Need 2 vent!!!!!!

[MAGICMAN]

I have only seen 2 deer since oct 1st. This has been a terrible year so far. I got permission 2 hunt 60 ac just north of the house so I set a stand last sun & got out. Went back tonight & about 5:30 big 10 comes out from my east which is a big hay medow. I couldnt see him because there was a big oak between me & him. he comes in & jumps the fence @ 15 yrds & goes straight to persimmon tree @ 20 yrds but angle was no good. Then he walks right under my stand to my off side so i have to turn to my right. I go to draw & when I do my elbow gets hung in my safety tether so that screws me up so I let back down go over my tether & draw again but i guesse i was so wound up I rushed the shot & missed right in front of him. This really has not been a good year for me so far. I needed to vent surely im not the only one to miss a good buck! This deer came straight to the persimmon tree like hed been there before & he didnt seem like he really knew what happened when i missed so do yall think he would come back or probably not? Ive always believed the best chance to kill a good buck was the first time in stand. Im almost ready to pull the wheels back out. this would not have happened with my compound!!!!

Your frustration is coming through loud and clear. I bet there's not a person on this board who hasn't thought a time or two "if only I had my ......I'd have gotten that deer." Fill in the blank--rifle, shotgun, compound bow. Traditional archery is about working at accepting the limitations imposed by the simplest of hunting equipment. Frustration is part of it--sometimes I laugh out loud at what a fool these deer make of me and my stick and string! It's all fun!

[Cherokee Scout]

Too often we judge the success of our hunt on the kill.
The kill is not the most important part to me anymore. As I have gotten older the kill is of little importance.
Just being there in the woods, getting close to the deer, is a success.
I think you had a great hunt. You got to see a very nice deer up close.
Most importantly, you did not wound or injure the deer.

[Rob DiStefano]

jason, if yer hunting focus is solely on making meat, trad may not be for you. rethink your priorities ... and do remember that trad gang is all about stickbows and NO other form of hunting weapon.

[Guru]

I'm going to be honest here...no disrespect to you, and I hope it doesn't come off sounding like that....

 I'll never really understand threads like this.

 To blame it on the bow is not the answer. I believe the reason for your miss was lack of preparation and familiarity in your equipment on your part.

 Would a compound have kept you from getting caught up in your harness tether?

Like I said, no disrespect meant at all bud, just an observation from someone who's "been there"...

[koger]

I have taken a lot of deer with a bow, missed twice that many. Relax, dont put too much pressure on yourself and it will happen. I did the same thing the other day, just enjoy the outing, the success in taking an anmimal is a bonus.

[LongStick64]

Just be thankful to get out there, that's alot more than I can say for my year so far. Family obligations has forced me to sit this year out. So enjoy yourself, get the fresh air, and enjoy the experience.

[swampdrummer]

Been there buddy! My plan for the year was to put 4 or 5 in the freezer. Decided to do it with trad gear. Couldn't be that much harder could it??    I've done just that many times before with a compound.

Well, so far this year, I've MISSED 5 deer! I've got one doe in the freezer.

I've come dang close to switching back. If you do a search under my name you'll find several posts where I vented to this forum. I'm still at it.
I'm learning to enjoy the woods more with trad. I've also moved my stands around a bit so any shot I get will be super close. Not a garuntee by any means but it sure can't hurt.I'm making the time to practice during season, even if it cuts into my hunting time. Above all I'm learning to not take myself so serious and to get out there and have FUN.

[JimB]

Very good advice.What is the worst that can happen if you don't get the deer that came in? you don't get to tell your friends or post a picture on Tradgang?You have to go hunting some more?

Of course he was there before and he will be back again.Will he be there at the exact time you are or will some love interest call him away? I don't know.that is between you and him and maybe her.

If you would recognize it,you had a great experience and many more to come if you let it happen.If I knew that every time a deer approached,he was in the bag,I would quit hunting immediately.I can get easy meat at the grocery store if I don't want excitement,and it is cheaper.

Calm down and get back out there.

[ron w]

Hey it happens...at least you saw a nice deer!!

[VTer]

I guess its all relevant. In VT if I even had a chance to get a crack at a "big 10" or even a little 10, I would consider my season a resounding success. I've been hunting with my longbow during our rifle season and yesterday I had my closest chance  in the 10 or so years that I've been bow only to get a shot at a buck. A nice little 5 or 6 pter that had his bacon saved by the doe in front of him. Damn wind! I have many, many unfilled tags in my drawer but I still like the challenge.

[Shape Shifter]

Thats why I love traditional archery. Nothing is guaranteed and the challenge is always there. Be thankful for the shot presenting itself. The deer won that day but there is always tomorrow.

[varmint101]

I bet you still would have hit your tether with the wheels.  Regardless though, I learned a couple years ago just to chill and enjoy things more.  Sure it's frustrating, but look what you were out doing and what you saw.  God/nature is awesome and you witnessed a beast up close and nearly made the shot.  Life is good.

[pitbull]

Just think how much sweeter the meat will be when you connect, enjoy the ride.

[varmint101]

By the way, I always draw on the right side to make sure what's going to happen.  That side is always a pain for me.

[Tsalagi]

Lookn the bright side. You went home and ate, right? About 10,000 years ago, you'd have gone home and had a nice helping of ozone roast with air gravy.  

[BMOELLER]

Get a treesaddle!!!

[larry]

now that you've vented, do you feel better? truth is there are no guarantees in the deer stand. and yes, if he didn't scent you or spook at the shot, he may well be back. like others have said, just to see a 10 pointer would make my season

larry

[Throop]

Just wish I could be out there. Work has kept me to busy for hunting. Heck I haven't even seen home in 3 weeks.    

[MAGICMAN]

I appreciate the talks. I hastely made the remark about my compound but to be honest I decided to pull it out & hunt with it this year. I took it out twice but quickly realized this wasnt me anymore! it was the first time I picked it up in 3 years & it just didnt feel right any more. I also think that yes the same thing probably would have happened with a compund. I am glad to have had the expierience & i told myself when i began the trad journey there would be days like this but it does get frustrating when these things happen. All the blame really needs to be on me & not my gear. But to be honest this all happened a few hours ago & im not that upset now. I thought it was the end of the world but the more I think about it i think that this is just part of the big picture nothing more. You win some & lose some but you keep trying. thanks for bringing me back to the reality of things. Yall are great