How long had you been shooting a bow before your first kill? I have only been shooting a bow for a couple of months and missed two deer so I am just curious how long it was before your first bow kill and what you killed. I appreciate any input! Thanks!

About 30 minutes into my first time in the woods with a bow I killed a 7 point at about 5 yards. A couple days later I shot another 7 point followed by a doe a couple weeks later. I was 15 and thought bow hunting was pretty easy. It slowed down after that. I will usually get a doe every year with my bow but haven't had a shooter buck walk by at a range that I am confortable shooting at. I won't shoot vey far with my bow though, 30 yards max at a critter. Further than that my groupings start to stretch out a little.

I started bowhunting when I was 16. Shot at several the first 3 years. No kills. I quit until the late 1990's. Once I started back it happened quick. I killed a doe the first afternoon. Have been in love with bowhunting since.

The best advice I can give you is practice a ton. 3D is great practice. You have to comfortable shooting. And you have to learn to shoot under pressure. I still fail at this from time to time.

You need accurate equipment, yardage judging skills, shooting skills, and good woodsmanship. You have to get them close.

Hang with it. It gets easier as you learn.

I have been bow hunting for 3 years. Killed my first deer (doe) this year. That was the first time I had ever slung an arrow or even drawn back at a deer. Biggest rush I've ever had hunting. Hang in there, it's definitely worth the time and effort put in.

I missed at 18 yards and 22 yards - my comfort zone is 15 to 20 yards. It was a HUGE rush to pull back and have the deer in sight and release but it was very sad when I realized that I missed...I was high both times and after watching the film, it was easy to see that while traveling my sight adjusted. Of course after I re-adjusted my sight, the only deer that have come close to me have been 35-40 yards away!

I am definitely going to keep practicing and will not give up!!!

Thanks everyone!

I started shooting a Browning Fox II when I was 11 I guess. Moved up to a PSE Edge the next year. Shot a doe on a hillside 10 yds. away. It was an awesome rush and all happened really quick.

I started bowhunting when I was 14. I killed my first deer that October (doe), followed by a small 8 point in November. I normally kill 5 or so every year with a bow. This year was a complete failure though. I released one arrow at a deer, and shot him high. He was later killed in rifle season. This will be the first year in 14 years I haven't killed a deer with a bow, unless I manage to get one before season goes out. If you have seen deer within bow range and had opportunities then count your first season a success.

Took me 4 years of hunting and 4 misses before I finally got my first one with a bow. It's something I will never forget!

After shooting 3 deer with a gun in 1991, the fun was wearing off. I said I wanted to bow hunt, so Santy got me one for Christmas that year. Friends got me into shooting 3Ds all spring and summer long. NC bowseason started that year on 7 Sept IIRC. On 17 Sept my 1st deer within bow range was a little spike in velvet. Nailed him at 28 yards quartering away. Killed two more with a bow that year and said to heck with using guns. The fun was back.

Don't know for sure, but I started bow hunting in my early teens. it was probably 4 - 5 years and god only knows how many misses before I got my first kill. And then I managed a kill or two every year. But I was in my 30's before I killed my first "trophy rack" buck a 200 lb field dressed (Illinois) 12 point. I'm now 41 and still bow hunt much more than with a rifle.

I killed a spike within a couple of hours of being in a tree. It has slowed way down since then.;)

4 years of very limited bow hunting before i killed my first deer. Then i started bow hunting more. 3 years went by and i killed 3 this season.

i shot bows since i was probably 7 or 8. didnt start deer hunting till i was 12. bowhunted for the first time when i was 16. lost 2 that i hit before i killed one and found it. i havent missed but probably 2 outright with a bow but i hate to say, i have bloodied up probably 7 or 8. ive killed and found 10 deer with a bow. no big bucks though.just does and 1 or 2 spikes.

I feel a lot better after hearing about everyone's experience! This is my first season to hunt so it was easy to get discouraged after missing! I am now even more excited about finishing this season and practicing for next season!
Where does everyone hunt?
Thanks again!

I started bowhunting in 1991. It took me 3 seasons to even get my first shot, 4 to get my first kill. I didn't get a shot my 5th season, but ever since my 6th season I have killed at least one with a bow. I've got a 16 season streak going. Back in those first few years I didn't have anyone to show me the ropes, so I didn't know what the hell I was doing. By the late 90's I got it figured out. I read everything I could get my hands on that had anything to do with bowhunting. I started building my own arrows, doing my own bow work and building my own strings. I went through a 7 year stretch where I didn't even pick up a gun. For the past 5 seasons or so I've started picking the gun back up around the middle of December.

I have no idea how long I bow hunted before I got my first bow kill, I do know I missed the first half dozen or so I shot at. I have been bow hunting for about 22 years and quit gun hunting about 6 years ago.

Hang in there and practice as much as you can. It will be worth it when you get your first one.

I can't remember back good enough to answer your question, but I encourage you to stick with it. Been hunting almost exclusively with a bow during the entire season for a few years now, knowing that it's not easy to make it happen on the type of deer I'm waiting on. I've taken some does the past few years, but finally made it happen on a mature buck this year. The emotion and the feeling after the harvest, for hours, is hard to describe. However, it made it worth it. I don't really care if I have sacrificed one or two mature bucks that I may have taken with a rifle. One of my bowhunting friends told me one time - the first time he made a killin shot with a bow, it was better than any drug and I agree with him. Good Luck!

Not sure how many it took with compound (I think around 3) but I went 7 years with longbow before killing one and have killed at least one every year after that. It does get easier but you can also get cocky and have to almost start over mentally if you're not careful.
Most important advice is "pick a hair" to shoot and don't just aim at "deer."

Four years and 2 or 3 misses. The first was a nice 2.5 year old 8 point.

Thanks for the good advice!