To Kill A Deer

August 29, 2019 | « back

By: Ted Nugent

I hunt, therefor I am. I hunt because I am a hunter. Pure and simple. I am nature as pure as the wind itself. Like Cochise, Sitting Bull, Davy Crocket, Jeremiah Johnson, Fred Bear and Crazy Horse, I am but the humble conservation servant of the almighty Creator. Nature is perfect and hunting is perfect. Celebrate it and promote it every day everywhere to everyone.

Nature should not be a spectator sport, but rather a gungho participatory dedication. Be one with her spirit and pulse.

As The Season approaches, we prepare to plunge spirit-first into that magical time of renewal, a time to return to the life giving pulse of God’s miraculous creation as a genuine dedicated hands on participant, fulfilling the natural tooth, fang and claw call of the wild stewardship responsibility that burns afire in our bellies.

It is time to kill.

As I prepare to celebrate my 71st fall huntseason of life with maximum gusto, I am so excited I can hardly stand myself.

Though it may appear to be a daunting, even treacherous, seemingly impossible journey for me to transition from the greatest, most intensely electrifying, dangerously loud, crazed velocity rock-n-roll tour of my life, back, way way back to the quiet, stealthy bowhunting predator mode, the reality happens to be just the opposite.

I desperately need the change. I crave the 180-degree alternative to 36 flamethrowing rockouts in 36 cities in six weeks back to the prolonged daily, silent, statuesque, easy breathing treestand vigils that cleanse my soul and recharge my batteries for balance and soothing renewal.

You know we all need it!

This has been the story of my wonderful life for more than 60 years and the simple reason I was able to pull off the best tour of my life in 2019 is a direct result of such extreme balance that my peaceful, slow, easy going hunting seasons have always provided me.

Whew I say! Double live Whew!

I don’t really put my guitars away because I cannot resist my daily musical explorations. I still love guitar and songwriting fun throughout the fall and winter months!

There is a huge difference between rocking out every night on the road versus the sanctity of my home time each fall and winter.

The huge effort I put into the relentless touring schedule now goes into my daily hunts.

And I do mean daily!

I have learned, as all successful hunters have, that being a deadly predator demands total dedication and a full-on Zen level attentiveness to the task at hand.

Just the transformation from midnight rambler on tour to the pre-dawn rising hunter strategist is a giant leap for mankind.

And giant leap I do!

Guitar jamming like I do is virtually consuming, loud, high energy, maniacally mobile and scary frenetic.

Nothing in life is more opposite that than proper stealthy bowhunting.

Ultra-quiet. Ultra-slow. Ultra-still. Ultra-careful. Ultra-aware.

Able to scout my sacred grounds off and on throughout the spring and summer, my ambush locations have been systematically determined based on agriculture changes, historical and recent travel patterns and land diversions that always take place.

I will use this information to climb the appropriate tree or blind, and become invisible to my prey.

Practicing all year long with my Mathews has prepared me for the many moments of truth that I will orchestrate and luck into. My lifetime tuned predator radar is in full kill-mode.

It is magical, isn’t it! It is life itself, isn’t it!

Make the journey back to time immemorial. Discard the shackles of modern life and reel in the timeless, purest instincts. Unleash the beast within and connect with the spirit of the beasts of the wild.

May you all have the greatest, most fun, spiritually invigorating and most fulfilling, gratifying hunting season of your lives.

I sure will! Now is the time we have been waiting for.

The hunt is on! It is time to kill.