Is anyone else going to hunt trad during the gun season. I have decided to hunt an obscure spot that the deer will retreat to when pressured by gun hunters. I'm going to stick with it, I would like to take a buck in this manner.
I share land with some gun hunters while I bowhunt and never had a problem yet, they know where my ground blinds are located and so far have respected those spaces.
I stick with the bow, have for years! I killed my first with a gun, didn't care for it! still trying to get my first trad kill. stay with it brother, somtimes them gun hunters will push them right to you!! Jason
I do it every gun season. in fact I dont think I have gun hunted in over 20 years or so.. just put the orange on (required here) and join them. we have some areas where the gun season is limited or closed but the majority of the state is open to rifles or muzzloaders from mid october till about the end of the year.. Here the modern gun season opens right at rut, so in alot of the state we would be missing out not to hunt... just hunt the same as if it wasnt gun season but alot of times you can use the pressure to your advantage.. Funny but it seems almost every year some one thinks I either cant afford a gun or I dont know the gun season is open... they just dont understand why I would bow hunt with a longbow or recurve when I could be blastin them..... good luck and stick with it..
I sure wish we could bowhunt here in IL during the gun season! Maybe one of these days they will change that goofy rule but until then I just slip accross the state line to Indiana to hunt for those 7 days!
Always :bigsmyl:
Not in IL, unless you go to one of the few spots where guns aren't allowed and they still let bows in. Also legal in a few of the NE counties.
I'l have to admit I go gunnin during gun season, I got a 14 year old girl that don't show much desire to bow hunt but loves gun season. gives me a chance to spend some quality time with my kids.
I let her have first crack at a buck if one shows up and I pack a gun along as well, to me it's just like going to the grocery store. Not as fulfilling as stick-n-string dut it put's meat on the table. If she doesn't go to the woods some during gun season I go to my bow spots with the ol'faithful stick and string.
Just me trying to keep some younguns interested, Maybe some day she'll decide to take uo the trad gear (I hope) and we can begin a new journey together.
Kris
I hunt with my longbow during gun season. Every year I show up at my Dad's camp and all the guys shake their heads and say, "you're gonna use that thing again"? I always have more fun then they do.
Not everytime, my freezer is looking poor.But Ill still be doing most of my hunting close to home in bow only area.
I do it every year. I've got faith in ya', bud...
According to the manager of the NWR where I usually hunt, the seasons and the specified weapons for that season are fixed. Archery season begins October 1st and ends Nov 13th. During primitive weapon season either muzzleloader or archery equipment can be used. During gun season only guns may be used. During the special hog hunt days on the schedule you can hunt with any weapon approved for the other seasons based on your choice. It is illegal on this NWR to hunt squirrel or rabbit with archery equipment. During spring turkey season either shotgun or archery can be used. I'm not sure what the reasoning is for these rules other than the manager stated that the seasons are strictly what they are and the weapon approved for each season is clearly established. With the state operated WMA system they are more liberal in allowing archery during gun season. However, when using the WMA system be sure and have the regulations for that WMA straight or you might receive a citation and court date. On the local NWR I have heard, hearsay only, that the gun hunters were complaining about bowhunters in the woods during gun season. Their logic is simple, if I can't hunt with my gun during archery season, then why should you be allowed to hunt with bow and arrow during gun season?
Yep, I just filled my final buck tag on the 1st day of rifle season....with my bow.
So far I'm sticking to my recurve. Had I used a gun my doe tag would be filled. here in Nova Scotia you can use bow during gun season. will likely finish the season using only the recurve, just more enjoyable for me
In Wyoming, most all of our bow seasons are the month of September. If you want to hunt later, you pretty much share with the rifles. I'm lucky that I have a bowhunting only area close for deer and antelope, but on almost all public land, the rifle is king. I'm fortunate that I can hunt mid week, so I avoid the crowds, but everything I killed this year and last year was taken with a bow during gun season.
Yes, since they started allowing it in Indiana.
Adeeden, don't feel sorry for you folks in Illinois, your gun seasons are short and not during the heat of the rut!
2 weeks solid gunning in Indiana and then 2 weeks of muzzleloader, too much gunning in my opinion.
Get out there, you never know what might happen! Good shootin, Steve
bow only for me!! way too much fun to stop :bigsmyl:
I bowhunt though gun season when hunting private land.On the public land in this area I had just rather end my season when archery goes out.Way too crowded with too many fools for me to waste my time.I can usually have enough deer in the freezer that I don't need to get out there with them.
I will probably bowhunt longbow & recurve but will deffently be muzzleloading I think it just goes hand in hand with trad bowhunting. Although my muzzleloader isnt "trad" its still a challenge and I love it.
In Iowa it's illegal to bow hunt during the gun seaasons .
Bow only here. In fact heading out this afternoon with a buddy, he's rifle hunting and I will be bow hunting.
Bow through gun season although I do mix it up hunting pheasant, ducks and geese with friends. We have a ball!
I am this year. I figure I'll have more fun and maybe not as much work...lol In the past about the time the echo of my shot was gone, the work started. I also have an advantage over the guys I hunt with, if I miss, they don't ever have to know it..lol I did miss a spike or what I thought was a spike as it turns out he was a tiny forky.The gun hunter showed him to me.
One of my friends put a dirty thirty in my blind and that's fine with me but it never entered my mind to pick it up with either deer I had in range. I hope I'm not tested with a super huge buck out of my comfort zone...lol
God bless,Mudd
Im probably going to use both. My brothers dont bow hunt, and its a tradition that we hunt together.
