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Bow Hunting Vs. Gun Hunting

Old 09-10-2011, 06:26 PM
  #21  
Typical Buck
 
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It is harder to kill a big buck with a rifle on public land than to use a compound bow. There is no argument against that. I am against contests and will not enter them because it brings in the worst people and the worst out of them, but look at the huge deer being killed with a bow in the buck pools. The big deer were there years ago but the compound was not. I did not see all kinds of big bucks being killed with a bow back in the day. You are living in dream world if you think bowhunters are limiting shots to 30 yards. I used to hunt in Maryland and the norm was 60+ yards from one hedgerow to another. I may like to bow hunt and I only ever hit one and lost it. I saw it a couple times later on so it pulled the arrow out and recovered. I find dead deer all over the place. I bet for every one drug out there is one hit and lost. Getting close? 30 yards is not much under the average woods rifle shot. If I could not get closer than 30 yards I would quit.
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Old 09-11-2011, 03:32 AM
  #22  
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Originally Posted by Gunplummer
It is harder to kill a big buck with a rifle on public land than to use a compound bow. There is no argument against that. I am against contests and will not enter them because it brings in the worst people and the worst out of them, but look at the huge deer being killed with a bow in the buck pools. The big deer were there years ago but the compound was not. I did not see all kinds of big bucks being killed with a bow back in the day. You are living in dream world if you think bowhunters are limiting shots to 30 yards. I used to hunt in Maryland and the norm was 60+ yards from one hedgerow to another. I may like to bow hunt and I only ever hit one and lost it. I saw it a couple times later on so it pulled the arrow out and recovered. I find dead deer all over the place. I bet for every one drug out there is one hit and lost. Getting close? 30 yards is not much under the average woods rifle shot. If I could not get closer than 30 yards I would quit.
maybe were you hunt is the average wood shot is 30, mine is about 75-100. i said max distance, i barely shoot that far, my first buck was from 20, and my buck last year was 5 yards away while i was up two feet in an apple tree..
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Old 09-11-2011, 05:18 AM
  #23  
Spike
 
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In Missouri the bow season is roughly 4 months and the firearms season is 10 days. In addition to the 10 day firearm season there is a doe only firearm season and a muzzle loader season where doe and bucks can be harvested. I hunt both bow and gun. I think gun hunters in MO get as much opportunity as the Conservation Department can give them without putting the deer population at risk. Gun hunting can make a big impact on a deer population in a short amount of time. Rifle season here normally overlaps the rut which I have mixed feelings about. I like it because it gives the most hunters an opportunity to catch a big buck on his feet. I also don't like it because I wonder if removing the gun season from the rut would help the age of the buck population. All-in-all I think MO does a good job of trying to balance hunter opportunity with deer harvest numbers.
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Old 09-13-2011, 05:40 AM
  #24  
Typical Buck
 
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If you are worried about the impact of certain seasons on deer, take a good look at the early in-line muzzle loader seasons that are popping up. I have hunted in two states where the result was terrible. The long archery seasons are as bad, it just takes longer. However, it does sell more tags, and that is the main goal.
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Old 09-13-2011, 07:14 AM
  #25  
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warbirdlover, the situation here is just the opposite of yours. Our early archery season is Sept 1-9, then rifle from Sept 9 to Nov 30 (ya, over 2 1/2 months, including right through the rut), then late archery Dec 1-20.

Further, there is a junior firearms season exactly during the early archery, Sept 1-9. I'm afraid I took advantage of that by putting my granddaughter onto her first deer this year, but it still rots my socks.

It could be argued that archery still gets the advantage because, technically, you can bowhunt throughout the rifle season. But the deer are so stirred up and the situation potentially dangerous that I know of nobody who does.

As for bowhunting being easier than rifle - whether with a yew selfbow or a fancy schmancy compound - not around here. In 45 years of hunting I've always had virtually unlimited opportunities to take deer with a rifle if I so chose. Not so with the bow. There is a great mix of dense forest/open woodlands/agriculture and you can choose to hunt where shots are no further than 20 yards or out to several hundred. And I agree that a certain percentage of bowhunters will shoot much further than they have any business doing, and staunchly defend their actions. But the same goes for firearms hunters.

Finally, I'm glad that we have longbows, recurves, compounds, crossbows, flintlocks, inline smokepoles, shotguns, and high powered rifles. Gives almost everyone the opportunity to do what we all love with a passion.

PS - Our game department does a horrible job of managing our hunting seasons as far as providing a sustainable resource.
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