It is a painful moment when the sun dips behind the trees and you lower your bow for the last time to the forest floor for the archery season.  You can reflect on your season and reminisce to hunting companions about your successes.  You walk past your bow hanging on a hook and get that lonesome feeling that can only be sedated by the outdoors.  You can look at photos, or maybe even organize the hunting album by year or categories of animals harvested.  These activities are fine, but other activities still abound after the bow season has concluded that can get you out of the house and curb that hunting appetite.

Scout for Success

Multitudes of articles have been written about post-season scouting.  Can it be emphasized enough?  There is no better time to ascertain the whereabouts of whitetails than in the post season.  No pressure, no other hunters, no leaves and maybe even snow.  It just doesn’t get any better than that for the bowhunter yearning for some outdoor activity.  Find a tree, trim some lanes and maybe even screw in some steps if possible for the upcoming season.  Go talk to landowners to hopefully get permission on that farm you drive past every day and say “man that looks like it would hold some good deer”.  It never hurts to ask especially in advance.

Hunt Something Small

Could I possibly be suggesting that you pick up a gun and hunt something other than deer or big game with a bow???  Without a doubt.  I thoroughly enjoy hunting small game.  In many states, small game seasons carry well into the winter allowing the bowhunter the opportunity to go into the woods stinking like a human and making all the noise he wants.  To be honest, it can be a welcome relief after months of pursuing whitetails and the regimen of cleanliness that accompanies the hunt.  If you haven’t pursued game birds with the aid of a good birddog you have no idea what you are missing.  Watching my German Shorthair work the wind and lock up on a pheasant is a pure adrenaline rush.  The sound of a hardheaded beagle on the hot scent of a rabbit is also intoxicating.  Hunting bunnies over hounds is addicting and quite the diversion for the “bored” bowhunter.  If you look, I am sure you can also find Hunting Clubs or Preserves that cater to small game well into the spring. 

Hunting in the Can

If you asked my kids or wife they would tell you that from the hunting literature that I have amassed in the bathroom that I probably could be considered “hunting in the can”.  Much negative press has been projected about hunting in a fenced in preserve.  All I can say is “don’t knock it until you try it”.  As a collective group from our local archery shop, every year we schedule a hunt for Fallow deer and wild hogs.  The hunt has a two to one ratio in with the hunters the larger number.  This lessens the cost for the individual but still affords them the opportunity to harvest a different game animal.  The hunt is difficult at best and will definitely test your archery skills.  The hunt also has great camaraderie.  The group has consisted of basically the same twenty-five to thirty people for the last five years.  Lots of stories are told, jokes passed on and all has just plain fun.  I have bucked the odds for years by only coming up empty once.  I look forward to these two hunts a year like you can’t imagine.  Even though these hunts aren’t for everyone, I can tell you it will definitely spice up that dull weekend in the dead of winter and keep that bowhunting adrenaline flowing strong.  I would also be remiss if I did not mention that the meat from both of these animals is excellent table fare. 

Shoot, Shoot, Shoot

If you are lucky enough to have an archery shop near your home, chances are that you could be missing out on shooting a league.  If you don’t like shooting spots, most shops cater to the bowhunter by offering a hunter’s league complete with animal targets.  These weekly jaunts to the archery shop can break the monotony and will keep you in tune with your hunting bow.  If you don’t have leagues, shooting your bow on a regular basis will continue to be one heck of a good idea.  There is no substitute for regular practice.  Commit yourself to building the target bale and backstop in your yard.  If you are fortunate enough to have some property and some 3D targets, you can also set up a course and practice from any yardage or angle that you desire.  Also, a large number of clubs begin shooting 3D tournaments as soon as archery season ends.  This might also be the time to finally buy that bow press you have been wanting for so long.  Setting up a small “archery shop” in your basement and working on your own bow will eventually teach you to be a better more “self sufficient” shooter.

There’s No Business Like Show Business

If you are like me, you will make a yearly pilgrimage to at least one of the big outdoor shows.  Is there any better way to supersaturate yourself with bowhunting than to be completely surrounded by the sport?  Booths full of equipment, outfitters, clothing, gadgets and gimmicks surround you at your every move and glance.  These shows occur yearly in the month of February in my home base.  Usually a month with absolutely no hunting going on, this is a welcome breath of fresh air.  It is also a good time to acquaint yourself with new equipment or finally book a hunt of a lifetime.

Can’t Button Your Pants??

Did you notice that you came close to having a heart attack each time you walked over that small hill to get to your treestand??  You bought a new four-wheeler and can’t even imagine walking to get to your stand sites anymore.  Like it or not, chances are that you could probably get yourself in better physical shape.  Take this opportunity of a void in hunting to get in shape.  Start lifting weights to build your muscles.  You would be surprised how much easier it is to climb a tree with increased upper body strength.  That walk over the hill to your stand will be much easier on the old ticker if you walked for a few months in advance before the season.  Routine exercise will add to your lifespan, which means more years of hunting.

Other Options

Here are some of your other options:  work on the house, clean the garage, spend more time with relatives that don’t hunt, sit on the couch and watch TV, start work on that honey-do list that has been growing during hunting season, etc. etc.  Personally, these are not real appealing.  So remember to exercise your options and take advantage of all the “other “ opportunities when your bow hits the ground for the last day of archery season---you won’t be disappointed.