Re-learning hard, beginner lessons

[Napping in the woods]

So I started bow hunting when I was 14 or so and hunted hard every year until I was 33 with a few respectable deer harvested, particularly as I got into my early 30's.  went off to grad school and had to hang up the bow for a few years; but not the rifle/shotgun/muzzeloader. Now I'm 40 and suffering through my first season back in a stand with a compound. I've seen a ton of deer this year and I've messed up several shots in the following ways:

 

1.  Doe:  Didn't bend at the waist.  Dropped anchor arm and missed high.

2.  8 point last week:  Big time buck fever, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane, peeked after release on a quartering away shot with deer standing on a slope...miss high and back; broadhead still in tree.

3.  Different 8 pt this morning:  same exact spot as last week's buck, much calmer this time but upon first draw, my peep sight didn't twist correctly and wasn't aligned, let down and drew again. Nerves came back, but Peep aligned this time, felt for familiar anchor points, bent at waist...everything checked out...set pin  just under shoulder at white/brown hair line on a quartering away shot at 32 yards.  Second guess distance to 28 yards, ever-so-slight, awkward feeling at release, but not crazy weird,  CRACK!  Missed low and hit a rock, destroying arrow and broadhead.  Mark off distance...33 yards.

 

This morning, although very, very humbling, was cool.  I saw a few young doe, about 75 yards off and hit a bleat.  Next thing I know I have a dozen deer, mostly young doe with 1 or 2 momma's mixed in, and a small buck trailing/seeking; not really chasing, mostly annoying them.  Offered no shot, especially with that many eyes watching me.  They all mull around for awhile, the young buck grunting up a storm and scent checking does and wind.  Does wander off, small buck stays about 50 yards out.  try another bleat and then a grunt, no response but he keeps looking up wind and passed me.  Sure enough, a bigger, but not "huge," 8 point is coming in from the opposite direction.  He follows the new script...you know, that one you only figure out after you've seen deer actually move through the area, not the one you conjured up in your head when setting the stand...<insert #3 above>. I just flat missed, again.

 

Feel like I'm learning those hard beginner lessons all over again.  I'm in a good spot and seeing plenty of deer.  I think I'm guilty of not being able to control my nerves, rushing the shot, not going through my sequence, and I've lost my confidence in judging short yardage; not to mention the false confidence I built up over those long hours of shooting this summer from stands and different distances.  Part of me wants to hang it up for the year, before I do something that will keep me up at night, but another part of me wants to keep going.  I don't feel like I belong in the woods with a bow right now, but I know the only way I'm going return to my old form is to keep at it.

 

Such is my love/hate relationship with archery hunting.

 

 

[crappyice]

Wow...you have had my experiences of my last 15 years bow hunting all in one season! Every year is a new year for me fraught with old and new mistakes!

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[jjb4900]

I've been at it for a long time......still have that stuff happen to me. I told my wife, after a weekend of close calls and a miss, that I had a great time with lots of excitement, but the best part was that at the end of the hunt, me and the deer both got to go home, so it was a win win all around..........

[growalot]

There is nothing nicer than setting up and at first light before any thing comes in ....To pull out your range finder and mark off yardage in your mind...also it lets you see those"no see-um" branches....I had marked off the area my buck was entering before he hit it so I knew the shot would be 30-35 yrds before I wouldn't have a shot...One less thing to think about when a shooter is in front of you and your trying to stop them...did the same for the doe I shot.

[grampy]

We all have things go wrong while bowhunting, no matter how long we do it. You have two positive things going for you right now. First, you know what mistakes you are making and are doing all you can to sort them out. Second you have not wounded a deer and have plenty of deer in your area. Get back out there and get it done! You will feel so much better, once you lay hands on your bow kill. Best of luck to you out there!

[NYbuck50]

Been there brother. Its a great feeling when it all clicks and you start stacking them. keep at it

[bartman9]

I feel your pain... but I am actually learning them for the first time.  First year hunting, first year bowhunting...

 

Lesson 1) Calm down before shooting.  Opening day (first time hunting) I had a doe at 20 yards.  It is all a blur... I pulled back, aimed and released.  Never saw the arrow... I did hit it and after tracking for 6 hours, with some very experienced trackers, came to the conclusion it was a brisket shot and doe survived.  

