A good shot doesn't always mean a short recovery

[Tim]

Good Morning Folks, a brisk minus 1 on my thermometer, so I decided to sleep in!    :cool:

Back to the story.....

The shot looked good and as I sat staring through my binoculars something just didn't seem right.  I've been at this long enough to know that things are always as they appear, and for some reason this just didn't feel right to me.  

All I could see of the deer was her tail end.  She was facing away from me in some thick stuff and was very still.  I had glanced at my watch and I had shot her at 4:46,  it was now 4:59 and she was still standing perfectly still.  I on the other hand was beginning to question the obvious placement of my shot.

I decided to get down and sneak out.

[Big Ed]

Hello , Little buddy. You didn't fall back asleep did you.  

[Tim]

The walk out would be extremely quiet due to the light powdery snow.  Plus the woods and the field edge provided me all the cover I needed to not be seen.

I wasn't too happy at this point and to be honest I was pretty "pissed off" for lack of a better term.  The deer deserved better than this and as hard as I prayed I just couldn't make her fall over fast enough.  I questioned whether I should have taken the shot, whether the shot had been as good as I thought and why in the heck I do this at times.  I hate blood trails and when I don't see the deer fall over my thoughts go wild.....

[Cyclic-Rivers]

Tim, You have my attention.   Looking forward to the rest!

Your late season snow melts?  Ours just gets deeper.

[Tim]

Cathy, my wife and counselor, was in the kitchen when I walked in the door.  I told her about the deer, how she had been so careful in every decision she made and how the shot scenario played out.  She just smiled and said, figures.....you do know what today is don't you?  Fred passed away on this day 4 years ago, he obviously had something to do with this.  Fred was my best friend whom I lost to cancer.  It seemed like yesterday, man I miss him.

[Tim]

What kept coming to mind was one lung.  I had shot a buck ten years ago with Fred that I "thought" was perfect.  One of those, "honey, I just shot a nice buck and will be home in 10 minutes"!

I ended up putting another arrow in that deer a good half a mile away, the next day!  One lung hits can be a nightmare and I couldn't get that out of my head.

We had dinner, suited up for the cold temps and back to the farm we went.  We each had a good flashlight, fresh batteries and where dressed in wool.  The quietest clothes we had.

[Tim]

The last place I had seen her was behind a large multi trunked silver maple.  The tree stood not five yards from the spot I had killed a nice buck earlier in the year.   This was Cathy's first blood trail in cold conditions and she was amazed at how fast it had crystalized.

Not far from the maple we found this......

   

[Huntrdfk]

They are amazing animals Tim, and she sounds like an extra special one. (The fact that you are telling the story and not in the woods right now bodes well though)

David

[Tim]

The arrow had been pulled completely through and was drenched in blood.   There was a spot where she had stood and a few yards away, a second spot where she had laid down.  

We stood silently trying to fill in the missing pieces.  No doubt we had bumped her out of a bed.  The tension just jumped a notch....

We followed the spray of blood and tracks through some nasty green briar and back out and over the trail we had just came in.  I wouldn't say it was a stellar blood trail but it was good enough to walk at a steady pace.  

80 yards into the trail we spot the deer ahead, standing and watching her back trail.  She bumped off and we decided to bump out.  Back to the Jeep and home again to think this out.

[Tim]

The drive home was rather quiet.  Cathy and I each had our thoughts on what to do next.  Leaving the deer over night would encourage foxes and possibly a light dusting of snow which could mean a lost deer.  

I was NOT going to lose this deer!

We made the decision to go back in two hours and stay on her.  I knew the property well and as long as we had blood and tracks we would stay with her.  A long two hours it was as I paced the house.

[Tim]

We picked up the trail quickly and so did the blood loss.  She was easy to follow the next 100 yards in and out of the thick stuff.  We trailed her quietly as possible and soon came up on her again.  She was laying down facing her back trail.  She bumped out again, losing some footing as she ran.  We continued on....

[Tim]

Here's where things got interesting.

She had made a perfect loop and headed back up the thicket on her same trail.  The blood trail, deer tracks and foot tracks where one big mess.  She had doubled back and had definitely taken her game to an all new level!!!

I whispered to Cathy to keep looking off to the left and I'll look off to the right.  At some point she may break off to one side, we can't lose her track no matter what, lose her track and we lose her.

Neither one of us were looking up when once again we bumped her.  This time not 15 yards in front of us.  Fortunately she made a hard right and established a new trail, one that was much more apparent and easy to follow.

[Tim]

It's amazing how this predator / prey game was playing out.  We had become so focused on the trail that we hadn't even realized we had once again crossed our trail.  Fortunately the trail was not much longer.  We heard her crash not far in front of us.  I told Cathy to give her a few minutes and we shut down the lights.  It was over....

[GRAYBEARD]

Good job,Tim and Mrs.! A well told story as well.

[Tim]

The place of her last struggle was a combination of tracks and broken sticks.  She was extremely tough and obviously not going out without a struggle.  I would have hated to have to fight her.......

The trail had gone much longer than anyone would have wanted or deserved.  The shot entry was midway up the body 3 inches in back of the shoulder.  The exit wound was just in front of the opposite shoulder.  The broadhead, a Magnus 4 blade was bent in the ferrule, obviously from striking the opposite leg.  

Bowhunting is a game of inches and angles.  What appears to be perfect placement sometimes proves otherwise as this evenings hunt proved.  She was an incredible deer with an amazing will to live, she is one I won't soon forget.
 
       

[Tim]

I don't like to post pics that aren't tasteful but I took a picture of the exit wound to help folks understand that good shots don't always mean short blood trails.  Here is the exit wound for those like me, whom are fascinated with the tenacity of these awesome animals.

   

And the entry wound.....
   

[ron w]

Big head on that old girl......well done keeping at it......ron

[Sockrsblur]

Great story Tim, thanks for sharing it. Do you have a photo of the entrance?

[Slimpikins]

I thoroughly enjoyed that read!