Hello to all. I am curious to know how many of you are really meat hunters (deer). Also, I am curious to know what the average amount of practice time you put in a week? In addition, what is the average amount of deer you take a year is.
In order to answer these questions I realize that there are differences in areas, # of tags given by the state, and the type of property you have to hunt. But given all that how sucessful are you at filling your tags.
I am asking these questions because I am pondering giving up the compound and going to traditional only (which will require alot of faith in my ability - since we want to live of of venison) :campfire: :archer:
I guess I am a meat hunter. I get most of it with the shotgun though. 2-3 a year.
As far as practice, well, I mostly gun hunt :)
You are right, though, you have to have faith in your ability regardless of how you want to kill your meat. Practice until you get proficient at a predictable range and keep your shots inside of that.
We eat quite a few deer and other critters at my house...but don't subsist on it. If I had to insure enough meat to feed my family of 4, I'd pick a gun. Thankfully I don't have to do that so I haven't hunted with a gun for about 15 years or so. I also don't have the time to hunt enough to fill my freezer with meat for an entire year...nor do I have that many freezers. I usually take at least one deer a year, sometimes more if time allows and my son usually takes one with his rifle. With the other game I shoot: hogs, javies, goat, exotics etc. we have a pretty good variety of meat to supplement our normal store-bought stuff. Hope to add a mule deer and at least one pronghorn to the larder this year :D
As far as practice, I typically try to shoot everyday my schedule allows. Sometimes it's 4-5 times a week, sometimes 1-2. Every time though, I shoot until I'm tired if light allows,if not then anywhere from 50-100 arrows.
I wish accuracy on 3D ranges or the back yard equated to that on live animals...but in my experience it doesn't. It certainly helps, but shooting fur and feather is much more difficult psychologically than foam etc. The only way I know to get better at killing critters with a stick bow is to kill critters with a stickbow...and even then, it's still not a slam dunk. But that's one of the many reasons we do this, right? ;)
use a gun
Ben...I would say that ALL who hunt would be MEAT HUNTERS.
As to how much we practice. Well that depends on how proficient you WANT to be. In some cases it may depend on how hungry you get as to how much you practice.
Over the years I have found I rarely get proficient at anything when I have something to fall back on. Pullin the Fat out of the Fire so to speak.
I shoot every day that weather allows, still finding I ain't where I want to be (nock splittin). We still have game on the table and I DON"T fall back on anything, sept me and my BOWs
I never hunted with a compound except a short part of one season in the 80's had a recurve since the mid 70's so I never felt my equip. could not do the job.I use and eat 1-2 deer a year.I use to use a rifle and bow but have now only my bow but don't have to kill as many deer as I use to but still hunt every chance I get as I get older.After you make your first kill with you trad bow (hate that word) you will not question the equip.I am a trophy hunter but a doe is a trophy to me doesn't have to have horns.Kip
Usually kill 6 deer a year at least until last year and got one. Usually its split between muzzleloader and bow, 2nd year I hunted w/recurve killed 5 in a row with one double. Me and the significant other usually eat all 6 deer in one form or other be it jerky, sausage or burger, so really bumming this year. I made the mistake of setting my sights on a really big buck and passed up a bunch of shooters/eaters including a ton of does while waiting for Mr. Big, seen a couple huge ones but never a shot. This year will be meat in the freezer only if I get a shot at a big deer fine if not still enjoy the hunt just as much...
There was a thread a while back about this same topic and I looked for it but someone deleted it. It exists in the search but doesn't pull up.
It is more challenging than using a compound. Some pick up this disipline quicker than others. I average 4.5 deer with trad gear a year since 2002...my first year hunting with trad BUT I hunt alot and get many opps at southern whitetails.
I would'nt really consider myself a meat hunter. I average about 2 deer a year with traditional bow. I hunted 1 day in the last 5 years with a handgun and none with a rifle. I'm just not interested in hunting other than traditional archery anymore. I will harvest 2-3 does each year if I can and won't shoot a buck that I would'nt put on the wall. I shoot every time I get a chance because I enjoy it. For the past month or so that has been everyday. The word practice does'nt sound fun to me.
