So this is what it feels like to bowhunt.

[wolc123]

Aiming low is great advice to compensate for "string jump".  I learned that lesson after my own first shot a deer.   More even than your first kill, you will never forget your first miss, and without question you will learn more from it.   I wasn't quite as lucky with mine however as the arrow struck the old doe square in the shoulder blade, when she ducked at the sound of my release.   I was a youngster back then, not using much poundage, and the arrow did not penetrate at all. As she bolted off, I could see it flapping on trees.  Even with the help of a very experienced mentor, we never found a drop of blood, but were able to recover the arrow after several hundred yards of difficult tracking that was started after we waited  half-hour.

 

That experience helped me on my next shot a few years later, on my first antlered buck with a bow.  I aimed low, and he didn't duck (bucks are usually a little more distracted during the rut making that less likely than with the "always skittish" does).  The arrow cut the artery above his heart with the broadhead lodging against the upper leg bone on the opposite side.   He also bolted off after the shot.   The tracking was not easy, as there was no "exit wound", and the shot severed the "pump", leaving no blood to follow.    Fortunately he didn't make it more than a hundred yards and I spotted his "upended" white belly after making a few circles around where I lost his tracks.  

 

I have lost count of the deer I have killed with a bow, but I do remember the few others that I hit but could not recover.   Two more were hit in the shoulder blade, including a big buck that a friend ended up killing with a slug a few weeks later.  I was thankful to see that the wound I had inflicted had healed cleanly.   On those rare years when I did hit a deer that I could not recover, It was always the end of my archery season for the year.   Now that the crossbow is legal, I have retired my regular bow.  For us older, working guys, with family responsibilities and less free time, that is the greatest thing to ever come along on the archery hunting scene in NY.          

[Core]

Aiming low is great advice to compensate for "string jump".  I learned that lesson after my own first shot a deer.   More even than your first kill, you will never forget your first miss, and without question you will learn more from it.   I wasn't quite as lucky with mine however as the arrow struck the old doe square in the shoulder blade, when she ducked at the sound of my release.   I was a youngster back then, not using much poundage, and the arrow did not penetrate at all. As she bolted off, I could see it flapping on trees.  Even with the help of a very experienced mentor, we never found a drop of blood, but were able to recover the arrow after several hundred yards of difficult tracking that was started after we waited  half-hour.

 

That experience helped me on my next shot a few years later, on my first antlered buck with a bow.  I aimed low, and he didn't duck (bucks are usually a little more distracted during the rut making that less likely than with the "always skittish" does).  The arrow cut the artery above his heart with the broadhead lodging against the upper leg bone on the opposite side.   He also bolted off after the shot.   The tracking was not easy, as there was no "exit wound", and the shot severed the "pump", leaving no blood to follow.    Fortunately he didn't make it more than a hundred yards and I spotted his "upended" white belly after making a few circles around where I lost his tracks.  

 

I have lost count of the deer I have killed with a bow, but I do remember the few others that I hit but could not recover.   Two more were hit in the shoulder blade, including a big buck that a friend ended up killing with a slug a few weeks later.  I was thankful to see that the wound I had inflicted had healed cleanly.   On those rare years when I did hit a deer that I could not recover, It was always the end of my archery season for the year.   Now that the crossbow is legal, I have retired my regular bow.  For us older, working guys, with family responsibilities and less free time, that is the greatest thing to ever come along on the archery hunting scene in NY.          

I really hope it's not years before I get another shot, but I get your point. I am still smarting from missing this. I went out yesterday for a few hours, spooked a buck 30 min in, 4 doe 5 min after that, and then 2 more doe a couple hours later. All happily running off. I've learned that still hunting in a swamp is a joke. It's too loud, so I am going to try a new spot.

 

I also felt really guilty about blowing the entire day Saturday from the family (had only intended to go half a day but after seeing that deer I felt like a gambler who feels he's on a lucky streak), but my wife still told me to take yesterday afternoon, and I'm taking a few hours tonight as well (she even wants me to, knows I need to get a deer now to vindicate).

 

I totally get your point about family time. I just want one deer by bow now. If I can get one I'm okay holding out until gun (I think?). But, that may be too much to ask as well, as they are skittish buggers!

