Whats different about bow hunting and rifle hunting?

Bow hunting is MUCH more difficult. A bow is only good for 40 yards in most average shooters hands and your shot placement is more critical.

A rifle is good out to 150 to 200+ yards or more and has a devastating impact on the animal. Much easier to drop them right where they stand.

Bow hunting requires prep work.. You have to be close to the deer where they can smell you, hear you, and see you.

With a rifle, you can be so far away the deer couldn't hear, see or smell you if you stood outside your blind, jumped up and down and yelled at the top of your lungs while sweaty and naked.

The challenge! With gun hunting you can be a little more "sloppy" in that if you can see him you likely can hit him. (within reason and morality) Play the wind with a gun, have a basic understanding of the travel habits of the deer in your area and you'll eventually score.

Bowhunting, with any regular success, is a matter of attention to more minute details... scent, wind, travel, stand sites, seasonal habits among just a few basics. 40yds is a chipshot with a gun, with a bow it's rather long and for most guys it's about 10yds further than most hunters "comfort range" of 30yds as their preferred max shot distance. So getting within that "sweet spot" of 10-20yds of deer is obviously much more of a challenge.

That being said I love BOTH styles of hunting, I've killed trophies with a recurve, compound and crossbow. I've likewise taken wall hangers with every firearm except a handgun (plan on changing that within the next season or two as well). I enjoy "playing chess" with big bucks on THEIR gameboard (the woods). I know some diehards who are strictly bowhunters, some even traditional tackle only. I likewise know the majority still only go after deer with firearms. I don't choose sides as I said, I use and enjoy both.

In my 3 decades of chasing whitetails I'd say I've learned more (out of necessity) during bow season than while with something that went kaboom. But like I said, I STILL enjoy pulling the trigger on ol mossyhorns!

Bow hunting is safer because it's almost impossible to shoot yourself by accident with a bow.

Xbow for sure, That's the way I roll!

Another thing, there are a lot less bow hunters than gun, and the bow season in most states is 3+ months instead of a week like rifle. So, there's less hunters in the woods at any given time, less time pressure, and all in all its a lot more peaceful than the zoo that rifle hunting can be.

The huge difference is the shooting range. Sound is inversely proportional to the square of the distance, so there is 4 times the sound that a deer hears at 25yds vs. 50yds. Scent is also a much bigger factor at close range. With a bow, you must draw back, and this is often when you are busted. Compare to lifting rifle slowly to a rest.

And as mentioned, bow season is a lot more peaceful than the gun season. For some, that is the biggest factor.

Bow, close and personal, rifle across a stubble field or canyon.

Compound bow or nothing! There's nothing like holding a full draw on a big buck with your heart pounding! When Im good enough Im switching to a recurve.

Guns just seem so boring any more....

who shoots themself by accident with a rifle?? look at the wrong end?