We learn by doing. It’s the only way to find out what works and doesn’t work for us individually. Archery has been an enriching journey for me. It’s also been humbling, especially on the bowhunting side of things. That has a way of truly bringing you back to zero, which in my opinion is healthy. It urges progression because it brings to light any issues that may be present in your game. The key in these instances to getting better is owning up to these archery issues.
Since the beginning of my bowhunting pursuits, there has been one thing that has been a constant in the archery issues category. Waiting on my shot. What I mean by that is I wait too long at full draw before my shot breaks. This causes my form to break down, which degrades my aim, and nothing good comes of it.
When this happens it’s one of two things. In my early years, I’d overaim. The perfectionist in my mind battled with the natural pin float we have and I’d want my pin to be rock solid on my target. This would cause me to hyperfocus on what I was aiming at, all the while my form would start to crumble trying to get everything perfect. Not ideal.
The second thing, and the more relevant of the two at this time, is engaging my trigger, or the lack thereof. Sometimes, I’m a bit light here and don’t put that much pressure on the trigger. The shot always breaks, but a lighter pressure means it won’t break as soon. When I’m cognizant of this, I’m fine. It’s when I’m not it catches me off guard. Again, not ideal. Especially with a buck behind your pin.
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This is just me being open with you and taking a bit of my own medicine. I always urge people to own up to their faults to get better. What I’ve gone through above is me doing just that. The only way to squash this stuff is to be proactive about it. Be intentional. And that’s something I’m currently tackling to better myself as a bowhunter and honestly a person. This line of thinking can be applied to all avenues in life. All of it with the same end goal. Be better.
You don’t know what you don’t know right? I always thought it looked so funny when archers and bowhunters had that long stick-looking deal hanging off the front of their bow. Stabilizers weren’t really something I’d worry too much about in my early years. And with how many “correct opinions” there are in the bowhunting world, taking advice on the topic isn’t straightforward in the least. Everyone is a little different in their bowhunting journey and what works for them.
With all of that said, stabilizers are an effective tool that really can elevate your shooting from good to great. So, down below I’m going to go through what I’ve learned about stabilizers for bowhunting through the years and how I personally go about finding the right recipe for success.
We were so stoked. After months of planning, we were finally loading up our backpacks at the truck, getting ready to hike a few miles in for an archery deer hunt. It was my buddy’s first backpack hunt ever, and I couldn’t wait to show him the ropes. About 5 minutes into our hike, I was coming down a hill and heard my friend start tumbling behind me. Luckily, he was ok. His bow sight on the other hand was not. It had snapped.
The bow sight is an intricate part of any modern-day bowhunter’s arsenal. It helps connect the dots between us and the animal via our arrow with precision. That’s no duty to snuff at and shouldn’t be taken lightly. With that in mind, I’m going to run through a few key things that I believe make up a good bow sight. Keep in mind, these are just my opinions that are based on my experiences. You may have different views, and that’s totally fine. These are mine.
Right off the rip, let’s touch on durability. That story above was a prime reminder for me of why durability is so important in a bow sight. I think this is something that we take for granted because in all honesty, most bow sights these days are pretty dang durable. With that said, there are still a few that fall short.
The bow sight mentioned above snapped on the mount. That particular mount was plastic. This is a big no-go for me. Plastic parts on a bow sight are destined to break, especially if you’re doing things like backpack hunting where the rugged factor gets cranked up. It doesn’t stop at sight mounts either. There are sights with plastic housings and pins as well. It’s not worth it.
In light of durability, I also need to touch on just how the overall sight holds up to wear and tear. Things like pins coming loose, slider locks coming unlocked, and even sight housings coming loose from mounts. While these don’t equate to a snap, they sure as hell can turn a good situation sour. Structural integrity need not fly under the radar.
A bow sight needs to be versatile. Something that is only good at one thing will bite you in the field eventually. Bowhunting doesn’t always present black-and-white opportunities. It’s not a cookie-cutter process. Because of that you need to be able to adapt and the same goes for your bow sight.
In terms of versatility, the first thing that comes to mind is using a multi-pin sight. Before you single-pin folks get all huffy and puffy, let me elaborate. Multiple pins offer multiple yardage references instantly. Now, I’m not saying that people should be lobbing arrows in quick-draw style, but sometimes things happen quickly. I know there are some single-pin sights that have 3 yardage references on them, and that is way better than just one. It will never beat 5 though and certainly not 7. Your sight picture isn’t as clear as it would be with a single pin, but I’d rather cut the fat on time than on sight picture.
Next, a slider is a must. Since getting my first slider sight many years ago my accuracy and precision have increased tenfold. They allow the ability to practice at long-range distances, which makes the shorter shots seem like chip shots. At a distance, all of your imperfections are magnified. If you don’t know they are there, because you’re stuck shooting at 50 yards, then you’re not moving forward if you ask me. And while it is controversial, I personally don’t see anything wrong with taking a shot at an animal at a greater distance. As long as your ability is there as is the right situation(no wind, unaware animal, etc.). At the least, you’ll have the option of making a possible long-range follow-up shot, if given the opportunity.
Not having a 2nd and 3rd axis adjustment is simply not an option. These are crucial for accuracy in the field. For those that are unfamiliar with what these are, let me spell it out real quick before moving on.
Your 2nd axis adjustment is basically calibrating the bubble level on your sight to make sure it’s actually level. If this is off, even though your bubble is in the middle, you will be unknowingly canting your bow one way or the other. This will cause left/right inconsistencies.