First of all I disagree with the statement "get a gun". I've been bowhunting since the 60's and have always said will always say that if all you want to do is kill a deer then get a bow. Here, in PA, gun hunting is way too much luck with deer running wild all over the place. Now, as far as using a compound vs recurve or longbow...I've personally hunted my entire life with recurves and longbows but I did take one season while running my own archery shop and shot deer in W.V., PA and Ohio using a compound and sights. I put them away after that and still see no difference in being able to kill a deer. I shot the same distances with both types of equipment and I'm just as accurate with both.
As for practice. I always say I never practice I just love taking my bow for a walk. I like it so much I do it every day, summer or winter and rain or shine. I just enjoy shooting my bow.
Am I a meat hunter? I always put a deer in the freezer for meat. I sometimes hate giving up my buck tag since in my state and area you get one buck and one doe tag. I've averaged just under 2 deer a year since 1993 when we started the two tag system.
JC:
I think that is the biggest challenge I have is the mental aspect. I see Fred Eichler and others do it but I cannot help but think that these guys only hunt (for a living). Not having put arrow to flesh yet will be a big obsticle to overcome. I picked up a stick bow because of the challenge and because every deer I have everseen has passed me within at least 12 yards, and sometimes alot closer. Thanks for the advise.
Ray Hammond:
I appreciate the advise but to say "use a Gun"; well I think you are in the wrong forum. I dont gun hunt because frankly it got to easy. I got to the point that I could shoot a plume at 300yds 4 out of 5 shoots and I lost the real meaning of hunting...at least to me...it turned into killing :notworthy: :archer:
I still hunt with alot of different methods. Last year I didn't pick up a gun but I did hunt with my compound. This year I plan to leave the wheels at home and hunt with my longbow/recurve. We don't subsistence hunt and everything I manage to take is considered a "bonus" if you will. I do alot of bird hunting and if I add a deer/exotic/hog to the freezer, that much better. I enjoy the journey much more than the end now. The trip is what makes it. A prime example is this past fall, I FINALLY took an Aoudad ram. I have hunted these elusive sheep over 20 years and had yet to even get within gun range, let alone bow range. I shot him at 17 yards with my compound. When I finally held the horns in my hands, it was a little sad because the journey had come to an end. Not to say I can't go after a bigger animal but the "first" was down. That and my longbow was sitting in camp and I feel good about my shooting at that range. Anyway, that is my take. If I feel I have to have some venison, I will pick up my .270 but I haven't felt that "need" in a while. I don't mind coming home empty handed most of the time.
longbowman:
I really enjoy my recurve the same way but at the tender age of 27 and with a growing family; it is becoming harder and harder to get away. in Texas we get 5 stamps (I think, with 2 buck/doe tags, and 3 antlerless tags). I want to fill them all but we will see.
Strictly meat!
At the risk of opening a can of worms or offending my friends here, I consider it an insult to the animal to decorate my wall with his head after I killed him.
Especially with a rifle from 200 yards away.
We wouldn't stuff and mount our brothers, right?
"We wouldn't stuff and mount our brothers, right?"
Beau:
I wouldn't eat them either;).
TM
if I had to insure that I got meat to eat and feed my family, I'd use the time spent for hunting, scouting and practicing on a second job. My family enjoys venison and we eat all we get, but if I don't get any deer for some reason there still won't be anyone going hungry at my house. As much as I support hunting, family responsibilities will always come first.
Does consitantly connecting with traditional equipment make you a better hunter? In my opinion, yes. I make sure I scout the land I'm hunting to try to help stack the odds in my favor. If your hunting a well used deer trail/scrape line, your more apt to put a deer in the freezer then just setting up randomly. Last couple have been rough. We had a poacher killing anything that walked with a rifle on the property next to us. Considering we were hunting 52 acres, this idiot took somewhere around 40 some deer and put a hurtin on the herd. Glad DNR caught him, dirtbag. May have a lead this year on a great lease with plenty of Sika deer on it. Talk about good eating! Hoping it works out.