 

BTW, I got back to the spot yesterday of my miss with a range finder. My 30 yard estimate wasn't horrible; it was 24 yards. However, I also got to the range yesterday morning and my 30 yard pin was 2" high at 30 yards , My arrows are flying so slowly that using the 30 yard at 20 yards hits about 7" too high, and 24 yards is functionally closer to 20 than 30, so that combined with my improper pin adjustment pretty much explains this skimming just over its back. If I had a rangefinder on Saturday OR I had aimed at the heart + had proper sight adjustment I would have taken it in either case. I think hunting from the ground with the bow is so tricky, offering so few good shots, it's just not acceptable to be anything other than totally dialed in with pins and have a range finder. At least that's my lesson from Saturday. Oh, and hunting when it's really windy is nice. Deer don't seem to hear me walking

Edited October 5, 2015 by Core

[Five Seasons]

great story and getting a shot on a deer while still hunting public land your first day are very, very low. I consider it a success and a lesson learned. Glad it was a clean miss, because a bad shot can really put a damper on your spirits.

 

welcome to the fun!

[Core]

Yesterday was day 3 in a row, only got out two hours before dark. Didn't have long, went to a new spot on different public land but as with prior two days obsessed over aerial images first and looked at the wind. Holding close to my heart the idea that hunters are lazy I parked somewhere in a tricky spot, and it was very hilly. Despite being mainly marshes, I found myself on a ridge inside of 15 minutes walking a very well heeled deer track with scat on it, and they had worn the path so deep it was quite quiet underneath a lot of oak trees.

 

Just as I was congratulating myself on the deer I had seen the day before (literally within a moment of that), and walking very slowly a deer launches out of the brush in front of me. It is with a friend. The friend is probably 40 yards away but through heavy brush. They had been bedded down. I can see the friend's face and it is sniffing and looking around away from me while the runner is hissing in the woods (the sound pissed off doe make, I have learned). I spent the next 40 minutes slowly walking toward them and as I got close they would bolt 50 yards and at least one kept hissing. We did this over several hundred yards. I'm not sure what they ever saw, but they never got severely spooked the first few times doing this. But, I never got a shot, either. This was all through oak trees. Should I have waited and tried to call them back?

 

This is now two days in a row I've learned that still hunting when the wind isn't high is very hard because the forest is too loud (on saturday winds were in the teens and the wind made a fantastic cover of walking). Also, still hunting within an hour of dusk is literally impossible. The woods shut down, there is no noise anywhere, and it's just stupid to try.

 

I know people might say give this up and set up a stand, but

 

1) Setting one up on public land requires me take it in and out each time

2) With a bow, and these thick woods, a stand only works if the deer get very, very close. With a gun, if you see it in the woods it's within range, but with the bow I think the odds of needing to close distance are higher, which isn't possible from a stand (not arguing their efficacy; most people bow hunt from a stand, I know that)

3) I am still trying to make amends for Saturday's miss. I still feel with a stronger wind I can walk up on a deer.

 

I'll probably leave this until the weekend when the winds get up and I have more time again.

 

The good news is all three days I've been within gun range of a deer. I never would have missed Saturday if I had a shotgun. Sunday it was 100 yards which is a bit much for a shotgun possibly, but not a rifle (which granted I don't own), and yesterday's deer looking around sniffing for me I would have gone for with a shotgun for sure.

 

I may also be doing nothing but soiling this entire area for other hunters, though I suspect not. I won't try that path again for at least a few days, and I partially consider these trips scouting runs as well. I've also learned that what looks really nice on google satellite view can be the sh*tiest thick brush in the world. I also need to check for ticks. I keep forgetting and probably have a thousand on me.

Edited October 6, 2015 by Core

[Five Seasons]

still hunting in general is very hard. dont get discouraged.

[Core]

still hunting in general is very hard. dont get discouraged.

Yeah it is Each night I go home sick at the whole thing actually, then by the next day I want to get out again. I assume this is normal, but it feels like a lot of time spent walking around in the woods as I pack the car up  :cry:Hoping for wind this weekend. Also am logging all my spots and sightings and what the land was like. If they would let me walk around with a gun right now I'd be tagging out in no time. I'm sure come gun season the deer will screw me over in some other new novel way, though.

[moog5050]

Core

 

Most on here hunt in stands, including myself.  Its exponentially more difficult to kill a deer by still hunting with a bow in my opinion.  Not impossible, just harder.  You have had a great start to the season already by getting in range and seeing deer.  If you end up killing one with the bow still hunting, it would be a great accomplishment, even more so your first year hunting.  You have reason to stay positive already.

[grampy]

I like your go get em attitude! Good luck !

[BKhunter]

Maybe see if you can borrow a climber from someone? You can back pack it in and out same day pretty easily. Not much to it on terms of set up. I would just recommend if you can locate someone willing to let you borrow one spend some time practicing going up and down a tree before you bring it out for real life hunting. Nothing worse then packing in all that gear and making a racket and working up a sweat trying to learn on the spot.