The 3rd axis adjustment has to do with the bubble level as well, but it’s more geared toward uphill and downhill shots. This is adjusting the left/right angle of the sight housing. If this is off, your bubble level won’t read true when aiming up or downhill. The result would be left/right inconsistencies on angled shots even if your bubble level was in the middle.
Both of these need to be present on a bow sight for it to be truly practical for bowhunting. It’s a great example of how the little things actually matter. In this case, they do immensely. You need to know your sight is level at full draw whether aiming on flat ground or steep angled shots. It can literally mean the difference in filling your tag or not. I’ve been there.
Some bow sights are way more complicated than others. Be it a ton of screws or even the addition of electronics. All of this stuff can be nice at the range, but in the field, it’s a different story. And how something performs in the field is the number 1 thing on my radar. For that reason, I try to keep things as simple as I can with a bow sight.
Bow sights these days have a ton of screws on them, but some have more than others. Every extra screw or moving part is one more thing to potentially come loose in the field. Every lever is one more thing to accidentally move. If you are in love with a certain sight that has a lot of moving parts on it, it might be wise to apply string wax to your threads to help keep some of that hardware in place.
There are also bow sights that are digital. I’ve been super impressed with the accuracy of these and can totally see why some are drawn to them. While that is true, I’ve also experienced one that just decided to not work. Once that happened, I was done with it. If something like that happens in the field, you’re out of the game. That’s not a risk I’m willing to take.
There are some pieces of gear that mean more than others. Their weight has a greater impact on us wrapping a hard-earned tag on a hard-earned animal. The bow sight falls into that category and the story I told above is a great example of why. We ended up taping his sight back together and got a day of hunting out of it before the sight broke again. This ended the hunt for a few days, which was such a shame. Waiting all that time only to have your bow sight rob a slice of what we’d been waiting so long for. Not again. Not again.
An early morning archery hunt. Sun up would come in about 30 minutes and I had a brush blind set up not far away. Just as I was coming down the hill that led to the blind, I fell, and I fell right on my release aid. It seemed ok until I tried to do a practice draw inside the blind. Can you guess what happened? Yup, clocked myself right in the face. Luckily, I had the tools to fix it. Had I not though, I would have been up the creek without a paddle. I didn’t have a backup release aid either. It was a turning point for me.
Down here in the southwest desert that I call home, glassing efficiently is the key to success. It’s a wide-open landscape that will eat through its fair share of boots in a hurry. Not to mention animals tend to be more spread out, due to the overall vastness of the landscape. So, in terms of efficiency sitting high on a vantage point and surveying the surrounding country with high-powered optics on a tripod is about as good as it gets.
In doing so, there can be a lot of switching between binoculars and spotting scopes. I prefer to glass with a smaller more general magnification like a 10×42 binocular. When I do find something I want a closer look at, I’ll pop those off and mount up a 65mm spotting scope. It sounds much easier than it is, and I’m mainly referring to target acquisition when switching between the two. There’s a trick to it that will save you time and time is money.
Another year and another Fall hunting season has passed us by. If you’re anything like me, you’ve been doing some serious e-scouting for next year, crushing workouts, and making sure you’re proficient with your weapon. Maybe you’ve even got out on some after-season scouting trips. It’s pre-season prep time for next Fall and I love this just as much as I love hunting season. I don’t know if it’s because of the anticipation it holds, being proactive in the process, or if it just helps make hunting season not seem as far away as it is. Whatever it is, it plays a vital role in consistent success in the field. Pre-season preparation leads to a positive mindset and a positive mindset leads to filling tags. There are a few things I like to stay conscious of as I go through this process each year.
It’s no secret that backpack hunting is physically demanding. From carrying camp on your back and traversing merciless terrain day in and day out to just going through the motions of the whole thing. And that doesn’t even touch on when an animal lay at your feet accompanied by the effort it takes to handle that situation. The bottom line is everything is harder out there and it should be in your best interest to have backcountry hunting prep on your mind.
You’re excited. With a loaded-down backpack, a desolate trail ahead, and a big game tag in your pocket, adventure is no doubt on the horizon. Each step you take is one closer to a cozy backcountry camp and endless opportunities. Along the way though, you’re greeted by an uninvited guest. A muscle cramp proceeds to begin “cramping your style.” Now with each step you take, all that’s on your mind is “why me, and how the heck do I get this cramping in the backcountry to go away?”
There really isn’t anything like it. Being out in the desert during the month of January, bowhunting coues deer. While the rest of the country is hibernating and huddled by a fire, the lucky ones are glassing for coues deer, laying their wits on the table. And hopefully at the end some coues venison on the table as well.
Spot and stalking coues deer with a bow is no easy feat though. In all honesty, they are one of the hardest animals in North America to consistently stalk successfully. Their switched-on nature puts them on high alert at all times and the country they live in is as loud as you’d never want it to be.
With all of that said, and with the month of January fast approaching, I’m going to lay out a sort of blueprint that will no doubt up your spot and stalk success on these little deer. I’ll go into where I’ve found success, where I haven’t, and how I’ve found success bowhunting rutting coues deer.
Throughout my childhood, my Dad would tell me old hunting stories from before I was around. At the time, I hadn’t really experienced much of the hunting life, so these stories sunk deep in my mind. One of those stories was of an archery deer hunt in upstate New York. It was just him and his bow. No rangefinder to speak of.
My Dad was sitting up in a tree and a lone buck came in beneath. He pulled his bow back, aimed, and let it loose thinking that deer steaks wouldn’t be far away. What really happened was he watched the arrow fly right over the buck’s back, followed by said buck running out of his life. “Should have aimed lower” my Dad said. It was my first lesson on shooting up or downhill with a bow.
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