# Advise for a new hunter



## homestead (Mar 21, 2014)

Any advice for a new hunter? 

Most people grow up hunting, unfortunately I did not. I am hoping to hunt this upcoming season. I practice for an hour a day to try to get my pounds up and good accuracy. I also spend 3+ hours a 3 times a week in the woods scouting, shed hunting, and getting general knowledge of animal movement and habits. Any advice would be helpful. What did your parents teach you that stuck with you and helped you out when you went out on your own? Thanks in advance.


----------



## Groganite (Nov 14, 2012)

Dont eat a can of beans before sitting in a tree stand....:mrgreen:


----------



## Huge29 (Sep 17, 2007)

Welcome to the forum and good luck! I think you will find a lot of info here on the forum just by looking through.


----------



## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Get to know an area before the hunt. If you see sign, animals are there.

Patience. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Beating your feet to death should be done before the hunt. Nothing wrong with putting yourself in a good spot and letting the animals come into you during the hunt.

Success doesn't always mean putting meat the freezer. If you are strictly after meat go to the store. Enjoy the hunt. Sometimes that means just clearing your head of day to day stuff. I like to refer to the hunt as "my check up from the neck up"


----------



## outdoorser (Jan 14, 2013)

Welcome to the UWN!! 
I too was not raised by a hunting family. 
Just read a lot and get out as much as you can. There is a lot of good info out there, and a lot on this site as well. 
Good luck and don't be afraid to ask any questions on here!

p.s. I assume you are planning on hunting deer?


----------



## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

Like outdoorser said, read a bunch of books that are specific to the area and species you want to hunt. You'll learn a lot and it's entertaining. Also, try to find a hunting buddy.


----------



## Archin (Oct 5, 2013)

Sounds like your on the right track just keep it up. Archery is the toughest hunt there is just don't get discouraged and keep at it. We're here for you. What unit are you hoping for?


----------



## Dodger (Oct 20, 2009)

Spell advice with a C instead of an S. :mrgreen:

Practice out to 70 or 80 yards. You won't be disappointed if you are ready for that shot and you only need a 20 yard shot. But you will be disappointed if you do things the other way around.


----------



## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

homestead said:


> Any advise for a new hunter?
> 
> Most people grow up hunting, unfortunately I did not. I am hoping to hunt this upcoming season. I practice for an hour a day to try to get my pounds up and good accuracy. I also spend 3+ hours a 3 times a week in the woods scouting, shed hunting, and getting general knowledge of animal movement and habits. Any advise would be helpful.* What did your parents teach you that stuck with you and helped you out when you went out on your own?* Thanks in advance.


Safety
Be aware of your surroundings.
Practice.
Patience.
Respect for the animals and environment.
Love of the outdoors.

Just to mention a few.


----------



## goosefreak (Aug 20, 2009)

knowing the animals you hunt is important, but experience in the field is more useful than any book you'll read no matter what your hunting. try to learn from every successful and unsuccessful hunt you go on including scouting trips there is ALWAYS something to learn you just got to look. and know that a BAD hunt can change in an INSTANT, and vicea versa... watch your wind, when stalking on animals pay attention to the other animals around you, you can have a stalk blown easy from a doe you didn't see...put in the time


----------



## homestead (Mar 21, 2014)

Dodger said:


> Spell advice with a C instead of an S. :mrgreen:
> 
> Practice out to 70 or 80 yards. You won't be disappointed if you are ready for that shot and you only need a 20 yard shot. But you will be disappointed if you do things the other way around.


Thanks for all the info. How high do your pounds need to be to shoot 70-80 yards? What is the ideal pounds to hunt with? I will be on the lower side for a while but hope to get stronger over time.


----------



## RandomElk16 (Sep 17, 2013)

Go to your local archery shop and take in their knowledge. They will be able to tell you more in person about draws and equipment then we will over the internet.


