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First animal in 28 years with the bow
Back in 1991 I started bow hunting. I shot a few goats, rabbits, possums and flounder. In Dec 1992 I managed to get a deer.
I was bush stalking on a soaking wet day in Waihaha, Pureora. I was hunting up a ridge when a deer appeared across the gully to my right at about 30yds. I managed to get an arrow in it, she took off running across infront of me and stopping perfectly broadside. I don’t know what I did but I managed to hit it in the knee joint. I have it 15 minutes and followed it up. After 50-60yds I could see her standing quartering away. This time I placed a better shot behind the front leg, angling forward through the heart and out the brisket. I gave her another 15 minutes and found her dead not long after.
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I gave up bow hunting a year or so later, breaking arrows etc was quite expensive compared to buying ammo.
Roll forward 28 years to April 2020. Stuck at home over lockdown I watched few YouTube archery hunts and got inspired to get a bow again. Having a 31.5” draw limits the bows available. I eventually decided to get a PSE EVO NXT 33 70lb. I fitted it out with a Black Gold Mountain lite 3 pin slider sight, Hamskea limb driven rest and tight spot quiver.
Finding arrows was bit difficult but eventually found some Victory RIP TKO and used a 170gr Tusker two blade broadhead. The arrow ended up weighing 527gr with 19%FOC. I’m really glad it ended up that high.
Last night I was up in the hills looking for a deer. I had sidled down a brushy face looking for a deer I had seen. I could t find the deer but heard some stones rolling round to my right. I sidled 10 closer. I heard a few more rocks rolling and was surprised when a big pig appeared. He was about 48yds away and moving down hill. When he went behind some brush I dropped slightly lower and closer. The boar came out again at 32 yds and about 25 degrees below me. Looking at the chart on my rangefinder I figured I needed to use my 20yd pin.
I drew back and looked through the peep sight and put the pin behind his front leg. Releasing the arrow I saw it hit where I wanted and the boar dropped at the shot and then rolled down the hill about 50 metres.
I had to go about 100m back up the hill to get my pack and then back down to the boar. He was still alive, moving his head but nothing else. I figured I must have spined him so I went over and stuck him
When I was cutting him up I worked out what the arrow had done.
I’d hit him higher than I thought with the arrow just clipping his shoulder blade it went went toward through the spine and exited at the back of his cheek. It hadn’t entered his chest cavity at all. He must have quarter away further than I had thought. I had also bracketed the 20and 30yd pins on him rather than just using the 20yd.
I was really glad of the mass and FOC of the arrow. Smashing and severing his spine was impressive damage. I managed to find the broadhead and it was completely unmarked.
I was stoked to get another animal with the bow, is I just need to get a deer.
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