lost my first buck with xcal
Moderator: Excalibur Marketing Dude
lost my first buck with xcal
I have mixed emotions about today's hunt. I was wearing ASAT 3D suit and was sitting in a chair when a nice sized 8 pt buck came up to me...he walked past me and I took a shot within 5 yards. I couldn't believe he came this close to me while hunting on the ground. I hit him in the shoulder and the GT bolt was stuck in his shoulder. He moved when I took the shot and if it was 2" to the left...I would have hit his vitals. I made a huge rookie mistake and did not allow 30-60 minutes before I started to track him. In all the excitement, I started to track him right away. I had a good blood trail, but I ended up losing the blood trail after about 250 yards. I was very frustrated and kept on circling around to see if I could pick up the blood trail again. Down a couple hundred yards...I found the blood trail again...but no buck....I tracked the blood trail and the buck must have crossed the road. I was unable to find the blood trail on the other side of the road. I spent over 3 hours searching for him, but sadly to say I was unable to recover my first buck. I am angry with myself for wounding an animal. I let my excitement get the best of me and caused a wounded animal to suffer. I am planning on going out this afternoon and if given the opportunity, I won't make the same mistake.
Well......You've experienced what we all aim for not happening. I feel for ya! Good of you to be honest with yourself. I'm fairly new at this as well and I pray I don't make Rookie mistakes... Your only human!
An experienced friend told me to mark the last blood trail with orange tape and make circles wider and wider. Also, don't give up! If weather permits? At night use a lantern and the blood trail glows/stands out.
As a hunter your responsible. Sorry about the hunter ethics but, I'm sure most will agree. DONT GIVE UP!!!
Cheers
An experienced friend told me to mark the last blood trail with orange tape and make circles wider and wider. Also, don't give up! If weather permits? At night use a lantern and the blood trail glows/stands out.
As a hunter your responsible. Sorry about the hunter ethics but, I'm sure most will agree. DONT GIVE UP!!!
Cheers
[img]http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b15/lukebeaudry/HUNTINGSig.jpg[/img]
Don't let a piece of metal you use to get around in stop you!
Don't let a piece of metal you use to get around in stop you!
A high shot in the shoulder is a bad hit...too much muscle and bone and no vitals...if you did not jump him bedded down with in 300 yds...he is not hit hard...
I know it hurts but go on and learn from your mistakes
Good luck
Dave
I know it hurts but go on and learn from your mistakes
Good luck
Dave
Last edited by Deer Dave on Sat Nov 05, 2005 7:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Had a similar experience with a mechanical that must have opened in flight. Stuck in the buck's shoulder, but only penetrated a few inches. A long search following distantly spaced drops of blood led to nothing. One of the guys helping me blood trial saw the buck a few days later and he was walking a little slow, but seemed to be OK other than a sore shoulder. It happens even if we try to be careful. A lot can go wrong, but as long as you try to make only good shots and try your best to recover any deer hit you're doing all you can. I've had a few shots go bad, but they all looked to be non-fatal hits on the ones I failed to recover. (Some really wierd causes, though. One shot a fletching came loose and caused the arrow to spiral, one I let the arrow touch an unnoticed cedar twig, and the mechanical broadhead apparently opening in flight.) Now I'm passing shots that I would have taken a few years ago, but I'm determined not to spend half the night bloodtrailing just to confirm I made a non-fatal hit again! I have lost a couple to a long recovery and warm weather and/or scavengers, but that's another chance we take.
If you trailed the deer a few hundred yards and it didn't try to lay down, there's a good chance it wasn't too serious an injury.
Get back out there, do your best to patiently wait for perfect shots, and your luck will soon improve. (and I hope mine does, too - and soon!)
If you trailed the deer a few hundred yards and it didn't try to lay down, there's a good chance it wasn't too serious an injury.
Get back out there, do your best to patiently wait for perfect shots, and your luck will soon improve. (and I hope mine does, too - and soon!)
wabi
I looked some more, but was unable to find him. I learned a lot today...on what not to do...I still cannot believe how close I was to him when I took the shot. At times the blood trail was pretty thick...and other areas it was a blood spot here and there...I hope to get another opportunity to make a human kill.
when I read that
I just logged on to the site and read your post first.
