As an avid traditional bow hunter, I know that the best way to develop and maintain the highest level of accuracy is to choose one bow and stick with it.  However, just like most of my tradbow hunting companions, I could never be faithful to just one, so this season I decided not to fight the urge of shooting infidelity and settled on hunting with three separate stickbows.  I knew that my odds of being successful with all of them was limited, but still, I thought if I could somehow pull it off, that would sure be something!

The first of the trio to enjoy some time in the woods was my Black Widow PSAX Osage.  Since I had won numerous 3D archery tournaments with this bow, I was confident that it was up to the task of targeting live deer as efficiently as their foam counterparts.  And with the subtle September breezes seeming to plead with me to come and enjoy the outdoors, I soon found myself and my Widow situated in an afternoon ground blind located between a cedar thicket and a clover field.At 4:30pm I was astonished to peer out of the mesh screen in front of the blind and see a group of four does coming into the field.  If they stayed their current course, they would walk right in front of me.  One of the does had a fawn, but the others were dry, year and a half old deer and would be the perfect addition to the freezer if I could manage to get a shot at one.

As if on cue, the group started past my position, nibbling clover as they casually made their way out to feed.  By the time the first of the dry does moved into shooting position only 14-yards away, I already had begun to draw the Widow.  When she stopped and bent her head to graze, I sent a Vapor Carbon arrow tipped with a 220-grain Muzzy Phantom broadhead through both lungs and watched her collapse within 80-yards of the shot.   I could not have been more grateful for the beautiful animal and the humane kill. And to make things even better, she signified an optimistic start to my bow season.  I was now one for one.

The eve of October sent me in a slightly different direction in terms of selecting a hunting bow.  Months prior, I had agreed to participate in a charity event designed to raise funds for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.  A special custom take down longbow had been built by Horne’s Archery and was being sent around the country to selected archers who would hunt with the bow for two weeks, record their results in a log book, take a digital photo of any kill, and then send the bow and all of the accompanying items to the next archer on the list.  This bow along with the shipping case, log book, camera, etc. will then be auctioned this Summer with proceeds donated to St. Jude’s.  The bow was aptly named “Rover Gal Hope” and my turn with her was to begin on October 1.

“Hope” arrived at my house at noon on Saturday September 30 and when I unpacked her and put her together I was astonished to be holding something so beautiful.  Built with woods of cocobola and bocote, she was a work of art and it was an honor to share in the opportunity to hunt with a bow that had been created for such a noble cause.

I quickly found a set of arrows that were tuned to the bow and took several practice shots at my at home 3D range.  I quickly dialed in with “Hope” and after a look at my watch I realized that if I hurried, I could dress and be in my bow blind in time for the afternoon hunt.

Back in the same blind where I had killed my first doe of the season several weeks prior, I sat back in the warmth of the afternoon sun and dozed while waiting for deer.  The sound of snapping twigs coming from the thicket behind me awakened me from my dreamy state as it was obvious that deer were on the trail that leads into the field and past my blind.  I tightened my grip on Hope’s bowstring, canted the 60-inch longbow so as to be in perfect drawing position, and waited.

When the deer came into view she was already close enough to hear me breathe.  Then, when she hesitated at thirteen steps I drew the bow, picked a spot, and released the string, urging the arrow toward its mark.  The Gold Tip arrow and Grizzly broadhead sailed through the doe unencumbered and at the end of a 75-yard dash into the middle of the clover field, she died in flight.  As luck would have it, I was now two for two and with this hunt providing an infusion of hunting mojo for Rover Gal Hope, I was definitely feeling more fortunate than I deserved to be.  So, in keeping with the theme of giving that surrounds the bow, this animal’s meat was provided as a gift to two separate families in appreciation for the blessing of another clean kill.

My third foray into the field was with yet another bow and for yet a different reason.  In 1998, I discovered some old cedar hunting arrows with broadheads that had once belonged to a family member.  Since I didn’t shoot traditional bows at that time, I simply placed them in a box for some future purpose with the idea that they might eventually be used as a part of a display in my Trophy Room.

After learning to shoot traditional bows, however, I began to think about those old arrows and wondered if it would ever be possible to take an animal with one of them.  So this year, after spending time straightening and tuning them, sharpening the broadheads, and finding just the right bow from my collection to shoot them, I decided to take them afield with my Marriah Thermal recurve and see what might happen.

Acorns were falling on all of the oak ridges and I knew a location where the does seemed to frequent one particular section of woods almost every afternoon.  One day I slipped in at noon, found the perfect tree, and hung a stand among the branches and foliage. Then I retreated to wait for a day that the wind would be right before returning to hunt.

Within a few days the wind had shifted and was blowing steadily from the South, which was perfect for this location.  I quickly made arrangements to hunt and got into my stand about three pm to begin my wait.  It was after five before the first deer appeared, a medium sized doe, and just out of my effective range.  Finally, another doe ambled through the oaks and was soon feeding beneath a white oak tree only 15-yards away.  I watched her intently as she worked her way into a semi-circle and finally presented me with a perfect broadside shot.  Once again, I drew the bow and released an arrow toward a tiny spot on the mature doe’s side. I watched the feathered projectile pass through her lungs and bury into the soil as she bolted away.  Breathing a sigh of relief, I said a silent prayer of thanks for what I knew was another clean kill.

Within seconds I heard the deer go down in the thicket that joined the oak ridge where I was hunting and after a twenty minute wait, I followed a short blood tail to the downed doe.  She was indeed a glorious creature and marked the third deer with the third different bow I had used this season.  I was now three for three.

While indeed it is true that the best way to gain and retain accuracy is to find a bow that shoots well and to stick with it, it is also apparent in my tale of bows and does that sometimes even us unfaithful tradbow types can get lucky.  The key to success using multiple traditional bows is to have a well-tuned arrow, practice with the bows you intend to use, and most important, limit the shot distance.  In the three hunts above, the longest shot was 15-yards and the shortest was 13-yards.  I had previously self-imposed a limit of 17-yards as a maximum and any deer exceeding that limit would have required me to pass on the shot and wait for closer opportunities.

The archery season in Kentucky generously allows the taking of unlimited antlerless deer in many counties and my home county is no exception. Since the season extends into January it is possible that my luck on these ungulate ladies could continue.  And given the number of traditional bows in my arsenal, it’s possible that I might even make it four for four.  Now that really would be something!

© December 2006