If I tag a big buck, it's going on the wall but I'll take a mature doe for freezer meat just as well. My family loves venison and we have a chest freezer that is just for venison. I do my best to keep it full!
JL
i luv venison... and i think any animal killed with traditional gear would be considered a trophy... i dont find much skill in hunting with guns....
to try and answer your questions like ya asked them: I dont know what your deer herd is like in your part of Texas, but here it is kinda tough killing 3 or 4 a year with a stickbow (we get max 4 deer and have a 5 month bow season). I usually kill 2 or 3 sometimes 4 but my wife gun hunts some so we will usually put 5 deer or so in the freezer. I like horns like everyone else but I also like eatin deer meat! I am by no means a great shot, and during the summer I will normally shoot a couple nights a week after work for a hour or so then shoot a few 3-d tournments during the summer. good luck stay after it or as Ray said, gun hunt if it means eatin or not...
All hunters should be meat hunters. In short, if you don't plan to eat it, you shouldn't shoot it. Probably preaching to the choir here though. I take two a year with my trad equipment. Could shoot a lot more, but that's all I can eat in a year. Enables me to be selective and put in a lot of time hunting. I shoot daily. I don't call it practice because its more fun than that.
Stick String.
The fact you laid before us was ...
we want to live of of venison; and I have only been bowhunting for about 2 years and have never shot anything with my recurve.
If you want to live off of venison then don't depend on a weapon that you haven't yet even taken an animal with.
Subsistence hunting - which is what you are talking about- is different than hunting for pleasure or recreation or the myriad other reasons we can choose to hunt for.
Your specific question was should you do it with a stick and string- my response was "use a gun".
I'm not one to blow smoke up someone's rear end and call it a fresh breeze. If you want to live off of venison then you and your family are going to get mighty hungry before you get full using a stick bow.
Can it be done- of course it can. You asked if we thought YOU could do it. Based on the premise you provided, and the backup information that you have yet to take anything with a recurve- my response is still - USE A GUN.
I believe that pretty much hits the nail on the head.
Ray:
Point taken. I guess I worded it wrong. I will rewrite the question.
Does anyone find it exceptionally harder to kill a deer or many deer with a stick bow rather than a compound? :confused:
I think maybe my statements have been contorted a little. I did not mean that if I dont limit out, my family wont eat. On the other hand, I WANT to live off of deer and would like to use a stick bow. I guess I am wondering how many are sucessful at this and what does it take to get there? (I hope my meaning is getting out there)
:knothead: :campfire:
I suppose I'm fortunate in that our family eats venison year round. Occasionally my wife get's a taste for cube steaks, but other than that there hasn't been beef in our freezer for longer than I can remember. And yes, I hunt exclusively with traditional archery tackle when it comes to big game.
I'm a meat hunter first and foremost, but sometimes that meat is attached to a nice set of dragging handles. I don't ever go into the woods with the intention of shooting something that'll end up at the taxidermist. Sometimes things work out that way though.
"Does anyone find it exceptionally harder to kill a deer or many deer with a stick bow rather than a compound?"
Not really. You really should not have a problem getting similar results with a proficient non-compound bow as you do with a compound bow. Most bow-killed deer are inside of 20 yards. I'd say you should be fine.
"I WANT to live off of deer and would like to use a stick bow. I guess I am wondering how many are sucessful at this and what does it take to get there?"
Plenty of deer are killed with a trad bow. Your success rate will vary based on your deer herd, your allowable hunting time, and your skill. Get proficient at hitting a pie pan inside of 20 on your first shot every time in different conditions and you will be fine. The biggest difference past that is the let-off of a compound. Just draw when they can't see you so well :)
I have a four inch group at 18 yards so I think that I fit within that requirement.
stick and string, dont take this wrong, because no ill intent is meant, but is that 4 inch group gonna hold up when its 30 degrees and you are having to crouch down on stand to get the shot or shoot to your "off side"?? I dont see a lot of merit in quoting group size.. will that ONE arrow go where ya want it to?? get out and shoot some judos and enjoy some real time practice, use that practice time to scout.. if ya set up properly there shouldnt be any diffrence in shootin a stick or a compound.. just stay within your range... good luck!!
