Worst shots you've made that ended well

[powderburner]

my son shot a 10pt a few years ago. he was aiming behind the right shoulder with the buck facing to the right. He jerked the trigger and the bullet hit the buck right between the base of the horn and ear.

i told him that I would rather be lucky than good any day in the week

[KX500]

Just remembered another - that resulted in my best buck at the time.

At the time, I had a neighbor who owned 40 acres. We worked at the same place too, but only saw each other there occasionally. This guy was pretty gruff, almost never smiling. Unless he was drinking, which now that I think about it was most of the time he wasn't working (heck maybe then too). He'd invited me to hunt with him once but I saw nothing.

One year I asked him I could hunt his place on the Friday of our 3 day Muzzleloader season (the last days of the year a guy could kill a buck with a gun). I took the day off, he was at work and he didn't hunt with a muzzleloader anyway. I go to his place midmorning, after a non-productive morning on stand nearby.

Of his 40 acres, maybe 30 was wooded. So I'm slowly making my way thru his ground when I crest a hill. About 100-120 yards away, I see a deer - or 4, or 5. They have no idea I'm there and I have no reason (or excuse) to miss. I get good and prone and miss a doe anyway. Had I made the shot, it would have been my longest to that point.

But at the shot, the whole area I shot towards came alive. There must have been 30 deer bedded there, while I'd only seen a few.

Among other things, that neighbor liked to shoot. These deer were bedded just a little ways from where his target normally sat. I imagine, they were somewhat used to hearing gunfire.

Anyway, half or 2/3 of the deer take off and the rest stand around. I could tell they were trying to decide to follow the rest or just calm back down. Anyway, I slide back down the backside of the hill and get the muzzleloader reloaded. When I'm ready I come back to the top and look to see if any of the deer hung around. Fortunately several had. I see one that looks to be the biggest offering me a nice broadside shot. Head is behind a tree, but who cares, season is almost over. I take my time and make a really good shot on a really nice 10 point buck.

Only I have no idea what happened, other than seeing the remaining deer run off. The buck had dropped at the shot, right into a small gulley and the smoke from the muzzleloader was good at letting me not see anything. I saw no deer laying there and none of the deer running off appeared to be injured. I assumed I was just 0/2 that morning.

So I reload again, take a few minutes and start walking over there. I get to where I thought the deer was standing & find nothing. Crap! I take a few more steps and there is this big beautiful 10 point laying there, dead as can be. It honestly took me a few seconds to understand what had happened. One of my thoughts was 'did I stumble upon a buck somebody shot days ago?".

Then I realized, no the deer you just shot just happens to be this one! And it is your best to date!

A very good thing, to miss the doe.

Little did I know that this buck was the landowners 'pet'. He'd seen it several times and really wanted to shoot it (at that point, it would have been next year). Needless to say, I was never invited to hunt his place again nor did I ever ask. Things were a bit frosty between us after that.

But hey, he never said - don't shoot my pet 10 Point!

[steve corn]

40 years or so ago I had a spike walk out about 120 yards. He stopped and faced straight at me with his head high. I knew he saw me so I hurriedly put my open sights center of his chest, jerked the trigger hard and he went straight down. DRT. I was high fiving my ex wife all the way to him. Took the top of his head right off. If he had not had his head so high I would have totally missed.

[Gunswayne]

Wyoming Antelope, My first trip up and first out of state. It's where I learned about the affects of wind on an arrow. The temps were in the 30's and the winds were gusting up to 60. I had a doe bring a nice buck by my popup. He posed broadside at 17 yards. I anchored, picked my spot and let her fly. I watched that arrow shift 3 feet sideways on it's approach. The impact of the Slick Trick was just above the rear right knee. He ran 50 or so yards and laid down. I died inside thinking about the money I just blew on one shot. The number one rule was not to get out of the blind as other hunters were on the same field and to do so would run the 300 plus animals off of the alfalfa field they had us set up on. It was 7 long brutal hours of watching him die.
He would get up and move 30-40 yards at a time, lay down for a while then repeat. Each time the stain of blood would be bigger up his hip. A couple times he rolled over on his back, legs up in the air and i knew he was done just to watch him roll back over and stand up.
Finally, he was laying still and a juvenile bald eagle landed beside him. After a few minutes the eagle eased over and gave the antelope a peck with his beak. The antelope exploded from his bed and made a hard run for 30 yards or so and went down. I knew he was down for good then. So did the guides watching over the field from a nearby hillside. One of them came and picked me up on the 4 wheeler(the farmer is in the field daily so you could drive right by the antelope and deer and they wouldn't even look up, on foot they would head for the hills) and we went and picked up the goat. What a relief that was.

[DEG]

My first bow kill. I had practiced for over a year to gain confidence and repeatability with my first bow before taking it hunting. I was quite confident in my abilities. I had practiced getting on the leg and bringing the bow up to the kill zone. I had a doe at 15 yard. Drew, found the leg, pulled up and released the arrow. Solid hit. she spun and ran about 20 yards then stumbled behind some brush. I waited 30 minutes just proud of myself for my first bow kill. I followed the blood trail then lost it about 40 yards from the blind. I searched for about 30 minutes then called my brother to help track her. She was found about 75 yards from the blind dead as a hammer. Perfect through and through shot. Right through the hind quarters. The Grim Reaper broad head did its job even though I pulled up on the wrong leg.

