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There is an elk area near my home that has become quite popular with archery hunters and is one of my favorite places to hunt (when I can draw a tag). I've been chatting with other hunters (some I know, some I don't) and this season for some reason has become quite disturbing to me. I just hit the "30" mark of known bull elk that people arrowed and lost. Now I know that hunting (especially archery hunting) is not a perfect sport and crazy things do happen, but I have heard of people taking insane shots. Most are either WAY too far (I heard of a 110 yard shot from one guy), or trying to kill a bull quartering towards you and even a few frontal shots, one guy said he was aiming for the neck...? I guess I'm just upset, this a great elk area, drawing a tag is tough, and there are some beautiful bulls running around. Have people just lost all respect for the quarry or are they trying way too hard to kill an elk because they know they can't draw this area regularly? All I see is lost opportunity for hunters in the future. | ||
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I think many people have such a desire to harvest an animal, they put to much pressure on themselves. This in turn causes hunters to take shots that maybe shouldnt have been taken. Just my two cents. Tom | |||
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It sounds to me like there's too many people in your area hunting with a bow that need the application of a 2x4 upside the head! 110 yards??? Neck shot??? Those shots are the signs of an unethical bowhunter, nothing more, nothing less... I've been bowhunting now for close to three decades now and I can count the animals I hit and lost on TWO FINGERS! One was the first deer I ever shot at with a bow and the other was a doe at 20 yards that turned just as I released, so I hit her way too far back. If I'm not at least 95% certain of making a killing shot, I don't release the arrow. There's no excuse for the type of thing you're talking about... | |||
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Television promotes this stuff with hosts shooting at targets way too far for ethical Elk shots and swear by expandable broadheads for Elk. I personally would never use expandables on Elk, my choice but it's a sound one. Many animals are lost each year due to shooting too far, bad choices in broadheads and just taking the wrong shot. How many times do you see TV hosts losing animals? They won't show themselves in bad light, the others, well, they just can't help being stupid. LDK Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
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I know of 2 different hunters this year with deer- one has hit two and not recovered them (a younger hunter out of a treestand who likely has not practiced from one enough), and a much more experienced hunter weho told me he has had 2 nice bucks within 8 & 10 yards and hasn't shot because "things weren't right". I know when he shoots he'll get his. | |||
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Hmm, Archery wound loss rates are alarming, mostly I beleive because the margin of error can be so great. And many archers get very emotional and combative talking about them. At the end of the day if you practice a lot, don't take stupid shots, and don't get the "I have to kill something now" concept in your brain you will probably not lose anything. Same as all other forms of hunting. | |||
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I'm on a lease where we can use firearms or bows. Some of the guys only hunt with bows. This year they have shot a lot of animals they couldn't find. The buzzards find them the next day. Most of the time this happens when they shoot something late in the evening. They can't find a blood trail in the dark. We know they hit what they were shooting at because they find the bloody arrow. One guy missed what he says was a 170+ buck last Saturday and he missed a hog before that. I hope he missed the buck. I don't mind when they miss or can't find a hog but I hate it when they miss (maybe) or can't find a deer. Due to the drought we're not seeing very many does and almost no does with yearlings. The local biologist says the fawn survival rate was only about 10%. They're always trying to get me into bow hunting but I'm afraid I might have the same problems they are. | |||
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IF you're willing to practice with your bow until you can put five arrows into a 5 inch circle at 30 yards consistently, and IF you're willing to wait for the animal to be within that 30 yards, and IF you're willing to wait until you have a clear shot at the animal's vitals, and IF you only shoot when you know in your heart that you've got at least a 95% chance of making the shot, then you can go bowhunting without concern for wounding and losing an animal. It's only when you cut corners, get in a hurry to make a kill and try to "force" the shot that things to to heck in a hurry. I'm NOT saying that it won't happen to you even if you follow the above guidelines, because it still can. But most of the time when I've had to help track a wounded animal, it's because the archer (I won't call them hunters) tried to shoot too far, tried to force the arrow through a small gap in the brush into the vitals, didn't practice enough, shot too late in the evening or too early in the morning or something similar. Archery equipment is capable of killing quickly, efficiently and cleanly, providing the bowhunter does his/her job properly. It's when they try to cut corners that game gets lost usually. | |||
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I've been hunting for a long time also with a bow and have a few critters in the bag. Last count was at 35 big game animals with a bow as Idaho only allows one deer per year. Never lost any animal and most died within about 10-50 yards. I've taken 7 bull elk, one Pope and Young with a bow in a variety of ranges from 5 yards to many yards. I've shot a 5x5 bull elk head on at 30 yards and buried a 32" shaft in his chest up to the nock. He turned away and tried to bugle again and only a gurgle came out. He probably only went about 10 yards as he just stumbled around and went down in about 15 seconds. If you don't think you can pull off the shot don't shoot it!! It should be remembered that there are elk running around with hits from rifles that are never found yet they don't seem to generate the emotion of a bow hit. | |||
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How many animals are wounded with rifles and the shooter simply thinks he missed? Pretty easdy to happen at longer ranges or even at close range if the animal runs away at the sound of the shot then dies without the hunters knowlege. The difference with bows is we usually can tell if we hit the animal or not. | |||
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 Sad but true | |||
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I have a deer lease in South Texas where the landowner will not allow any bowhunting because of just these sorts of issues. It's a shame because I've bowhunted for years and have successfully taken a number of species with a bow. Have had the discussion, but because of people wounding game, he will not allow any bowhunting whatsoever. It's his land. | |||
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it to bad there must be a huge number of absoltuly terrible bow hunters in that area i mean bow hunting isnt hard but alot people refuse to grasp common phyics heavy arrows penetrate and kill light arrows wound deer i just got finished talking to a guy tonight that damn near lost his deer if it wasnt foy my dog hes using a bow set up with a light 325 grain arrow at 370 fps he got a whole 4" of penetration after clipping the back of the shoulder mean while with my 75# long bow and 800 grain arrow/head combos i blow thru a white tail deers shoulder like a hot knife thru butter. have also taken elk moose and a few african plains game as well im saving my money for a ele hunt also to be done with a long bow only just to prove yet again it can be done and done saftly.....well relativly. my bow will be a 120#+ fedora long bow or possibly some other make havent desided yet... | |||
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