ORIGINAL: BamaHuntin
I read the thread and thought maybe you guys came down on him a little hard as well.
How did you think people should have reacted to a guy saying he stuck a deer and didn't even look for it..........and would have let it lay there and rot if his friend would not have found it.........he wasted all the meat as it was.
Should he have been congratulated for his fine effort and great harvest?
As a amature hunter and first time bowhunter I really don't have no where to go toask questions,get opinions,or share my time in the woods but here.One thing that I feel that I learned from his thread is be careful what I ask on here.I'm willing to own up to my mistakes for sure and feel terrible about them enough.When someone gets on to you in front of the whole froum it kinda humiliates you and makes you hesitant about posting other things.
I think you are getting the wrong idea..........this forum LOVES young guys and eager hunters wanting to learn........that's what it is here for. You don't have to be afraid to ask anything. No one expects you to be Fred Bear in a week........there is a basic core of knowledge that you should have before setting out to your stand though.........and trust me when I say that you will be MUCH happier that you do know what to do when you are faced with a decision in the woods.
You should be capable with your bow and know your effective range......you don't have to be stacking arrows out to 60 yards to hunt but there is a yardage somewhere that you must draw the line and say you won't shoot unless they are inside that range.........for some that is 40 yards and for some it is 20......be honest with yourself and stick to it in the woods........if you can't hit a target at 30 yards don't try to hit a deer either.
You should know what is a good shot to take and what isn't........wait for the deer to present one and if he doesn't that is life.
You should know what to do when you shoot........watch, listen, learn. Where was he hit, what did he do, where did he go, did the arrow go though him or stay in him, mark the spot where you saw him last in your mind and sit down and WAIT. Go over what happened and make your decision on what to do next based on everything you saw and whatever evidence you find on the ground and your arrow.........after you WAIT. Know the times you should wait depending on the hit.
Know how to track and what to do and what not to do.
There is a lot that goes into shooting a deer with a bow........sometimes they fall within sight and that is great.......piece of cake.......climb down, go get him and have a ball with your buddies. It's when things don't go that smooth that you have to sit down and say "Now what?".........if you don't know the answer to "Now what?" you are in trouble.
All this info can be attained in a short reading session of this forum. Take notes if you have to and stick them in your truck or gear bag.
It just jacks people's blood pressure up when all this info exists and we still see stuff like "I shot at him and I don't know what happened next and I went right after him and I can't find him"