The 2000-2001 archery season for deer is well underway in Mississippi and Louisiana, and bow hunting seems more popular than ever before.

One possible reason is the challenge that bow hunting poses to sportsmen.

&uot;It is a skill sport,&uot; said Homer Hewitt, owner of Hewitt’s Archery & Pro Shop in Ferriday. &uot;We have to get closer to the game. We’re very limited – our range is only 10 to 30 yards, and with the rifle the range is from 100-200 yards. It’s hard to get that close.&uot;

Hewitt added that the average harvest distance in the United States is 17 1/2 yards.

Jody Rutter of Natchez said the reason some people hunt with bows – as opposed to hunting with guns – is &uot;self-limitation.&uot;

&uot;You have to be a better hunter,&uot; Rutter said.

Shirby Evans of Jonesville agreed that it’s a greater challenge hunting with a bow.

&uot;With a bow, you have to be right on what you’re shooting,&uot; Evans said. &uot;I get so nervous when a deer comes out.&uot;

Hewitt, Rutter and Evans all agreed that hunting with a bow is more fun than hunting with a gun, but for different reasons.

&uot;You get in touch with your emotions,&uot; Hewitt said. &uot;The real deer gets your pulse rate up.&uot;

&uot;It’s a lot more fulfilling,&uot; Rutter said. &uot;It’s a survival-type thing.

&uot;It’s just the simplicity of it,&uot; Rutter added. &uot;It’s also quiet. When your friend harvests a deer, you don’t know about it until you get back to the camp.&uot;

&uot;It does in a way make you feel more primitive,&uot; Evans said.

&uot;We feel like a caveman with the bow,&uot; Hewitt said. &uot;It kicks in some of that primitive caveman instinct. The hunter is the underdog.&uot;

With bow hunting, their are risks and rewards.

As far as the dangers, Rutter and Evans said the biggest risks are &uot;falling out of a treestand&uot; and &uot;climbing up and down a tree.&uot;

Rutter said another risk is snakes.

Archery season is earlier than gun season, she said, and many snakes have not yet holed up for the winter. &uot;They’ve been out there and they’re still out there,&uot; Rutter said.

Hewitt, however, said the only risk is &uot;being disappointed that we didn’t make the harvest.&uot;

All three agreed that bow hunting’s rewards outweighed the sport’s risks.

&uot;Getting back to nature, especially with the leaves changing color and the changing of the seasons,&uot; is the best part of the sport, Hewitt said.