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Books/resources for an absolute beginner?

Rebecca

New Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2016
Messages
1
Hello all. As the title suggests, I'm a novice. I started hunting this year, and stuck with small game and pheasant. I've shot guns for years, though never a bow.

I'm interested in starting with deer in the 2016-2017 season, perhaps with a bow. I will be hunting public land. I read Precision Bowunting by the Eberharts, and it makes a lot of sense. I have ordered their other books, and will be ordering their DVDs as well.

Just wondering if anyone can suggest any supplemental materials/resources for a total novice.
 
Real world white tail behavior by Jim Roy is a book I read a while back that offers info that contradicts some others but seems to explain things I've seen firsthand. It at least offers a different perspective. Videos by Blood brothers are a good resource, depending on the environment you plan to hunt. I'd recommend talking to as many veteran hunters and reading as much as you can. If you've hunted deer with rifles before, then the biggest differences that come to mind are SCENT CONTROL (because it's so mucIh more important when you have to get much closer to the deer than you did when you were gun hunting) and stand/ambush locations. Eberhart's views on tree selection for hunting out of a saddle are some of the best resources out there. Just keep at it, and keep asking questions. You'll figure it out

Shaun
 
I would have suggested the Eberhart books. Excellent strategies!

I would add - just get out there and have fun, don't take it too seriously, and shoot the first legal animal that gives you an opportunity.

Also don't let your lack of experience hinder your time spent hunting. Don't know where to hunt? It doesn't matter - walk 500 yards from the road and setup somewhere pretty. You never know...

Skill and confidence will only come from experience.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
 
Welcome to the site Rebecca! I agree with the guys that those are great books but I think they are a little more in depth than what a true beginner needs (precision bowhunting might be a good place to start though, you can apply John's techniques for hunting mature bucks to hunting any deer). I feel that generally the hunting community is lacking of a good source of information for true beginners. I am hoping at some point to put together some information because I have been thinking about this for a while.

I think what g2 said is spot on. The best way you are going to learn is by going out and hunting and seeing what works and what doesn't. Shoot the first deer that you can, and enjoy every moment of it. I think the best place for your to learn would be from the people on this site. They are a great bunch and I'm sure they will be willing to answer any questions. IMHO I would avoid the archerytalk site. While there is some good information on there, I find that you really have to dig for it anymore, and it is bogged down with a lot of BS.

Now is the time of year to get out and start walking around the woods to get a feel for where you are going to hunt. Deer are a creature of edge, so this is a good place to start. I would avoid the edge of fields though because on public land that sign will be made during the dark. By edge I mean areas of terrain or vegetation changes such as the edge of a swamp. Deer will be bedding in thick areas where they feel safe during the day and traveling to areas to eat right before and after dark, and reverse that in the morning. A great place to set up an ambush point would be along the edge of a swamp when you know deer are entering and exiting. This can go into a lot more detail, but this would be a good place to start. Find an edge of a swamp or thicket and walk it. I'm sure you will come across deer poop, tracks and trails. Find a place where multiple trails converge within shooting distance of a tree and this is a great spot for you to start learning :cool: .
 
I suggest what should be obvious but often not a list topper. Practice your tail off with your bow. Get with knowledgeable people and learn everything you can about shot placement, angles etc. because ultimately this is your vessel to a successful harvest. I'm quite an advocate of spending time in the woods even if I don't see a deer but if I'm also passionate about the pursuit and harvest. For some, wounding and or losing an animal will derail their focus and potentially their desire to go forth with bowhunting. Good luck Rebecca!!!!
 
Welcome Rebecca! Start with small game hunting he area you will deer hunt and become an observer of he rhythm of the place you hunt. Each place gets hunted differently depending on weather, time of day, the direction of the valleys and the amount of outside pressure from people. There's an area I like to hunt when the waters aren't to dangerous to get there and every night it seems like a half out after the crows fly to roost the deer come out into this particular field and feed in the direction the wind is blowing. Then on my property for some reason the deer only come through in one direction(I assume from some sort of other pressure they're facing on the outside property) but only before 8am and after 11pm. In allot of survival manuals one of the first things they tell you is watch the animals and I take that to hart. The squirrels will bark at the deer on my property when they come through. Use your off season well, and welcome again.
 
redsquirrel said:
I think the best place for your to learn would be from the people on this site. They are a great bunch and I'm sure they will be willing to answer any questions. IMHO I would avoid the archerytalk site. While there is some good information on there, I find that you really have to dig for it anymore, and it is bogged down with a lot of BS.

