BOWHUNTING FER DEEEEEEER... the abridged version:
so as several of you may know, i went to virginia to go bowhunting in maryland the past 3 er 4 days. and heres how it went...
[if you have a weak heart/stomach... i advise that you not to read on, lol]
day 1: sat in a tree with my uncle for 2 hours before 2 young doe emerged from the forest across the meadow. it was a fair amount of time before they entered my effective shooting range, at which point i waited for a clean shot. one of the 2 doe presented its right side to me about 20yards off, so i draw and hold... pick a spot... and release. the arrow flies true to its target but hits high and to the left a few inches, coming to a rest in the animals spinal column. the arrow broke its back. the deer was left paralyzed from the midpoint down. in a few short moments it had dragged/crawled out of my range, so i told my uncle we should go end its suffering. my uncle went down into the field and put a second, and final, arrow thru the doe's heart/lungs, ending its life in seconds. so i was happy. my first day out and i made my first bow kill. most bowhunters go for as long as several years/seasons before they can land a clean shot. and my shot was indeed clean, i didnt miss, and i didnt leave an injured deer roaming around the forest. my arrow landed and that deer hit the ground with the same force as if a car hit it. for a first kill, a young doe was more than i could've asked for after just one day... but i wanted a buck.
day 2: this time i hunt alone. i get to the treestand and set up shop so to speak, and i wait. i wait for a good 2 hours being as quiet and still as possible, when out from the same woods i see my prize... a relatively large 6-point+ buck [#-point is the number of points on a buck's horns/antlers] and shortly after the first buck enters the field, a second similar-sized 6-point'r follows. bow in hand ready to draw... and the adrenaline rush kicks in. heart racing. hands n legs shaking. this is bowhunting. of course with all the blood from the day before all over the field, these 2 deer are suspicious and very hesitant to wander the meadow. while observing these two big boys i notice a smaller 6-point buck off in the distance, also part of the bachelor group, but he is much smaller and thus waits behind in the trees. i watch the behavior of all 3 as they gradually approach my shooting range, and i made the assessment that one was kind of the boss, cuz he locked horns with the smaller one and he jumped back, as if he knew his place. i nicknamed this one the 'alpha male' fer the moment. i got picky... almost cocky... i wanted that big buck, i even passed up clean shot opportunities on the smaller buck just cuz i wanted that alhpa. the big guy finally gets within range, but is facing me dead-on while eating... no shot. i wait and i wait for him to turn his side to me, but nothing... by the time he finally moves its almost too dark to see my sight pins [which allow me to aim the damn bow] and he moved a couple yards farther away and to the left. i see his side... i draw.. i hold... and then i make the decision to release. i figure, the arrow isnt going to hit the deer if it never leaves the bow, at least if i fire i have a slight chance. the arrow flies, and then i hear a loud 'pop' noise and all 3 deer take off running, tails up. "FUCK.. i missed!" i say to myself. moments later i hear loud snorting coming from the woods, that deer was PISSED. so i went down to try and retrieve my custom-made all-carbon arrow, which had a $10+ Spitfire broadhead arrow point, of which i only had 3. i began to ponder the 'pop' i heard, and came to the conclusion that my arrow glanced off of his horns, spooking all three out of the area. chances are they wouldnt return for weeks to come. so i lost my trophy... not a good day. but, as my uncle keeps saying to me "thats bowhunting..."
day 3: i get to the treestand early, hoping maybe ill have a better chance if im there early. 4:30pm-7:30pm[dark] and i dont see a thing. i decide to leave. not exactly an exciting end to my hunting trip, but overall i enjoyed it very much.
conclusion: i was very fortunate to have even had 2 shot opportunities on this trip. let alone a kill on my first shot and first day out. according to my uncle i was surprisingly calm and collected when it came time to take my shot, as if i was simply target-shooting. apparently im a "natural born killer/hunter" as he tells me. on day two my uncle took a mid-sized buck. day 1 and 2 my dad saw nothing from his stand, but day 3 he had a shot at a large mature doe and missed, but just barely. he was too nervous and he thinks he flinched as the arrow left the bow. so i guess im more of a hunter than him? lol
conclusion 2: my nose learned a new smell... for after killing the deer you have to drag it into the woods and "clean" it, aka you gotta gut it. the inside of an animal has its own kind of smell. its not all that bad, but its strong and definitely unique, lol. if yer queezy or have a weak stomach, you might be one to lose yer lunch at the sight/smell of a deer's insides. so you remove all the contents of the body cavity, drain the now-large puddle of coagulated blood in its chest, and yer done. or almost... now you gotta drag that deer thru the woods back to the truck.
its all quite the lil adventure, and im fer sure hooked on bowhunting. that adrenaline rush is absolutely addicting. i will most definitely be doing more hunting now, maybe here in cali or elk hunting in arizona, who knows? id like to hunt bear or moose [which are very very large/dangerous animals with the capacity to kill you] but hey y not?
pics soon...