Aubie 515, don't dispare, think it out. Where would you go if you were a wounded buck.
First a shoulder shot he may survive. But with good penetration and a slight angle, it may of hit some vitals. Wounded bucks are predictable to a certain extent. If their gut shot they will go straight to WATER. Its both a cool, cleansing trait for a wound. Water also, usually has thick under growth or willows, for which they can hide from their predator. If no water exist's, they will almost certainly go to a high point on a fisher, (small or large ridge existing in a forest or bush), where there is thick under growth so they can hide and see, hear, smell, their predator or enemy coming. In the spring, I have found many a rack with skull plate in these same areas.
If he dies, you'll most certainly find him by listening for birds of prey, magpies, crows, ravens, whatever, or coyotes. One of the largest bucks I ever killed was locked together with another buck,(which was dead), the 10 or so ravens gave it away immediatetly, when I heard them.
Pay close attention to nature, it has more to teach, than you may think.
Good luck Aubie, you'll eventually find him dead or alive.
Grey Owl
Aubie 515, don't dispare, think it out. Where would you go if you were a wounded buck.
First a shoulder shot he may survive. But with good penetration and a slight angle, it may of hit some vitals. Wounded bucks are predictable to a certain extent. If their gut shot they will go straight to WATER. Its both a cool, cleansing trait for a wound. Water also, usually has thick under growth or willows, for which they can hide from their predator. If no water exist's, they will almost certainly go to a high point on a fisher, (small or large ridge existing in a forest or bush), where there is thick under growth so they can hide and see, hear, smell, their predator or enemy coming. In the spring, I have found many a rack with skull plate in these same areas.
If he dies, you'll most certainly find him by listening for birds of prey, magpies, crows, ravens, whatever, or coyotes. One of the largest bucks I ever killed was locked together with another buck,(which was dead), the 10 or so ravens gave it away immediatetly, when I heard them.
Pay close attention to nature, it has more to teach, than you may think.
Good luck Aubie, you'll eventually find him dead or alive.
Grey Owl
Re: lost my first buck with xcal
Sounds like ya blamin' it on the Excalibur.aubie515 wrote:lost my first buck with xcal.
Grey Owl had some good advice about where would you go if you were a wounded deer? It is a sickening feeling to not be able to find one. The buck I shot on the weekend left NO blood trail. There was a little blood where he laid down and then nothing after he got up and walked out of my sight. We found him over a km from where I shot him.
The only thing I had to go on was his direction of travel and a "gut" feeling about where he would go to bed down. He was within 100 yards of a thick growth of pines that I was going to search.
I too, think you hit the shoulder. If you did you'd have a hell of a time recovering that deer.
The only thing I had to go on was his direction of travel and a "gut" feeling about where he would go to bed down. He was within 100 yards of a thick growth of pines that I was going to search.
I too, think you hit the shoulder. If you did you'd have a hell of a time recovering that deer.
I hunt for memories, the meat's a bonus!
I hit a buck in the shoulder a couple years back. I knowingly took a stupid, low percentage shot. I think about that buck and what I did to this day, but I learned from that lapse in judgement. That experience has made me a better, more patient hunter.
The deer was seen a few weeks later, with a noticeable limp but alive nonetheless. I have the arrow(snapped off at the broadhead) as a reminder, an anti-trophy if you will.
You will also be able to relate to those who will one day feel what you are feeling now. I know exactly how Ecoaster was feeling when it appeared his buck was not only fatally wounded but not going to be recovered.
Learn from what happened. That is the positive you need to take from this experience.
The deer was seen a few weeks later, with a noticeable limp but alive nonetheless. I have the arrow(snapped off at the broadhead) as a reminder, an anti-trophy if you will.
You will also be able to relate to those who will one day feel what you are feeling now. I know exactly how Ecoaster was feeling when it appeared his buck was not only fatally wounded but not going to be recovered.
Learn from what happened. That is the positive you need to take from this experience.
You can take the man out of the woods but you can't take the woods out of the man.
"Celebrate your harvest with a Bloodtrail Ale(tm)!!"
"It CAN Be Done!"
"Celebrate your harvest with a Bloodtrail Ale(tm)!!"
"It CAN Be Done!"