Not takin wrong at all. Living in FOrt Worth I do not have mush time to drive the two hours to practice odd ranges (stump shoot). But I do put plants, chairs, and other things that are in my backyard in front of me to try my best to simulate a hunt situation (drives my wife crazy). I practice crouching, on my knees and standing bent over (in the cold, Heat, and wind too). I agree that it dosent matter what you can do on the range but in crunch time.
Problem is I do not know what I can do in crunch time.... :confused: :archer:
QuoteOriginally posted by stick_string:
Does anyone find it exceptionally harder to kill a deer or many deer with a stick bow rather than a compound?
No, it's not exceptionally harder than a compound. If I had lots of time during hunting season, I'm sure I would run out of freezer space before I ran out of shot ops.
I would think some of that depends on where you live/hunt. In some places up North, you may only get a tag or two but may only get a few shot ops...here in GA you can kill at least 14 legally and may not be able to recall the shot ops they'll be so many...Alabama is one of either sex each day. So it could be a lot easier to subsistance hunt with a stickbow in some locales than others.
Either way, takes a dedicated woodsman to consistently get close to and kill deer with a stickbow.
QuoteI have a four inch group at 18 yards so I think that I fit within that requirement.
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The real question is are your woodsmanship skills honed enough to consistently get you a shot in your effective range....... If so you are set...... Terry
Sorry JC I just saw you made the same point..... Terry
Working on that but I think this season will really be the tale
now that's a horse of a different shade...in Georgia I know lots of folks who limit out all 12 tags each year- or could if they could eat that much deer meat..plus we have hogs and turkeys and bears and gators too...so YES, it's feasible to do it.
My family regularly donates 2-6 deer a year to the Food Bank for grinding up into hamburger because we just cannot eat it all..plus I kill about 12 hogs a year. turkeys- that's another subject!!!!
I'm a meat hunter for sure when it comes to deer. I prefer to shoot all i need with a bow last year it was three, two for me and one for my 79 year old friend who has been eating venison his whole life but can't get out as much. If i fall short of my goal with a bow then i will resort to shotgunning or muzzle loader. Last year thankfully i never had to shoot one with a gun.
I was so busy rattling on that i forgot to include that i shoot at least four to five days a week, and shoot every day before i head out to the woods at least a couple arrows.
I'm strictly a trophy hunter
last year I got 4 bowling trophies, 2 stock car trophies... Just kidding
Move to the midewest from Texas and you only have to kill about 1/3 the deer to have enough to live on..and they aren't as skittish as Texas deer either.(just kidding again..well not really)
To answer your questions I have no trouble killing deer with primitive equipment but I live where there are a lot of deer and I hunt a lot, I understand deer behavior and how to use natural lighting and the wind and topography to my advantage. I don't kill more than we need to eat. I prefer the chase to the kill. However there are 3 of us hunting in the family so we always have some venison in the freezer. We make a lot of jerky to go with the steaks, roasts and burger.
The first adult deer that offers a ten to fifteen yard broadside shot, usually goes home with me.
I`m not at all ashamed to kill a doe. My family puts to good use any that comes home. A kill is truly a celebration at our house. Two per year is average.
As far as how much practice? I shoot quite a bit. It is all geared toward hunting. As summer fades into fall, I shoot at least one or two arrows a day.
Good ones, with no warm up. I have a couple targets set in front of my house, that I shoot at from my deck, before work, and after work.
Good groups are important, but for hunting, you must be able to pick a spot and hit it, without
being comfortable and warmed up. It is a great confidence builder to be able to step out with your bow and shoot one good arrow into the 3-D
deer at will.
