MountainDevil54

only shot I had. He was bedded under a cedar tree and had his head tucked back by his shoulder, covering his vitals. I had practiced a butt load at 50 yards and knew I was 3" high and so, it was already burned into my mind on where to aim.

WV Hunter

Nothing amazing for me. All my deer kills have been pretty routine, with the longest being about 125yds. I did have one that I shot about 40yds broadside right through the lungs...that I had a heck of a time finding. Shot it probably 20+yrs ago with the Knight all lead bullet, it just penciled through. Not a drop of blood on the ground anywhere and it ran about 100yds down a ridge. My buddy was convinced I missed it, but I knew better. We looked and looked and finally found it doing a grid search, and were both surprised there was no blood trail. It was a perfect hit - and amazing in the fact that it did not bleed. I changed bullets right after that, no issues since.

I did kill a big beautiful red fox back in the late 90's at 110 yds with my mk-85. He came running up through the woods and stopped for a split second, I settled on him and made a quick shot. When the smoke cleared he was laying there.

cayugad

Ron that was a take your breath away kind of buck right there. Congratulations on that one.

Like others I have not had a WOW!! that was a hard shot or amazing shot. I am normally very sure of my muzzleloader shots. Granted I have had some lucky shots. And shots that I should not have made.

I guess the one that always sticks in my head was when I killed two deer with a round ball doing one shot. It was a Renegade, .54 caliber percussion model. 80 pr 90 grains of Pyrodex RS, a cotton pillow tick patch and a home cast .530 Lee Mold ball.

I was in a blind and was placed there by a friend. It was his blind. I had two tags of either sex choice to fill. I had hunted my land but really had not see a deer to speak of for many days. I was sure I would be skunked that season. Needless to say when he agreed to take me out, to "help me fill tags" he was a little upset when he saw the muzzleloader. In fact the walk out to the blind, all I heard was how stupid my gun choice was.

Well I got in the blind and settled down. Gary told me he'd walk the ridge and try and kick something too me. He told me where the deer cross so I sat there. He had not been gone three minutes and I heard walking in the leaves and snow. I really figured it was him pulling some prank on me. After all he was mad about my muzzleloader choice. Then you know how your mind wanders ... squirrel, grouse, but deer? this fast?

Then suddenly there about 80 yards in front of me out in the small clearing steps a deer. It was not small but not huge. But it was meat. I pulled out my bioculars and looked at the deer standing in the clearing. It was a little fork horn. Nothing to get excited about. My Renegade had a peep sight on it at the time and I hate to brag, but I had good eyes, practiced all the time and was deadly with that rifle when the lighting was good.

So I took my eyes off the deer, and put my binoculars back in my jacket pocket. Then with it had to be pure tunnel vision on my part. Cocked the rifle with no sound, raised it, rested it on the edge of the blind, and hit the set trigger. I was focused!

The deer was broadside, so I decided ... high shoulder shot and plant it right there. Took aim, and BOOM!! My heart was pounding as it always does after the shot, and there looking out to the clearing, I could see the deer on its side, white belly and all and four legs sticking up in the air. Four legs? My mind was seeing things right. I mean there was the belly and the legs. Where did the other four legs come from? So I loaded quickly and moved towards the legs.

Reaching them there, behind the first deer was a nice doe. She'd been spine shot. Total mistake on my part. Tunnel vision. Not proud of not looking behind the target. Actually kind of ashamed of myself for hitting this second deer. Then I realized ... I had two tags. I had my season's meat there, on the ground.

She was still alive so I cut her throat. And as I was cutting her throat, I heard Gary yell out. "You get one?" I yelled back ... "ya!" He then yelled ... buck or doe? So now I realized, he only heard one shot. So I yelled ... "yes!" Well now he was confused and he yelled again, Buck or doe? And again I answered ... Yes!! He kept yelling questions and I kept being evasive. He finally come off the ridge to where I was with the deer.

He approached me and the look on his face was pure shock! He then said, you got two deer. I smiled and said, I have two tags. So he said ... you only shot once, right? And I said, hate to waste powder. Boy was that a mistake to say that.

I field dressed both deer. Then asked him since I have no need for a loaded rifle, would he like to shoot it off. Gary really was not sure, but finally agreed to fire the rifle. The smile on his face was something when he hit a knot he was aiming at.