[if you have a weak heart/stomach... i advise that you not to read on, lol]
day 1: sat in a tree with my uncle for 2 hours before 2 young doe emerged from the forest across the meadow. it was a fair amount of time before they entered my effective shooting range, at which point i waited for a clean shot. one of the 2 doe presented its right side to me about 20yards off, so i draw and hold... pick a spot... and release. the arrow flies true to its target but hits high and to the left a few inches, coming to a rest in the animals spinal column. the arrow broke its back. the deer was left paralyzed from the midpoint down. in a few short moments it had dragged/crawled out of my range, so i told my uncle we should go end its suffering. my uncle went down into the field and put a second, and final, arrow thru the doe's heart/lungs, ending its life in seconds. so i was happy. my first day out and i made my first bow kill. most bowhunters go for as long as several years/seasons before they can land a clean shot. and my shot was indeed clean, i didnt miss, and i didnt leave an injured deer roaming around the forest. my arrow landed and that deer hit the ground with the same force as if a car hit it. for a first kill, a young doe was more than i could've asked for after just one day... but i wanted a buck.
day 2: this time i hunt alone. i get to the treestand and set up shop so to speak, and i wait. i wait for a good 2 hours being as quiet and still as possible, when out from the same woods i see my prize... a relatively large 6-point+ buck [#-point is the number of points on a buck's horns/antlers] and shortly after the first buck enters the field, a second similar-sized 6-point'r follows. bow in hand ready to draw... and the adrenaline rush kicks in. heart racing. hands n legs shaking. this is bowhunting. of course with all the blood from the day before all over the field, these 2 deer are suspicious and very hesitant to wander the meadow. while observing these two big boys i notice a smaller 6-point buck off in the distance, also part of the bachelor group, but he is much smaller and thus waits behind in the trees. i watch the behavior of all 3 as they gradually approach my shooting range, and i made the assessment that one was kind of the boss, cuz he locked horns with the smaller one and he jumped back, as if he knew his place. i nicknamed this one the 'alpha male' fer the moment. i got picky... almost cocky... i wanted that big buck, i even passed up clean shot opportunities on the smaller buck just cuz i wanted that alhpa. the big guy finally gets within range, but is facing me dead-on while eating... no shot. i wait and i wait for him to turn his side to me, but nothing... by the time he finally moves its almost too dark to see my sight pins [which allow me to aim the damn bow] and he moved a couple yards farther away and to the left. i see his side... i draw.. i hold... and then i make the decision to release. i figure, the arrow isnt going to hit the deer if it never leaves the bow, at least if i fire i have a slight chance. the arrow flies, and then i hear a loud 'pop' noise and all 3 deer take off running, tails up. "FUCK.. i missed!" i say to myself. moments later i hear loud snorting coming from the woods, that deer was PISSED. so i went down to try and retrieve my custom-made all-carbon arrow, which had a $10+ Spitfire broadhead arrow point, of which i only had 3. i began to ponder the 'pop' i heard, and came to the conclusion that my arrow glanced off of his horns, spooking all three out of the area. chances are they wouldnt return for weeks to come. so i lost my trophy... not a good day. but, as my uncle keeps saying to me "thats bowhunting..."
day 3: i get to the treestand early, hoping maybe ill have a better chance if im there early. 4:30pm-7:30pm[dark] and i dont see a thing. i decide to leave. not exactly an exciting end to my hunting trip, but overall i enjoyed it very much.
conclusion: i was very fortunate to have even had 2 shot opportunities on this trip. let alone a kill on my first shot and first day out. according to my uncle i was surprisingly calm and collected when it came time to take my shot, as if i was simply target-shooting. apparently im a "natural born killer/hunter" as he tells me. on day two my uncle took a mid-sized buck. day 1 and 2 my dad saw nothing from his stand, but day 3 he had a shot at a large mature doe and missed, but just barely. he was too nervous and he thinks he flinched as the arrow left the bow. so i guess im more of a hunter than him? lol
conclusion 2: my nose learned a new smell... for after killing the deer you have to drag it into the woods and "clean" it, aka you gotta gut it. the inside of an animal has its own kind of smell. its not all that bad, but its strong and definitely unique, lol. if yer queezy or have a weak stomach, you might be one to lose yer lunch at the sight/smell of a deer's insides. so you remove all the contents of the body cavity, drain the now-large puddle of coagulated blood in its chest, and yer done. or almost... now you gotta drag that deer thru the woods back to the truck.
its all quite the lil adventure, and im fer sure hooked on bowhunting. that adrenaline rush is absolutely addicting. i will most definitely be doing more hunting now, maybe here in cali or elk hunting in arizona, who knows? id like to hunt bear or moose [which are very very large/dangerous animals with the capacity to kill you] but hey y not?
pics soon...