I have always put my hunting and trapping goals in the perspective of what Dean Parisian should get out of each trip afield. My goals are mine. My standard is my standard alone and it is unreasonable to apply that to anyone else. My major goal is to harvest a 30 inch buck mule deer someday regardless of its other attributes. You just don't see that many 30 inch bucks around. Growing up I was able to see some magnificent deer that would meet that standard. I remember each deer like it were yesterday and can tell you about the weather, who was with me, the place and the time of each one. I would also like to take a big gnarly non-typical muley buck but that is about as specific as my goals get. The measuring tape out of my backpack is the only tape that will be put on any buck I shoot. My goal has always been a wide 30-incher ever since that magical day in 1967 in the Big Horn Mountains of Montana when I first laid eyes on two magnificent bucks standing in deep snow, side by side. The outside spread measurement will be the only measurement I want to take on the trophy deer I kill. I don't give a hoot how much mass or how many points it is. Boone & Crockett to me may as well be a fairy tale. My respect and admiration for a magnificent buck far transcends any numbers put on it.
I still like my goals at age 52. I think the best is yet to come.
Today I think one of the main problems is that so many people feel that a hunt is unsuccessful if they don’t take a deer home. I have “eaten” tags but have yet to have an unsuccessful hunt. If I learn something new and have a good time then anything above and beyond that is a bonus. Some times we do good and other times we don't. Some times we see a lot of game and some times we head home empty handed, but we always have had a good time. Whether it's a big buck, a lonely doe or even if it's tag soup, it's all good times. I don't know of any hunter that can honestly say he would have rather been at work!
Hunting means something different to each of us and for me to hunt in the company of family and friends is really great. If someone is successful then I am as happy for them as I would be for myself. Others times I prefer the solitude that I feel in “big” country, surrounded by no one and nothing but nature. Hunting big muleys is not as glamorous as most people make it out to be. Not only do you need to by physically fit, but you need to be mentally strong as well. It takes a totally different mindset to be successful at trophy mule deer hunting.
The biggest sacrifice I have had to make has been the lack of time spent with my family in October and November because I was hunting in various places. Thankfully, they have been very understanding and will hopefully continue to be so until my sons are mature enough to join me.
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