October 1 signals bow season

By Staff
Mike Giles / outdoors writer
September 24, 2004
After spending an afternoon in the deer stand I was just about ready to get down when I detected the rustling of the leaves. Could it be a deer? Maybe. Tick, tick, tick came the distinctive hoof beat sounds from a lone deer coming straight towards my stand, directly behind me no less. As I tried not to breathe, the deer came closer and closer. I dared not move for fear that the deer would detect even the slightest movement. With the last rays of sun vanishing across the sky, mere seconds of daylight were left.
Every muscle and bone in my body was tense with the anticipation of harvesting my first deer with a bow. I had taken well over one hundred deer by that time, but none with a bow. Positioned about 25 feet above the ground in my old Amacker climbing stand, I was above the deer's normal sight and smell range. With dark approaching so quickly, the tension mounted.
There he is.
Suddenly the deer appeared directly underneath my stand. As it stopped only a couple feet in front of my stand, the deer surveyed the lush green field. Instinctively I drew my arrow back and positioned my sight pin right between the deer's shoulder blades. Thwack, came the sound of the arrow striking the backbone and sinking home.
As the deer lunged forward, it was obvious that my arrow had found its mark. The deer ran a mere fifty yards before slowing down to a walk. Seconds later the deer crashed into the brush, never even making it out of the old grown up cut over area. I had witnessed the whole spectacle to the end.
To say that I was ecstatic would be putting it mildly. I had finally done what many of our forefathers had done during the early settlement days. Taking my first deer with a bow was literally icing on the cake. It was also the beginning of another facet of my deer hunting experience.
Bow season begins
The first day of October is the day many die hard deer hunters have longed for all summer. If you are a bow hunter then you know what I mean. Theres nothing quite like the fresh fall air surrounding you in the tree stand. The nippy weather brings with it the anticipation of the coming deer seasons and trips to the woods once again. The fresh smell of wet leaves and pungent white oak acorns will set you on fire for hunting once again.
During the early bow season the deer will be in a more natural state. They will feed at ease during the daylight hours and act much different than after the gun season begins. Perched high atop a tree in my Ole Man climbing stand I am able to watch deer in their environment for much longer periods of time. During the gun season even the slightest movement or sound will spook them. However, during bow season they will behave much differently. With the deer more at ease hunters are able to observe some habits and situations that they normally wouldn't encounter during the open gun seasons.
If you want to spend some quality time in the outdoors, then nothing beats bow hunting for deer. The weather is usually mild and not many hunters are in the woods to bother you. Need a break? Then spend a stress-free day in the fall woods with only a "stick and string" in your hand. But a word of caution here, it's definitely not as easy as it looks. But don't take my word for it, try it for yourself, you will probably enjoy it as much as I do, even if you don't get a deer every time out.