Archery?

 
Instead of "Thread jacking" I'm starting a post of my archery experience.

   Back "In the day" when I was shooting arrows on a regular basis, I shot "Instinctive" no pin, no counter balances, no peep sights, just the arrow tip.  My "Point on" was 55yards, with 60lb pull, (35 lbs after drop off) on my Bear "Polar II"  ( I still have the compound and a few straight arrows) I was able to hit beer cans with in 1 or 2 arrows from 10 yards in, out to 60yards pretty consistently.  I had been shooting since I was old enough to pull a bow string at age 4.
   My dad was very active in an archery club, that's still active today, "King's mountain bow hunters"  I think thy go by Kings mountain archery now?  anyhow, my step mom Tina at the time designed the clubs logo a bunny with a crown chewing an arrow in half.
My dad over 20+ years in the club was elected president many time.  His target was target #17.  I learned how to judge distances and shoot on that course.  I also learned was poison oak was on while on that course!
   Never shot compitively, but practiced for deer season.  Then in 1987 I finally got my first buck.  it was a small forked horn, dressed out at bout 90 lbs.  After the butcher, I had lots of venison burger, a lot of chops/ steaks, and 12 tubes of venison sausage! YUM!  I used all the burger, and sausage, but couldn't handle the "Gamey-ness" of the steak's and chops.  I gave that meat to my dad.  I talked to my grandma about the gameyness of the meat (She grew up on venison) and how to cook it so it's not so gamey, but all her suggestions didn't work well enough for my taste, so I gave up and gave the meat to pops.
  1987 was that last year I shot my bow.  Since I couldn't handle the gamey meat, I stopped hunting.  I really did enjoy the act of being out and camping, and the thrill  of the hunt itself, but since I can't deal with the gamey meat, I choose to not hunt anymore.
  I was able to see a few strange things while on the hunt though! 
One year, I found a large tree stump, (Cut from logging) and decided to stand on it.  The stump was maybe 3' around, and maybe 2.5 to 3 ' tall surrounded by bushed.  I played tree, as I was decked out in my woodland camo gear.  I had 3 doe's come in to within 10 feet of me before they winded me!  It was from that particular stump I shot and killed my first buck. (That would happen in about 4 years)  Each year, I would head out to that stump and one year I watched 2 bucks approach the area from that stump, so I knew it was located in a nice area.  Another time, on a trail headed NW from that stump, I heard a commotion behind me coming up the trail.  I steped off the trail and a few seconds later a fawn, flew by me with a coyote nipping at her rear end!  I was almost ran over!  I made a grunt, and the coyote slammed on its brakes turned it head, looked at me, the fawn never slowed and was gone out of sight, the coyote then vanished.
  Another time I was up in a dead tree, which had split and fallen over leaving a trunk about 15 feet tall.  Someone had added 2X4 "Ladder steps" and made a tree stand out of it.  I was in this particular stand at dark thirty waiting for sunrise.  Was just light enough to start seeing normally, and I heard what sounded like a cat D9 dozer crashing through the brush, in a tree line maybe 80 yards from my tree stand.  My heart started thump in my chest.  Only thing that could make that noise in the brush was 2 things.  Cows? Not likely in this area or a bear!  After what seemed like forever, (Sun was up now and I was getting hungry) I climbed down fro the stand, made my way over to where my dad was in his tree stand and told him about the freight train n the tree line, and we headed over the area.  It was indeed a bear, we found it's tracks in the road dust, they in fact, did turn into the brush.  My dad had a bear tag, I did not.  The bear was no where to be seen then.
   Boy what a sound it made, plowing into the brush, scared the camo off my face! (Then)
 Another year, I was in another stand we came to know at the "Door stand"  Someone had laid a door across some branches creating a platform "Stand" this stand was right on the main road/trail that skirted the open meadow (Then) and after being in the stand for maybe an hour I caught movement out about 70 yards.  Put my binoculars on the area, and was what looked like an horse!  However this horse had HUGH antlers!  I think I saw a moose?  I didn't think there were any moose in California?  It was dark brown in color, Looked like a horse!  It wasn't an Elk.  Too big.  Anyway told dad about it at lunch described the spot and we went to area I though I'd saw it later that day.  Couldn't make any track sign.
  All these hunts took place in Northern California out side Chester, about 8 miles.  Camped on Jenny creek.
In 1998 returned to the area (Went fishing at Lake Almanor) and one day drove out to our old campsite, then tried to find the "Meadow" as I remembered it, but because the land was tree farm land, the roads have changed, and I wasn't able to find my old hunting grounds    plus there was a lot of snow on the ground and I left my shovel back at the lake campsite.  I wasn't going to test my trucks 4X4 that day.  Sadly I headed back to the lake, just in time for a blizzard to blow in.  My buddy Dan & I decided it was time to "Get the hell out of dodge" before we got snowed in.




