Koerbs

Hi everyone.

My family is a very involved deer hunting family, as so am I. I absolutly love the heart racing feeling when that buck walks into range. But after shooting a few deer in the past few years, I want to get a bigger rush and feeling of satisfaction. Recently my sister got married and her new husband is a bow hunter. I asked him if he would teach me the " ropes" of bow hunting. He said he would and would let me use some of his extra equipment untill I get my own.

My question is, even though I have taken archery classes and what not, Can a person learn to go bow hunting in a couple of weeks? Because I would like to give it a shot this season. I want to hear your oppinions.

hdsanders

Best to parctice this year and wait until next year to hunt. You need to practice alot and get used to the equipment. Good luck.

Kanga

As stated above practice this year.
There is more to learn about bowhunting than just shooting a bow.
Do you intend to hunt from the ground or in a stand?
if you are going to hunt from a stand then practice from a stand and dont forget to bend at the waist.

You will be using broadheads when hunting so practice with those as well cause they do fly different than field points.

By the sound of things you are still young so you have plenty of time left to bow hunt.

We as bowhunters owe it to the game we are hunting to be the very best we can be and not wound or injure them.

Over the summer go to local 3d shoots that will teach you distance judging.

Then of course we are always here to answer your questions and help.

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Danny45

Learning archery is not that difficult. Putting it to practise has made grown men cry though. It takes a lot of practise to get good with archery equipment. I agree with everyone else, there' s no way you' d be ready this year. Practise with his equipment (if it fits you) and then get your own in the spring and use it for next year.

I' m sure he' ll make sure it all fits you, but in case he doesn' t, I' d not use it. His intentions are fine but if you start off shooting badly because of ill-fitting equipment, you may decide it' s not for you. Go to a pro-shop to get outfitted with your own equipment. (unless it' s traditional equipment, then it doesn' t matter).

Rangeball

I disagree with the wait until next year stuff, PROVIDED and assuming you can learn to group arrows up to your personal distance maximum, and are disciplined enough to limit your shots to this maximum or under, hit the woods, cause the rush you are looking for is there.

Some people take to archery naturally. When I bought my first bow, I was shooting well enough to hunt within a short time.

c903

Knowing how to shoot a bow and shoot consistently accurate is only the very beginning of all and much more that needs to be known about hunting large game.

Pinwheel 12

I agree. Shooting arrows at foam or paper targets is a far cry from actually taking a living animal that can move, flinch, twist, or bolt away in a heartbeat. Plus you have the additional trauma of your own heart beating through your chest, and the pressure of the moment has as stated above caused many grown men to have their kness knocking---I' ve actually witnessed this on a fellow who was 51 years old and had been hunting only with rifle many years, but whom I got involved into bowhunting. He completely fell apart the first time he had a deer within 15 yds of his stand. He said he was so used to shooting them at 100yds or more, that he never thought they would get that close! It is some different when they get close enough to hear them chew on grass, (and you know they could hear you also if you make a wrong move, hehe! )

Seeing as you have shot deer in the past, I guess only you can make the decision as to whether you feel confident enough in your archery and hunting skills to attempt it right away. One thing tho is that we here do not know you, your skills, or your character, so I would suggest you ask this same question of those who know you much better than we do. Good shooting, Pinwheel 12

Straightarrow

Everyone has to start somewhere, and everyone had a first time out. Yours might as well be this year. Like Rangeball said, limit your shots to what you know you can hit. This year, you may want to make that a short distance, like 10 yards or less. Under pressure, most will be worse than when practicing.

You can probably be more accurate within a week, with today' s modern compounds, then I was after a few years of shooting a recurve, that I started with. I still had no trouble killing the animals I shot at. I just waited until they were real close.

tabby

Shoot your bow nonstop. Learning to shoot your bow is the most important thing about archery. If you can shoot well enough, I prefer 3 inch group maximum 10 yards past what I plan on shooting. I will shoot 30 yards, so I strive for a 3 inch group at 40 yards. You should be able to hunt the late season, being if one is provided. If you feel that you cannot shoot well enough, DON" T hunt. Nothing is worse that wounding a deer because you started hunting before you were ready.