He then told me I had done this on purpose. I argued many times, it was a mistake on my part, but a good mistake in this case. I even admonished my self for the tunnel vision. We got the deer to my truck, loaded then and I thanked him for letting me use his spot. I drove home and hung the deer in the garage and as agreed met Gary at the local tavern to buy him some drinks for his kindness.

Well when I got there, all I heard from the gang was how I planned the two for one shot. And they all had a good laugh. I told them it was not planned. But I never could make Gary believe that. The next year he had a CVA .50 caliber Hawken rifle to hunt with.

grinder67

Similar to semisane dad and I were hunting a silage field for doves and i carried my knight tk 2000 to the field in a case so dad didnt know what I was shooting. Anyway when the first dove came by dad said he couldnt believe how bad the "shells" I was using smoked! lol. I killed three doves that day. I have also rabbit hunted behind my beagles with that gun, lots of fun. My best shot on deer was 180 yards with my tc encore also my best deer I have ever killed. But a few years before that a buddy called me one morning and said he had wounded a deer with a shot gun slug that had crossed a field and laid down on the far edge but was still alive and wanted to know if I had anything that could reach it. I put the bi-pod on my encore grabbed my range finders and headed to him. He had to take the shot as I had filled my buck tag the day before, he was laying prone with the rifle on the bi pod and I ranged the deer, 230 yards! When the deer stood up I told him best I could the hold over according to ballistics that I had studied in the past ( i had never attempted a shot that far). When the smoke had cleared the deer had only went 30 yards with a perfect hit right behind the near shoulder and lodged in the far shoulder! Sad thing is when I skinned that buck it only had 1 wound! Had I known it was not wounded I would have never let him take that shot.

falcon

Several years ago i was sitting in a tree stand overlooking a big pond. i had lased the distance to the pond dam at just over 175 yards. My CVA Mag Hunter rifle was loaded with 150 grains of Pyrodex and the 240 grain .430 XTP bullet.

A 100 pound hog appeared on the dam: i held high and fired. At the shot the hog took off, acting like he was hit. Went after the hog and finished him off. The hogs belly was ripped open underneath and i could not understand how that happened. Went to the area where the hog was standing. The bullet had hit a rock under the hog and fragmented tearing his belly open.

donw

[quote=idahoron;4225730]I think it was 1997. I drew a coveted buck tag for the most popular place in Idaho. That summer I saw a buck that I definitely wanted. I practiced with my 54 caL bk92 and was good with it.
On opening day I dropped my buddy off on one side of the ridge 5 miles away. Then I headed up after my buck I saw three months before. I aw the buck at daylight and made my way to get a shot. It was about 11:00 am when I got to a spot 150 yards and could not get any closer. The buck was backed into a crevasse in the rock ledge. All of a sudden a bovine cow smelled me and busted out and ran to the buck. I panicked and got a good rest. The buck got up and I took a neck shot. The buck went down but got back up. I reloaded and he ran right at me. Mule deer Stot. It means to bounce up and down. At the shot at 40 yards the buck was coming down as I was going up. I missed with the bullet and hit him with the sabot. I reloaded and got a rest as he ran down the ravine and back up the other side. Now he was at 200 yards and I knew where it would hit. He stopped and looked back in the tall brush. Boom down he went. I knew at the shot that the buck of a lifetime just hit the dirt. I was so nervous I reloaded and got ready to shoot again. When I found him I marked the area with orange tape to make sure I didn't lose him. I brought my dog back to give him experience in tracking a deer (that came in handy over the years) and a friend to help me pack it out. The most amazing thing about the shot was after I saw his antlers I was able to even shoot.

Wow! That's an amazing deer and story!

bronko22000

That is a very nice buck Ron. And you must be a heck of a speed loader to get 3 shots at the same deer back to back to back!
I have another. Again, my friend and I were out during the PA late flintlock season. This time I was pushing for him. There was about 3" of fresh snow on the ground and I could see 3 deer moving way out ahead of me heading right for my buddy. I didn't want to push them and have them go running past him so I just sat and waited. It wasn't long, maybe 5 mins or so when I heard him shoot. I got up and followed the tracks. They past my buddy at just over 100 yards. He was still standing were he shot waiting for me. When he came over we started following the tracks but no blood.
But one of the deer was dragging its one leg. After about 150 yards or so she was piled up. Never a drop of blood with the .50 PRB but he broke the front shoulder and lung shot her.

idahoron

I have another story but it is not a muzzleloader hunt. Please forgive me but I would like to tell this story about my Uncle Jim.

