# Identity crisis



## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

Ok, so give me some opinions. I love shooting my bow... had a great time this year, work for an arrow manufacturer and have had some good times/hunts this year and last. However.... when bird season rolls around, I'm extremely quick to put down the bow and pick up a shotgun, never looking at the bow again until I'm done bird hunting. I honestly talked to my wife about selling my bow to try and get some money to fix my truck and possibly put towards a shotgun for her. Am I just having a bit of frustration, letting doubt creep in?? Anyone else experience this and wonder if bowhunting is your deal like you thought it was?? I was dead set on being a serious bowhunter but man, I am revved up for grouse and duck seasons.... way more so than I was for the opener of deer season. Should I just wait it out, see what happens this year and then just kinda see how next year goes? Maybe its the deer hunting.... I know a big bull bugling gets me charged up but I didn't get that much this year chasing deer. I don't even have an elk tag this year, maybe thats the problem. Anyway, just wanted to throw this out and see if you guys have ever felt the same and if so, how did you handle it??


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## north slope (Sep 8, 2007)

Get out now, give me your bow.


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## Bowdacious (Sep 16, 2007)

Don't give up....I was thinking not too long ago that maybe I would go back to rifle for the deer hunt. However, Check out my post ENDING WITH A BANG. After that experience I'm hooked on bow hunting and will probably never pick up a rifle again for the general season. It was a rush, Just hang in there and get one under your belt first. You'll never go back.


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## Mojo1 (Sep 8, 2007)

Balancing your obsessions is the answer, you must be as equally obsessed with big game hunting as water fowling. It can be done, because I do it, of course your wife might not agree; mine didn't. :lol: :lol:


Hang in there, its tough to keep hunting with a bow until you get some success. I will admit waterfowl hunting has a lot more excitement during the hunt, but remember Elk and Deer taste better than duck. :mrgreen:


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## Finnegan (Sep 7, 2007)

What does it matter so long as you're having a good time?

Tell you what, though. Don't sell your bow unless you're prepared to buy a new one next Spring. You know you will.


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## Mojo1 (Sep 8, 2007)

Finnegan said:


> What does it matter so long as you're having a good time?
> 
> Tell you what, though. Don't sell your bow unless you're prepared to buy a new one next Spring. You know you will.


Very wise advice!!!!!


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

I would say some archers have some kind of mental disease. Especially to hunt the deer we hunt. I say stick with it bud. Those hills we hunt will mentally break just about anyone, especially this time of year.

A lot has to do with luck but some of it has to do with what you do with your luck. Keep practicing and make the one shot you get count.  Hopefully your learning curve isn’t as long as mine was.

It took me three years of hunting up their nearly every weekend to bag my first one. It happened in 2002 and it wasn’t the biggest buck either 18" 4 point. Once I got the first one down I decided to try and hold out for a good one and went almost two years until I got him November of 2004. I have taken a deer up their every year since 2004 and in almost every canyon. There is truly a learning curve to hunting high pressure deer and the best part of hunting deer will be when you are shooting ducks. You will have to pick your poison this year. Maybe next year you can have your cake and eat it! 

Now for elk, my learning curve has been going on for almost 2.5 years.  Maybe this will be the year.  I have hunted elk for only 2 days in 2006, 7 days in 2007, and 4 days so far this year. Which brings me to a total of 13 days and some of the best archery units for elk in Utah will take you an average of 12 days a field before you tag one. I have to mentally keep thinking my time is coming to keep hiking those hills :mrgreen:


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## dkhntrdstn (Sep 7, 2007)

Think about it. Do you think wendy will goout enought to sell your bow and get enough out of it to get her a shoot gun that she might not use that much.You work for a arrow comnpany and that will make you stay with it. good luck on your choice.


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## Flyfishn247 (Oct 2, 2007)

Pick up some Judo points and take your bow after the grouse, then you have the best of both worlds. Have fun chasing birds and possibly seeing a deer if you are hunting grouse on the extended. Make sure you don't overlook mid-November for deer on the extended, it can be some of the best hunting up there especially if we get snow. Don't sell your bow, get a paper route or something to supplement your other needs.


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## WasatchOutdoors (Sep 26, 2007)

Absolutely stick with it. It's a frustrating sport, and a lot of hard work, but when it does finally come together, it is SO satisfying. It's hard to compare it to the wingshooting sports because even on a bad day you usually see and often times shoot at something. Archery on the other hand is a much slower, more dedicated way of doing it. But when you finally have that big buck or bull 10 yards from you at full draw, just waiting for him to take that half step forward to give you the shot.... man it's worth it.


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

WasatchOutdoors said:


> But when you finally have that big buck or bull 10 yards from you at full draw, just waiting for him to take that half step forward to give you the shot.... man it's worth it.


Thats what I thought too... and this year, I had my shots at deer but just made a wrong move, or popped up over the wrong bush and got busted. Its been fun chasing deer but just not the same "excitement" I get when getting ready to go chase birds. I do remember elk hunting was a LOT of fun so maybe I'll make sure I get an elk tag next year and if I don't draw for deer I won't be real heartbroken. My wife told me to just keep my bow and decide what I want to do after all the hunts are over.... she said if it comes down to it, I should just take some time and go get a doe off the hill so I can see if that whole bit is something I get excited about. We'll see I guess. Thanks for all the advice fellas.


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