----------



## Dodger (Oct 20, 2009)

homestead said:


> Thanks for all the info. How high do your pounds need to be to shoot 70-80 yards? What is the ideal pounds to hunt with? I will be on the lower side for a while but hope to get stronger over time.


Minimum draw weight in Utah is 40 pounds. My bow was at 72 pounds last season and then I cranked it down to 68. Your mileage may differ.

The weight of the bow does not directly correspond with how far you can shoot in a practical sense. In a physics sense, yes, it does. But, it's not like an additional 3 pounds of pull weight will get you another 10 yards or something like that. The pull weight will affect the speed of the arrow, not the range so much. The speed of the arrow will affect how high you need to aim. You could shoot an arrow with a 40 pound pull 200 yards if shot it at the right angle.

The guys at the shops will be able to help you more than we can. I would get the highest pull weight you can comfortably shoot now and then crank it up every month until hunting season until you can shoot where you want to.


----------



## mtnwldman (Mar 23, 2014)

Pay attention where you have been so you can get back. Find someone to share the experience. And my most important rule is to enjoy the experience of the chase and treasure your success.


----------



## 2full (Apr 8, 2010)

When I finally learned to slow down, relax, soak everything in, and enjoy the day, I started taking much better animals. It took me way too long to figure that out. _O\\


----------



## scott_rn (Sep 11, 2007)

Get a range finder. That would have saved me a few headaches. 
Also, be prepared to kill something. It may sound stupid, but dealing with a huge amount of red meat in August can get complicated.


----------



## 12many (Apr 14, 2008)

being able to pull the min weight for legal hunting will work however when I was younger I would pull my bow and aim till my arms started shaking, put down and repeat once your muscles have relaxed, I able to crank the bow up but it made me know how long I could hold a full draw. Practice with the weight that is comfortable for you not what others are shooting. I agree with scott_rn in august hauling out a bunch of meat and keeping it cold is difficult, have a butcher in mind before season and ask are you open on Sundays? ask when will they start processing game meat some butchers will not take game meat since they are processing cows, sheep, any farm raised animals. Just a little FYI


----------



## goonsquad (Sep 15, 2010)

Field craft, buy books, watch videos, practice in the back yard... Buy some books on tracking, go look for tracks, watch videos on stalking, practice on your wife or kids as they prepare dinner or don't expect a surprise (I just do this for fun, but its a good intro). Buy maps and a good compass (learn to use them). 

My family were road hunters and I had to learn everything about humping into the back country by myself, I still suck. But I have a lot of fun learning. Keep the idea that you will never master the hunt and you will always learn something and you should be good to go.


----------



## torowy (Jun 19, 2008)

Most of it you learn from experience


----------



## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

Most hunters don't even see half the animals out there because they're in too big of a hurry. I've had game come right up to me, less than 2 feet away and not realize I was there. Slow down, enjoy the scenery and beauty and then you'll start seeing game galore and fill your tag. I had a friend that learned this the hard way. Broke his leg and had a cast from his thigh to his ankle. They brought him out on a 4 wheeler and put him in a couple of lawn chairs. One for him and one for the leg. He saw more deer than anyone out there and actually had to pick out the buck he wanted to shoot because there were so many around him. Had he been able to move himself there is no doubt he would have gotten skunked like the rest of his hunting party.


----------



## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

LostLouisianian said:


> Most hunters don't even see half the animals out there because they're in too big of a hurry. I've had game come right up to me, less than 2 feet away and not realize I was there. Slow down, enjoy the scenery and beauty and then you'll start seeing game galore and fill your tag. I had a friend that learned this the hard way. Broke his leg and had a cast from his thigh to his ankle. They brought him out on a 4 wheeler and put him in a couple of lawn chairs. One for him and one for the leg. He saw more deer than anyone out there and actually had to pick out the buck he wanted to shoot because there were so many around him. Had he been able to move himself there is no doubt he would have gotten skunked like the rest of his hunting party.


Other than the wind this is the most important aspect IMO. Well........aside from just taking it all in which is more of a "why hunt" than a "how to"


----------

