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Senior makes most of hunting season starting up

By Grant Ebbert, Mirror Intern - | Nov 7, 2007

Erick Lowe has been hunting deer for about two years, but he never had caught one.

Since the bow hunting season recently started in October, the Tonganoxie High senior figured he’d give it a try. It’s a good thing he did.

Lowe caught a 10-point buck in Emporia — the first harvest of his young hunting career.

“I was sitting in a tree stand when I saw the first deer of the day,” Lowe said. “In the distance of the woods I spotted a buck. As the buck gets closer and closer I begin to wonder if it will come close enough for me to take a shot.”

At first, Lowe didn’t know when he would take aim. Then, he noticed the buck looking up toward the sky and turning his head. He said this was the time he took action.

“The buck was about 20 yards out,” Lowe said. “The arrow went completely through his body. The buck jumped into the air and took off, but he soon fell 100 yards away.”

That cold chill is back in the November air and deer season is upon Kansas hunters. Bow hunting — the kind Lowe embarked on in Emporia — started in October, but Kansas hunters won’t be able to hunt with rifles until Nov. 28.

“The reason I think that the bow season is longer is because it’s harder to get deer when you are hunting with a bow because of your limited shooting range,” Lowe said. “You must be pretty close when you are using a bow.”

Many bow hunters enjoy its challenges. One of the many challenging parts of bow hunting is scouting and tracking deer. It takes time to learn where the deer go to eat and where they like to rest. When a hunter uses a rifle, the shot is usually 100 or more yards away. However, when bow hunting, a shot is usually taken from 25 yards or closer.

“When you’re rifle hunting, you don’t have to be as quiet,” Lowe said. “A bow hunter has to be much more careful when getting ready to take their shot. Any abrupt sound or movement will scare off the deer.”

Bow hunters and rifle hunters must be accurate if they want to be successful on a hunt. A rifle a hunter must be able to shoot long distances, while a bow hunter must have precise mechanics with the bow and arrow.

“When I first started out, I took between a 50 and a 100 shots, three or four days a week with my bow. It took a while before I mastered archery. It’s a difficult task.”