I hunted a lot of years with a compound, and got pretty proficient with it. But I got to thinking about how many of those deer were killed at over 20 yards. Want to take a guess? I couldn't remember even one!
I decided to try traditional gear to add a little more challenge and because it is just so much more fun to shoot. With a compound I had grown bored with practicing and shooting for fun and had slipped into the mode of not even shooting a bow until shortly before season opened each year. That sure isn't the case with a stick bow!
I shoot year round now, and love every chance I get to fling some arrows.
My deer hunting and killing hasn't suffered in the least. Still have just as many shot opportunities and kill just as many deer. Have lots more fun doing it too!
Im pretty much a hard-core meat hunter but ive also been wanting to pratice QDM to see what I get out of it. In a few seasons ive passed some small bucks waiting for something a little bigger but at the same time it doesn't feel right because IMO a hunter is one who hunts for meat and not horn.
I did fairly good this year I took 5 deer which filled my freezer quite well 4 were gun kills one was my bow with my first buck. I love to shoot does a big old 4-5 year old doe is my favorite animal in the world simply because she is so beautiful and smart at the same time id much rather doe hunt then buck hunt.
Whip story matches mine verbatim EXCEPT I did kill a few farther than the 20 yds he referred to.
I forgot to add I pratice everyday for hours im not a very good shot with a recurve so im trying to hone myself so by season I can comfortably and confidently shoot a deer at 20 yards. I think you should get to the point that no matter what kind of situation your in you know that you can put an arrow in that kill zone at your effective range and from any position at that.
I pratice in a lot of real hunting situations infact to day I was shooting under our deck so I had to slump low on my knees and shoot my bow almost flat and ya know what I did ok at 15 yards. Im going to keep doing these realistic scenarios so if a shot like this does occur im ready for it id hate to shoot a deer in a position I haven't pratice in. I also shoot my bow upstraight and canted in the opposite direction just to add a little twist to my shooting and better help me and I think you owe it to the animal to do the same. Good hunting.
Yep, the more I think about it, every bow hunter I can think of that I have learned from (compound hunters) have rarely shot an animal beyond 25 yards.
I thought of another good point as well. With my compound I can split arrows and rip vanes off out to 30 yards, but this year I missed a doe that ducked the string at about 16 yards!!
I think that I need to accept the fact that I am going to miss...no matter how good a shot I practice to be; I think it is written in the cards that at least a few times in my life, I will be forced to eat some dirt soup.
I guess I qualify as a meat hunter too, since I do not shoot anything I am not going to eat. That was the rule under which I was brought up hunting and will always live by.
Good luck in your switch to trad equipment. You will love it.
Dan
FWIW...use a compound for your required subsistence then have fun with the stickbow.
Where I live in Georgia, you have to be a meat hunter. Not too many P&Y bucks in this part of the state, so that's why trad is so fun cuz everything's a trophy! That said, we don't buy beef, ground or steaks - we eat venison. Plus a little wild piggie when things work out. True I'm just getting into trad 2nd year, so since we eat 4-5 a year, I do pull out the wheels from time to time...plus my daughter helped the cause with a rifle buck when she was home from college. 3 deer and a hog in the last year with trad gear.
:goldtooth: I like pork much better than deer.
No pork in his part of the country, or it would be on my list.
I wouldn't consider myself a meat hunter since of all the deer I take a year I only keep a small one for myself per season (bow / MZ), the rest go to friends and co-workers when they ask for one.
I hunt some really good property and on most occasions during the early bow season especially I typically have a perfect shot oppertunity almost each time I go out and that is no more than a couple of hours in the morning or afternoon. Like I said I only keep one for myself with the bow so unless a friend wants a deer I look for a mature buck. That being said I typically get requests for a few deer during the bow season and take about three each season.
I love to hunt with flintlocks and usaually take another three during the gun seasons. I only hunt with stykbows and traditional MZ's. But if I wanted to between bow and MZ I could supply a butcher shop with steady work...LOL.
