Should I try archery next year?

[Evoac05]

So yet another season has gone by and I am not too fond of tag soup. This was my third season without any luck, but as each year goes by I end up learning more than I did the year before. I grew up in a anti gun and hunting home, so I am learning as I go. I have been hunting with a buddy of mine that was new to hunting too. I see more deer each year, but nothing with antlers during modern season. I am thinking about switching over to archery next year. My question is.....who has had no luck during modern season, but did once they swapped to archery?

[dylanb]

i rifle hunted for 4 years  shot 1 deer archery hunted for 2 days and taged out and it was way better being 30 yards from it then 300 yards. im a sliver slinger for life now

[DIYARCHERYJUNKIE]

Theres a few of these posts on the forum do a search and u might find a few things. 

From my experience I learned you must become an archer before you become an archery hunter.  If you don't have thousands to spend on gear and hundreds of hours to shoot the bow and scout then it makes it even harder. 

Archery is a year round sport.  You must become one with nature and your gear to be successfull bow hunting consistently.  I started hunting in 2008 I bought a modern deer tag that I ate.  The next three years I got an archery tag.  I had a lot of heartbreakers with my bow.  All archers do.  I ate all three archery tags.  I got a modern tag this year having drawn a multi tag I planned on buying.  I hunted for at least ten days of season and finally a nice two point stepped out at about a hundred yards bang he dies and I'm eating good this winter. 

I see a lot of deer during archery season but killing one and finding it is a whole differnt thing.  If you do switch start practicing now by sept you should be just fine to hunt ethically.  Good luck let us know.

[Evoac05]

I already have the gear for archery and have practiced, but not enough to have ethically bought an archery tag this year.

[Houndhunter]

it doesn't take thousands of dollars to start bow hunting, 600$ would get you set up. Most bows are very easy to shoot, you'll be amazed at how well you shoot within a week. Nice cause usually you can shoot at home if you have a yard.


That being said, not alot of big bucks get killed with a bow. That's why I rifle deer archery elk. Kinda depends what your after

[PolarBear]

That being said, not alot of big bucks get killed with a bow.

Speak for yourself there Paul!   

[DIYARCHERYJUNKIE]

it doesn't take thousands of dollars to start bow hunting, 600$ would get you set up. Most bows are very easy to shoot, you'll be amazed at how well you shoot within a week. Nice cause usually you can shoot at home if you have a yard.


That being said, not alot of big bucks get killed with a bow. That's why I rifle deer archery elk. Kinda depends what your after

Your correct 600 would get you a bow and maybey even arrows with broad heads.  But a good set of glass and a range finder.  Gonna run ya about 600 more minimum.  At least for any decent set.  A week in the yard isn't gonna cut it.  You will injure and lose game if you only practice that much.  You need to run about one thousand arrows through your bow preseason and practice at twice the distance you shoot on game.  That way the deer dies one shot.  I'd rather never see a deer again than injure one and not find it.  The cost of scouting and spending time afeild is what gets to diggin in your acct.   

[splitshot]

  the late archery season is when a lot of big bucks get shot at from tee stands.  i tried it for a many years back when you could shoot a deer with anything but you got one tag.  shot a lot of carp.  you need lots of patience and you have lots of failure.  good luck and practice, practice, etc.  mikew

[clindsayrun]

Practice, practice, and practice some more! Practice high angle shots, practice odd positioned shots. Practice seated, keeling, and standing. Practice odd yardage shots and practice getting out of your comfort zone. Practice in the clothes you'll hunt in.
Between practings, study and learn everything you can.  A few guys flinging arrows can give the entire community a bad image...

[Special T]

http://silverarrowbowmen.com/
You live Close so come out and shoot! Membership for the Upcoming year is $40! 30+10 initiation... non members pay $2 for the walk through course. We will be hosting several 3ds that will be as close to real hunting practice as you can get. 

[csaaphill]

Up to you. I've hunted with both and even if I'm an odd one out I like rifle better. I do like some of the chances you get with a bow over a gun, but prefer gun.

[NWBREW]

Yes....yes you should. I'm hunting MF. 

[PolarBear]

I have been archery hunting for so many years that I cringe at the thought of going back to rifle.  If I did I would have to hunt with a shotgun or pistol to make it challenging.  I hunted rifle in 2007 after my major back surgery and hated every second of it.   That buck was probably the least satisfying animal that I have ever taken.  If you are going to do archery please do not go at it half assed!  There are far too many "hunters" who decide to switch just because of longer seasons and fail to the the amount of practice to be a responsible archer.  Archery hunting big game is not like rifle hunting, an hour at the range per year aint gonna cut it.  Unfortunately far too many feel that it is.

[Houndhunter]

Don't trust polar bear, he hasn't killed a buck in years , I thought you were partying it up right now lol.

