They are both great. A bow may be more of a challenge. However, I'm not sure you can make generalizations like "a bow kill is more exciting". More exciting to who? To you? To your friend? To an 8yr old child?

I think excitement can only be determined by the shooter. I know when I was 7yrs old and killed by first deer with a shotgun, I was the most excited kid in the world that day. Much more excited than any bow kill I've ever had. However, now that I'm older, I personally get more excited over a bow kill than a gun kill. To each his own.

Hunt the thickets