Bowhunting: How to Get Started

Crunch, crunch, crunch. Then silence.

The deer was close. Had to be.

Suddenly she was there. Fifteen yards away, she had her head down, nibbling.

I was so unnerved by her closeness I could hardly draw the bow. Once I did get it drawn, I had a hard time finding the deer through the peep sight.

Carefully I set the pin just back of the doe's shoulder. The arrow struck with a clearly audible pop. The doe crashed away.

Seventy yards and 30 minutes later, I found her. It was a perfect heart shot--and a terrific experience for my first successful archery hunt.

If this kind of up-close-and-personal shooting makes you yearn for the woods, bowhunting may be for you. Be warned, however; it's not a sport for the faint-hearted. It requires more patience than carrying on a conversation with an excitable three-year-old, and more self-control than ignoring a box of Lady Godiva chocolates after a four-day fast. It's hard not to shoot when an eight-point buck is feeding within bow range but won't present a broadside shot. But that's what bowhunting is about.

If your blood pressure is up to this kind of hunting, the first thing you need to consider is what kind of bow you want to purchase. There are two basic designs: recurve and compound. To put things simply, a recurve bow is an older, more "traditional" type of bow. A compound bow, with its cams and pulleys, takes advantage of modern technologies. But most experts agree: for a gun hunter adding a bow to his or her range of weapons, the way to start out is with a compound.

Galen Shinkle is a world-champion trick shooter and a dedicated hunter. "The compound is easier to pull back, it's easier to hold, and it's more accurate," he says. "The recurve is hard to pull back, it's hard to hold, and it's hard to be accurate unless you shoot seven days a week, 365 days a year, to keep your muscles in tune and your coordination up. It takes a lot of practice to be good with a recurve. You can be a good archer in a short time with a compound, where you can't with a recurve."

Rick Sapp, director of public relations for Bear Archery, is a long-time bowhunter. "I don't believe that it makes any difference [which one you start with]," he says. "What matters is an attitude toward hunting and the animals. If you have the proper attitude and respect for what you're doing and the animal you're chasing, then the equipment is of less importance." He agrees, however, that a compound bow is easier to learn with; thus, most hunters will make a better shot with a compound.

PURCHASING A BOW isn't as simple as just walking into the store and buying one off the rack. Like an expensive suit, a bow must "fit" the user. For this reason, it's important to shop for a bow in a well-staffed archery or outdoor shop, where personnel will help you choose the equipment that's right for you. They'll also be able to coach you as you learn to shoot, and help catch any bad habits early, while they're still easy to break.

With her husband Terry, Norma Neenan coordinates Florida's Bowhunter Education program for the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission. She says the first thing the dealer will determine is your "draw length."

"You'll be given a bow that is very light weight, 25 or 30 pounds," Norma says. "You then pull that with an arrow that has been marked off at one-inch increments, making sure that you're anchoring at the spot you're going to use at all times." Many archers tuck the tip of the forefinger in the corner of the mouth; this kind of an "anchor point" helps ensure consistency of aim. Your dealer will help you determine whether this, or another spot, will be your anchor point.

The next consideration is draw weight. For many beginners, this means a bow that falls somewhere between 35 and 50 pounds. Since most of today's compounds can be adjusted over a weight range, select one you can draw without strain when it's in the lower part of its range. Then, as you become accustomed to shooting, you can gradually increase the draw weight of the bow.

ONCE YOU SELECT YOUR BOW, you'll need to add some basic accessories. Though a bow comes with an arrow rest put on at the factory, you may want to replace that rest with one of your own choosing. Also, you'll want to add a sight and a quiver. Your dealer will help you experiment a little until you find the styles that are right for you.

Other non-essential accessories you may want to consider are string silencers--puff balls or rubber whiskers--and a stabilizer. Bear in mind that every time you add a piece of equipment to the bow, it changes the way the bow shoots just a little; expect to adjust your sights fairly frequently.

The other basic piece of equipment you'll need is arrows. Again, don't expect to grab any arrow off the shelf and have it shoot well. Your dealer will have a chart which will show the size and weight of arrows that are ideal for use with your particular bow.

The two important words, Galen says, are "spine" and "flex." "Spine" refers to the number that's on the arrow, which designates how stiff the arrow is.

"When the arrow goes forward [from the bow], it bends, or flexes, and straightens back out in flight," Galen says. "This is because the energy released when you turn loose of the string is pushing on the arrow--it actually bends it. An underspined arrow, for the pounds of the bow that you're shooting, would bend more and have a harder time straightening out. Therefore, you won't shoot as well. If you go a little overspined, it's more forgiving because it doesn't bend as much when you turn it loose."

FLETCHING ALSO IS A CONSIDERATION. You'll have to choose between plastic and feathers. Feathers are more "forgiving" than plastic; a feather-fletched arrow can brush against a twig in flight and still fly truer than can plastic.