I don't pratice much for a few reasons, at best a couple of times a month and never during the summer months. One I don't feel the need to since I have full confidence in myself and I do much better shooting at game than I do targets. Second I have better things to do with my free time.
I shoot alot just for the fun of shooting a stick bow...
I agree with Trad Deer in that it sounds like a great idea to whip out the compound in case of emergency :bigsmyl:
We do have pigs...one of the properties I am going to hunt this year is overrun with them. Dont know how they taste... :confused: :campfire:
ok, im goin to jump into this.
i hunted all last season from October 15 (opening day of bow season) to January 31 (end of bow and gun season) and from Oct 15 to November 18 (opening day of gun season) i hunted with my compound only because i wasnt good enough to hunt with my longbow. on opening day i missed a doe at 30 yards because i put that 20 yard pin on her and let er fly. it made me sick to watch that Lumenock sail right under her (i still say that hose nocks are great...)
from there things went downhill FAST! i had one other oppertunity during bow season, but i was sittin down and FUBAR'd on that shot, BUT if id had my longbow, i probabbly could have gotten her...
on the second week of gun season i waited on the bigger doe to move out from behind some brush when the baby spooked (it was a yearling, not a fawn) i had the 30-30 that day trained on that spot ready to kill, oh well, there went that chance...
my next encounter came in January, i had hunted harder than my dad and i was determined to kill whatever walked out next, cause i had hunted hard and wanted a deer. well here she came one morning. one got by me by getting behind some trees. i held my new 300 Winchester Magnum that morning and when the nest doe popped in to view, i found a clear shot and tapped the trigger.
it took me a LONG time last year for me to get a deer, it was WELL earned! i dont care how i manage to kill it, im proud of ANY deer that i hpeent to kill. im happy and will take them as they come. if its got horns youll probabbly have to come and bring me out of the woods cause id probabbly have a heart attack and die right there, but im happy with does and will kill them just as well as anything else.
now then, you can call me selfish and you can call me a Redneck (which i am) but i dont care, im going to hunt my way and as long as your not doin something SERIOUSLY illegal, im not goin to say anything to you. thats just my opinion..
sorry about the rant and the long post...
I enjoy venison and other wild game, but I'm not a meat hunter. When I was a kid, we supplemented our grocery list with quail, rabbits and squirrel, there were no deer in my area in those days. If I had to live on deer, or other wild game that I killed with a longbow, I'd have starved to death many years ago. I hunt because I enjoy being in the woods and the challenge of bow hunting. When I do take a deer, with my bow, it's a sense of accomplishment that no one can appreciate until they've experienced it. I only get to hunt 2 weeks per year, during vacation, in the past 10 years I've taken 6 deer.
I practice every day with my longbow, 60 to 100 shots per day, weather permitting.
I am a meat hunter I won't kill any thing unless I am going to eat it I shot a compound for about 12 years and switched to trad about 5 years ago I find it a lot easier to consistaintly take animals with trad equipment. There are no parts to fall off no rests to move or make noise the only thing that could fail is your string and its easy to toss an extra in your pocket. Where I live there arn't a lot of trees so we hunt from the ground and it is a lot easier to carry a light stick than a 5# compound also it is a lot easier to hit a walking animal with a stick beacause you don't have to worry about punching your release. That being said when I do go for trophy animals (this year will be my last) I will take my rifle but you can bet I am still going to eat them. I practice with my bow about 3-4 times a week. I think you should switch to trad only take the plunge have convidence in your abilites sounds to me like you know what you are doing I didn't take any thing with a stick till I got rid of my compound (rifle and bow are 2 seperate seasons here) and I didn't have a "fall back" so I say go for it
this obviously is a long thread so i cant help but feel my post will just be one more of the a million already posted. However i can tell you that if you hunt with a compound your chances of getting meat are probably better. most people i know who hunt with the recurve or longbow hunt with that weapon because it puts them on another level, to take game with something as basic as a stick and string is an ancient art, and the level of graditude you recieve for accomplishing such a feat is very satisfying. When i got into bowhunting it was becuase my mother wouldnt allow me to hunt alone with a rifle or shotgun yet, she always siad you never hear " i didnt no my bow was loaded". i used to hate it becuase my success rate was so poor. i got rabbits here and there and shot grouse and squirrels out of trees, i even shot the occasional muskrat. but by the time i picked up a rifle my skills were so refined to that of a bow hunter that i could take game almost everytime i went hunting. traditional bowhunting taught me to appreciate hunting and life in general on a much higher level. try not to look at what shooting a traditional bow will give you in means of meat, but try to think of what it will teach as a hunter over all. i think i speak for everyone here when i say that shooting a traditional bow has changed there perspective as a hunter. it's not for everybody, but i strongly encourage you to at least try it, good luck buddy!