Redsquirrel is spot on. The only reason I go to AT anymore is for the classifieds.

redsquirrel said:
Find an edge of a swamp or thicket and walk it. I'm sure you will come across deer poop, tracks and trails. Find a place where multiple trails converge within shooting distance of a tree and this is a great spot for you to start learning :cool: .

Absolutely right - this part isn't rocket science. Hunters like to make it more complicated and I'm as guilty as anyone else. Find where the deer are (thickets, swamps, places with good cover) and where they're going to be (acorns, fruit trees, preferred food source) and find a good ambush spot.
 
g2outdoors said:
I would have suggested the Eberhart books. Excellent strategies!

I would add - just get out there and have fun, don't take it too seriously, and shoot the first legal animal that gives you an opportunity.

Also don't let your lack of experience hinder your time spent hunting. Don't know where to hunt? It doesn't matter - walk 500 yards from the road and setup somewhere pretty. You never know...

Skill and confidence will only come from experience.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

G2 nailed it. Get out there and have fun. No pressure!

The biggest thing above all else is just to get out there, sit as long as you can. Move time in the tree=more success.

You are already way ahead of the game just by reading Eberharts stuff. The man knows his stuff and I wish I had found out about him years ago. It's taken me almost 20 years of doing it on my own to figure out half the stuff he teaches in his books and DVDs.

Have fun and keep us updated on your progress!


Sent from space
 
In my opinion, stay away from a lot of the mainstream websites like Archery Talk etc..... As previously mentioned, anything the Eberharts put out is great, this website, the Wensel brothers and Bobby Worthingtons books. If you are hunting public land, do the opposite of everyone else. Study maps on google earth and go to the out of the way places, difficult to acces spots or overlooked areas. Look for transition areas in the aforementioned places. Most people hunt the first transition regardless of what it is, look for the second or third one and hunt them instead.

On a side note; keep in mind that deer on private ground are not the same as deer on public ground. A lot of information is based on people hunting private land not public. Those great funnels they talk about in books have probably been hunted for decades on public and the deer know it.
 
General knowledge of hunting - field and streams the total deer hunter manual
Whitetail biology - whitetail savvy
Strategy specific - anything Eberhart and I also like Jim Roy's real world white tail
Mountain hunting (discusses thermal rise/fall) stalking deer


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I equate Archery Talk to a city. There are good areas and bad. I've gotten some good advice in some of the sections but I understand the opinions given are subjective just like books written by authors.

In general, Archery Talk Members (sarcasm)
1. Shoot Boone and Crockett bucks every year
2. Shoot bows that are 50FPS faster than everyone else
3. Are awesome
4. Know more than you


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Bogle said:
On a side note; keep in mind that deer on private ground are not the same as deer on public ground. A lot of information is based on people hunting private land not public.

That is a very good point. The same thing can be said about any hunting you see on tv. TV hunting is entertainment only, don't base what you do off of what you see on tv.
 
I would have suggested the Eberhart books. Excellent strategies!

I would add - just get out there and have fun, don't take it too seriously, and shoot the first legal animal that gives you an opportunity.

Also don't let your lack of experience hinder your time spent hunting. Don't know where to hunt? It doesn't matter - walk 500 yards from the road and setup somewhere pretty. You never know...

Skill and confidence will only come from experience.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

Would you recommend the books over the dvds? I've never read anything from Eberhart, but have heard of his fame from the WTH Podcast. Thanks
 
Would you say that one is more informative than the other?
Honestly, I've watched the DVD's once or twice. I have read the books tons of times. Maybe it is the way I take in information but I love how I can read and reread stuff. I'll peruse something before bed. I have them in kindle version on my phone so I can read something at lunch. Just my preference.
 
Hello all. As the title suggests, I'm a novice. I started hunting this year, and stuck with small game and pheasant. I've shot guns for years, though never a bow.

I'm interested in starting with deer in the 2016-2017 season, perhaps with a bow. I will be hunting public land. I read Precision Bowunting by the Eberharts, and it makes a lot of sense. I have ordered their other books, and will be ordering their DVDs as well.

Just wondering if anyone can suggest any supplemental materials/resources for a total novice.
Anything from Greg Miller or Myles Keller that should help a lot.
 
Not necessarily hunting books, but Charles Alsheimer and Leonard Rue both have phenomenal books on whitetail biology. Both are downloaded on my phone, and I refer to them frequently. If you've ever wondered how much a deers lungs weigh, or how many times a day they defecate, their books are for you.
 
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