Seal the Deal
I firmly believe that merely having the opportunity to take a deer with your bow is enough to light the fire inside you, regardless of whether you get busted drawing back, miss, or make the kill; but why chance it? It’s best to seal the deal during your first opportunity. This requires patience. If you’ve spent at least two weeks practicing before your hunt, then you’re a leg up on many bowhunters who hit the woods each year.
Deer are very unpredictable, so while you’re sitting on stand waiting, try to envision all the different scenarios that might occur as a deer closes the distance. Find shooting lanes free from obstructions. Nine out of ten times, the deer won’t do what you expect it to, but at least you’ll be somewhat prepared and know where you can let an arrow fly.
When you glimpse the deer coming, you’ll shake, breath heavily, and get butterflies in your stomach. It’s tough and often impossible to keep your composure, but it happens to all of us. Don’t worry about those side effects; just move slowly and be patient while waiting on a good broadside shot. Trust me, there’s no better sense of confidence in the bowhunting world then being drawn back and looking through your sight pin at an unsuspecting, broadside deer. All of those nervous symptoms you’ve encountered up until this point will be converted into euphoria upon hearing that bone shattering “THWACK!”
Get it Done
As you can see, we’ve kept it simple and straightforward. Don’t over-think things at first. All the complicated stuff will come later, yet by then it won’t seem so complicated. Right now we need proven success strategies to make you succeed as fast as possible. The faster you take the breath out of any legal deer with a bow, the faster you will know the feeling I get with each and every bowkill and the reasons why I truly love this sport. Whatever you do, be persistent and don’t give up. With patience, you’ll join the ranks of the few who’ve succeeded at hunting the primitive way. Brace yourself, because there’s no turning back.
14 Responses to: Your First Blood
The THWACK attack!
Good read! August and September are going to be two long months.
Russ, you did a you good job of explaining just how exciting bow hunting is. But as you and I know, the only way to REALLY feel the excitement is to just do it. We can talk about it all day, describe it to the tee, but the reality is the rush of adrenaline you get after arrowing a deer cannot truly be described. It has to be felt from within, through your personal experience. Man you getting all of us fired up and it is not even August yet!
Mr Ricky is right on target. The feeling has to come within to completely get the adrenaline flowing like you explained. Great job Uncle Widow.
Yep you explained it accurately from what I can remember. My first draw on a real deer I had her jump my string, I thought I spined her she dropped so fast. My first and only deer by bow was awesome, when the broadhead hit it look like fruit punch spraying everywhere.I did not expect to see that.
You explained it perfectly. There is no feeling like taking a deer with a bow. Bow hunting teaches you very quickly what not to do because you are up close and personal with the deer. Great article Russell.
one day i’ll get a bow and hopefully experience all those exciting hunts!!!
Great article Widow. I still remember my first bow hunt like it was yesterday. I had a doe come in downwind and got winded. She blew every step as she ran off until I couldn’t hear her anymore. I sat back down disappointed and looked up and saw another deer coming from the upwind side. My arrow looked like it was in slow motion as it flew toward the deer. When I heard that unmistakable “THWACK”, it was like “I HIT IT”, now what do I do….After a long trail with the help of Big Country, I had my first bow kill, a young spike. I have been hooked ever since.
A+ article Russell!
God, I wish I were in my Lok-on right now!
Man, that got my blood flowing! I just got my first one with the bow last season after 3 years of trying. That is truly one of the best feelings you will ever experience. I been planning to start practicing again for next season. I think today is the day! Thanks for the jumpstart Widow!!
Great article Russ!! Definitely got me pumped now for huntin’ season. Couldn’t have been explained any better!
I wanted more out of deer hunting. I was sitting on a powerline one morning with a rifle in my hand. A doe walked out. I put the cross hairs on her,pulled the trigger. She fell like a sack of rocks and that was it. I got excited for a second but that was all. Sitting on the stand the rest of the morning I began to think about how excited I would get when I was a kid. I thought about how I wanted that thrill back and that I wanted to challenge myself as a deer hunter. I bought a bow,killed a deer and got it all back! Awesome article Widow!
Another great article !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey Widow, thanks for a great article. I am sure I’ll reread it several times as part of my preparations for my first bow season.
Thanks again.