Stonewall308

I went bowhunting Friday for the first time this season. I set up my climber in an area where a lot of trails cross, not sure how great it would be.

So about 30 minutes before last shooting light, I look to my right and see a deer about 150 yards down the widest trail, he is walking straight toward me. I can immediately tell he is the biggest buck I've ever seen while hunting, and if I had my Rem 700 .30-06 I would have harvested him immediately.

So he is ambling roughly toward me, weaving in and out of the trees on the side of the trail that my stand is in so I am loosing sight of him occasionally. I stand up super quietly, get my release on the bow, and just pray he keeps coming. I can't really tell where he is anymore because of the thick pines, when all of the sudden he steps out no more than 15 yards away from me.

As soon as he steps out he starts acting really jittery like he is about to bolt, plus he is quartering toward me slightly so I don't have a great shot. I am just praying he calms down and turns more broad side because I know he is so close I can nail him, even though I'm probably not as great with my bow as many bow hunters (probably wouldn't shoot beyond 30 yards).

This deer is so close I can not only count the points and tell he is a large 8, but I can admire the character and slight palmations in his rack. I am standing as still as a statue about 17 feet up (my climbing stand wouldn't go any higher because these pines are widen't enough), then he looks up directly at me. He stares at me for 20 seconds or so and he knows something isn't quite right but he can't figure out what it is. Then he trots off, slightly spooked but not high-tailing it, he stops at about 40 yards and takes one last look at me, then trots off into the pines.


I am primarily a gun hunter, living and hunting in VA now. I never bow hunted growing up because in SC it doesn't extend your season (longest season in the country, by the way). I love hunting, but I don't get that much of an opportunity to go, I probably average only three or four deer hunts per year because for a long time I had to drive 2+ hours each way. I've only shot two deer, one of them barely a four point and the other a large four point. This deer had me so excited, I just couldn't believe it was happening. I've never seen a large buck while hunting, the biggest one being probably a small 6 well after shooting light. The only other time I've ever even seen a live 8 point was when I was mountain biking in a state park where no hunting is allowed.

Anyway, I definitely have great respect for bow hunters. It just kills me that I would have this deer very easily if I had my rifle. It must take huge discipline to hunt with a bow during rifle season like some people do. I am sure most bow hunters have many experiences like this, I just couldn't take it if I knew I could use a rifle.


I never even drew back my bow because by the time I knew I was going to have a shot, he was so close I couldn't move without spooking him. I had a bad experience last year when I drew my bow back on a doe and she stopped and stood behind a tree for minutes until I couldn't hold my bow back any more, and she spooked when I let the bow down, so this time I was trying to wait. If I had it to do over again I would draw back sooner. I think I could have made the shot on this buck if I had my bow back when he stepped out, because he was only quartering very slightly toward me.

Do you guys ever take bow shots when the deer is quartering toward you? If I had my .3006 obviously I could have shot right through the shoulder blade, but with a bow I know there is a possibility of not breaking through the bone. Do you err toward hitting the bone, betting on breaking through, or do you err toward hitting further back an potentionally only getting one lung, or none?