My uncle was in WWII he was a sub vet and came back with what many would call PTSD. He went on to be a successful farmer and business man. He was a Hunter down deep and was so every day of his life.
I didn't get to know him until my Mom and Dad died. He was 82 in 2005 when we became acquainted. We were best friends right off the bat. In 2010 He told me he wanted to hunt elk again one last time. I was honored he asked me to help him.

The next year I put him in for a elk hunt that I knew I would get him into some elk. But he didn't draw. I was sure that was it for that chance. Then I got a call from a rancher. He told me he had heard I was trying to get an elk tag for a WWII vet. I said yes I am. He said it would be an honor for me to give him my cow tag. Oh boy it was on!!!

A huge herd of elk lived in the area I was planning to hunt. The problem was they are mostly bulls on winter range. This hunt was in December and Uncle Jim was 88 years old. We had to be able to go out and come back home at night. He was having some health issues so we were all worried.

I took him out to sight in his rifle. He has macular degeneration and he has a hard time seeing. But if you turn the magnification WAY up it shrinks the black spot in the center of the eye sight. So the scope that was always set to 3 power was set to 9 and he could see pretty well.

He showed up at the house and we spent the night talking about WWII. He has loosened up a lot in the last few years and I am getting more stories. We turned in way too late, we would have to leave early to make the 4 hour drive into the desert on a two track road.

Shortly after daylight I found a herd of elk.



Every one of them was a bull.






Bull after bull we saw more and more bulls. We counted 83 bulls and I think Uncle Jim was not believing me. Then just before dark I found the big bunch. There was over 300 head in one herd.





We made our way to them with the truck. He had a permit to shoot from the truck. He had never shot an animal from the seat of a truck. I am sure it was somewhat a disappointment that his health was poor enough he had to but his desire for his last elk made him. We were stunned at all the elk he saw. He had never seen a herd bigger than about 20 animals. I don't think he had ever seen that many elk in a day in his whole life.
I was able to get the truck to a spot and parked it. The elk spooked and were heading out. The problem was I had them pinned between a steep canyon wall and the truck. They had to pass the truck, and a rifleman with a pre 64 winchester 270.

He asked me which one to take. it was tough to tell him they were packed together. I said the last one is a cow wait for her.
I was looking through the binoculars when the roar of the Winchester filled my ears. The cow was running hard. Something happened that I never expected. My eyes get teary as I heard the Winchester roar, then she roared again. The cow was down! I could not believe what had just happened. My frail old Uncle, my hero, the man I had always looked up to as being the best hunter my dad said had ever lived, just killed an elk in front of me. She was on the run!

Damn you got her uncle Jim!!!!



I drove him up to her. The first order of business was to tag her, Then I wanted pictures. I wish I would have had time to spend more time taking pictures. But I had told my family to come looking if we were not home by 9:00pm. We were going to be late. I would have to gut and load this elk by my self. He was not strong enough to help much. So I got to work and got her broke down and loaded. We got to phone range and I was able to make sure they knew I was coming in with him, and an elk. My Aunt was stunned. His Daughter was stunned. I was stunned!

The next day we all got together and boned her out and cut and wrapped. If we left her hang she would have frozen. It was late in the afternoon when I got done. I was pooped. I told My Aunt the story and I teared up again when I recalled to her the sound of the Winchester.

The Winchester had given an old man the strength to take his last elk. The old Winchester in the hands of the rifleman. I can barely write this now 4 years later. He said it was the funnest elk hunt he had ever had in his life. He said he thought was was foolin him about the bulls.

In his prime he guided many of my cousins to their first elk in the wilderness of Central Idaho. I always wanted to be invited but never was. The reason was we didn't know each other. He told me he regretted not getting the chance to take me to the "camp". But he enjoyed me guiding him.

I went to see him today 10-31-2015. My son and I had to hold him up a little to get a picture. He has been in the hospital several days this year. I have slept in his room and in my camper in the parking lot of the hospital. My uncle Jim is dying and at 92 he is still clinging on to life. Earlier this year he had a stroke. The Nurse asked him Jim, do you know why your here? He said I guess I lost my grip on life. How profound is that statement?
I didn't get to spend as much time fishing this year as I have before. I didn't spend as much time hunting. But the time I have spent with him has been priceless. I took him some deer and Antelope meat today. We took pictures and told stories. This story was one of them. Thank you for reading it. As I finish I can hear the Winchester.

kidoggy

nice buck. what unit did you kill him in?

Semisane

Touching story Ron. May he release his grip slowly, in gentle peace and comfort.