[DTala]

my first kill with a stone point. I had a doe at 15 yards, slow walking. I drew, aimed and hit her dead center...of the right hindquarter. Man, I was pizzed. I watched her run 100 yards down the field and walk into the woods, then fall over. Dead. Hit the femoral artery. If you cannot be good, then lucky is some count.

[Low Fence]

On a doe killing at friends ranch one year. Last weekend of season, it was FREEZING! Sitting in a box blind when a doe to kill showed up. I was wearing a mossy oak parka type jacket with a breast pocket for a phone. It had a oversized zipper with a yellow dingle berry thing to grip hanging from it.

Doe is at 18 yards, draw, aim, shoot..... KABOOMMMM! I honestly thought my bow exploded! I look in my hand and nope it’s still intact. Look out the window and in virtual slow motion I see my arrow doing kart wheels in the sky. Time stood still... then it fell from the heavens in slow motion like a lawn dart dead center of the doe! Center center GUT... complete pass through.

I couldn’t for the life of me figur what went so wrong. Figured I’d call them to pick me up and wait at camp.... but I was unable to get my phone from my pocket. The string caught the dingle berry and shot my zipper completely off the jacket! I had to cut the pocket open to get my phone.

Doe died 500 or so yards. Long but easy tracking

They still make fun of me and that jacket. Lol

[Brad96]

My first hog hunt, a few years ago. My son had my Ruger American Rifle, so I was borrowing a friend's 7 Mag. I'd shot his rifle at the range before, so I knew it was super accurate. A big boar came in to the feeder ~80 yds away. I raised the rifle, found the hog in the scope, and started moving the cross-hairs toward the pig's heart. At the same time, I flipped the safety off and put my finger on the trigger. Unfortunately, I forgot that this rifle had no slack at all in the very light trigger, unlike my Ruger's 2-stage. So, before I had my aim on the vitals, the rifle fired, much to my surprise! For a moment, I felt like a total idiot, figuring that I had either missed completely or just wounded the hog. But, he went down promptly. It turned out that my aim just happened to be on his neck when the trigger broke. I got lucky on that one!

[Dillakilla]

First deer I ever shot at with a bow. I was in 5’ elevated box blind. I had ranged every rock and tree and cactus in site so that I knew which pin to use. When out of nowhere a doe steps out RIGHT in front of blind within 5 yards or so. I raised bow excited that I didnt need a yardage and thought nothing but “first pin, first pin, first pin”. Let it fly and shot at least a foot over her back. I had indeed used first pin....first on bottom that is.
Now I refer to “first pin” as TOP PIN.

The ending well part is that I totally missed and didnt wound. And learned better bow terminology at same time. Lol

[Native Texan]

First doe I shot with a bow. Slightly quartering away at 15 yards. She jumped up and the Bear Razorhead nicked the back of her front leg just above the knee maybe 1/2" deep. She ran about 20 yards, then stopped and walked away as if nothing happened. She bled out in about 60 yards.

[hound dog]

First deer I ever shot at with a bow. I was in 5’ elevated box blind. I had ranged every rock and tree and cactus in site so that I knew which pin to use. When out of nowhere a doe steps out RIGHT in front of blind within 5 yards or so. I raised bow excited that I didnt need a yardage and thought nothing but “first pin, first pin, first pin”. Let it fly and shot at least a foot over her back. I had indeed used first pin....first on bottom that is.
Now I refer to “first pin” as TOP PIN.

The ending well part is that I totally missed and didnt wound. And learned better bow terminology at same time. Lol

My cousin did the same thing, except the deer was right under the feeder and he drilled the feeder motor..... Can't eat metal.

[cehorn]

Second doe I ever shot with my bow. I was in a rifle blind with multiple does around. I picked one out and drew. Luckily I checked the window clearance and saw I would have shot the blind had I released. Instead of letting down I moved to the next doe 5 yds farther away and let it go. I pulled the shot to the left and hit her in the center of the neck. She dropped and never made another move or sound. Pure luck!!

[44mAG]

Gut shot the biggest deer of my life. Luckily I was shooting a 300 win mag at the time and he only went 50 yds and laid up and died.
Last year, I shot a cull buck at 21 yds with my bow. He ducked and spot of aim moved about 12" by the time the arrow got there. Hit him in front of the near shoulder. Luckily, he was spinning in a way that the arrow ended up exiting in the middle of his neck on the opposite side. Arrow got all sorts of good stuff including wind pipe and main neck arteries. He was dead in 50 yds. My limit is about 18 yds now on a deer.

[RiverRat1]

I seen a guy shoot a spike by accident through the neck and get both jugulars. That was an easy tracking job.

[Chew]

http://youtu.be/gJZd-RxnqtI