First time bowhunting harvested a hog, second chance on an animal harvested a caribou.

Started bow hunting when I was 9. Didn't have any shots the first year and the second year I shot three. I hadn't missed a shot before I shot my first deer. but boy have I missed a few since then ;)

When I first started seriously Bow Hunting I think I missed about 3 different Deer,my biggest problem was judging distances.Since then I've gotten better and ended up getting myself a range finder and I try practicing shooting from an elevated position or ladder stand...I ended up getting a nice 6-Point Buck from my climbing stand in Oct of 2006,since then I've passed on several young Bucks in hopes of getting a bigger one thats 7-Points or more.I also Rifle/Gun Hunt Deer so its not like I haven't put down any Deer...just waiting to get a bigger Buck with Archery Equipment.Oh yeah...add 1-more missed Deer to my list...dummy me shot under a nice 8-Point Buck last year,I used the wrong pin and shot under it in the food plot. :(

This is what I need to do....practice from elevated positions. I use a range finder and when I get set up, especially in a new area I range my distances. But sometimes its hard enough to go undetected while preparing to shoot let alone hit the deer with the range finder before shooting.

Its cool to read the different responses. Bow hunting is definitely a whole different animal from gun hunting. I like the challenge but it can be frustrating. I can't wait until I finally connect :) I do think I have great discipline waiting for a good shot opportunity, I have passed on many deer that have been just out of my comfort range.

With my first bow, a compound i was shooting with a tab, i took the biggest buck ive ever shot. A big 10 point that scored a 130, i think i was 16 when i shot that one. Didnt really hunt for about two or three years after that. Then last year i got a new bow, another compound with a much smaller axle to axle and with a release. I shot 4 deer with it last year. All deer with one arrow.

This year ive hit two, one in the guts one in the ass...
couldnt figure out what was going wrong till i took my bow to my local shop. My cams were out of timing.

Did you notice something was wrong during target practice?

My first shot while deer hunting was a 40yrd shot on a doe when I was 17. Double lung and heart, passed through. She ran about 30yrds and collapsed. I had been rifle hunting deer for a few years before that, and I had been shooting competition archery for a year. I also grew up hunting rabbits with a fiberglass recurve as a kid, so archery was something I was used to.

That said, missing is part of archery, and especially a part of bowhunting. Having a laser rangefinder (or pre-measuring different landmarks around your stand) and practicing at LOTS of different ranges helps a lot.

One of my "favorite" miss stories, whether I like to admit to it or not...

About 6yrs ago, I had a SIMPLE 20yrd broadside shot on a doe from a ground blind... I leveled my bow and took the shot, but for some reason, it fell low, REAL low. Amazingly, she didn't move, just looked THE OTHER WAY, towards where the arrow hit the ground past her. So I checked my sight, and took another shot, again, same deal, dropped it in the dirt beneath her. She hopped a little and trotted a few steps and luckily stopped. So I checked my sight again, and took a 3rd shot, holding a little higher, thinking maybe I had underestimated the range. Stuck a 3 blade thunderhead right in her spine, about 10" above where I was aiming.

Then when I walked out to recover her (and my 2 missed arrows), I figured out what was going on. There were two small, thinner than a pencil, branches hanging from a tree limb between my blind and where she had been standing, about 5yrds in front of her. I just couldn't see them in the morning fog, so I bounced my first two shots off the branches. Unfortunately, I thought my sight was messed up, so I compensated for the drop on my 3rd shot. When she trotted away from the tree, AND I compensated for the drop, I ended up shooting WAY high. Luckily, the two first shots missed completely, and the 3rd shot dropped her in her tracks.

Like I said, misses happen.

cant give a win win answer, been bow hunting 8 years now , and been busted about 15 times at ranges as close as 15 feet , oh well i am still tryin, i do hunt on the ground and as i have learned it is a challenge fer sure,besides getting a harvest i have had some of the most memorable hunting moments of my life ,and that i am thankful for !when u can read made in usa on the back bummer of a deer , its COOL!

I missed the first two deer I shot at when I first started. But connected my second year.

I got the first one I shot at, was a slam dunk 15 yard on the ground shot. I cant say I'v never lost one or blew a shot but its not real common. If I cant make a good shot I dont shoot, theres enough to go wrong without me adding to it. That said I started hunting in general late in life, 27 with a gun & 35 I think for bowhunting. Might make a difference I dunno.