So, what is a guy to do when he can't go hunting? You Roll some ammo!

FGM, Win 209, STEEL, SAM 1 wad, 1 1/8oz HW-13

Shoot clay targets, skeet and sporting clays.

load ammo, draw my bow, fish, golf, etc., ad nauseam

Start curiosity threads on a Shotgun site?

Go fishing, or prepare gear for either hunting or fishing.

When not hunting, I am writing my autobiography. 50 years behind the badge could have some interesting chapters, many of them already shared on this site.

Go shoot pigeons, both the clay type and the live type.
Also, ride dirt bikes.
Wax my car collection.
Read.
Get on the waterfowl/clays forums.
Take naps. (I'm 70+)
Not necessarily in that order.

Go fishing & shoot crows & other varmints! There is always something you can hunt, like hogs!

Shoot clays, every chance I get. Only once a week now (winter). 2-4 days a week spring summer fall.

I'm making one of these in my living room. -

https://www.portableboatplans.com/minimalist.php

A Special Purpose duck boat that hopefully will float me and a couple decoys after I backpack it in to some ponds where the water is a half a mile to mile from parking. This is the simplest boat I ever tried to build, but it's ten degrees outside. Too cold for glue or paint so I am working in the living room. Easy as building a bird house and as much boat as you can get out of a 4'x8' peice.I'm going to use pool noodles cemented under the gunwales and on top of fore and aft decks as safety flotation. Shouldn't take but ten hours or so over the course of a week or two. So far I got the plywood cut and I located a couple of clear fir 2x4 to rip some 1x2 nominal for chines and gunwale and 1/2"x1-1/2" actual for skids and bracing. Cheap fun, I doubt I'll spend more than $60 including paint. It's only got about $22 worth of wood and ten bucks worth of screws in it.

It might double as a deer drag/ice fishing sled.

Where I hunt ducks and quail are the only animals with a season, so I can always find something to hunt.
The trouble is when I take a shotgun for foxes or rabbits I see deer, and when I that the rifle for deer all I see is small game.
But when I chase pigs all I ever see is pigs so I can taylor my gun to the ground rather then the game.

I primarily read books in my down time, mostly history and some classical fiction. I also enjoy fishing for bass and shooting sporting clays in the off-season.

Repaint Decoys and repair anything needs fixed.
Coyote hunt.
Get fishing gear ready to go put new line on rods.
Trap & Skeet Shooting.

I was once talking to a specialty gunsmith on the phone. I never met him in person. I was talking about selling a gun(s) to buy another one. He said, "you must be married"? So out of curiosity I asked, "Why do you say that"? He answered, "A single guy just buys what he wants, a married guy usually has to sell something to pay for it". By the same token, if you have to wonder what you can do to occupy your time, you must be single! This is my 2nd. marriage & this one doesn't make many demands but it wasn't always that way. However, just being married puts limits on your play time. I am semi retired & should have plenty of time but there never seems to be enough time! I had a lousy hunting season (entirely my fault) but I am already planning for next year. Getting ready to load up plenty of non toxic duck & goose loads. Salt water fishing is going to bust wide open soon. I need to work on my off-shore boat & my creek boat is a work in progress. I haven't taken all the plywood off of the windows since hurricane season. Maybe I could just leave it up for this season. Why not, that is what I did last year?

During the first few weeks of withdrawal after season closes. I reload all my shells for next year. Then I go Cougar hunting for a couple weeks. Then I cut wood for next winter or like this year winter 4 years from now. Might have to sell some to make room. Then I work as a contractor on a few projects to refill the bank account. This spring I plan on Cat fishing on the Snake river for several days. Then back to bank account filling until end of September when I start hunting again. Deer-Ducks/Snow geese-Elk-Ducks/Canada/Specs. Start over.

pintail,

Tie Flies, Fly Fish and train guns dogs, when I am not bird hunting. Fly Fish as much as possible until late summer, work on gun stocks that need touched up. In the fall work training the Grouse dogs and stay out of the heat of the cities. Spend as much time in Potter County, Pa in the log cabin as possible, work on the Grouse and Woodcock habitat on my forest property, until the honey do list catches up with me down in Murrysville, Pa. Retirement is great, hope everyone is able to achieve it in good health.

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

I like to salvage old Herter's decoys and turn them into working decoys...

Rubberhead,

Great pass time, well worth while!

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Me too, but my artistic skills peaked in the sixth grade. Painting a realistic hen decoy takes some real skill if you study the actual feather detail. Maybe the real birds will be curious about my mutant ducks anyway!

We hunt year round no downtime.
We fish year-round no downtime.
Sometimes I stay home with the wife