Tradbow bunny tactics

[GingivitisKahn]

Thumbing through my Howard Hill Archery catalog (and wiping the drool from the pages) I noticed a partial list of the game that he had taken.  The figure that impressed me most was the estimated 1,500 rabbits.

I've taken two or three but what on earth?

The few I've gotten have been spot/stalk - is that what most folks try?  My old shotgun tactics of tromping around, kicking brush piles and shooting cottontails as they fly out - that only goes so far w/ a bow.  When I try that, I tend to find my recurve gets tangled up with me and the brush I'm trying to kick (longbow guys would have it even tougher, I think).

Lots of you guys are major bunny busters, so if you don't mind my asking - how do you do it?

[longbowben]

Gingivitiskahn i just kicked brush and watch where they run then stalk them .LOOK AT OHIO RABBITS .That was this weekends kills.

[GingivitisKahn]

Will do - thx.   I hated to miss the trip to Tar Hollow but had to work into the wee hours of the morning.  Bleah.

[ishiwannabe]

If you hunt solo, than the above will work out fine. If you have a group of say 3 or more, you can set up a shooter out front, and walk to him. Of course the shooter(s) should go around the cover that is being pushed. At JLMBH we usually divide the group in half or so, half are drivers half are shooters. It works out so that about half the shots are taken by each group.
They are very hard to hit on the run, but it can be done, especially if you practice moving targets on a regular basis.
Another tactic I use when Im solo is to get out during or just after a fresh dusting of snow. I creep along the hedgerows and scan for em under brush and rose bushes. When you locate one, you can usually move enough to get an open shooting lane.
Hope this helps. Im by no means an expert. If I was I would have more arrows and more bunnies in the freezer.

[GingivitisKahn]

Thanks Jamie.  Usually it's my son and me and one kicks bush while the other gets ready to shoot.  That seems like a reasonable approximation of what you describe.

I am curious to know (for all the Howard Hill experts out there), how a guy goes about even seeing 1,500 rabbits much less getting shots at or hitting them.   Any Hill experts out there know how he went about it?  From reading his book, it sounds as simple as he walked around, saw a bunch of bunnies and bagged 'em but I suspect there was a bit more to it than that.  :-)

[khardrunner]

I bet a lot of it has to do with two things...
- first, his shooting style lended to a quick shot that is very consistant
- second, he rarely missed!

[carparcher]

That is a lot of rabbits.  I have only taken one (and missed plenty).  We don't get snow very often in Oklahoma, so it's tough to spot the little guys.

 

[Shawn Leonard]

Howard Hill shot them in places like Texas and such. it is really not hunting as much as shooting. They are so thick with rabbits and the bunnies just sit and let ya walk up to 10-12 yards, again not really hunting. As Jamie said above a drive with several people works great as well as with 60 like we have at our hunt. We took over 200 shots and got 17 bunnies, some running some sitting and some in between. If ya have only one or two guys and no dogs a broadhead is best as we hit at least 15-20 and lost them, we can only use blunts, judos, nutters and hexheads and a few variations, nothing real sharp with the people and dogs. Shawn

[Izzy]

The best way to bag em is with 60 man drives like with the JLMBH.Or if you cant convince 59 pals to tag along watch what they do when you spook them.Ive found that they use the same escape routes over and over so I figure a 2 man drive will work pretty good one you get their escape routes nailed down.

[GingivitisKahn]

One of these days, I need to make it to the JLMBH - that sounds like a silly amount of fun.  :-D

[carparcher]

I don't think I even know 60 people who bowhunt!  That would be a blast though...

[woodchucker]

C'mon up to the Bunny Hunt next year!!!!!

I guaranty you'll know 60 people who bowhunt by the time you get home!!!!!  

[Chris Lantz]

My experience is only with Snowshoes, so I don’t know if this applies to other species of Rabbit. One mistake I’ve frequently made is to get on a rabbit too quickly after starting it and chase it. They usually don’t go very far and hold up in the nearest available thicket if not pushed too hard, so you have time for a couple other guys to circle around and get into shooting positions before moving in on the rabbit if you are hunting with a group. Even when I see a rabbit I like to have other hunters circle around and try to get into possible escape routes before moving in or taking a shot, that way when I miss hopefully someone else has a chance for a shot :-) . Snowshoes will hold really tight to cover sometimes, to the point that they may not flee until you literally kick the bushes or brush pile they are sitting in, so if you bushwacking keep your eyes peeled.

[deadpool]

what longbowben said!!!

lol the only way I know, also effective way to!!
teaches you about bein alert!

[Chortdraw]

Nice bunny Jamie, Good shot and I bet it lead to a good meal. Winter rabbit sure do taste good.

[Molson]

Cottontail's are the same way around my area.  You have to nearly step on them before they take off.  When they do, they almost always run 60-80 yds and brush up.  Just follow the path they ran and look for the nearest brush.  

Many times, if left alone, they will come sneaking right back to where you jumped them from.  If there's two of you, leave one where the rabbit was jumped and the other can go after him.

Probably the most important thing to do is shoot.  Alot of times you don't shoot because of the brush.  With the exception of broadheads, most blunts and judos will blow right through brush and remain accurate. Hit a rabbit with a blunt anywhere and it will roll over.

Wait for just a second to get a pace on the bunny before you release or you'll stick it in the dirt behind him.  Also, the tendency is to look at the rear of the rabbit as he's running.  That's a sure way to give his hind quarters a trim and give you a story to tell about how great that shot almost was!

Look at the head or just in front of it as you swing on him and if the shot is on, you'll drill him center mass.

[jacobsladder]

Molson is right on accurate with all his info...

heres a couple pics of my son and i from this year..

 

 

[eidsvolling]

Originally posted by Chris Lantz:
Snowshoes will hold really tight to cover sometimes, to the point that they may not flee until you literally kick the bushes or brush pile they are sitting in, so if you bushwacking keep your eyes peeled.

Yup.  Dog walked right past one the other day while he and I were looking for them.  The hare held tight under a very thin spruce and finally jumped out about four feet from me.  I probably could have touched him with the bow tip had I seen him first . . .  or with an arrow, if I'd been smarter/quicker/luckier.

[Raminshooter]

When Howard Hill came to California he and his wife ended up on a huge cattle ranch in a desolate area called Barstow that is on the way to Las Vegas from Orange County.  This is where Howard met the Wilhelm brothers and together they would practice shooting at those high desert jack rabbits and brush bunnies.  Howard even made a film or two about these hunts.  They didn't have much to shoot at other than rabbits and cow pies so they did and would challenge each other at greater and greater distances.  Howard always said that it was all this long distance practice that made him a better shot since it really magnified your faults.  Always something to learn from the master.