Legacy- 2016 Deer Season

[JakeyBaby]

[ripnlip]

that picture says thousand words! memories like that last forever! great pic!

[Reelfanatic]

Goodluck Jakey! Hope you or someone in your group smokes one!

[Legacy]

[thumbburn]

Just put the broad heads on with that group and your all good.... Lol.... Have you guys ever heard that??....

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[Legacy]

[Chas0218]

 We all have our different methods. To each is own. At the end of the day, being competent and confident in our equipment is everything. I began shooting longer distances after listen to a friend talk about shooting 50, 60, and even 70 yards and then witnessing him do so. Was he a "great" shot at 70? relatively speaking? maybe? Dinner plate at 70 seemed pretty good to me. But the big thing was his groups inside of 40 yards were impressive. 10, 20, 30 yards seemed like nothing. That day changed the way I shoot. I wish every shot was 15-25 yards but I have no issue shooting out to 40 yards with confidence. 

I have to agree, I shoot out to 60, I have taken a deer at 50 in a field but I don't think I would attempt a 60 yard shot. My arrows loose too much energy at 60 for me to feel comfortable humanely taking an animal. My 60 yard groups get a little wider than my 20 or 30 yard groups but 20 and 30 are chip shots once you move back to 60. I also like how fast my bow seems at 20 yards and how slow it sounds at 60 big difference in time between the twang thud sound.

[BSmaster]

My last pin is set at 40 but I was shooting natural feel at 50 and shooting 80% in the kill zone.  The likely hood of me ever using this distance is nil.  feeling comfortable with your shot selection is important to me.  Wounding deer may seem like part of the hunt to some people but it it affects me deeply and I remember every deer I wounded and didn't retrieve.  To me that is disrespectful and that is why I try to be more responsible about my shot.  Does it still happen - sure, but I don't take it lightly.  I shot a few arrows at 60 and even though they hit in the right spot I saw them do some funky movement in the last 10-20 yards, so to me this means that even open field I would not try this with my set up.  Most of my situations are set up for a 20 -30 yd shot and this I feel is pretty predictable (high confidence).

 

I saw the guy on bone crushers shoot a pronghorn at 60 yds at last light in high wind and it made me cringe.  He killed it.  The dogs ate it.  He is proud of it.  Same episode same guy shoots a muley in the back of the back.  I don't watch the show too much anymore.  Another (different) show, woman sees the biggest buck she has ever seen hunting and the shot was just outside of her comfort zone and she let it walk.  I was more happy that they filmed that than all of the other shows I saw this year combined.

 

Clint Eastwood:  "A man has to know his limitations"

[BSmaster]

Gonna give it a try Saturday - I think I am gonna hunt the acorns.  Anybody going after apples or Ag fields?

[bettieanne]

I would agree, know your limitations, distances, angels,ect ect. Lots of things have to come together to make it happen with a bow.  Bow hunting is all most unethical with a bow in the wrong persons hands. I almost get sick every year with the stories of wounded buck. Not much respect for the animal. Guess the same goes with gun. Plan on hunting ag in the pm gona stay way clear of it in the mourning,  don't wana bump old south paw! What a difference ohio dnr is compared to ny dec, They plant food just for deer and our dec kills all our deer with nusence tags and then charges us for a license while the farmers are getting the tax breaks. Cant argue that we need the food but there has to be a middle ground.  

[skipper19]

My last pin is set at 40 but I was shooting natural feel at 50 and shooting 80% in the kill zone. The likely hood of me ever using this distance is nil. feeling comfortable with your shot selection is important to me. Wounding deer may seem like part of the hunt to some people but it it affects me deeply and I remember every deer I wounded and didn't retrieve. To me that is disrespectful and that is why I try to be more responsible about my shot. Does it still happen - sure, but I don't take it lightly. I shot a few arrows at 60 and even though they hit in the right spot I saw them do some funky movement in the last 10-20 yards, so to me this means that even open field I would not try this with my set up. Most of my situations are set up for a 20 -30 yd shot and this I feel is pretty predictable (high confidence).

I saw the guy on bone crushers shoot a pronghorn at 60 yds at last light in high wind and it made me cringe. He killed it. The dogs ate it. He is proud of it. Same episode same guy shoots a muley in the back of the back. I don't watch the show too much anymore. Another (different) show, woman sees the biggest buck she has ever seen hunting and the shot was just outside of her comfort zone and she let it walk. I was more happy that they filmed that than all of the other shows I saw this year combined.