 

Lesson 2) Don't call deer closer when they are looking at you.  Had a doe at 30 yards.  Wanted to call it in closer, so I did.  It was staring right at me and I did some doe bleats.  It wasn't there much longer than that.  

 

Lesson 3) Keep bow away from objects when releasing.  Had a buck at 15 yards in back of me from tree stand.  Pulled back, was relaxed, had pin right on vitals, focused on deer, released... as string released the riser unflexed, hit top/back of tree stand pushing bow up.  Arrow flew over back of deer.  

 

Lesson 4) Practice with all your clothing/gear on.  Had a doe broadside at 20 yards.  Was wearing a face mask because it was cold.  Pulled back and could not feel string on nose or kisser button.  Had to let down because I don't want to miss again.  Doe took off.  

 

Well, every time I go out I seem to learn a new lesson.  One of these days I would like to learn a lesson about grilling venison.... someday.

 

 

[Napping in the woods]

Thanks folks, I'll back in the stand tomorrow morning but hopefully a similar story but with a different ending!

[grampy]

There ya go! Persistence will pay off!

[regulat0r]

I had similar struggles the first few yrs of my bow hunting career as well. If I may offer some advice that I follow to this day you might find it helpful as well. 

 

1-practice shooting from irregular heights/distances. its easy to hit your mark when you are practicing in the summer months when you are in your back yard shooting at the 20-25-30 yard markers. real world hunting however is not the same. The deer will most likely not be standing still, broad side at 20 yards just as the target is in july. i like to climb up to the roof of my garage and shoot down at targets at varying distances in my back yard. accurately judging distance is equally important as shooting technique. you might be dead on at 25 yards but if you are using that pin on a deer that in 31 yards away, you are in trouble. 

 

2- as cliche as it sounds, create your own pre shot routine. when i see a deer i want to shoot i repeat the same thing a few times in my head..."bend at the waist----hold it and hold it" bend at the waist is obvious and "hold it and hold it" means hold your pin where you want to hit and hold your form after the shot. i even try to watch my arrow through my sight to avoid "pre-peeking" and throwing my arrow off.

 

i hope this helps...

[NFA-ADK]

Concentration on shot placement is how I try to control myself.  But it is funny when you are in the stand and hear a shaking and find out it is you making the noise, lol.  Keep at it, that is one thing most good hunters do is keep improving.  And most of us can mess up with the best of them, just not everyone will admit it!  I just hope if I get a nice shooter I can at least keep the stand from shaking out of the tree! 

 

Good Luck and go GETSOME!

[132 eight pointer]

I hear you loud and clear,lol. You will make it happen, go through the steps in your head as you are doing them and you will make a good shot. It seems almost easy when everything clicks and oh so frustrating when it doesn't. Good luck.

[Hock3y24]

I cracked the first 2 deer I shot this year, then had a brain fart and shot right over the next 2. Didn't bend at the waist and shot right over. It happens and buck fever is a sob. But that's why we keep at it!

[Napping in the woods]

I think part of my problem is that I may have been relying on skills and instinct that I developed long ago, but haven't tapped into for quite some time.  It's like muscle memory,  it's there but sometimes just a little (or a lot) out of shape.  I've been pretty successful with the rifle/shotgun/muzzeloader over the years, but archery hunting takes a whole different set of skills which seem to be very rusty, in my case. Things haven't slowed down for me yet, and I've probably made some bad mistakes because I'm probably rushing my sequence and decision-making.   Eventually, things will begin to unfold in slow motion.

 

Oh, I also forgot to inhale and exhale this morning during the shot sequence, during practice I try and time my release with pause between an inhale and an exhale.

 

My wife just laughs at me, but I think she's starting to get concerned because the freezer stock has been completely depleted from last year.

 

You guys have been a boost, much appreciated.

 

 

[bartman9]

One thing I am finding that seems to be helping me is that once I get settled in my stand, I pull back my bow (with arrow nocked), go through my sequence and then let down.  I do this a couple of times at different angles and that seems to spark my memory on what needs to be done when the deer come in front of me.  ...at least that is what I am hoping.   Still waiting for that first kill.