Petersen's Bowhunting is the source for the tactics, tools, and techniques necessary for successful bowhunting. Get practical shooting tips and useful information on archery, equipment tests, clothing, and product evaluations.
Me? I wake up thinking about whitetails! Shortly after gaining consciousness, my hand reaches for my iPhone on the bedside table and quickly swipes to the Moultrie Mobile app so I can review the previous night’s deer activity at my camera sites. Like any junkie in need of a fix, I eagerly anticipate the satisfaction that comes as my eyes inspect the fresh images, all the while hoping to see a large-racked buck that will blast the cobwebs from my brain with a quick jolt of adrenaline. Yup, I admit it. My name is Christian, and I’m a cellular trail-camera addict. As vices go, it’s not so bad. After all, the wireless data subscriptions for my cameras are a lot cheaper than a carton of cigarettes, and the side effect…
I LOVE TALKING TO fellow bowhunters about the topic of “string jumping.” String jumping occurs when a deer or other game animal drops toward the ground at the sound of the shot as they load their legs to flee. Sometimes, string jumping results in a high hit; other times, the animal manages to completely duck below the arrow before it arrives. Back when I first started bowhunting, I knew everything. I saved up and bought the latest, greatest bow on the market. I decorated it with all the goodies that labeled you as the best bowhunter out there. I was young and very confident; maybe even a bit cocky. That fall, I focused my bowhunting efforts in an area where a giant whitetail buck lived. I called him Tac. I…
IN PARTS 1 AND 2 of this series, I noted whitetail hunters who aren't measuring key herd characteristics are failing to optimize their hunting success. Part 1 discussed the importance of journaling hunt conditions and introduced a technique that seeks to grade your hunting property by tracking your “win-loss record.” Part 2 introduced key herd characteristics, including density, carrying capacity, buck-to-doe ratio and buck age structure, that you should track to determine how much more you should expect out of your property’s potential. In Part 3, I’ll wrap up with some simple whitetail mathematics that detail how deer are added and subtracted from your huntable population. My goal is to inform you that no other species is as easy to manage toward the end goal of better hunting than the…
CONSIDER HOW MUCH fun you’d have if you could go back in time and start through young adulthood knowing what you know now. Maybe you would ruin things by knowing too much, but it sure would be fun to find out. What would I change? Well, for starters I’d buy as many shares of Apple stock when it first hit the market as I could possibly afford. I would be a more diligent student, more focused athlete, better son and citizen — all things we see as important only through the lens of time. It’s also fun to consider the possible “Back to the Future” scenarios involving bowhunting. If I could go back and start my bowhunting life over, I’d do a few things differently. Enjoy Every Part of the…
IN THE LAST FEW columns, I have encouraged index-finger release aid shooters to try a handheld release, specifically one with a thumb trigger (as opposed to a hinge-style release aid). You might just discover this one small change drastically improves your hunting accuracy. In this column, I’ll discuss the techniques necessary to shoot this style of release aid well. Getting Started: The ‘String Bow’ As I have mentioned, the first step in this process is finding a release aid that fits your hand properly. Once you’ve selected a model that feels good in your hand, I recommend you practice using a ‘string bow.’ This is just a loop of string approximating your draw length (for example, 28 inches from one end of the loop to the other). Place your bow…
IT’S A WHITETAIL world; no doubt about it. In terms of participation, whitetails generate more interest than all other big-game species combined. It’s not surprising then that most product lines, including crossbows, are designed with deer hunters in mind. However, there are plenty of other animals out there to pursue. In many cases, you can take your current whitetail setup right off the shelf and hunt. In others, you might need a little tweaking. And in a few instances, you may need, or want, a completely different crossbow. Let’s take a look. Big, Big Game Most contemporary, high-end crossbows have the speed and energy for hunting really big game such as elk, moose and bear. While we’re at it, we might as well add hogs to the list, as their…
