I curious to know what others opinions are... I just bought my bow about 2 months ago, and have already begun the process of trying to tag a deer this year. Everything has been going well so far. I am sitting on 145 acres of prime ground with deer everywhere. I have 4 cameras set, 4 stands (2 set)(2 deciding on placement), deer everywhere, but the problem is I have never hunted deer before. I've never rifle hunted anything, never hunted any big game period. Am I crazy to think that I have a chance at being successful this year? I'm curious to know if anyone else jumped in like me and went right to a bow instead of a rifle? I'm 30 years old and jus started hunting last year. I started with pheasants, then tried spring turkey this year, and I've yet to bag anything. Now I've decided to take up bowhunting and think I might have bitten more than I can chew... Any tips for someone like me would be much appreciated!
I bow hunted for about 8 years without getting anything. Then I got permission to hunt on private land where there were a lot of deer, and I took my first one. Since then I have not gone a season without getting one. Once you figure out how to stay hidden well, and if there are a lot of deer around, it seems pretty easy. If you are on good property this year and can figure out a good stand setup it is absolutely conceivable that you will take your first deer. When you first start opportunity is probably more important than skill. As to wether or not your are crazy, "If ya gotta ask..."
You will be, your first year here's how. Stealth , walk in, no scent, spray clothes,breath, balls. It's all in the patience , if you have deer in the area your goal at first a nice big doe. Or buck if you get lucky. Start a good food plot, corn, apples next few weeks. View time on cameras and check weather. You are a stone. Sit mornings first. Then all day watch the cold fronts and moon. Post me when you get it, you will definitely need to talk to someone if you get one perhaps minor counciling over a magirita.
Every sit and trip into the woods is a learning opportunity. Pay attention to your surroundings and deer behavior. Ask yourself why they're doing what their doing. Can't kill deer from the couch unless of course your couch is in a blind. So keep after it that's the only way to succeed. It would probably help to get a book or order Petersons bowhunting mag or Bow and arrow.
I'm in SE Nebraska. I've been reading here and just about everywhere else I can think of. Once I set up cameras and started seeing how many deer were around I got consumed almost. I haven't even shot at anything yet and I'm hooked!! I'm a city boy to the core but I absolutely love this bowhunting!! Thanks for all the replies!!
First of all, don't pressure yourself to kill something. You not only have no experience with hunting or handling game, you have no experience with your equipment. My first advice is make sure you're comfortable with your equipment, it doesn't matter how close or how many deer you get in front of you if you're so inefficient with your bow that you miss or worse, wound and not recover an animal. Practice and train your muscle memory until you are confident you can hit a bulls eye at thirty yards standing, sitting and whatever position you anticipate being in, from whatever your deer stand will be. Don't burn yourself out but you need to be damn sure that drawing and aiming is nearly a reflex. Getting within range of deer is the least of the concerns, make sure you can control your nerves and make a shot count when you get that shot. Covered equipment efficiency, next is managing your nerves because unless your a very unique individual, you will get nervous when a shot presents itself. Don't worry about filling tags, hit the stands, put in your time and observe. Get comfortable being close to deer. Observe how they act, how they interact with the environment, mimic shot movement and define your limitations of movement you can get by with. At this point you should be confident you can hit it if you so choose so be picky about the shot if you get a chance. Broadside shot imagine where the arrow should exit on the opposite side of the deer. Assuming a fairly flat trajectory, about the highest percentage shot is a pass through at the top of the crease behind the front leg/shoulder. Slightly quartering away is fine...quartering to you is not okay. Facing you directly is not okay, straight underneath you is not okay. At this point the worst thing you can do is wound and not recover the animal. Choose a high percentage shot and trust your practice and equipment. If something terrible happens then you know you did everything you could have to avoid it and it was just one of those things that we all encounter from time to time. If that happens you'll feel a lot better knowing it was probably an equipment problem or something unavoidable that you can hopefully learn from and improve in the future. Besides you just don't want to have to be trying to track an animal for hours or calling for help. Learn proper safety and stand safety, hopefully that's a repetitive piece of advice that's unnecessary at this point but always worth repeating. All the deer in the world aren't worth risking life and limb. Hopefully this gives some help and you put one on the ground. Be sure you have a plan to deal with the animal. Have a plan where to take it to process or donate it. Or if you're going to butcher it yourself be sure you educate yourself by whatever means necessary be it advice here, from friends, youtube or whatever. Should go without saying but be sure you know the game laws in your state and have all proper tags and permits. Lastly, don't be afraid to ask lots of questions.
