well, buddies buck was lost....im pretty surprised...but they didnt put the effort in where it needed to be put...
i got outta class and showed up about 4pm...had him walk me through it....10yd shot...wide open shooting..broadside....arrow was covered in what looked to me like intestine matter, not stomach...deer trotted 20yds or so and stopped...thats the only blood it left...and small small fist sized puddle...nasty lookin blood but i smelled it and it wasnt strong smelling...(shot almost 24hrs prior) 4 other different guys throughout the day helped the buddy...i asked where they searched...walked the corn field, and spent most of their efforts to the LEFT of the stand....the buck came from the left and was shot and went right...was last see going right....i about lost it on them...they looked a little bit to the right but didnt pick up blood so searched most of the time to the left...makes absolutely NO sense to me...i couldnt pick up blood(didnt really expect much from the shot anyway...and 5 guys trampled through all day) so i said were searching to the right...thats ALL we have to go by was he was heading that way and was shot and spooked left so hes unlikely to head back that direction...
right away i was finding areas that SHOULD been first things to search...THICK field edge that was pretty wet and some big puddles etc..NASTY...nothing...found a POND noone searched...i searched the whole edge..nothing...the only blood was in a small "ditch" it led right to an area 150yds away or so that was logged about 2 years ago...tree tops, jagurs and saplings thicker than thick. i told him that his buck was in there...we started walking towards the area and something jumped up and ran and did some major crashing...didnt sound like a healthy deer...healthy deer dont usually crash into logs the size this animal was busting...i dont know if it was his buck or not...but i still believe it is or was in there....22-23hrs after the shot...i dont know if it would been alive..or able to jump up and run...i was the only one that got into the "heart" of the stuff...im still bleeding lol...but the others took open paths and the edges....its like 100yds wide and i could only see a few feet most of the time...im still betting it is or was in there...i just didnt stumbled into it or a bed...i tried to find the "crashing" but no luck....
when i called the buddy at noon inbetween classes i told him when he is in the field keep an eye on the sky for vultures and crows...it was getting warm....it wasnt till we were DONE he said he did see a vulture circling the logged area....
i just kinda wanna sack punch/kick/drop kick the kid....[:@]
[:'(] i put in more effort and in more likely areas in 2 hours than the other 5 did all day (started about 11)....im pretty disappointed...i did more than my part...buddy feels bad enough about it that he left his hunting gear at school and wont be hunting tomorrow so maybe he will learn a lesson...bad hits happen..but a hip and a gut shot 2 years running...he gotta start doing something different....hes just simply not making the shot....
im heading out to the honey hole hill in the morning...and evening. going to lock the climber to the tree and sneak out for lunch and a nap and i'll be back in stand for the evening....gunna be warm, but ive seen bucks in there when its been REAL warm....
good luck this weekend guys!