Texas’ Archery Only season got underway on September 30. I don’t know how your bowhunting has gone so far, but Wesley Waggonner’s 2023 archery season kicked off with one of those emotional rollercoaster rides that every responsible deer hunter had rather not take.
To hear Waggonner tell it, the experience carried him from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows then back to the top again — all in a matter of 36 hours. Topsy-turvy mood swings are pretty typical of what happens to a passionate deer hunter when a good hunt turns into a vexing search and recovery mission.
There are some good lessons about search and recovery to be learned here, regardless of where you hunt with archery gear, crossbow or firearm: 10-50 Comes Calling Waggonner, 32, is a hardcore archer who has taken more than two dozen deer with a bow and arrow in several states over the years. He was perched in a ladder stand on a 2,300acre lease in Angelina County on that muggy Saturday afternoon when “1050” came calling.
