Bowhunting Tips – 5 Things I Wish I Knew When I Started

If there is one thing true about bowhunting, it’s that there’s no shortage of difficulty, and the learning curve is about as sharp as they get. In my first years of bowhunting, I encountered obstacle after obstacle, and there were many times when I thought, “What the heck am I doing out here?” If that’s you, keep reading for some real-world bowhunting tips that will help your game as a beginner.

Starting out in bowhunting can be a very overwhelming endeavor. Everything from what gear to buy to shooting to actually getting in the field and hunting. It’s an all-hands-on-deck situation if you want to be consistently successful.

Because of that, and after many years of trial and error, I wanted to lay out the top 5 things I wish I had known when I started bowhunting. These are things that I really feel would have put me ahead and resulted in filling my first archery tag quicker.

Gear Matters, But…

Gear is super fun, and I love tinkering with new gadgets. Whether it’s a new archery release aid, bow sight, or even new vanes. It’s cool getting to see how other things work and if they might make my game behind the bow even better. With that said, gear shouldn’t be your main focus when starting out bowhunting.

I’m not telling you to go and buy crap stuff. I think you should buy the best gear you can afford, but then, instead of continuing to tinker, learn how to use it. That right there is a portion where folks go astray. They get consumed with irrelevant things like fixed blades vs. mechanical blades and heavy arrows vs. light arrows. It’s all meaningless unless you know how to put the arrow where it’s supposed to go downrange.

The solution here is I would HIGHLY recommend that you get yourself an archery coach. Just in the beginning to help you build a solid foundation. This will put you light years ahead on the shooting side of things and bring to light any inconsistencies you don’t notice on your own. A trained eye is a helpful one.

The other thing is to learn the hunting side of things. I’m talking mainly about how to find animals on a regular basis. Learn their behaviors, what they eat, and be able to recognize what good habitat is, etc. The amount of literature I’ve taken in on these things, along with my own experiences, is more than a mouthful. You’ll up your game tenfold. Be a student of not just the bow, but the mountains and animals you’re hunting.

A Well-Tuned Bow

When I first started bowhunting, I didn’t even know what tuning a bow meant. Never heard of it. My dad and I just shot arrows in the backyard and then went hunting. It was great. As I got more into all of this, the importance of a tuned bow became very apparent. It’s vital to consistency downrange.

There are a lot of different methods for tuning a bow, but they all have the same goal in mind. That goal is achieving perfect arrow flight. We want our field tips and broadheads hitting the same point of impact, and tuning your bow properly is how you get those results.

THERE IS NO NEED TO RESIGHT YOUR BOW FOR BROADHEADS OR HAVE A DIFFERENT BOW FOR BROADHEADS.

Tuning your bow doesn’t just encompass moving your arrow rest either. I’m referring to making sure the whole kit is dialed. From your cam timing and the possible presence of nock pinch, to having the right arrow spine. Everything works together, and that is how you achieve perfect arrow flight.

You don’t need to learn how to do this yourself, even though I think it’s good to know a few things in this realm. Take your bow to your local pro shop and have them walk you through the process. I think it’s very important for you to be the one who shoots your bow, though, because we all torque a little differently.

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The Difference Between Wind and Thermals

As a young, aspiring bowhunter, I kept hearing the word “thermals.” In all honesty, I thought that people were just using this word instead of wind, because thermals sounded fancier. To my ignorance, that couldn’t have been further from the truth, and I even question if the folks saying that word knew that…

Wind and thermals are completely different things. The easiest way I like to think about this is that wind covers left/right and thermals cover up/down. A great way to actually see this physically is with your windicator. If you’re a bowhunter and don’t have one of these, go to the store right now and buy one.

By hitting your windicator, don’t just pay attention to the lateral movement of the smoke. Pay attention to whether it blows up or down as well. I killed a great bear like this years back. After figuring out where the bears were coming from, I decided to sit with my wind blowing in their direction! But, because I had an uphill thermal, the wind blew over the bears. The first evening I did this, I shot a great bear with my bow.

Sidehilling is Your Friend

This next AHA moment plays off of wind and thermals, but has more to do with approaching an animal for spot and stalk. Every book I read on spotting and stalking deer talked about the importance of coming from above. This is a tried-and-true way to get arrows in bucks. However, don’t disregard sidehilling.

Years into my bowhunting journey, a local bowhunter gave me a tip that changed everything for me. He explained to me the value of sidehilling into animals. His reasoning was that with sidehilling, you don’t have to worry about a thermal going up or down and busting your approach. You just need to worry about the predominant wind direction. This really comes in handy, especially on early morning or late evening stalks when the thermal either hasn’t switched or is thinking about doing so.

Early on, I made a rule that I would never come from below an animal. I’d get busted every single time. Along with what we’ve said about thermals, they have the sight advantage. So, years later, I will now always approach an animal from above or to the side. Can you be successful from below? Sure, but I wouldn’t call those high percentage plays, and that’s what you need in bowhunting, because things are hard enough as it is.

It’s Harder Than You Think This Bowhunting Stuff

The last thing I want to leave you with is that the difficulty of bowhunting can only be retained through the act of doing it. I didn’t realize how difficult it truly was until I tried my hand at it. It is so hard to be successful just once with a bow, let alone be successful on a regular basis. Success rates hover around an average of 10%. So, there is a 90% chance you’re not going to fill your tag. Which is why bowhunting tips like these would have been much appreciated in my early years.

There is also a phrase that 10% of the hunters kill 90% of the game. You can absolutely become a part of that 10%, but it’s not going to be a walk in the park. It takes dedication on all fronts. So, enjoy the ride and remember that bowhunting is supposed to be fun. Soak it up for all that it’s worth. That will breed longevity in your game, and soon the stars will start to align for you more times than not.

Go Bowhunting!

There ya have it! I really believe that if I had known these bowhunting tips earlier on, I would have tasted the success of filling my first archery tag much sooner. I’m a big believer in learning through doing, but I’m also a big believer in being as prepared as possible. Tips like this will help in that regard and get you that much closer to filling your first archery tag or maybe filling more tags on a more regular basis. Season is approaching fast. So, get out there, put the work in, and enjoy the process. Good luck!

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• Becoming a Backpack Hunter – A Beginner’s Guide to Hunting the Backcountry
• Becoming a Bowhunter – A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Archery Hunting

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