My Gun Season

[Ketchup]

Been a little hesitant to post my story, as after posting my cam pictures for 2 months, one would say there are no deer on this property if i didnt have them on camera.......

 3 days before season the property owners who are good friends text and asked if they could turn 125 cows into this 80 i had been bow hunting, and getting good deer on camera. What a thoughtful thing for them to do. I told Kim that it is their land and if they need to rotate cattle then please do.  But i knew what would happen to the area.Opening day i get in my pop up blind at 5:54 and get situated. Beautiful morning to be out. At 6:11 i hear the first shot of 2017 ring out in the distance. A few more around the 6:30 time frame. At 6:56 i had 2 fawns walk out 60 yards. My heart cant kill a youngster, so their safe.  Around 8:20 i heard some rattling off to my left.  Searching with binos comes up empty. 

Pretty slow for the next hour, but my alert level is at a 10.  At 9:17 i took a screenshot of the cows at my back about 10 feet from my blind. As im just watching them, i see 3 of their heads jerk left at the same time. Obviously something caught their attention. I look left as this guy walks 20 yards right in front of me.  The cows were edgy, which made the buck the same. He trotted to 45 yards, stopped and looked back for 20 seconds, before walking into the timber.  Whats the okd saying "Never pass on a deer the first day that you would shoot the last day". Regretting it now. 

again.  

 

 About 30 minutes later those yearling fawns came back out, eating around the area 30 minutes.  A small forked horn came out, pushed them around, then went the way he came.  

 At 10:30 i laid my head back in my comfy chair and passed out until 11:15.  Now refreshed after eating a turkey sammich, chips, pickle, granola bar, a pack of choc. donuts "yes all in one sitting" i was ready for action. 

Nothing else seen until 1:12 when the buck ive posted before comes out at 109 yards straight where i thought he would.  I get my gun steady on the blind, bleat at him, and he stops a perfect broadside shot looking at me. No better picture was ever captured.  I let the 270 bark as i watched him drop in his tracks.  I pick up the binos and focus in on him. My first thought was hes bigger than the camera pictures show. Lots of mass. As im watching, i see him trying to get up. He has his body positioned directly away from me, looking back my way. My only shot was in his nexk just behind the ear area.  Knowing he was headed off to get mounted, i passed on that shot.  As hes still trying to get up, i unzip the blind door, climb out, reach thru the window and grabbed my gun. I turn around to see him walking into the timber.  Boy my heart dropped feeling very guilty about injuring a deer.  I walked down to find this blood on 2 leaves where he dropped.  I did a grid pattern within a 20 yard area with nothing. I then walked to where i seen him go, searched every inch of that 3 acre timber for 2 hours with zero sign.  I was tore up at this point.

While looking in the timber i had a 6 point chase 2 does at 10 yards around me for 3 minutes before they trotted off, never knowing i was standing in plain view. I then walked back to my blind and text a wildlife biologist buddy of mine  He said it was most likely spinal shock, and chances are he would present another shot during season. Around 4 i got out of the blind and check the 3 cameras i have about 75 yards from where i shot him. Those cameras cover any direction he would have went. Sad again when he wasnt on them.  At this point i just headed home.

I wasnt able to get back out until Thursday, taking a neighbor buddy with me. He shot a button buck, thinking it was a doe at 100 yards first thing. I didnt see anything until 3 does came out at what i thought was 140 yards. Shoot and a miss. They run off laughing.  Around 4:15  with the wind blowing, i decided to do some walking. I walked it off to where the does were and it was 182 yards. Oppssss.  No more deer seen so home we went.

Saturday brought another buddy out with me. Same stand as the other buddy. No cows on this 160 acres section. Me im still hoping to see the buck i shot where the cows are.  Bad choice by me.  Didnt see a single deer all day. My buddy shot at a doe and missed at 8:30.   I checked all cameras again without any of the buck i shot. Man im still frustrated over him probably dead in a thicket.  

The day i shot him, and after i got to the blind, i noticed a branch from a tree sticking out in perfect line of where i shot him. I walked over and sure enough i shot a branch clean in half the size of my pinky. My thought is deflection knicking him in the spine.

Went back out the last day from 3 until dark and seen zero.  

Before the cows were turned in there, i was getting around 7000 deer pictures every 2 weeks on a total of 6 cameras. After the cows i get maybe 20 total.  

Now im excited to get the bow in my hands again.  

 

[Ketchup]

Small spots of blood where he dropped.