Do you hunt big game with a bow?

[archeratlrg]

I'm 56 yrs old and I too hunt mostly 4500 to 7000 ft along the back bone of the Cascades in Oregon. In Colorado our home sits at 9200 and we can pretty much hunt out the back door. Due to time and circumstances most of my hunting now is done alone as I can find no one who will or has the time to hunt the tough country with me. One does have to be careful and even then, some bad stuff can happen...I slipped while walking on a slick pummy road while elk hunting in 2110. Tried to tuck and roll but just drove my shoulder into the ground. Broke my neck, dislocated my shoulder and both clavicles at the SC joints. Will be finally getting the last of my surgeries done June 11th this year so if I do shoot rifle this year, it most likely will be southpaw. If you hunt alone, leave notes in your camp and vehicle as to where you're hunting and watch your step! I've never needed a compass or GPS but have them and a Sat radio in case I need to talk someone to me to haul my tail out. So far (not all do to hunting) I've had my back broken 5 times with 12 surgeries to keep me upright and mobile, both knees worked on several time with a knee replacement this past March, and both shoulders worked on with one more coming up. In 1998 was shot by a careless hunter who had put a loaded rifle behind the seat of his pickup. I think we need to be careful of those we hunt with.

 

[longshotleroy]

My last hunt was on may 12 for turkey and bear. Does anyone have a rear good recipe for tag soup? We saw some hens (tom only season) and no bears which is unusual for my area because last year we limited out on toms (3) and saw some bears. Oh well at least we got out hunting!!

 

[1Hunter]

It's recommended that a hunter should not hunt alone, You do have to hunt
where the animals are. Sometimes that can be hazardous to your health.
Those big bulls dive right in the steepest nasty canyons around.
You have to decide whether or not to go in there and if I kill an
animal in there, can I get it out before it spoils?

Scouting an area well ahead of season, usually is best. you locate the
best way in and out plus the bedding areas etc.

To get hurt in the mountains alone is not good. Help can be a long time in arriving.
I used to live in Alaska and did a fair amount of hunting. We always figured that if you are a 1/4 of a mile off the end of a road, you might as well be a 100.
because they will have a tough time finding you.

 

[RichardJ]

No, it is too hard to pull the trigger with a bow.

 

[1Hunter]

No, it is too hard to pull the trigger with a bow.

OK.

 

[gtodan]

I answered "no". Guess I never considered whitetails big game.

 

[1Hunter]

I answered "no". Guess I never considered whitetails big game.

I guess if hunted where the whitetails are thicker than fleas on a dog.
I probably wouldn't consider them big game either.

But, we have to hunt just as hard for a whitetail buck as we do for a Muley buck. Blacktails are even tougher to find.



Practice, Practice Practice.

 

[jbone79]

my dad and uncle got me started hunting with a bow at age 8 . i have hunted and killed over 30 or 40 deer with a bow in my lifetime . i love the rush you get from being and getting that close to game ..archery is my first love when it comes to deer hunting ...nothing more rewarding ..

 

[1Hunter]

Yes, Getting close is one of the greatest thrills of the hunt.

There are many ways of getting close. My favorite is the tree stand,
at 25 ft or less. Then there is the ground blind. The toughest is the ground
stalk.

Practice Practice and Practice.

 

[Goofycat]

I used to bow hunt, but I finally hung up my old Bear Kodiak (purchased new in 1967). I have not used a compound bow. The old Kodiak has become nothing other than a work of wood art I keep in my "man-cave."

 

[1Hunter]

Some of those old, (If you want to call 40 something old) recurve
bows were made from some beautiful wood. Those old Boyer's
really know their business and turned out some really functional
works of art.

I have a few of those wall hangers in what I call my office.
Every once in a while I will string one up and shoot a few arrows
in the back pasture at a couple targets setup back there.

 

[longshotleroy]

I cointly do ollie!-i usuall go one weekend in september (all my wife will allow without deadly force) montana has some very good spots.

 

[Goofycat]

When I was in the Air Force in Amarillo, Tx, in the late 1950s, there were not many options to us young and broke dudes with no car and having to live 10 miles from town. We got into shooting .22 rimfire pistols, model airplanes and especially bow/arrow stuff.

There was a very good field target range not far from the base. We fletched, nocked and put points on our own fiberglass and aluminum arrows. The fletching machine was made by the Rhode company; I don't know if they are still in business. The parts were purchased mostly from an outfit called the "Bow Hut" in the Los Angeles area. I still have my old quiver and a few of the original arrows. Compound bows hadn't been invented yet, otherwise I would have probably purchased one.

Most of us shot "instinctive" because bow-sights weren't really perfected at that time. Modern archery equipment manufacturers really have their acts together. I'd try the bow gig again, but I have been made lazy from using rifles. Well....not really too lazy. It takes a fair amount of work to reload cartridges, and I should be out there in the garage doing some annealing, but ran out of propane.

 

[1Hunter]

I cointly do ollie!-i usuall go one weekend in september (all my wife will allow without deadly force) montana has some very good spots.

Good Luck, This September.