As far as trophy blacktail go, they are not easy on public land. I'd go rifle if you wanna shoot a big buck

[marlin]

Ive only hunted Washington for 3yrs, but my first two were with a rifle, and I saw plenty of does and no bucks.
This year I decided I was going to bowhunt because the odds of success are better. Twice as much time to hunt, and either sex is legal. So I tagged a doe on the 6th day of season..
I grew up in Tx, and hunted on private land with no hunting pressure.. So you could just sit in a permanent ground blind surrounded by flat land, and watch deer walk all around you.. Plus, baiting  by way of feeders is legal.. So hunting in Washington was a major difference. Public land, where all you see is orange during rifle season.. And I can always tell when rifle season starts, because I see lots of antlers outside my apartment alongside the freeway, but none in the woods.
The morning that I killed my doe, I had her in the bed of my truck on the way to my friends house, and I saw 2 bucks in the road..  I really enjoyed my first year of bow hunting. I cant wait to get back to texas, on my property you can get 4 deer per year, and it doesnt matter what weapon you choose to use.
The odds of success in rifle season suck in my opinion.. Now if you could shoot either sex, and have as much season as archery does to hunt with a rifle, I would be rifle hunting most of the time.

[PolarBear]

Don't trust polar bear, he hasn't killed a buck in years , I thought you were partying it up right now lol.

As far as trophy blacktail go, they are not easy on public land. I'd go rifle if you wanna shoot a big buck

LOL!  Spoken from a guy who has never killed a big buck.      The party got over an hour ago Paul, you missed out.  Dave and I  found some dude for you to hook up with.  We gave him your number.  He lives over in Scott lake and drives a Prius. 

[RadSav]

Archery hunting for a few years should make you a better hunter.  And the fact that you can shoot does as a learning tool without the need to draw a special tag is the reason most try bowhunting.  The longer seasons, less competition for territory, the less chance of someone shooting one out from under you, the need to learn stalking and reading wind, etc. make it a great sport for learning about hunting and "The Animal".  Sometimes those things are hard to learn when you can't seem to find a legal animal amongst the road sloths and modern crowds.  A few years chasing does and you'd be surprised how much your learning curve is shortened.  And you would be surprised how many bowhunters have set out to tag a meat animal and ended up with a fine trophy.  My first 7X7 bull elk was a late season bull on a hunt I fully intended to tag a cow on.  If I had known how big he was when I shot I'd probably missed back in those days

The nice thing about starting into bowhunting these days is that even the bargain bows are great pieces of equipment.  Back when I started in the late 70's that wasn't the case.  Todays cheapest bow would have been the Cadillac of the archery industry back then.  And even the cheaper arrows of today are quite outstanding.  The only piece of equipment you really need to step up and buy the best you can afford is broadheads.  So the "Getting into Bowhunting" decision doesn't need to break the bank.  Just make sure you get fitted properly from a qualified shop and forget worrying about brand, fps, and the my junk is bigger than yours attitude of the guys at the range.

You do need to make a more dedicated effort to become proficient with a bow than a rifle or smoke pole.  But you can do that in the hallway of your house, in the back yard or on one of the many fine walk through archery ranges throughout the state.  And for the guy starting out 3-D shoots are one heck of a lot more fun than punching paper in some gravel pit with a bunch of wannabe snipers, range commandos or heaven forbit drunks.  And, if you are a father, there are few things that bring together father and son and/or father and daughter than a day spent together throwing arrows at make believe villains, critters and even the occasional dinosaur.  Being from Marysville you have some great choices of places to go and shoot without having to drive any long distance.

Sometimes that first animal is the greatest trophy you will harvest.  Doesn't have to be a Boone & Crockett buck or even a Pope & Young bull.  Doesn't even need to have any horns at all.  In this day and age of Outdoor Life TV and Trophy Record Books of 100 kinds elitism can break a novice down and strip the fun out of a sport that was once part of the American Heritage.  And though the reward of hunting is not always a picture on facebook and a freezer full of meat it does make the effort and dedication a bit more sweet when served with blood trails and backstraps.  The opportunity that bowhunting in Washington allows might very well help you find out what that kind of reward is like.  I guarantee you will become a better rifle hunter in a shorter period of time by trying the bow than continuing to follow the path you are on right now.

The other option not yet mentioned that would increase your learning curve would be to take advantage of a good guide service like Bearpaw Outfitters.  For less money than a top of the line archery outfit you can spend a week with good guides and pick their brains while greatly improving your chances of success.  Quite often on some nice private property where you won't have to compete with the bully crowds.  Many view guides and outfitters as a tool of the rich and greedy.  But that is far from the truth.  The right outfits can be outstanding schools for the novice hunter.  And considering the cost of education these days one extremely enjoyable bargain.

Best of luck to you in whatever decision you make.  I am always available by PM if you have specific questions on guides, bowhunting or archery equipment that might not fall within the restraints of an online thread.

[Evoac05]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I'm leaning towards going archery next year, but only if I get in enough practice and feel that I can down an animal with one shot. I am in no way the type of hunter that will fling an arrow a dozen times and call myself ready for archery season. This is why I haven't picked up an archery tag sooner. I'll definitely try checking out a few ranges close by. I already have a 20 yard range setup in my backyard where I practice.

[PolarBear]

The best piece of advise that I can give you to  increase your accuracy and confidence is to SLOWLY practice out to 90-100+ yards.  It may seem intimidating at first but I can promise you that once you do it any shot under 50 yards will be practically instinctive.  Get good at long range and you will be shooting bullet holes at short range. 

[JimmyHoffa]

I would recommend getting a deer multi-season permit for a year so you can try out the archery gear in the bow/muzzy seasons.  You'll still have the rifle option for the modern season in case you don't quite feel comfy flinging the pointy stick. 

[CoryTDF]

Nope keep gun hunting! Archery hunting sucks and there are no deer out in September. 

[westsideoutdoorsman]

Yes.