Advice for first time bowhunters

[RS3]

Post up your advice for the new bowhunters heading to the field for the first time.

Deer jumping the string.... Think about it this way. The deer is a soldier standing at attention. The moment you release the arrow it's like hollering RUN! In order to run the first thing the deer has to do is get its legs bent to push off. Aiming low, but not below the deer gives you room for error. Very rarely will a deer not react before the arrow gets there. Either way, it's venison for supper.

Pick it, Stick with it and Go get it!......don't aim at the deer! Pick it: aim at a small spot on the deer, like a single hair. Stick with it: keep aiming at that spot until the arrow hits it's mark. If you drop your bow or move it to see where the arrow hits you may end up with a miss or worse, a bad hit. Go get it: don't get in too big of a hurry to go find your deer. If I see the deer go down I will usually wait 15 minutes to calm the nerves. If you don't see it go down, but know it was a great shot(be honest with yourself about the great shot) I usually wait 30-45 minutes. If you made a poor shot, just wait. It's better to find it dead than it is to jump it and never find it.

[Daniel75]

1. Dress in layers.
2. Bend at the waist if you're hunting from a tree stand.
3. Use a harness!
4. Be still.

[Capt.Bryan]

Practice the shot you take in the field. If you are are hunting from a tree stand then practice from an elevated shooting position. If you are hunting from a popup then practice from a seated position. Never shoot past your limit. Scent elimination with good natural cover scent like coon pee or cedar if you are hunting the hill country. Only corn in your shooting range but remember the more deer hanging around then the more your chance of getting busted. Don't force a bad shot because its the only shot you have. Be safe and wear safety harness if in a tree.

[elkbowhunter]

Take your bible(and read it) and thank God that you have the awesome privilege to be able to hunt. Be Still and know that He is Lord!

[Johnny]

It's not about the kill but the experience along the way. Just enjoy your time under the open sky and thank our Lord and Savior for giving us the freedom to do what we love to do. The kill at the end of the hunt is just icing on the cake.

[PSD Ryan]

Biggest one that helped me starting out...

I had practiced and practiced. I knew what to do for the shot, etc.

DONT start tracking immediately unless you watch the thing die in plain sight.

Let your nerves calm. Strung nerves leads to mistakes, rushing, and not thinking clearly.

Once you're calm, then step out of the stand. Go to the hit site, careful not to step on any blood. Analyze. Think about your shot...was it truly a good one? Check the blood for color, frothyness, etc. Is your arrow there from a pass through? Check it for blood, stink, guts, and hair. Read up on blood tracking and you'll have some good estimates on waits before you start. I know you want that deer bad, but if it's going to die, it's not going anywhere. Let it die before you keep bumping it.

One of the first does I shot, I watched the arrow hit in a good spot. I knew that deer would die. I was excited. I got down and checked the spot. Confirmed by hair and blood where I hit her, and I started tracking right away. She was running through dense cedar woods. Blood trail was excellent, and a baby could follow it. Along the way, every once in a while I'd see a puddle of blood. I just kept going. Those puddles were because she was stopping, and any time I'd get close (hard to be quiet moving through all that brush) I'd bump her. Had I waited, I could have spent a very short time tracking. She would have laid down and died after a bit. Instead, it turned into a long track through thick brush, which also made for a difficult recovery. In retrospect, I was lucky to have found her at all. The further they go, the less blood you'll get because their blood pressure drops, there's less of it, and if they lay down in dirt it can clog up your hole.

[Hot4huntin]

RAZOR SHARP BROADHEADS!!! (Don't trust them out of the package.)

Practice as you will hunt (clothing-wise)

Wear a harness if hunting from an elevated stand!!

Plan your hunt and hunt your plan. (Make sure someone knows where you will be hunting and when to expect you back... if that changes let someone know. Accidents happen.)

Wait 30 minutes before tracking with a heart/lung shot. If it is a liver shot, about 3-4 hours and a gut shot deer (it happens), about 8 plus hours.

Be sure to have a list of tracking dogs in your area!

[BigThicketBoy]

Check out your draw when you get in the stand ,make sure you have room to draw your bow back and nothing in the way .
If the deer are calm wait on a good shot if they are nervous wait longer on a good shot.
Don't wait on a buck , shoot a doe a pig first chance you get you'll get a bunch of the jitters out of your system. That way when that buck walks out your conference level will be high .

[AgBass01]

This thread is awesome, I'm a first time bow hunter and I'm following this for any and all tips I can get.

[Terry]

Play the wind, play the wind , play the wind. Be as scent free as possible, get to stand early, run the shot through your mind, alrady have your ranges set, now relax

[Chew]

http://discussions.texasbowhunter.com/forums/showthread.php?t=236194

[CelticAssassin]

This thread is awesome, I'm a first time bow hunter and I'm following this for any and all tips I can get.

Same here brother.

[E.TX.BOWHUNTER]

Practice drawing on every deer that comes by you so you will learn their reactions. You will soon figure out what you can get away with before spooking a deer. This is very tree for guys in climbers.

[Mr. Whiskers]

Tune your bow with broadheads. Don't just assume they will hit the same spot as your field points.

[texan16]

play the wind, play the wind , play the wind. Be as scent free as possible, get to stand early, run the shot through your mind, alrady have your ranges set, now relax

x100