Corpusfishing.com

[Prof. Salt]

I've been training with a longbow most of this year to strengthen my shoulder. At first I hoped it would help me pull my compound at full strength again, but as time went on I decided to try hunting with it. Draw weight is only 40 lbs but lots of folks have had success with similar tools when they limited themselves to short shots and sharp, heavy broadheads. For those interested, my arrows have 100 grain inserts and 190 grain 2-blade broadheads. The bow weighs less than two pounds and draws smoothly, and with practice I fell in love with the simplicity. No sights, no rest, no stabilizer, no peep, just a stick and string to get an arrow down range VERY quietly. Instinctive aiming is somewhat mystical and happens by "using the force" or dead reckoning. For me it took lots of practice. I missed my target often when starting out, but now I can pretty well keep six arrows inside a saucer sized circle on the target at 20 yards. I decided to limit my hunting shots to 15 yards for tighter groups and so there was less time between the quiet "thump" and the introduction of sharp arrow to deer hide.

Last week I went out in the afternoon and climbed my favorite tree to see if I could make something happen. Ten deer arrived after a while but it took almost 90 minutes before I had one standing at 14 yards and looking the other direction so I could draw the bow undetected. It was a fun and challenging time in the tree being so close to that many trained eyeballs and ears. Silence and stillness are the standard, and it works well to prevent being noticed. After all that time the deer were at ease, and as my fingers relaxed from the string, the arrow released with so little noise that the group of deer didn't even spook. The arrow sailed quietly and disappeared into her ribcage with a barely audible thump. I had hit the doe a few inches behind where I was aiming, but she ran off with an obvious entry wound and showing signs of distress. The other deer came back to eat within 30 seconds and resumed their normal activity as if nothing had happened. That encouraged me to stay put for a while and ensure my deer would expire before I began to take up the blood trail.

When the sun disappeared I slowly reached for my pack and dropped it to the ground. The sudden noise ran the remaining deer off and I let out a snort wheeze to ensure they kept moving. Then it was time to look for blood. Seven yards from the point of impact I found the arrow laying on the grass and noticed the first small blood drops. Evidently the arrow had failed to pass through right away but was only hanging by the fletches on the exit side as my doe ran off. The blood on the grass wasn't bubbly or bright like lung blood usually is, but as I moved forward the sign got better and better. After 100 yards I knew by the quantity of blood that the deer was out there somewhere laying dead, but it took another hundred yards to locate her. She had run much farther than I anticipated, but blood trailing has always been something I've enjoyed and the deer had run a pretty straight line as she fled. I took my time and kept from moving too far ahead without seeing blood. She had piled up in a huge clump of grass at the base of a Huisache tree and it took me a minute to confirm that it really was my deer down in there. After pushing some of the grass out of the way I got my trophy out and began the long drag back to the road and my truck.

Now I've got fresh red meat in the freezer, a few chigger bites and a little more confidence to keep improving on those shooting skills. This little bow has brought excitement back to hunting and really pushed the level of difficulty up so that it's a real challenge again. I can't hunt very well out of a box blind with it (the bow is too big for the small space), but the tree is where I am happiest so it works out. In a tree I can hear approaching animals better and enjoy the lack of cover that requires better hunting skill at all times.

[IrishSharker]

Super cool prof! Great shot too btw, know it aint easy with the TRAD!

[kweber]

long ago my dad gave me his 30-30 and pointed me tp a field...
after about 3 weeks of crawlong fenes and getting "busted" I got a buck
the anamals teach way more than words
and props on that bow kill
great smile in the pic
_________________
the creepy uncle that scares the kids....

[ziacatcher]

Nice job there Glenn. Congrats

[deputydawg]

I guess i missed this when first posted

Fine job with the stick bow! I've killed a pile of critters with wheel bows but never a trad kill.

[lagunaflyoutfitters]

welcome to the fold , you are hooked great job

[Prof. Salt]

[jannie32]

you did amazing job @prof....

I used to love everything about longbows and longbow shooting, and still do, and when I started bowhunting when I moved to Canada, that was my thing. Nice, light, quiet and a well made R/D longbow is a thing of beauty.

The thing is though, I shoot recurves competitively and now I simply enjoy them more. I get better results and high-end limbs like my Uukhas or the bow I have now chosen as my hunter, 64" Dryad Orion with the ACS recurves just make my lovely longbows feel much less appealing to shoot. Nice smooth drawing out to my 30", quick, accurate and stable with the mass and that has won for me...... Foam, paper or fur.

Every part of this game comes down to personal preference once you're over the start-up period and making your mind up based on experience.........all that said, we had a conversation about a moose hunt in northern BC and I gotta admit that doing that with my favourite longbow is the plan.