I was in the stand about 30 minutes on friday morning when this boy stepped out of the brush at about 120 yards and put his nose in some estrus I sprayed on some brush. I looked at himand had a tough time getting a look at the rack because the brush behind him blended with his antlers. I felt that he was a good deer so I put the cross hairs of my Ruger 270 with 130 gr, handloaded Gamekings on his shoulder and shot. All four feet came off the ground and he took off into the brush. I heard a crash in the brush and a gargaled moan in the brush so I felt good about the shot. I gave him some time and quietly checked the fire break for blood but found none.
I decided to give him some more time since I didn't see any blood so I walked back to the truck to get my coveralls off and get ready to track. On the way I saw five more deer and three of which were bucks the other two I didn't get a good look out. I thought that was cool until I realized the rut was in full swing, I had a deer stomping at me ten yards away in the brush and remembered I had deer piss sprayed all over my boots. But I made it to the truck unscaved and headed back for my deer.
I search the fire break and found nothing, I moved into the brush still no blood. If I hadn't seen the deer reaction and hear what I did I would have thought it was a miss. I ened up resorting to the old "stomp around in the woods and briars till you find something" tactic and after an hour of following game trails and getting stuck by briars I stumbed over him (which is a miricale because you can't see more then 15 feet much of the time). I look and think its not my deer becasue it's just a big doe. Then I get closer and realize why I had trouble seeing his rack, he had broken one side off ealier in the year. I looked around and the only blood I could find was right where he died, 100 yards from where I shot him with a perfect double lung and heart shot. ithen had to drag him ove 100 yards through the briars and brush to get him to the truck and today I can bearly move.
I gave him to a single mother in need of meat and since she didn't have the money to have him processed we elected to do it ourselves. His lungs were blown into pudding and the top of the heart was desimated I don't know why he didn't bleed or how he went so far. None the less a great deer and a new story for Loran's hunting adventures.