Been a very fortunate fellow in the hunting world this season. I've had the opprotunity to hunt alot lot and taken a couple of nice south Texas bucks with my bow this season and several does from different ranches. Because of this, I feel that I have developed tremendously as a bow hunter from when I started a year and a half ago. The reason I'm prefacing this story a little, is so I can show how just when you think you know a little about something.... you dont. From day one of bowhunting I've studied shot placemnt, deer reactions on shot, recovered arrows, and bloood trails and tracking etc. I feel like Ive gotten pretty good at it with five clean kills and quick recoveries in a matter of a month and a half. Feeling confident if you get my drift, not cocky but confident.
Fast forward to Friday moring. At my beautiful lease near Fredericksburg. Late season, rut is over. Still have my buck for the lease I can shoot but not really concerned if it happens or not. Just glad to be here. Feeder hadnt ran since I left a month ago so I fixed it when I got up and the first day it threw was Thursday. As I'm browsing the morning TBH latest and greatest, a deer emerges from my right FOV and straight to the feeder. Wow, immediately recognized as a nice buck for the Texas hill country and easily my personal best for up here where I've been hunting for 15 years. No thinking needed, I grab my Strother and before I know it I'm at full draw. Buck gives me a 90 degree spin and I decide to let down 73 lbs of fury. A few seconds pass and hes back in position.
Now, this is where my "confidence "kicks in. He gives me a quartering away shot at 21 yds, BUT he is behind the feeder and two of the legs are on each side of his sweet spot. He's already thrown some looks my way and my hearts racing that hes gonna bolt anysec. I make the decison to slip a grizz trick in between those metal poles and I let it fly. Deer takes off showing no reaction to shot, something flys straight up and to the left of the feeder?, and the ever so loved "Thwack" is more of a "Thud"!
I missed, SOAB, I got imaptient and hit the feeder leg and blew the opprotunity at a heck of a deer. Give it a couple mins, get out to go find that arrow. After looking for ten minuets with no results I find a tiny little knick on one of the feeder legs. Yep, I hit the feeder and skipped that arrow who knows where. A brief look around where the deer was standing and the direction he ran, nothing. Clean miss is better than a wounded deer is all I can tell myself. Well right about now I make the decision to head to the truck to take care of some other bussiness. After the other business and texting some fellow TBH bros about the miss, I decide to return to continue my search for the arrow (cause they are expensive).
I looked for a solid 30 minutes with no luck. I started walking in the direction that buck had ran off after the shot. I found myself in some beautiful cover about 30 yds down the trail and I began to think to myself "Wow I should move my feeder down here". Just about then as I'm aimlessly wondering around in lala land I look down to my left to see this awesome 8 pt. buck laying on a log with foamy blood coming out of his side!!! Holy $**+, what the!!! I nailed that big boy and here he is. (dead BTW) After catching my breath I realized although I'm the luckiest SOB in the woods that day I have to learn from this. I found the blood trail and followed it out to realize that he took a differnt trail than I thought I saw. Additionally the blood was there I just needed to look for it.
I totally assumed the shot was a miss based on the things I had expierenced from other hunts. That doesnt matter in this game. Every hunt is different and you cannot be quick to draw conclusions. I am very lucky this turned out for me bc it could have gone the other way just as easy. I'll be eating humble pie for X-Mas this year. Anyways another lesson for the tool box. BTW never found arrow, dont know what happened to it but the shot was perfect and clean, deer only went 40-50 yds?
Thx for reading , Be safe
Brad
Fast forward to Friday moring. At my beautiful lease near Fredericksburg. Late season, rut is over. Still have my buck for the lease I can shoot but not really concerned if it happens or not. Just glad to be here. Feeder hadnt ran since I left a month ago so I fixed it when I got up and the first day it threw was Thursday. As I'm browsing the morning TBH latest and greatest, a deer emerges from my right FOV and straight to the feeder. Wow, immediately recognized as a nice buck for the Texas hill country and easily my personal best for up here where I've been hunting for 15 years. No thinking needed, I grab my Strother and before I know it I'm at full draw. Buck gives me a 90 degree spin and I decide to let down 73 lbs of fury. A few seconds pass and hes back in position.
Now, this is where my "confidence "kicks in. He gives me a quartering away shot at 21 yds, BUT he is behind the feeder and two of the legs are on each side of his sweet spot. He's already thrown some looks my way and my hearts racing that hes gonna bolt anysec. I make the decison to slip a grizz trick in between those metal poles and I let it fly. Deer takes off showing no reaction to shot, something flys straight up and to the left of the feeder?, and the ever so loved "Thwack" is more of a "Thud"!
I missed, SOAB, I got imaptient and hit the feeder leg and blew the opprotunity at a heck of a deer. Give it a couple mins, get out to go find that arrow. After looking for ten minuets with no results I find a tiny little knick on one of the feeder legs. Yep, I hit the feeder and skipped that arrow who knows where. A brief look around where the deer was standing and the direction he ran, nothing. Clean miss is better than a wounded deer is all I can tell myself. Well right about now I make the decision to head to the truck to take care of some other bussiness. After the other business and texting some fellow TBH bros about the miss, I decide to return to continue my search for the arrow (cause they are expensive).
I looked for a solid 30 minutes with no luck. I started walking in the direction that buck had ran off after the shot. I found myself in some beautiful cover about 30 yds down the trail and I began to think to myself "Wow I should move my feeder down here". Just about then as I'm aimlessly wondering around in lala land I look down to my left to see this awesome 8 pt. buck laying on a log with foamy blood coming out of his side!!! Holy $**+, what the!!! I nailed that big boy and here he is. (dead BTW) After catching my breath I realized although I'm the luckiest SOB in the woods that day I have to learn from this. I found the blood trail and followed it out to realize that he took a differnt trail than I thought I saw. Additionally the blood was there I just needed to look for it.
I totally assumed the shot was a miss based on the things I had expierenced from other hunts. That doesnt matter in this game. Every hunt is different and you cannot be quick to draw conclusions. I am very lucky this turned out for me bc it could have gone the other way just as easy. I'll be eating humble pie for X-Mas this year. Anyways another lesson for the tool box. BTW never found arrow, dont know what happened to it but the shot was perfect and clean, deer only went 40-50 yds?
Thx for reading , Be safe
Brad
Attached Files
Comment