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Question for the unsuccessful Bow hunters

alaskanwhtail

alaskanwhtail

New Member
This past season, what went wrong or could of happened, to turn your hard work scouting the wrongway. What are some things your gonna try different and or purchase some new equipment to better yourself in the deer woods. Are you gonna raise your standerds? How many days were you able to hunt and did you have anyclose encounters with one of the boys...
 
Even though I haven't filled my tag yet I still feel successful. I had the opportunity to shoot a 130" 8 point. This would have been the biggest deer I ever shot. However I set goals for myself this year and said that I would not shoot something that I would not score in the 140 and above range. Last year I would have never even seen this deer because I would have shot the basket rack that walked in 20 mins before him. Setting these standards for myself has given me unbelievable experiences because it has given me the chance to see so much more deer activity and so many deer. HOPEFULLY I'll get the chance to get a shot at a good one but if not I still had a great season.
 
Speaking of unsuccessful. When the DNR lifts the NR cap. I think we should push for a new bill that states..as long as a person has unfilled tags,he or she can hunt until those tags are filled!! If you still have unfilled tags at the start of the following year... YEEHAW The more the merrier!!!
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As our bow season winds down I've had some time to reflect on it. I never once came to full draw on a deer this year, yet I've had a most successful season. Allthough I hunted as often as I could, I saw fewer deer this season than in all my years bowhunting, but still felt successful. Sure the wind changed and possibly messed things up a couple times. Heck, I probably over hunted a blind a couple times also. I still had a wonderful time. Will buying better equipment make me more successfull? NO! Better equipment can help some become more proficiant but not more successful. Being successful comes from within, not the amount of equipment we carry to the woods.
I've shot a lot of deer with a bow through the years. Any monsters? No. Would I like to? You bet! Will my world come to an end if I don't? Absolutely not! I feel very fortunate to live in a country/state that allows us the freedom to hunt. To me, simply being out there in the woods is being sucessful to me.
I had my old Groves restored this year and have now aquired all the peices to put it together as it was when I got it in 1972. Kwikee Kwiver, Hilbre heads, and Micro-flight shafts. I plan on hunting with that setup next season. I know it will be a successful season for me. Jay
 
Wow Shovelbuck I thought you were talking about ME!! I drew on a doe opening day for prcatice and got BUSTED from the side!!! I shot my first B&C Doe thiis year with my 54Cal. T.C. Semi-auto matic Muzzleloader!! My 7 year old saw it first, covered his ears, and when the smoke cleared found the first Blood trail!!! I am gonna start training!! Thats right!! Wed. Night archery league, snowboarding, weights, everything just like when i was a Pro cyclist!! Heck i am even considering taking that supplement that improves your vision!! Whats the name of that stuff anyways?? 1 week left to bag another B&C doe!! Enjoy!!! Hey ALASKAN i worry about you not getting enough SUNSHINE!! Do they tell you guys to go to the Tanner or What?? What the Heck Happy NEW Year to you ALL!! 2005 Bigger Racks, FATTER Does!!
 
I will answer this question on January 11th, the day after the bow season is over here in Iowa.
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Koba, I worry about that myself, theres less than 3 hours of light and I don't get any of it. Maybe I'm lacking in that vitamin. As a result from a whacky post Shovelbuck gets all up in arms. He must not have taken it the way I intended.
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Sorry Alaskan, didn't mean to sound that way. To answer your questions in a direct way...The wind was wrong, I will not be getting any new equipment, Yes, I had a close encounter with a big one. I don't plan on changing strategies.
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Shovel did not over react to this post at all. He made some great points. One does not have to harvest a deer to be successful, just the experiences we encounter being out doors & having a safe hunt is very rewarding.

I would not do anything different next year, though I didn't capitalize on several large buck I encountered I felt very successful to be that close to a mature buck & be glad for the experience. Getting that shot opportunity is just an added bonus. No matter how well we plan it's still a chess game with mature buck & it always involves a little luck to go along with harvesting one.
 
I hunted our short 6 week season pretty hard,from Oct.2nd to Nov.13th,and only saw one shooter.Actually saw him Nov.13th,the last day,just couldn't get the shot,nice time for our season to end,thanks PGC.Most years I'll normally see 2 to 3 shooters in our 6 week season,but only managed to see one this year.
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Passed on several 90-110 cl. bucks,hopefully some will make it?I actually feel pretty fortunate at times this year just to see the one big buck, along with the ones I passed on.A fellow bowhunter spent 13 times on stand before he even seen his first deer,pretty sad!Even though I was only after a 130 cl. or better,it's tough to accomplish around here,and realize I'll go empty handed at times.But I enjoy the challenge,and it just makes it that much more rewarding when I do connect.Is there anything I would do differently next year?Other than hunt the remote,hard to access places more often,not really,I feel I gave it my best.There's alot of changes I'd like to see take place here,but don't want to change the topic.
 
I though those were some great thoughts, Jay. It's really important to keep that kind of a perspective regardless of what happens. I hunted Nebraska's rifle season this fall for the second time ever, and didn't fill my tag this year. I still considered it a successful season because I spent 7 glorious days outdoors and learned a lot. Come September I'll be hunting my first bow season and am really excited for all of the new opportunities that will bring!

Can you have an unsuccessful season? I guess that depends on how you define success!
 
Next year I am going to pay more attention to the wind direction. I got busted by a couple of big ones this year because I thought that I could fool their noses'....so next year i'm going to hunt the wind right.
 
I had some venison steaks last night.

Success !!

Any hunt that is injury/accident free is a success.
 
That's an excellent last line NebraskaWhitetail. I would have to say that I had an excellent season since I got to share it with my brother who helped me get on a good buck. We patterned him, trimmed lanes and hunted both ends of the properety at the same time to maximize our chances of one of us to get a shot.
To make a long story short, I harvested what one would call a management size buck without seeing the big guy again on the last day of the bow season. I know the big guy is still out there and hope my brother will get a try on him.
We usually hunt in seperate directions to maximize our chances but this year we teamed up alot and it was a blast. The time with my brother is what made it a successful season, harvesting that buck was secondary.
 
Ok, so I raise my standards waiting for a buck when I should have been taking does...I know better for next year...Anyways the buck I was hunting I killed with my shotgun but I should have had him with my bow.

I think next year we need to get out and scout a little more, and make sure shooting lanes are clear enough to put an arrow through so the bucks cant always stop in spots that I cant put an arrow through lol....but he found out I could put a slug through it I guess....oh and like I said next year I just need to fill like a doe tag or two and maybe get myself a buck but the does need to be thinned badly around us...and the neighbors helped some and my dad did two...I tried with a shotgun but she was just a little to far and i shot under her but o'well...

so thats what I believe we need to do better....

huntin4life88
 
I want to make sure that I am out there to enjoy the experience first. I froze my rear off yesterday afternoon and saw zero deer. I really did enjoy watching all the turkeys and day dreaming about the buck that is going to materialize out of the snowy forest edge. It just wasn't yesterday. Enjoying the experience and really working to make it fun for who ever I may be with is now my number one goal. Thank God for the chance to do what you love to do and have fun.
 
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