102 said:
What makes a deer, any deer, the hardest most challenging deer to kill?
Age.
102 said:
And does your choice of gun or bow make it more or less of a challenge?
Depends.
Depends on the hunter, where he's hunting, when he's hunting, how much he's hunting, as well as the
AGE of the deer being hunted. Is it easier to kill a yearling buck with a bow or a mature buck with a gun? Just depends.
IMO, an accomplished hunter often has it easier to kill an older buck via bowhunting (assuming he's reasonably proficient in archery).
Why?
Via archery-only season segments, archery hunters typically get the first annual opportunities to hunt most places that allow hunting. And while I say "they", please take it as "we", because I see no reason to divide us farther into "bow" hunters vs. "gun" hunters, we're simply hunters. But not only do we get the first annual hunting opportunities at undisturbed deer, but in many states (such as Illinois and Kentucky), over twice as many days to hunt "archery only" vs with any gun.
Let's also keep in mind that many if not most of the accomplished hunters either are, or have been, hunters who choose to use archery equipment. Typically, most hunters' choice of weapon is related to whatever he feels gives him the greatest opportunity at the time, not necessarily the greatest challenge.
Some states even force the hunter to make a pre-season choice of either hunting the year "archery only" or "gun only". In these states, I believe most of the better hunters (at least those who have lots of days available to go hunting) are going to choose archery only, mainly because it gives them more opportunity, not more challenge.
When we're willing to use archery equipment instead of a gun, we often get the very best opportunities in terms of places to hunt that are never gun hunted. A prime example would be many public hunting areas (such as President Island WMA and major portions of the Oak Ridge WMA), as well as many private and public properties that have deemed the hunting "archery only" due to either political correctness and/or legitimate safety concerns.
Not to mention, I've seen many people (including myself) gain exclusive hunting privileges on great private properties that didn't previously allow any hunting, simply by stating "will not hunt with a gun", or "I only hunt with a bow".
So I would say whether it's more difficult to kill a deer with a bow or gun depends greatly on the situation and the hunter. All things being equal, of course it's a greater challenge to take any deer with a bow than with a gun. Few comparisons are equal, and we're often comparing apples to oranges regarding bowhunting vs. gun hunting. Meanwhile, most avid hunters are just that, avid hunters who use whatever is the most effective weapon among their choices, commonly pursuing a different hunting challenge than those who may be more enthusiasts for the weapon than the hunt.
Some people are more into shooting than hunting, while hunting typically involves shooting. Those more enthused with shooting will typically hunt differently and have different hunting goals than those who are more enthused with hunting, regardless of the weapon. Some are more enthused with archery, some with flintlock muzzleloaders. To each their own.
There's plenty of room for all our preferences, and we all are hunters.