"But," says Galen, "plastic vanes are quieter. Feathers are definitely more forgiving, but they're noisier. You'll gain two or three feet a second with vanes; feathers will slow the arrow down. You've got to weigh which you want."

At first, field points will be adequate for practice shooting. These tapered, cylindrical points are easy to remove from targets and are far less expensive than hunting heads. Remember, however, that even field points can kill. Be very certain of the location of children and pets before you shoot.

Once hunting season approaches, you'll need to purchase a set of broadheads. These heads, fitted with razor-sharp blades, are designed to slice through blood vessels and cause death through bleeding; they will also slice your hands if you handle them carelessly. To avoid this, buy a broadhead wrench. This little square plastic wrench--the one I have is made by Kolpin--will let you screw and unscrew broadheads from your arrow shaft without danger to your fingers.

Broadheads come in both three-and four-bladed types. Which you choose, again, is a matter of personal preference.

"Someone, a number of years ago, put out some bad information," Galen says. "A lot of people still believe that you have to line your blades up with your fletching. Since a lot of people use a three-fletched arrow, they think that to get good arrow flight they have to use a three-bladed broadhead. But the bottom line is that you've got to line your blades up exactly the same on each arrow. It doesn't matter if it's three-bladed or four-bladed broadheads. The four-bladed broadheads will do more damage because you've got more cutting area. I prefer a four-bladed head because it does a better job."

ANOTHER TYPE OF EQUIPMENT that bears mentioning is release aids. One of my bowhunting friends swears by his mechanical release, and keeps telling me to switch to one. Many experts, however, encourage beginning bowhunters to use tabs until they've been shooting for a year or so.

"I think you get a better feel of the string," Norma says. Even for experienced shooters, she says, it's still a matter of preference. "I shoot a release because I like it. But I have a friend I hunt with who pulls a 70-pound bow with his fingers, and he's very accurate."

Rick also recommends beginning bowhunters shoot with a tab-- what seasoned archers call "finger shooting." "It will help you get good control of the bow, and make sure you understand the bow," he says.

Galen disagrees with both of them. "You can become a good archer in a short time with a release aid," he says. "It will take a long time to become a good archer with a tab or a glove. There's a lot you can do wrong with your fingers. But a release aid is consistent all the time, provided you squeeze the trigger."

If you choose to shoot a tab, though, one Galen recommends is a leather tab made by White Buffalo Archery. "It's probably one of the best tabs on the market," he says. "They did their homework when they came up with it."

While a few bowhunters may be able to pick up their equipment a couple of weeks before the season starts and be proficient by opening day, most of us require more practice than that. As a bowhunter, your goal is a quick, humane kill. The more familiar you are with your equipment, the more proficient you'll be. And with the increasingly strident shrieks of "animal-rights" activists ringing in the public's ears, we as bowhunters must make every effort to practice our sport safely and humanely if we're to survive.

ONE THING TO REMEMBER as you practice is to take different hunting conditions into consideration. For example, if you plan to sit on a dove stool on the ground, practice that way. You'll be surprised how much both your legs and the stool will get in the way. You'll also have a chance to adjust your technique before a deer is standing 30 feet away.

If you're going to hunt from a tree stand, be sure you practice that way also. Distances are harder to judge when you're up in a tree, and you need to have a feeling for how your arrow is going to fly.

If you're accustomed to gun hunting, you'll have to make some adjustments in your thinking about shot placement. As with gun hunting, make sure you see the whole deer so you're certain what you're shooting, and whether it's a buck or a doe.

Then pick a spot on the deer. "You don't shoot at the whole deer, you pick a spot and shoot at that, just like you would be shooting at a bull's-eye," Norma says. "That's why practice is so important. You should be able to hit an eight-inch pie plate every time." If you can't shoot that well at a given distance, you aren't ready to kill at deer at that distance.

Galen says he passes up a lot of game. "If I don't feel that I've got the shot that will be a good killing shot, I let it walk," he says. "Don't take a chance at a wild shot, just so you'll be able to say 'I shot at a deer,' or 'I hit a deer.' That is not ethical. Don't shoot unless you're sure, beyond a shadow of a doubt, you've got a good killing shot." That means a broadside shot where you can hit both lungs.

And remember that a bow is a short-range weapon. Most bow kills are made within 25 yards. You have to cultivate the patience to wait until the deer gets within range. If you're watching a good buck, that can be a real test of both nerves and self-control.

Rick says gun hunters sometimes have a hard time changing mental gears to bowhunting. "A gun hunter wouldn't hesitate to shoot an animal coming toward him, if he's got a clear shot at 100 yards. But if an animal is coming toward you at 20 yards, a bowhunter better not take the shot, because you'll just wound it. You want that good side shot, or a quartering away shot."

Making the transition from gun hunting to bowhunting is a time-consuming process that can be daunting. But I can tell you from experience that sitting nose to nose with a deer will make your day, whether or not you get off a shot. One other thing: learning to bowhunt will improve your gun hunting skills as well. Once you've made the change, you'll never view gun hunting quite the same way again.