OKLAHOMA 2016 Success/Fail Thread

[Fattony77]

Michael, don't take this the wrong way, but I'm glad to see that miss. Because I was beginning to wonder if you were human. With all of your usual posts, I was starting to think that you might be a robot, sent from the future to terminate all of the wildlife that you encountered.  

Seriously, though, I have no doubt whatsoever that you will continue to lay them down until you hit your season limit.

P.S. I may just take you up on your offer. Give me a holler when you have time, and let's see if we can get our schedules to work out.

[Michael Arnette]

I'll do that Tony, my phone has gone wacky today but ill get ahold of you as soon as I get it figured out

I sat in Oklahoma this evening and passed on the worlds longest spike...wish my phone and camera had not been dead so I could have gotten video. Got to watch him make a scrape about 40 yards from my stand too!    

[TexasTrad]

I think things are starting to pick up a little even though it was still warm.   I had two young bucks under me this weekend.  

I shot another hog:

 

[TexasTrad]

[Sorry about the double post]

I think things are starting to pick up a little even though it was still warm.   I had two young bucks under me this weekend.  

I shot another hog:

 

 

this was my first kill with my new to me Tall Tines which is about 60# at my draw length.  With the extra weight, I decided to use a tree shark.  I have always been a Simmons fan but was afraid to use a head as wide as a tree shark.   I am really impressed.

[Fattony77]

TexasTrad, congratulations on another hog! Looks like the Simmons did a number on him!

Michael, I appreciate it, bud. Between the warm weather and dealing with the death of my sister, I have been having some real trouble getting motivated to do even the things that I love to do. I haven't been out to scout out any of my local spots, or anything. I know that getting out will help, but I just haven't been able to push myself to make the first steps.

Glad to see that you were able to make a recovery in KS, too!

[EwokArcher]

Ive been hunting texoma today. I took a break from hunting my stand to go stomp around in some thick brushy stuff at  about noon today .
I spooked 2 hogs and man they sure spooked me back. I didn't like being surrounded by them thorn vines while they were snorting around at me and I had no line of site. I saw, as I promptly vacated the area, that the two of them were a little over knee high(not as big as my imagination implied). What would you have done? My mind was just telling me to gtfo.

[jabodnar]

I had a awesome, yet ultimately disappointing day in SW OK yesterday.

I had set up overlooking a ravine/drainage so that I could glass down it and towards the upwind side thinking that the deer may bed across from me with the winds at their back and a view in front of them.

A couple of hours with no sightings and all of a sudden I see a nice buck working his way down the center of the drainage below me.  He turned up the hill facing slightly to my right.  I lost sight of him, grabbed my bow, and shifted about 10 yards that way and tucked in behind a small juniper.

A couple of minutes later I hear him to the left of where I was standing!  He had cut up fold in the hill side and couldn't see him.  He was withing 5 yards of where I had been sitting, but the move I had made had helped.  I had tucked myself up into a larger juniper and had I stayed there it would have blocked any shot.

He finally stopped and gave me a little window between the larger juniper I had been sitting next to and a small one in front of it.  B/c of the hillside I could only see the tips of his antlers through the brush 15 yards away.

I drew my bow, slowly stood up from my knees and executed my shot perfectly.  Arrow went through the small opening exactly where I had wanted it to.  I saw him jump the string, but the flash of memory when I last saw the arrow looked good. I was positive I had connected...

He turned off and trotted back down the hill and slowed to a walk about 70 yards away.  I stood their in disbelief that there was no exit wound.  It was also at this moment I realized how nice of deer this was.  It would have been by far my largest with any weapon.  He vanished in the brush and I was still positive he was hit.  I thought that maybe I hit shoulder on the opposite side and it stopped the arrow.

After giving myself a couple of minutes to relax I went and looked for blood and the arrow.  No blood... doubt starts creeping in... eventually found my arrow buried in the dirt at the bottom of the hill.  Completely clean.

He must have dropped so hard at the shot that it went right over top of him.

There is some disappointment, but it is overwhelmed by the excitement of the moment. That I had headed into the unknown this year in an area that was unlike any I have ever hunted before and had an opportunity at a great buck. and the fact that I had executed my shot perfectly and placed it where I had intended.

That he had dodged my arrow is just a small asterisk on an otherwise great adventure.

[Onehair]

I'm headed out Thursday for a 7 day hunt. Pictures to follow

[TexasTrad]

Things are starting to happen heat up.  With the cooler weather, this next week should be really good.

[Michael Arnette]

Well I've hunted every chance I could get this week. I had Monday morning off and missed yet another coyote...ive missed more coyotes than any other animal I think. My shot was a grazing shot and drew blood. Missed another coyote that came through on the same trail as well. 30ish yards for both shots (I'm not afraid to fling arrows on coyotes)
 

[Michael Arnette]

I ended up getting two deer this weekend. My girlfriend sat with me Saturday night and watching and filmed me make a great shot on a doe at my parents farm. Sorry no recovery pictures

[Michael Arnette]

After butchering both deer, I went to a public hunting spot for to sit it the first time. After only being in the stand a few minutes two coyotes came in right after a rattling sequence
...the smaller of the two passed at about 15 yards and I yelped to stop her before making a great shot for a bit of redemption.

As you can see from the pictures I'll be needing to re-fletch some arrows!
 

[23feetupandhappy]

You had a heck of a weekend  

[TexasTrad]

Michael:

You are one a roll.  Congrats.......sounds like there are a bunch of coyotes up there.

I saw some young bucks this weekend and had an 8 pointer at 10 yards for a while.  

I am going to hunt Wed through Friday and then again on Sunday this week.

[jabodnar]

just a little pic of where i was glassing from last weekend

   

[Tsalt]

Nice job Michael!  Congrats on all the bloody arrows!

[Crittergetter]

Dude, if you don't stop hunting in the zoo someone is going to catch you sooner or later!!           :
Congrats on your success buddy!!

[Chumster]

Best reason I know of for arrows to need re-fletching!

Congrats!

[Michael Arnette]

[TexasTrad]

My good friend GW Flanagan hunted with me some last week at my farm.  Not only is GW a great bowyer and shot, he is a good hunter and good all around guy.  He recently retired from making his world class long bows and has more time to hunt.

GW made a great shot on a mature buck last Thursday which made for a short blood trail.  The buck weighed just under 150lbs field dressed which is pretty big for our area.