 

Thanks for sharing your experience as a bow hunter. Brings back a lot of memories for me. I belonged to Salinas Bowmen for many years and was president from the late 90's to the early 2000's. Was on the Board for many years as well. Kings Mountain is a great course. There were some real quality shooters from that club back in the day. Tommy Daley comes to mind! Never could beat that guy!!!

When I lived on the Peninsula, I shot several times a week.  I never hunted, only shot paper and 3D's.  The San Francisco Archers used to have a Wednesday night shoot at 3D's.  It was $5 for a round and a burger when you were done.  Good group of guys there and a gem of a range not far from the city.  I shot Barebow class in several competitions.  461 out of the possible 560 was my best for a 28 target round(in practice).  I still have my Mathews tucked away with the Bitzenburger….somewhere.  I sure wish I had a decent range close by.  I loved it when Pacifica was a ten minute drive for me.

The closest I ever came to bow hunting was when a deer literally walked behind the bales as i was practicing one morning in Pacifica.  I thought better of what the devil on my shoulder was telling me to do, and enjoyed the scene as the doe passed.


Aaron

Thanks for sharing your experience as a bow hunter. Brings back a lot of memories for me. I belonged to Salinas Bowmen for many years and was president from the late 90's to the early 2000's. Was on the Board for many years as well. Kings Mountain is a great course. There were some real quality shooters from that club back in the day. Tommy Daley comes to mind! Never could beat that guy!!!

This Tom Daley, was he a plumber in Redwood City? if same guy, My dad & him were friends, and hunted together.  I have a story about him
Very boisterous guy! 
  One year he and his boy (Can't recall his name now) came up to our camp to hunt with us.  Dad explained the area, We decided a time to meet back (At the time back side of the meadow at the crossroads) Tom & his boy choose na area and headed off I went one way dad headed of another.  Noon time came around, we all met up at the chosen spot.  BS'ing about the mornings hunt.  We all noticed a doe pop out from a tree line maybe 80 yards down the road looking south.  Low and behold a legal BIG buck pops out behind her!  (Excitement rises in all of us)  Then another buck pops out!  so we have 3 deer down range more deer than we've all seen all morning!
  We're 80+ yards away, moving slowly to not spook them, Tom says something to the effect "I'm gonna try and get one from here"  We kinda laughed a little.  Well, Ol' Tom Knocks wood with a broad head, level, up then raises a little for the range, and lets loose.   Meantime the second buck steps in front of the first buck, turns it head and looks at us (Must have heart the bow string?) and just as it stopped it's head movement looking at us, the arrow finds a home right between it's eye dead center! Buck dropped where it stood, the others vanished as expected! 
   We were all a little shocked the he actually hit the deer!  Course we just saw it fall we had no idea where it was hit from 80+ yards out until we got up to it! 
   Tom was so happy about the shot, he claimed he was going to mount the head with the arrow as it sat! Tom, did the dirty work on the deer. The next morning when Tom and his boy left for home, the deer head was strapped on top of his vehicle, visible to everyone, (I guess showing off the hit?) 
  Well, we found out at the next club meeting from Tom, that, on the way home while on the road, all the hair on the deer head disappeared. I remember him Clearly saying " The damn thing died so quickly it's hair fell the hell out" on the way home.  He wasn't able to save it to mount!
  I recall he hunted with us a couple of times, but this particular hunt was memorable due to that long shot!

  My dad supplied the generator that powered the club house on the range during events.  You might have met him.  He was Manny Rose. ( Do miss him 8/4/09)