Like Little Feather I prefer the porkers.
No matter what the group size you shoot you`ll kill what you shoot at with conifidence. The confidence will come with experience and the experience will probably come with some arrows stuck in the dirt with no blood on them.
I hunt almost all public land but its good hunting here in south Ga.I have had bad years but my worst had 7 kills. One deer and six hogs.I average 12-15 deer and hogs a year together. And yes I hate Turkeys.
If you want to enjoy your hunting to the fullest hunt with the stickbow. The critters will come .
I shoot at least four days a week, one arrow at the time while walking. Don`t own a target for the yard other than a piece of foam for broadheads. Good hunting and get after`em. RC
Styckbow:
I like what you say and I think I will give it a hurl for sure...
Cory Hunter:
I think that is what gets me the most about stick bow hunting...the idea of what it will teach me. If a group of three people are standing there telling stories, one a gun hunter, one a compound hunter, and one a stickbow hunter...I think the stick hunter's story is going to be the most detailed and exciting!! :notworthy:
I might stuff em , never thought about mount'n before.
I have't taken a critter with a traditional bow yet.....I say "Yet"....because i WILL ....if yiou are meat hunter as i am....to me that means i have no desire for trophy's hanging on the wall....oh the horns nailed to the barn look kinda cool after the moss starts growing on them, but what i mean is....in my opinion, a meat hunter is looking at the hams & shoulders of the deer or elk he's about to harvest, not the horns....For example, i've had oportunities some years where i really wanted the venison, had bucks and does to choose from. one year i had 3 does and a 4 point with a nice tall rack standing there looking at me. one of the does was huge in body....i didn't give that rack on the buck a second look.....i took that fat does instantly.......NEED the meat.....no...i raise my own beef....but when i want deer meat or elk meat, i could care less about the sex of the critter.....Kirk
Kirkll:
I agree, however...I have to take pause becuase I have never seen anything with head gear beyond a 4 point!! :eek:
Meat, and I practice 5 days a week and some time more if I am in the mood.
Public land.
I actually thought about this a few days ago while out running the weedeater around my pond. My sons(8&11) were fishing with the dream in mind to catch enough fish on their own for a family fish fry. Last evening after the last piece of fresh fish was enjoyed...a dream had been relaized.
I re-read your first post and it boils down to a dream. The means to get there can be discussed and cussed, whatever the mood or opinion, but a dream nonetheless is yearning to live.
Bruce Wilkinson penned a book called the "Dream Giver" a few yearss ago and I would suggest it as a must read for all. One to re-kindle your own dreams that may be on the shelf, while sharpening your senses to encourage others to chase their own dreams.
I encourage you to stick to your original plan and try to kill enough deer with your trad equipment only to sustain your family. No more no less. Chase the dream. If it doesn't happen at worse you try again next year and eat a few store bought groceries in the meantime. A fail safe in our modern world.
Chase our dream full bore...quietly though for a close shot.
Good hunting,
Charles
:notworthy: :notworthy: :clapper: :clapper: ; great perspective!!
Atta boy Charlie!!!! That's it!!! :notworthy: :notworthy: :clapper: :clapper: :clapper: