Don't get me wrong I've done it before, even taking the buck above with a bow in 2005 (excuse the photo quality). It took me a couple days to retrieve him, being a rookie and all. I've always looked at Archery Season as a way to get into the field early, however the South Dakota Rifle Season has been over for 3 weeks and I've been seeing bucks left, right & center. Big Bucks, now I put the Bow away after last year, Bow Season comes at a busy time in a rancher's life. Your giving Fall Shots, then your weaning calves, then your shipping cattle to their winter homes. These are all the reasons I've never been a pheasant hunter, I'm just too dang busy in the prime time. But as I'm sitting here watching hunting shows, they are hunting the rut, with bows. I get it, I can wait until after the Busy Season, and after the Rifle Season, and still harvest a Buck, in South Dakota we can go until December 30th, and if we don't get one we can shoot a Doe until January 31st. I checked with the GF&P, they said they would still sell me a licence, I know time is running out and my chances are slim, not to mention I need to put at least a week of practice in (I'd hate to wound something), since my bow has been locked up for over a year. I'm going for it though, I have a new enthusiasm and if I get good enough perhaps I'll apply for a Black Hills Elk in the next couple of years.