Last year I picked it up in July (skipped rifle hunting too) and was able to harvest a buck and a doe so definitely possible to pull it all together. It is a big learning curve though, so go slowly with it, take the time to learn everything you can. you seem to be significantly more well off equipment-wise just be sure to use it all appropriately with the wind. Practice practice practice- and know your limits, dont take long-distance,low light, quartering shot through brush. Just sit where the deer are when the wind is right and shoot whatever makes you happy! Good luck and keep us posted
I just moved from Lincoln last year. I always hunted the back side of Conestoga Lake, and would take 2 or 3 does a year. I never really felt the need to chase big bucks, and I really only saw one in the 9 years I hunted that area. My advice is that you should find a nice big cedar tree next to a travel corridor and place your stand in it. You can get away with a lot more when you have that much cover. Best of luck to you.
I would shoot the first doe that walks by , but sadly you will have to learn a lot the hard way. Don't take a shot over 30 yards at a very alert deer it will duck the arrow and BE SAFE IN THE TREES buy a quality safety harness check your cams enough but not to much.If you are bloodthirsty and its legal in your state shoot the first deer that walks by anything with a bow is a trophy and most of all have fun. If you put your time in you can get it done. Good luck and hunt safe.
Yes, you are probably crazy. Like most of us. Fortunately I started when there were not as many toys to purchase. I probably would have started with fewer cameras and stands but what is a few hundred dollars.
How else are you going to learn. Just go out and give it a try. Stay safe and always take shots you know you can make. You will figure it out if you keep trying.
I live in Al idk what the terrain where you live is like but in NE AL it is all mountains and is really hard to hunt the best thing for bow hunting is to find a really worn out trail that you have plenty of day time pics on and set up at about 25 yds from the trail and make sure you have a couple of good shooting lanes to shoot through cuz if you hit one leaf you are going to be a mad sob no joke. I don't know if you have any trees on your land or not but when I was learning to bow hunt from my dad he would set up a target about 25 yds from a tree and have me climb it and practice standing up drawing and shooting with as little movement as possible. That is really the hardest thing about hunting with a bow is drawing back and shooting with out the deer seeing you. If you can do that and can hit what you aim at you should not have any problem. Another thing never shoot at a deer that is directly under you it never works out good don't do it I've had the bright idea a couple of times to try it on does and one time an arrow fell out of my bow and the other I completely missed lol. It is a learning experience though all you can do is get out there and get the shakes. ( you will know what that is when you see your first deer)
Don't know about the crazy part but becoming a hunter is a great thing. Coming in as a non-hunter you have so many learning opportunities ahead of you and so much fun to have. Spend time reading on forums like this. Get out in the woods and fields. Watch the deer and get familiar with their movements and notice their travel and behavior patterns. Take notes and compare those notes and you'll learn. Have fun.
Just keep your expectations low and enjoy yourself. Don't do what I did and immediately stand and pull up your weapon as the first glimpse of a deer (b/c you'll likely be watching his white tail bobbing quickly away from you). Be patient when you see a deer, just watch it for a bit. First time I TRIED to draw on a deer was comical.
This may have already been mentioned but the best scouting you can do, for next year, is after the season is over. Deer change travel routes between Summer and Winter but some trails are used year round. Find the most used trails and go from there. You also need a compass or smartphone app to determine wind direction for the best set. I use the Primos Wind Checker app on my smartphone and found it to be deadly accurate.
Lots of good advise here. I'd say "keep hope alive" for a nice buck but just enjoy being out there in nature and learning the ins and out of hunting with a bow. One experience you will not like is hitting a deer wrong and spending hours blood trailing to come home with nothing but the knowledge you killed something you cannot harvest. It's no fun so if you do get a shot opportunity focus 100% on putting that arrow through the kill zone and only after do you think about the rest. Kilboars Hunt Club
I started last season in December. Let's be honest the odds were against me. I had great stand positioning with lots of sign but the big issue, public land. The public land I was on is used 4 days a week for state run pheasant hunting. I went in knowing I was probably not going to see anything. I did however see a 1.5 year old roaming around. Never shot her and I know she is probably a little bigger now. Chances are you will see a deer or two. Will it give you a good shot opportunity? Maybe not but that is deer hunting and its a hard pill to swallow.
Welcome to bow hunting! You're going to have a blast and the learning is just beginning. I suggest you start by reading these two stickies... http://forums.bowhunting.com/bowhunting-talk/recovery-thread-6877/ http://forums.bowhunting.com/bowhunting-talk/official-what-do-after-shot-please-read-52643/ There is a ton of information on this site and you can find a lot by reading in the archives. Take notes and spend some time talking with an experienced hunter who is an ethical hunter. Take more notes. There should be no short cuts in your preparation for hunting. Being a hunter is a huge responsibility but it is one of the most rewarding things you will ever get involved in if you go about it right. After each hunt, take more notes. Looking forward to hearing your stories. Good luck.