[jjb4900]

there is no doubt that still hunting deer with a bow is extremely difficult, so is stand hunting from the ground without a blind.....personally, if I spook a deer I would not keep going after it.

[Core]

I'm partly still scouting spots and taking notes on various areas. I'm not opposed to picking up a stand for $40 + climbing sticks and carrying it somewhere that I know has good tracks, but with a 40 min drive each way to this land for that one hour pre-sunset it seems like a lot of work! I think I'll put some more hours in this weekend when the wind is highest, in yet a new spot and see how it goes. Probably going to take a day off some Friday once the rut starts as well, because I guess there should be more activity around by then and I can sink another day into it.

 

I think ideal for me might be still hunting when the wind is high and then setting up somewhere for an hour or two before dark. I'm definitely finished with the stalking stuff when the sun is low, as it's really just impossible without wind cover in my novice opinion.

[PeltHunter]

I have never really still hunted with a bow but 2 of the 4 deer I have taken with a bow including the 130" 10 point I got last year were from the ground. Don't be afraid to setup somewhere with a shooting lane within your comfortable bow range from this beaten down path you have found and wait it out for that last hour of darkness. I like to find a spot between 2 large trees when hunting from the ground so I am semi camouflaged from each angle they might be coming down a trail. Practice from sitting and kneeling positions if you do this.

[chas0218]

I have never really still hunted with a bow but 2 of the 4 deer I have taken with a bow including the 130" 10 point I got last year were from the ground. Don't be afraid to setup somewhere with a shooting lane within your comfortable bow range from this beaten down path you have found and wait it out for that last hour of darkness. I like to find a spot between 2 large trees when hunting from the ground so I am semi camouflaged from each angle they might be coming down a trail. Practice from sitting and kneeling positions if you do this.

Hey you look familiar.

 

Still hunting with a bow is tough stuff I started that way about a week later I hung my first stand. I also had a tough time estimating yardage. The first deer I shot at went right under his belly, thought it was 30 yards and ended up being 40.  Estimating in the woods is much much harder than in your backyard or at the range. I ended up pacing out 3 trees and wrapping them with survey tape. This was before I could afford to buy a rangefinder let alone knew what one was.

[Core]

I have never really still hunted with a bow but 2 of the 4 deer I have taken with a bow including the 130" 10 point I got last year were from the ground. Don't be afraid to setup somewhere with a shooting lane within your comfortable bow range from this beaten down path you have found and wait it out for that last hour of darkness. I like to find a spot between 2 large trees when hunting from the ground so I am semi camouflaged from each angle they might be coming down a trail. Practice from sitting and kneeling positions if you do this.

Nice! I had kind of moved to this conclusion so good to see the same opinion. Last day on Monday I stumbled upon a ledge somebody had cut out from a huge tree. I stood on it with my back obscured and had a nice view over a large area, even had a branch or two in front of me, but I think what you mention will be my approach next time. No moving at all for minimum an hour before sunset.

Still hunting with a bow is tough stuff I started that way about a week later I hung my first stand. I also had a tough time estimating yardage. The first deer I shot at went right under his belly, thought it was 30 yards and ended up being 40.  Estimating in the woods is much much harder than in your backyard or at the range. I ended up pacing out 3 trees and wrapping them with survey tape. This was before I could afford to buy a rangefinder let alone knew what one was.

I hate throwing even more money at this (in last 6 weeks bought a bow, licenses, joined a range, bought every bit of hunting gear as I owned nothing, including boots, layers, jackets, backpack) but I had to buy that rangefinder on Saturday because I got it for $90 out the door at dicks. Sale on them, plus $10 off $50 in the NY hunting guide for 2015 (coupon). I can't believe how much yardage is absolutely crucial. I figured I would do better with it than I did. Now when I'm in the woods standing still I play the rangefinder game. I guess at a tree's range then see if I was right or not. When standing still I try and memorize the rangefinder range of a couple of trees so that if something comes close I'm not unequivocally reliant on bringing up the rangefinder again.

[Five Seasons]

Yeah it is Each night I go home sick at the whole thing actually, then by the next day I want to get out again. I assume this is normal, but it feels like a lot of time spent walking around in the woods as I pack the car up  :cry:Hoping for wind this weekend. Also am logging all my spots and sightings and what the land was like. If they would let me walk around with a gun right now I'd be tagging out in no time. I'm sure come gun season the deer will screw me over in some other new novel way, though.

