Guys.....I lost my first deer, today.

I saw 9 this morning.....with the last being a lone doe. She was in a peculiar spot....and I pegged her at 30 yds. I felt confident and let it loose. I saw the arrow make contact....and I thought the front-to-back was perfect. She was quartering away slightly. I thought the up/down might be a bit high. I shot her at 9:05. I stayed in my tree until 10:15.....and got down to check the impact spot. No blood. I looked for minute......then figured I had been fooled....and I'd missed. I stepped it off.....29 yds. So....I start to look beyond where she was standing......thinking the arrow may have overshot her and glanced away. Nothing. I was about to back out....and I saw my arrow to my right. I went to pick it up...and it was soaked with dried blood. Now I back out. I called Rob....told him my game plan....then went home to eat something. I got back on the trail at a little after 11:00. It was in the 90's here, today....and I felt like I was in a race against time. When I get back out there....Lisa and I can find NO BLOOD. Nothing. We looked for 2 hours, utilizing EVERY possible trail she could have taken. I watched her intently when she bolted.....and even counted to myself....to time when she might crash. I never heard anything but her running.

Back to my race against time......I let Lisa go get us some drinks.....and we started a grid search. I called some buddies from the shop....and they came over about 2:00. 5 Hours since I shot her....and it's HOT. At 3:00 I told them I thought it was futile.....that the meat was likely lost.....but they stayed with me. At 4:00....I told them to go home. At 4:50.....I found her....more than 200 yds from where she'd been shot.

I found NO blood leading to her resting spot.....and maybe a 1/2 ounce under her. I can't fathom what happened. The entrance wound was where I had thought it was.....the exit where it should be.

I'm open for criticism.....as long as it's corrective. Nobody can feel worse than I do right now. I rationalize it "some".....by knowing that she WILL be consumed by nature.....and that she is out of the herd (my neighbor on the farm over has been killing them via depredation permit for a while).

But it's a hollow feeling. I'll tag her and call her in......but she'll be the first bow kill of mine Im not proud of. I honestly don't know what I could have done differently, though. I'm at a loss. I feel like I let her down.