bowhunting after gun season

Has anyone tried bowhunting when gun season is in? Here in wv We have buck,doe, and muzzleloader season all in a row. I was going to try bowhunting later in dec but don't know if it will be worth it.

I do both during gun season, bow and rifle, but receive much more satisfaction with my hunt when bow is in hand

it gets mixed, depends on the pressure in the area u hunt, i have had good results and bad, they weigh evan....

The deer really bunch up late winter. Makes it a lot tougher i think. The upside is they move much more during daylight.

I hunt here in Maryland with a bow only durning all seasons all the way till Jan 31 Now I do hunt on state land that is for bow hunting only. The deer keep moving sometimes just out of range always a cat and mouse thing. But I dont give up.

Same here, When I do, it's on the bow only areas. That depends though. Most years I'm pretty tired of cutting meat, and turn my attention to the duck and dove seasons. But I have had luck during the late splits of bow, when it gets nice and cold, stick to food sources with good fresh sign, and hunt early afternoons and evenings when the sun warms things up. Later in the season deer will bed most of the day to conserve energy, and move mid afternoon when it is warmest.

My 2 biggest bucks have been killed during the firearm season with my bow. So needless to say, I like it. Heading out this weekend for a bowhunt during the gun opener.

bowonly.....how do you dress hunting with bow during gun season? Orange?

FairChaser,

Some states allow the removal of said outer-wear provided it is hung visibly @360 degrees.

But most states require hunter-orange during any and all firearms seasons..

fairchaser wrote:bowonly.....how do you dress hunting with bow during gun season? Orange?

Orange is required during the firearms season here, even when hunting with archery equipment.

hmm interesting Bowonly, In indiana orange is really only stressed and required during firearms[all of them] Archers are only required to wear it during this time...

Maybe I chose my words wrong. Archers are only required to wear orange when any of the firearms seasons are open.

Here it depends on the WMA. Some allow year round hog hunting so you have to wear orange anytime your on the unit. some rules dont make sense at all though, like the rule we have to wear hunter orange in the bow-only sections of the WMA....

Here in Maine hunter-orange is a must during firearm season.

I bowhunt all seasons.

I'll be out with my recurve every chance I get, til the end of the season.

If patience you lack-the deer you will miss:

12-15-907am

12-15-9am

I had the kiddo's for a few hrs this morning but we decided to check the cam. We got there at 10.30, there were also vid's from earlier w/the buck.......

Sometimes ya just gotta be dad, they did enjoy playing and getting muddy further down in the creek tho'......[i remember how to make that apple-cider concocktion, but soory I can't direct you to the thread, maybe Dave or another remember where it is located and will provide the link...]

In this area of Illinois I can't hunt with bow during gun season..so I use my flintlock. The first 3 day gun season went out Sunday and I went with my recurve this afternoon and had a doe 2yrlings and 8pt come in about 4:00pm..so they didn't get them all.

Had another doe and yrling come by this afternoon in a different area. Saw quiet a few fresh scrapes and rubs also. The Rut never really took off where I hunt so maybe there might be some cruising yet.

A big standing cornfield was the main problem and it got cut Sat...last one around. I've already noticed a lot more deer sign in the woods..if it just wasn't so cold now.