Reflecting on my archery season.

[rob-c]

Yesterday was my last day for archery , I was sitting here at work thinking about mine and my sons season  on our new lease. This was our second year and even though we did not connect on a deer ( seen a bunch but nothing in bow range ) we both learned a ton . Between  cameras and what we were seeing , it really helped us learn how the deer were using the property. 
 

We have a lot of work to do next year moving some stands,  setting up new ones and clearing and putting in more trails. I enjoy  putting my woodman ship skills to the test  to see if I can put us on deer consistently. It’s a little tough starting over after I hunted a piece  of property for 30+ years that I knew like the back of my hand . But I do enjoy trying to beat deer at their game. Even though they win more than I do..

[BowmanMike]

The problem is the damn deer dont do the same thing from year to year even. At times i feel like i know less now than when i started hunting. Sometimes you pattern a group,they do the same for a couple of days,then change when i am trying to intercept them. 

I guess you gotta put your best foot forward and keep at it. Luck is definetely a factor. 

My season was much better than last,got a few opportunities at does and got them,one way or another. No shooter bucks in range,but i got some archery kills.

[Jeremy K]

10 minutes ago, BowmanMike said:

The problem is the damn deer dont do the same thing from year to year even. At times i feel like i know less now than when i started hunting. Sometimes you pattern a group,they do the same for a couple of days,then change when i am trying to intercept them. 

I guess you gotta put your best foot forward and keep at it. Luck is definetely a factor. 

My season was much better than last,got a few opportunities at does and got them,one way or another. No shooter bucks in range,but i got some archery kills.

Same at our spot , they rarely do the same thing thing from year to year except early season doe movement is usually the same . I think i've just gotten better at finding their route faster . 

[BizCT]

2 hours ago, rob-c said:

Yesterday was my last day for archery , I was sitting here at work thinking about mine and my sons season  on our new lease. This was our second year and even though we did not connect on a deer ( seen a bunch but nothing in bow range ) we both learned a ton . Between  cameras and what we were seeing , it really helped us learn how the deer were using the property. 
 

We have a lot of work to do next year moving some stands,  setting up new ones and clearing and putting in more trails. I enjoy  putting my woodman ship skills to the test  to see if I can put us on deer consistently. It’s a little tough starting over after I hunted a piece  of property for 30+ years that I knew like the back of my hand . But I do enjoy trying to beat deer at their game. Even though they win more than I do..

It's a never ending game. Dad and I went through same process when we lost our honey hole. We are in the middle of season 4 now, and we are learning more and more each year. But things definitely change year to year. 

[rob-c]

1 hour ago, BowmanMike said:

The problem is the damn deer dont do the same thing from year to year even. At times i feel like i know less now than when i started hunting. Sometimes you pattern a group,they do the same for a couple of days,then change when i am trying to intercept them. 

I guess you gotta put your best foot forward and keep at it. Luck is definetely a factor. 

My season was much better than last,got a few opportunities at does and got them,one way or another. No shooter bucks in range,but i got some archery kills.

This is true, but based on what I witnessed our first year( in season scouting / hunting ) we put up stands and blinds this year and out of the 4 stands and 3 blinds we saw deer from 5 of them , just need to make adjustments on placement.

Luck doesn’t hurt , one can put in the time to place stands etc. But being in the right spot at the right time is huge . 

Edited November 12, 2019 by rob-c