By Andrew Hermance EBS CONTRIBUTOR
My passion
for whitetails started off long before I could even hunt. My dad was, and still
is, big into hunting white-tailed deer with his recurve bow, and that is where
I got it from. Already by my first year hunting, at 12 years old, I knew I
wanted to harvest a white-tailed buck with my bow.
My dad
helped me get my PSE Nova compound bow all ready to go and I spent all summer
practicing. Opening day of bow season came and we had the stand set in a patch
of timber that my dad knew deer would go through. That evening I climbed into
the stand and patiently waited. About 45 minutes before dark I had three does
and one velvet spike come by. I was eager and excited, ambitions set on taking
a buck—any buck—with my bow.
All the does
took a trail to my right and the buck took the trail that came in front of the
tree stand. He passed beneath me at 5 yards. I pulled my bow back and let the
arrow fly and the rest is history. That was the day that really got me hooked
on bowhunting whitetails.
Fast forward
to 2016, and I had gained permission to hunt on a new property. Not knowing
what kind of potential this property had, that year was more or less a
figure-it-out year and see what was around. I quickly learned that property had
a ton of deer and held some big bucks.
I ended up
harvesting my first buck with a traditional bow that year. Though I had shot does
with the traditional gear before, it was a great feeling to finally be able to
take a buck. Since that day, I haven’t picked up a compound.
The
following year I told myself I was going to put more time than ever before into
scouting throughout the summer, trying to pattern a mature deer for the
upcoming season. I spent three or four days a week from June till opening day
of bow season in September, watching all the deer, getting a sense for their
movements, and picking out which deer I’d try to hunt during the season. I had
four bucks picked out and patterned going through one little area on the
property. My buddy and I hung a stand there and just waited for the season to
come.
The week
before season, two of my bucks quit being active in the daylight so I was
narrowed to just the remaining two deer. With opening weekend foreboding
super-hot temperatures, I had my doubts, and ended up not making it to the
stand until the third day of the season. Walking into my stand that evening, I
bumped into one of the two bucks that I was going to hunt that night, but
wasn’t able to make a shot. With him spooked, I was now down to just one buck.
About 30
minutes before dark, I spotted deer moving on the river bed. I pulled my
binoculars to eyes to see if my buck was around when all of a sudden, he came
through the brush right next to the tree my stand was in. He stopped just 10
yards away.
I grabbed my
bow as he moved closer to the tree and at 4 yards he turned and quartered away,
giving me a perfect shot. I drew back and let the arrow fly, watching as it hit
my target. I was in such shock of what just happened.
To
successfully take a mature buck, and to do it with a traditional bow, sent
excitement and adrenaline coursing through my body, fueling my love of bowhunting
whitetails.
It was time
to set a new goal. My next ambition was to take a big, full-velvet buck.
Going into
the 2018 season, I wanted to take a deer with my grandfather’s old recurve. I
didn’t have much time to scout that summer, so on opening weekend I was just
trusting my instincts. I set up in the same spot where I’d taken the buck in
2017 with my traditional bow. As I sat in the stand on opening evening, there
was very little deer activity around me. I started to wonder if I’d made the
right choice, but remained in the stand, waiting it out.
About 10
minutes before dark, a buck I’d patterned in 2017 stepped out into the open and
walked by my stand, some 15 yards away. I drew back and sent the arrow flying.
The shot was marginal, and after discussing the shot over with my dad, we
decided it would be better to wait till morning to look for the deer. The next
morning, after picking up the blood trail and a quick 60-yard track job, we
recovered the buck.
I can’t
begin to explain my love and respect for whitetails. After spending so much
time watching river-bottom whitetails—learning their habits and behavior—I
think they’re one of the most fun animals to bow hunt. Maybe it’s the personal
challenge, maybe it’s part time spent in the woods, but there’s just something
about it that keeps me coming back year after year.
Andrew
Hermance was born and raised in Bozeman, where he currently works at Extreme
Plumbing and Heating.