Clint Eastwood: "A man has to know his limitations"

I'm with you on the being "affected deeply" on a wounded buck laying there with an arrow in a poor, non vital hit. I was so affected 2 years ago I haven't been in the field since. I have hunted with the bow for 40 years. Have taken lots of deer, wounded one i didnt recover, but this was different. I did recover this deer, not like i wanted to though. Don't know if it's my age or what, but I felt terrible remorse when the deer fell on the spot at 30 yards, but the arrow only broke the spine and he lay there crawling away by front legs. As I became shaken and in haste by what had happened, the buck was able to crawl behind a log into a hollow even further away. I tried 3 more attempts to arrow him again from my stand. Didn't happen. Hit the log... hit the ground... hit him once more nearly in the same spot. Now I have no more broadheads to launch, and I sat there waiting, hopefully an artery hit would have him go to sleep. To say I felt like just wishing I hadn't even gone to hunt that day is an understatement, and that is not how I like to end a day of what is something I cherish as my chance to rejuvinate. I sat there for an hour and no difference in the deers alertness. So I slowly climbed down, moved towards him searching for one of the arrows in the ground that could still be used to finish him.

I found one, cleaned it off and I looked into that deers sole. I felt like I was moving in slow mothion, watching the buck...fumbling with the arrow cleaning it, and putting it on the string. The buck was only 5 or 10 yards from me and I could hear him, I could see his shaking anxiety, I could feel his impending doom, and I was part of all of it for what had happened.

I finished him with that arrow from the ground, but not without terrible remorse, as he gasped for the last breath. I was not proud of that hunt, and worst of all it was my last one so far, and it is still a deeply affecting day. Learned a lot that day about something inside of me, and to be even more respectful than ever of that animal in my sights, I should have waited, I should have let him walk, the out of form shot I took was stupid. On the range, it was easy always shooting perfect form. In the field, it's not that way. I didn't practice that out of form shot from a stand and a tree it's attached to.

I consider myself a good hunter, and a good shot with the bow, but I have learned that I also have changed due to that experience.

I have to get back into it again, but I sure do feel differently than I did when I was a young hunter, and success was more important than the experience back then. Luckily I was successful most of the time and then the experience seemed to be fulfilled by that. Now, well, I just gotta get back out there and enjoy the experience again, even if I don't take a shot on another buck that walks right by me. I guess I might be just a "softer" hunter now. Hope everyone is successful and safe this season. Enjoy the experience and remember it's nature, and you are a part of it's purpose. Have a great hunt everyone!

Mark

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[TileMan Dan]

Mark, from your experience I have no doubts that you are now a better hunter due to your bitter experience.

[momay4000]

I'm with you on the being "affected deeply" on a wounded buck laying there with an arrow in a poor, non vital hit. I was so affected 2 years ago I haven't been in the field since. I have hunted with the bow for 40 years. Have taken lots of deer, wounded one i didnt recover, but this was different. I did recover this deer, not like i wanted to though. Don't know if it's my age or what, but I felt terrible remorse when the deer fell on the spot at 30 yards, but the arrow only broke the spine and he lay there crawling away by front legs. As I became shaken and in haste by what had happened, the buck was able to crawl behind a log into a hollow even further away. I tried 3 more attempts to arrow him again from my stand. Didn't happen. Hit the log... hit the ground... hit him once more nearly in the same spot. Now I have no more broadheads to launch, and I sat there waiting, hopefully an artery hit would have him go to sleep. To say I felt like just wishing I hadn't even gone to hunt that day is an understatement, and that is not how I like to end a day of what is something I cherish as my chance to rejuvinate. I sat there for an hour and no difference in the deers alertness. So I slowly climbed down, moved towards him searching for one of the arrows in the ground that could still be used to finish him.

I found one, cleaned it off and I looked into that deers sole. I felt like I was moving in slow mothion, watching the buck...fumbling with the arrow cleaning it, and putting it on the string. The buck was only 5 or 10 yards from me and I could hear him, I could see his shaking anxiety, I could feel his impending doom, and I was part of all of it for what had happened.

I finished him with that arrow from the ground, but not without terrible remorse, as he gasped for the last breath. I was not proud of that hunt, and worst of all it was my last one so far, and it is still a deeply affecting day. Learned a lot that day about something inside of me, and to be even more respectful than ever of that animal in my sights, I should have waited, I should have let him walk, the out of form shot I took was stupid. On the range, it was easy always shooting perfect form. In the field, it's not that way. I didn't practice that out of form shot from a stand and a tree it's attached to.

I consider myself a good hunter, and a good shot with the bow, but I have learned that I also have changed due to that experience.

