Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

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01-12-2007, 08:28 PM

#11

bloodcrick

Giant Nontypical

Join Date: Dec 2003

Location: Indiana (southern)

Posts: 6,146

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

You have the right attitude MOBOW just keep on pushing forward, you will triumph.

The transition was difficult for me also but i have killed some good ones since then. Patience grasshopper

Dan

Quote:

ORIGINAL: mobowhuntr

I've been a deer hunter for.....oh....12 years now. And when I say "deer" I mean just that......Deer, and any deer. My philosophy has always been "See deer, shoot deer, eat deer." This year I decided I wanted to take a buck w/ my bow......Didn't happen, BUT I learned a lot. Had a good year as well. I saw more bucks this year than the last 3 combined, and had to let several walk due to antler point restrictions, which I HATE by the way, but that's for another day.

I knew killing a buck WAS NOT gonna be easy. I had no grand dillusions of walking in the woods, sitting in tree and shooting one. I knew I was gonna have to work at it, and apparently I need to work at it MUCH harder than I did. I let quite a few deer walk this year, deer that even last year I would have shot. That was tough for me. Each time they walked off I was kicking myself in the butt saying "You dummy....shoulda shot that one!" Growing pains hurt, I guess.

01-12-2007, 08:39 PM

#12

2footroper

Fork Horn

Join Date: Mar 2006

Location: Northeast Illinois

Posts: 283

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

I used to shoot only bucks and I would always have at least one good one in the freezer by Holloween. Since I've started hunting right by my home now I see a need to take does due to the lack of bucks in this new area. My ratio here is about 8 to 1 doe to bucks. Rattling doesn't work. It's hard to even grunt to get ones attention. There are sooooo many does there is no compitition between bucks. Even during peak rut the bucks I see are with at least 1 or 2 other ones running with a herd of does. I have taken two does with the bow this year and I will try to take one more with the shotgun this weekend. I am going to try to continue with this managment hunting until I see a turn in the buck population. Don't be afraid to take does. My heart still about jumps out of my chest when taking does.

01-12-2007, 08:41 PM

#13

Double Creek

Join Date: Feb 2004

Location: Inverness, MS

Posts: 3,982

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

Not really, I grew up hunting that way. My Dad always believed in only shooting mature deer, so it's really all I ever knew... I can't tell you how many nice, 14 inch 8pts I've passed up over the years.... Sometimes I really wanted to shoot that deer, but I've got the attitude that if I don't want to mount it, I won't kill it.

01-12-2007, 08:53 PM

#14

drhoyt

Join Date: Dec 2006

Location: Pardeeville wisconsin

Posts: 134

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

i haven't made it either. i did pass up deer that where bigger than any thing i have shot, but my uncle only wants really mature deer shot which i agree with. it was my best year of bowhunting though

01-12-2007, 10:34 PM

#15

rybohunter

Giant Nontypical

Join Date: Feb 2004

Location: Pittsburgh, PA

Posts: 7,208

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

it was horribly difficult for me. Growing up, and the general sentiment of almost everyone I knew, you shot the 1st buck you saw. My Dad was really pressuring in this. Then after too many years of never making it to the rut and hearing all this cool stuff people witness I decided I was tired of shooting the 1st buck by. My standard wasn't real hi at first. Just a racked buck, no spike or forky. Then learning that it was no greater feat to shoot a 7 pt 1.5 yr old over a 4 pt 1.5 yr old, I stepped up a little more. But that wasn't without an itchy finger. Now after 2 solid mature bucks in 2 years, I feel I am over that hump for good.

01-13-2007, 07:41 AM

#16

AR Bowhunter

Nontypical Buck

Join Date: Dec 2006

Posts: 2,873

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

Wehave been bow hunting about the same amount of time. I try to start withharvesting a doe the first part of the season then start focusing on bucks. Here in my state we have a 3 points on one siderule. I focus on 8 point buckor better, generally I will not shoot a buck unless I want to put it on the wall. The longest that have went so far is 3 years waiting on a decent buck, but I've always got my doe.

01-14-2007, 07:37 AM

#17

pjhunts

Typical Buck

Join Date: Dec 2003

Location: central illinois

Posts: 773

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

The first few years were hard, ate a few tags a couple years in a row. but I new the end result would be worth it. Sure enough things started falling into place and I began seeing bucks that I had passed in the years before and then I was lucky enough to arrow one. My first good one came in at 151". That's when things started getting good. The "ice was broken" finally. Hunting became alot easier after I got that first good buck on the ground. I think most of it has to do with confidence. I changed my attitude from HOPING to get one to EXPECTING to get one. Sounds minimal, but if your expecting to get one you are mentally sharp every trip into the woods and are able to pick up on things that you may have otherwise never noticed. Now I'm going on 5 years in a row with arrowing a mature buck 31/2 yrs old or older.

01-14-2007, 07:57 AM

#18

mbhutton

Typical Buck

Join Date: Jun 2006

Location: Muscle Shoals, Al

Posts: 742

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

I have only been hunting for 3 years, so evertything is new to me and each time i go out or look on here i learn some thing new. about the 2 or third time i went bow hunting i shot a nice 6 point, since then i have not seen a buck again and that was a year ago, i have shot a couple if does here and there with my rifle but mainly just to keep my spirits high and not to loose intrest. But i feel your pain, after shooting that first one i thought it would be a peice a cake, hahaha how wrong was i

01-14-2007, 08:10 AM

#19

kevin1

Dominant Buck

Join Date: May 2003

Location: Ramsey , Indiana

Posts: 22,545

RE: Did ya'll find that transition difficult?

Never made the transition, I hunt for meat first and pleasure second, I don't take trophies other than memories and a fuller freezer. If it's big enough to be worth the drag out I'll cap it without a second thought, and you'll find this attitude to be very common among those who hunt the neighboring properties.

BTW, thanks to all of you who did pass on that tasty button or spike hoping that he would grow into a trophy, he was delicious.