i keep thinking back to that buck i missed, it was only a 6pointer, but for the area i was hunting, a doe is though to get, also ive only been hunting a cupple years and a buck to me is the greatest thing in the world, weather its a spike or 12 pointer,
I still replay that 10 yard bow shot, as i stopped him 10 yards perfectly broadside right under my stand, and can still remeber the sound of the arrow cracking in half off a tree limb, just a few feetfrom the deer. And watch the only bucki saw the season, running off never to be seen again ;(

I still kick my self for hitting that branch, and keep trying to tell my self atleast it was just small one []

anyone else still in denial?

At least the arrow did not deflect into the deer, wounding it, andexpiring days or weeks later. Be thankful for that, and pay more attention of your shooting lanes.It will only make you better in the end...trial by faliure. Good Luck.

I know your feeling in the past8 years i have made a similar mistake 3 times.

i was pondering my hunting season the other night and couldnt sleep. i had a shot at a nice 2.5yo 14-16 wide 8-10pt this year. he ducked and took it high. i know he didnt die from it. but i should had him killed. i used my top pin set at 15yds..he was 20yd. i aimed a hair above the top of the heart. i knew my arrow would fall right into his heart. WRONG. he ducked.[:@] i still blame myself though i feel i did everything perfect.

and the rifle opener..same spot i got caught off gaurd by an absolute WHOPPER and another buck. the whopper was a BEASTLY 11pt..big nasty lookin rack. i know all this because he was killed the next weekend by some kid that purely got lucky. we called that buck the "turkey watcher" i watched the turkeys come into the field and KNEW he couldnt be far off..he ALWAYS laid on the edge of the field and watched them for some reason..sitting there in my tree with my rifle waitin on him..the dogs started barking across the driveway a couple hundred yards away..i knew he was coming...but he didnt come down the trail the deer always use. he came out of nowwhere. i looked to my hard right and there he stood..lookin like somethin on a magazine cover..25-30yds away in the only opening on my right. i could see the other buck behind him. gun in my hand..couldnt move..he started walking..i stood up to get a shot...i coulda dropped him..i know i could have. i just didnt feel comfortable shooting him walking..while i was standing, shaking like a leaf through the woods 30-35yds away. i kick myself..i know i coulda dropped him..just didnt like the shot...he was a true beast of a buck.

i dont know if ill ever sleep right again...no reason for me to be eating tag soup...but thats why its called hunting. i had a very exciting season and feel it was very successful..seen 3 2.5+yo old bucks and atleast that many 1.5yos. and many does..live and learn...

nice rack

Yeah the "clean misses" are a lot easier to forget than the "near misses. Those hang with you forever!

Same thing happened to me! That knot in your stomach takes a while to leave!!!

I got one of them thoughts still jabbing me in the ribs after 10 years , about a 160 " er.

I made every rookie mistake a 25 year hunter could make .... in bow, shotgun, and muzzleloading season ... still sleep great though!!

tony...thats another thing that bothers me. i killed 10 deer with a rifle..seen 100s more i could have killed. the first year in the bow stand was like learning to walk again. i feel i learned alot..and had a successful first season...but man i kick myself everytime i think about some of the stuff i did and didnt do..i wont sleep right till i kill me a buck with my bow. going to do alot more diffrent next year thats for sure..cant make progress if you dont learn from your mistakes. i love bowhunting and am hooked..but memories will haunt me...i had a purdy spot on my wall for that buck he wasnt a monster...but respectable..exspecially for a first bow kill...fall will be upon us soon enough..right after trout season, turkey season, groundhog hunting, and catfishing