RE: how many years
I believe it was my 3rd season. A lot of work. In fact, my first bowkill was the first rack I kept of any buck I had ever killed. Since that buck I have kept all my buck racks.
Year 1 I missed on an awesome 8 pointer at sundown. Shot low at 20 yards.
Year 2 I missed on a beautiful 8 pointer I called with a doe bleat. I shot into gues what.....his rack!
Year 3, mid-season I began to have serious doubts about my hunting abilities. Luckily I set up about 20 feet high in a tree bordering a creek and buck leaped over the creek chasing after a doe. I shot him at less than 1 yard with a gut shot. Then the 7-8 tracking job was on until I finally found him! Talk about a sense of pride and relief. I caught the bow bug that day and haven't looked back.
Most of my problems stemmed from the fact that I was not set up close enough to thicker cover and I was rushing my shots because I was not confident in my hunting/shooting abilities with my bow.