who hunt and spend time outside makes a big difference.
Women are not just showing up to hunt on the day of the season.
We are planting the food for the wild game we harvest.
We are putting up the cameras.
We are looking for places to hunt.
We are getting ready for the trip before the last one is even over.
Having gear that helps us through every part of the process is important because this lifestyle is not about one season.
Staying Connected in Ways
The off-season gives us time to enjoy the outdoors in different ways.
It is fishing with your family.
It is practicing with your bow in the backyard.
It is training your dogs.
It is taking walks in the woods because.
It is watching the wildlife. Appreciating the places that give us so many memories.
Some of my memories of the outdoors were not made during a hunt.
They were made riding around checking cameras, spending time with my family working on the land and watching everything come together.
More Than a Season
Being an outdoorswoman is not something you do during hunting season.
It is a lifestyle.
It is taking care of the land.
It is respecting the wild.
It is keeping traditions alive.
It is learning something every time you go outside.
The moments we wait all year for. The sunrise, the hunts, the stories we tell. They start during the months when most people are not paying attention.
So, while some people may call it, the off-season hunters know better.
We are still looking for places to hunt.
We are still getting ready.
We are still learning.
We are still connected to the outdoors.
Because here there is no such thing as the off-season.
~ Written by: Marina Childress, DSG Outerwear Hunt Team Ambassador