I have to get back into it again, but I sure do feel differently than I did when I was a young hunter, and success was more important than the experience back then. Luckily I was successful most of the time and then the experience seemed to be fulfilled by that. Now, well, I just gotta get back out there and enjoy the experience again, even if I don't take a shot on another buck that walks right by me. I guess I might be just a "softer" hunter now. Hope everyone is successful and safe this season. Enjoy the experience and remember it's nature, and you are a part of it's purpose. Have a great hunt everyone!

Mark

Sent from my SM-N900P using Lake Ontario United mobile app

Mark - incredible story, I could actually feel the pain that you were feeling through your narrative. I agree with Tileman, you are not only a better hunter, but a better person. Your story is humbling to even the hardest of sportsmen/women.

 

Be safe,

 

Chris

[Legacy]

Thank you Skipper for sharing your story. I believe that woods is begging for your return.

[Legacy]

[Hop]

Skipper 19, thank you for sharing a very personal experience. I suspect many of the folks on here have had an experience,if not identical,at least similar to the one you described. I know I have. I t does indeed change a person 's perspective on why we do what we do. All the best to you.

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[Gill-T]

Skipper, bowhunters are made not born. There is a process we all go thru. Thru that process comes a discipline. You will learn from your mistakes and be better for the next deer. We would all take a woods full of hunters like you over anyone else because you have a soul and respect for the animal you hunt.

Edited September 26, 2016 by Gill-T

[Legacy]

Skipper, bowhunters are made not born. There is a process we all go thru. Thru that process comes a discipline. You will learn from your mistakes and be better for the next deer. We would all take a woods full of hunters like you over anyone else because you have a soul and respect for the animal you hunt.

Well said!!!

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[Legacy]

Skipper, bowhunters are made not born. There is a process we all go thru. Thru that process comes a discipline. You will learn from your mistakes and be better for the next deer. We would all take a woods full of hunters like you over anyone else because you have a soul and respect for the animal you hunt.

Well said!!!

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[King Slammin]

Everyone that hunts long enough will wound a deer. It happens. Sometimes it's beyond our control, sometimes it's very much within our control. I've finished two deer with my knife after spine shots. One was an awkward angle shot where I kind of twisted my body around the tree to make the shot (my fault). Another was a deflection off a branch while sitting on the ground in the middle of an oak hardwoods. I felt for the animals but also knew what had to be done to feed my family. My son was with me for the ground shot and thank god he has a killer instinct and wasn't affected by the scene that unfolded. Hunting is a way of life for us as we harvest and eat at least 5 deer each year, most if not all harvested with our bows. Sometimes our quarry has a less than perfect demise, but you have to move past it, fill the freezer, and learn from it.

[skipper19]

I want to thank each and every one of you, as bow hunting brethren, for the encouraging responses. I have thought about the very day many times over. Pretty much kept the emotion inside and never really talked about it. The day even seems to be more prevalent in memory than some of the more memorable good hunts. Even getting the venison cooked on the grill brought it forward.

I know that each time I go to the garage, my old climber and safety vest and the static line with prusic knots, are calling me. They have hung there on the post silently calling for two seasons to pack them in and get on the old tree, and watch the life of the woods come into my space so close again..

Thanks for letting me see if I'm "OK"...life does a few checkups once in a while. Be safe my friends!

Mark

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[JakeyBaby]

As I sit here at work contemplating as I do every year around this time to try and pin point when to start logging my vacation time! Just wondering what others are thinking is to when they are going to try and spend the most time in a tree this season? The obvious last week of October and 1st 2 weeks on November are the lock, just not sure exactly when I want to do it this year. I usually wait untill the last minute to try and check what weather is in the near future but, just part of the fun is trying to strategies the attack!

[JakeyBaby]

As I sit here at work contemplating as I do every year around this time to try and pin point when to start logging my vacation time! Just wondering what others are thinking is to when they are going to try and spend the most time in a tree this season? The obvious last week of October and 1st 2 weeks on November are the lock, just not sure exactly when I want to do it this year. I usually wait untill the last minute to try and check what weather is in the near future but, just part of the fun is trying to strategies the attack!

[stoneam2006]

October 24th start until you run out of time lol....I all day hunt holloween no matter what have seen alot of good rut action that day consistently year after year. Wish I had more time to use.

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[ripnlip]

I'm one of the lucky ones. I get 7 weeks vacation every year. I take vacation most years from last week of October till 1st full week of November. For the most part in a typical season part of the pre-rut into the rut will take place during that time frame in my area.

As far as the weather, a few years ago when the torrential rains from Hurricane Sandy hit our area and few of us crazy azz bow hunters (me included) were out every day & did very well (I bagged a nice 8 pt.). They weather didn't seem to affect the deer from rutting. Even with the terrible rains. I think the desire to breed supersedes the desire for shelter.