All,
I was hoping this weekend would end in my first ever bow kill. I was planning to hold out for a particular buck I have on my trail camera pictures but I was prepared to take a doe just to break the ice.
I am in a 15' tripod stand and my shot distance is 20 yards. I am shooting a Diamond Marquis bow at 67 lbs, shooting a slick trick tipped 405 grain arrow at 290 fps. Kinetic energy is 78 ft-lbs.
On Sunday evening, I had buck - city at my stand location. I had two young 8s come out that I had seen on game camera at first but then the 8s started staring down the trail that most deer come down. Sure enough a nice 3.5 year old 19 inch wide and fairly long-tined 8 is headed my way cautiously. I had never seen him on the game camera before but he got my heart racing. I think he is around a 120-125 inch deer. He visits a scrape on the way to the stand and I watch as he rubs his head and antlers on the tree and marks his spot. He comes slowly my way, watching cautiously and pacing around as he comes. While he is still walking toward my stand, I see the bucks at the feeder react again and stare down the trail.
I was worried that hogs were coming down the trail and would spook off my bucks. Instead, a monster 6.5 year old 10 point is staggering toward the scrape like an old man. He slowly creaks along with short stubby legs and a short nose. His neck and body are huge!! My heart is beating out of my chest in anticipation since I have never seen this buck or anything like him in my 4 years hunting this ranch and location. I think he is over 130". He slowly approaches an intersection in the trail but decides to linger in the woods for a while. Meanwhile, the younger 8 makes his way to the feeder. He piddles around for a while, eating bits of corn and eventually settles down. The old monarch continues to stand in the shadows of the forest, watching things happen and making rubs on various trees. As darkness approached, the old monarch eases out of the area up a hill into the timber.
Due to my hunting schedule this year, I decide that I will take the 3.5 year old 8 if he gives me a shot opportunity. Around sunset, the buck gives me a quartering away shot at 20 yards. I draw my bow back and reach full draw. The deer are at ease and don't know I am there. I get all my anchor points and pick a spot to aim. He has his close leg forward and is quartering away 10 degrees. I settle my pin 4 inches above his elbow, in line with his offside leg, and squeeze the release. The arrow thwacks him exactly where I aimed but much to my dismay, does not exit. I quickly try to determine how deep it went. It appeared I got 14-15" of penetration (roughly half of the arrow length.) He stumbles at the shot but then bolts very quickly across a creek bed and up the creek bank, making a tremendous amount of noise along the way. After 15 seconds or so, I hear a loud crash sound and then leaves thrashing and I thought he went down just at the top of the creek bank.
I wait 30 minutes or so and go to look for some blood right near the stand. I don't see any blood so I decide to go to the truck and wait 1.5 more hours to start blood trailing. After waiting, I get my flashlight and look for blood. Sadly I can’t find much blood and I decide to wait until morning.
The next morning I am thinking I will find the buck atop the creek bank in an open treed area. I start the blood trail and find pin sized drops every 5 feet at first but then lose the blood in the freshly fallen leaves, which also have red specks on them. Great!!
After searching with no luck for a few hours, I decide to search the area I thought I heard him fall. I grid search a large area for 3-4 hours and then see a fence crossing where he might have crossed and there is a few pin sized drops at the landing. I follow this weak blood trail for 35 yards before it goes completely away. After two days of searching, I have not found the buck. Sadly I am told the vultures have migrated south for the year. I hope there is some hope of vultures circling and the landowner finding him but I don’t know.
What did I do wrong in my shot? I realize an exit is critical from a tree stand and that the arrow and entry height made it a tough blood trail. Still though, how did the buck not succumb within 150 yards? The shot felt perfect and I see much less penetration kill them on TV all the time.
Thanks for any condolences.
I was hoping this weekend would end in my first ever bow kill. I was planning to hold out for a particular buck I have on my trail camera pictures but I was prepared to take a doe just to break the ice.
I am in a 15' tripod stand and my shot distance is 20 yards. I am shooting a Diamond Marquis bow at 67 lbs, shooting a slick trick tipped 405 grain arrow at 290 fps. Kinetic energy is 78 ft-lbs.
On Sunday evening, I had buck - city at my stand location. I had two young 8s come out that I had seen on game camera at first but then the 8s started staring down the trail that most deer come down. Sure enough a nice 3.5 year old 19 inch wide and fairly long-tined 8 is headed my way cautiously. I had never seen him on the game camera before but he got my heart racing. I think he is around a 120-125 inch deer. He visits a scrape on the way to the stand and I watch as he rubs his head and antlers on the tree and marks his spot. He comes slowly my way, watching cautiously and pacing around as he comes. While he is still walking toward my stand, I see the bucks at the feeder react again and stare down the trail.
I was worried that hogs were coming down the trail and would spook off my bucks. Instead, a monster 6.5 year old 10 point is staggering toward the scrape like an old man. He slowly creaks along with short stubby legs and a short nose. His neck and body are huge!! My heart is beating out of my chest in anticipation since I have never seen this buck or anything like him in my 4 years hunting this ranch and location. I think he is over 130". He slowly approaches an intersection in the trail but decides to linger in the woods for a while. Meanwhile, the younger 8 makes his way to the feeder. He piddles around for a while, eating bits of corn and eventually settles down. The old monarch continues to stand in the shadows of the forest, watching things happen and making rubs on various trees. As darkness approached, the old monarch eases out of the area up a hill into the timber.
Due to my hunting schedule this year, I decide that I will take the 3.5 year old 8 if he gives me a shot opportunity. Around sunset, the buck gives me a quartering away shot at 20 yards. I draw my bow back and reach full draw. The deer are at ease and don't know I am there. I get all my anchor points and pick a spot to aim. He has his close leg forward and is quartering away 10 degrees. I settle my pin 4 inches above his elbow, in line with his offside leg, and squeeze the release. The arrow thwacks him exactly where I aimed but much to my dismay, does not exit. I quickly try to determine how deep it went. It appeared I got 14-15" of penetration (roughly half of the arrow length.) He stumbles at the shot but then bolts very quickly across a creek bed and up the creek bank, making a tremendous amount of noise along the way. After 15 seconds or so, I hear a loud crash sound and then leaves thrashing and I thought he went down just at the top of the creek bank.
I wait 30 minutes or so and go to look for some blood right near the stand. I don't see any blood so I decide to go to the truck and wait 1.5 more hours to start blood trailing. After waiting, I get my flashlight and look for blood. Sadly I can’t find much blood and I decide to wait until morning.
The next morning I am thinking I will find the buck atop the creek bank in an open treed area. I start the blood trail and find pin sized drops every 5 feet at first but then lose the blood in the freshly fallen leaves, which also have red specks on them. Great!!
After searching with no luck for a few hours, I decide to search the area I thought I heard him fall. I grid search a large area for 3-4 hours and then see a fence crossing where he might have crossed and there is a few pin sized drops at the landing. I follow this weak blood trail for 35 yards before it goes completely away. After two days of searching, I have not found the buck. Sadly I am told the vultures have migrated south for the year. I hope there is some hope of vultures circling and the landowner finding him but I don’t know.
What did I do wrong in my shot? I realize an exit is critical from a tree stand and that the arrow and entry height made it a tough blood trail. Still though, how did the buck not succumb within 150 yards? The shot felt perfect and I see much less penetration kill them on TV all the time.
Thanks for any condolences.
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