Then I will most likely zero in on my "pressure stands" and go with the bow.
Of course there is always Westchester...LOL.
Got my first trad deer on Thankgiving day. I showed up to hunt and everybody with there shotguns thought I had gone off the deep end. I took it all in stride. When we met for lunch there was only one deer taken. :biglaugh: Guys with the firesticks had shot and missed. They have never questioned me again.
Hunting all the way through with the Bow...
Yep it works. My son got his first trad deer yesterday. Opening day for muzzle loader season.
I know alot of hunters went home empty handed, but he got his with his recurve. Talk about a happy dad! That was me.
I haven't used a firearm in about 12 years. I hunt on my own propery, but am surrounded by gun hunters. It does not seem to be a problem. I have had many deer in sight when guns were fired in the distance. The deer don't seem to react at all. But if I make even a slight squeek of a noise in the stand, they bolt immediately!
I am a bow only guy myself and often get the same strange looks followed by the "are you a fellon" or "cant afford a rifle" questions. Sometimes I get the smerk and stupid "ya don't like to kill deer do ya" statement. no bother to me, and usually there is some one arount to get my back with the " you obviously havent seen his wall" statement. Anyway, sorry for you guys that cant bowhunt during the gun season, thats is odd and questionable but some laws are that way. Have you actually confirmed it with the DNR? In Va its not written well, and actually the way the law works is you can bowhunt during the firearms season with the added bonus of not actually needing an archery liscense. My deer encounters dont change much as I prefer to hunt away from the crowd anyway.
I'll hunt with the bow during late muzzle loader/bow season, but during gun season I really enjoy hunting with my handgun.
I'll be out shopping for a doe this Friday morning with a muzzleloader. I would rather have my longbow, but its not allowed in Illinois. I'm not sure why. Maybe they think that bowhunters would be tempted to take off their orange if they allowed it??
This is my second Trad year and the first year I have scored. My shooting confidence level is sky high and the way I feel right now I never want bow season to end. I too have decided all ready that I will use the bow and stick with it. I know I might miss out on a opportunity at a nice buck running by that I know I could down with the gun but I would rather trade that easley for another Trad harvest.
Firearms season started yesterday here in Missouri. I was in the woods as usual with the longbow. Could have killed 4 bucks with a rifle but no shots with the bow. 2 more bucks sighted this morning. I had a blast watching and seeing those deer. Worth it to not get a shot. (I could have shot 2 of them but passed as they were young 6 pt)
We are lucky enough here in WV to be able to substitute a bow during modern rifle and muzzleloading seasons but we must wear orange and all laws apply as if you were using rifle or muzzleloader.
I'll be using my bow, wearing orange and smiling when everyone shake their heads and laugh when they see me!
I hunt the entire deer season strickly with a bow, but just got a little worried what RonD wrote. So I sent the MS: DW&F an email and received an answer that it's legal where I hunt in MS. Good service from the state of MS, especially on a Sunday.
I should be out for a couple of days towards the end of the week and if so - yep... I'll have my bow.
Conny, when using the WMA system it is always a good idea to check with the WMA manager to ensure that you are legal. Wildlife and game management programs whether state or federal look at productivity as a factor in the regulating of hunting. That means setting seasons, bag limits, and method of harvest, etc. The NWR where I have hunted is not in the best of shape as far as biodiversity goes and is currently overrun with feral hogs and other predators that decimate the deer habitat, destroy turkey populations, and effect the overall ecological system making up that NWR. That is one of the reasons from a management perspective that they are so strict on the seasons and method of harvest. This particular NWR is primarily a bird and waterfowl sanctuary. Besides being overrun with feral hogs it is also overrun with cottonmouths. Most state WMAs follow the principles of wildlife management rather than game management and attempt to sustain a carrying capacity as supported by the protection of the natural habitat, natural gene pools and the minimization of disease within and among the various species constituting that ecological system. There are times when I think all of this is nonsense because it keeps me from doing what I want to do with regard to hunting. But then I think that maybe what I want to do is not in the best interest of the wildlife or refuge and see the purpose in supporting and enforcing the rules governing the use of these areas. Not trying to lecture anyone, just stating my position as I understand it.
There is a advantage to using a bow in Pa. in urban areas. The safety zone for bows is only 50 yards from a building and with a gun it is 150 yards. There are some places in the cities where you can't use a gun but a bow is perfect. Guess where all the deer run to when the first shot is fired.
I readied a spot tonight for the gun opener, it's on my neighbors land that I have permission to hunt. I'm going to set up my ground blind, with bow in hand and some coffee and a good lunch, I'm sure to see some action if I stick it out :bigsmyl: There is still a lot of fresh buck sign in there and over on mine I know this deer and he works his way back and forth.
Very few "archery only" hunts in Alaska, yup I hunt trad in firearms seasons on a regular basis.
Go Get Em Jim!
Hey Mike, I'll be packing some thin sliced bologna samiches :bigsmyl:
I always hunt with bow during gun season. I have not hunted with a gun but a couple times in the past 15 years.
Louis
I'll be out among the long barrels with bow at hand. Shot a 8 point the last Saturday of the 07 "rifle" season.
I love it when my friend told me that he won't let anyone hunt with a gun on his land. I still haven't hit a deer but last Tuesday I drew back and let go three times. Three misses. What a rush. I need to spend sometime shooting from the stand 20' feet up. Two, I missed out right. The third jumped the string.
I'll carry a gun first day to hunt with my Dad. After that I'll use my bow in a small woodlot that does not get gun hunters.
i hunt nothing but trad all the time, every where