 

feeling sick is totally part of the game. Some guys are harder on themselves then they should be and I'm one of them. I know others who shrug it off, seen them shrug off wounding a deer like it's no big deal. That's not me. I think it's important with all things in life to realize it's not the end of the world. I've screwed up on some wall mounters. You never fully forget, but time does help, and so does the next deer.

 

as far as gun hunting, the deer are a whole new animal. don't assume it's just as easy

[Elmo]

If they would let me walk around with a gun right now I'd be tagging out in no time. I'm sure come gun season the deer will screw me over in some other new novel way, though.

By the time gun season starts, a lot of deer has already been spooked from bow hunting and the day lights hours are shorter so many of the deer are nocturnal. There's a reason they stack the deck against us. If it were so easy to hunt within the rules there would be no deer left.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Vince1]

 

1) Setting one up on public land requires me take it in and out each time

--------- I have a lightweight relatively inexpensive setup that can go up on any tree (hang on stand - Drury Evolution treestand  and Leverage climbing sticks moded with versa buttons ) cost me under 200 bucks for the entire setup and weighs under 20 pounds with gear I pack in maybe 25 pounds.

 

-------- I have a heavy as crap setup that I leave in the woods that I got from sportsmans guide for under 60 bucks. I leave that one right where they eat and head for it 2 to 3 hours before sundown and just hang out, heehe.

 

 

2) With a bow, and these thick woods, a stand only works if the deer get very, very close. With a gun, if you see it in the woods it's within range, but with the bow I think the odds of needing to close distance are higher, which isn't possible from a stand (not arguing their efficacy; most people bow hunt from a stand, I know that)

 

-------- find a junction of game trails or a funnel and setup there. easier said than done I know. im still working on it.

 

3) I am still trying to make amends for Saturday's miss. I still feel with a stronger wind I can walk up on a deer.

------- I thought I could do this and boy was I wrong. only time I walk up on a deer is if they just happen to be walking the same trail I am walking. but they usually see me and haul ars preventing me from getting a shot.

my hunting buddy just can sit still and always wanders to my stand and pulls me down for a mid day walk.

 

as a new hunter I just aint got what it takes to walk up on no deer. walking the woods quietly and with the wind in your face all the time is easier said than done and requires a lot of practice. at this point im trying to get as much experience needed by actually taking deer and analyzing each kill. 3rd season and 2 kills one recovered one lost to maggots.  

 

 

always see guys give the advice "spend as much time in the woods as you can" and man that's the truth.  cant learn nothing from the couch and you tube.

 

[Core]

feeling sick is totally part of the game. Some guys are harder on themselves then they should be and I'm one of them. I know others who shrug it off, seen them shrug off wounding a deer like it's no big deal. That's not me. I think it's important with all things in life to realize it's not the end of the world. I've screwed up on some wall mounters. You never fully forget, but time does help, and so does the next deer.

 

as far as gun hunting, the deer are a whole new animal. don't assume it's just as easy

Fourth day was yesterday and going home empty handed didn't feel quite as bad as before. I also have lost a few lbs, which isn't bad. I'm four for four spotting--let's use the word spooking--deer. Really learning all the ways I suck at still hunting but yesterday came upon probably the same two deer as Monday, this time 20 yards off when they got spooked. One stood and stared at me. We had a staring match for 15 seconds. I have no idea what I was hoping it would do (look at me, shrug, then go back to eating?!); it did exactly what one would expect and eventually ran off hissing. I imagine I couldn't have drawn my bow without scaring it off but next time a deer sees me for certain I will try nonetheless, as it can't hurt.

 

I also know the areas I'm trying to do this still hunting are really bad. The cover is just interminable and way too thick. If I spin around at any one time almost all shots would be within 25 yards, which means it's just too difficult to creep up on anything. Still trying different bits of land. Desperately need wind. It's windy and rainy today, I may man up and have a go at it. Some people claim incredible luck when it's raining, like the deer half give up on trying to sense things coming their way.

[jjb4900]

sounds like you may be finding the same doe and fawn......if it's the same general spot, what I would do is make a halfway decent ground blind without changing the look of the area too much and get in before light and just have a sit for awhile...........the one thing about rain is it can wash away your bloodtrail pretty quick, just something to keep in mind......oh, and get yourself a pair of binoculars if you intend to hunt as you've been, move slowly and use them to really pick apart the area prior to making your next move.

Edited October 9, 2015 by jjb4900

[NYbuck50]

definitley beat a bad hit. welcome to the miss club, everyone is a member!!