Ok, here goes. This morning at about 7:30, I took a shot at a very big 10 pointer. He was standing broadside at 30 yards when I released and watched the arrow hit right on the money. He ran about 30 yards, then stopped. I watched him for the next half hour just pace back and forth and lay down a few times. He finally got up, and walked out of sight. I sat in the treestand for about 2 hours, got down and snuck out of the area and went to my truck to put my treestand in. I ate, and waited till about 12:30 or so to take up the trail. When I got back to where I shot him, I found my arrow fully covered in a light, pinkish blood. I figured lung shot. I went in the direction he headed and picked up decent blood. Then, where he layed down a couple times, there was a lot of blood. I picked up blood on the other side and followed it very slowly being quiet and looking ahead. Soon, the blood trail faded to just a drop here and there and then nothing at all. I started making circles from there getting bigger and bigger when I run across a little blood again. I followed drops till I realized I was headed into a deep hollow where a stream ran. I thought, bingo, he headed for water. I got to the stream and began the search up and down it. I must have looked for him for a good 3-5 miles. Nothing.


I dont understand what went wrong. The shot looked great. How can a deer get away like this? Do you think by chance I could have hit the "No mans land" between the vitals? I hope this deer survives, I'm heartbroken right now over this. He would have been my best buck to date with a bow. He looked like a 140-150 class animal.

I'm going to go back up tomorrow morning again and look.

What do you guys think??

muzzyman I am no expert on tracking, but I think you may want to try to retrace your steps back to the point "till I realized I was headed into a deep hollow where a stream ran". Go back to the point you made this realization and rather than heading straight for the stream, either try to continue following the little blood you have found, if there is none then start your circle search again, until you either pick up blood or find him. I have a strange feeling he may have in his final moments wondered off to on side or the other and expired very close to where you headed for the stream. Correct me if I am wrong in my assumption. BTW if it is legal you may want to take a dog with you. Good luck.

The Tazman aka Martin Price
Founder and President of
Virginia Disabled Outdoorsmen Club

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When tracking a sparce blood trail there is only one thing that you can be certain of - Where the last blood was found. This is your cosest link to him and should be the center of your attention. The idea is to move this center closer to him as you find more blood.

To many times a hunter tries to move this center himself, through frustration and second guessing what the animal might do. It's all in the blood trail and the further you can follow it, the longer it takes you to abandone it, the better your chances are.

Go back to you where you last marked blood ,forget about looking for the deer, look for blood. Your looking for a drop, a smear on a leaf or branch. Get on your hands and knees, look at low lying branches that could rub against him.

"Your deer is dead, he did not go far, he is laying on the ground waiting for you to find him - he is huge and he is yours!!!"

These are the only thoughts that you allow in your head.

Now go get him!!!!


Edited by - Rack-attack on 11/13/2002 13:11:53

Yep look from where you saw last blood and if that is on the creek bed look for path of least resistance on the other side. Good Luck finding him. And if you don't find him soon follow the buzzards.

I agree with the others... there is a GREAT chance that deer is down for the count. "The Perfect Shot" can sometimes really throw you. One of the first things I tell students in Bowhunter Ed. classes is that what you saw or think you saw... will turn out to be something entirely different to often. I've taken 70 deer with a bow and I've lost 3 or 4. Of the 70 I recovered I've really had some wierd things happen. Things I was positive about turn out to be far from the truth. A perfectly hit animal(no matter how tough he is) isn't going anywhere. He'll be down within a matter of seconds. A marginally hit deer can put you through the ringer. Who ever said go back to the last blood is correct. People get in trouble by trying to rely on one of these "Truths" that we read in books. In your case, "he went to the water because he was wounded". In someone elses case... he's not hit in the leg because he went up hill. Maybe he did actually go to water..... but exhaust the blood trail, food prints even game trails before you resort to "Take a shot he went to water". The "Truths" should be a last resort. Circles should be a last resort. Grid searches should be a last resort. Patiences and dogged discipline are the keys. I feel you probably wasted lots of time searching up and down a creek for 5 miles. The time would have been better spent within 100 yards of the last blood. 5 miles is killing time and hoping for the best. 100 yards is your best chance. Inch along and when you're done you should know every inch of that 100 yards. Every step you took up or down that creek probably just put you further from your deer. Every hasty step has a good chance of destroying the next bit of evidence.

Well, I have to wait till morning now, but I'll be back at it early. Its the thickest area I hunt, and its pure hell at times in there having to crawl on your hands and knees, but I'll be there. I gotta find this deer. Its just really strange how he really didn't bleed heavily. I hope like hell I find him. Thanks guys.

Good luck.... watch for crows, foxes and all those other forest vacuum cleaners.

After waiting over night the blood may no longer look like blood. It will dry and sink into whatever it landed on.

Here's a cheap trick I can recommend. Take along a spray bottle full of Hydrogen peroxide and spray it on any spots that might be blood. If it's blood the peroxide will foam up, if not it won't. Before starting out, go and find some definate blood from the day before and spray some on it so you can get a feel for what it's gonna look like.
You can use any old spray bottle (I'm using an old washed out febreeze bottle) and peroxide is cheaper than bottled water. I think I paid .88 cents for ~32 ounces.
It works great and will help you to know if your looking at blood or just a brown spot.