I'm bummed.
 

Last night I shot a small 7pt thinkingit was anice8pt.Light was fading as I saw a lone deer emerged from the thicketgoing away from me. I flipped the "Can" 2 times for the heck of it, and the deer headed my way. I could now see it was a buck! It looked like a good 8pt, or so I thought. He walked behind some small trees and bushes. When I got a clear shot at his vitals, Itook it. He ran about 30yrds and crashed in the thicket. I then heard him gasping (loud) for air, then silence. I waited a bit and retrieved my arrow which was totally covered with frothy blood. I then followed the awesome blood trail to mybuck, which was a lot smaller than the lighting lead me to think.[:@]
I learned the hard way not to judge a buck ifit's getting too dark. I will pay the price by not being able to hunt Pa's rut.I am happy with any mybow kill, and bummed at the same time. I was hopingto get a big Pa buck this year. Well, a good thing is,this was my third shot at a deer with my Vectrix, and my third kill. Hopefully, I'll kill a real buck in Alberta.;)There is a1" brow tine on the right side.:D

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Dude dont be bummed. You just killed an elusive critter. Be proud that you outwitted it and got yourself a good deer. There is nothing wrong with that deer. Congrats.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Nice..Altleast you got one......AND being bummed [&o],You should be in my shoes,,,,I have shoulder surgery this Thursday and might not get too finish out the last two months[:@] even tho I have a crossbow or two....I would say any meat in the freezzzzzzer is a good year....

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Nice buck, Congrats!

RE: I'm bummed.
 

i have learned that they can all be bigger...
eat and enjoy and then the rest of the year hunt and enjoy...

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Hey, hunt long enough and we'll ALL do that... I know from experience... Plenty enough light to i.d. a nice buck, but not HOW nice... and all of a sudden you've shot one that didn't meet your expectations...

Congrats on the nice shot though!

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Hey never be bummed you did an awsome job shooting and taking a beautiful animal!:)good job again!

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Ahh...you got a case of the famed "ground shrink". They all look massive when walking through the woods, don't they?
Every once in awhile you shoot a decent buck and it turns out to be so much more. It does work both ways. Then it's sweet.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

It's too bad deer hunting has to be about the "trophy"...In the recent post "How many", you said you had 28 kills total and 8 (now 9) bow kills...

You're still learning, just really starting out...You need to be shooting deer to gain experience...This is one of my pet peeves with trophy hunters...They don't want to kill does, even if they are over populated....

The only way to learn to be a good, efficient hunter and to learn proper shot selection is to actually shoot an animal...We see all these posts on tracking...Guess what, you can learn tracking by tracking does as well as bucks...

Don't ever be "bummed" because your animal didn't live up to "your" expectations...That is not at all what hunting is about...It should be about putting meat on the table, killing the animal quickly and getting it butchered properly so you can enjoy the fruits of your labor, period...

Congrats on a great hunt, and the good memories...If your season for whitetails is over you might consider squirrel hunting with a .22...This puts you back in the woods scouting, I have stumbled across some of my best deer stands by doing this....

RE: I'm bummed.
 

I missed a smaller buck one year, and was instantly happy that I missed because he was small. My reward; not another shot for the rest of the year, and subsequently, no more meat in the freezer.

I'm not sure, but I've heard that antlers don't taste so good.....

Nice buck regardless.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

I'm not sure that you are the one to tell anyone why they hunt. I must respectfully disagree with what you have said here. We all hunt for our own reasons. I can tell you point blank that I have never hunted to put meat on the table, and never will.
I eat what I shoot, but I don't really care for deer meat so much. Should I shoot a bunch of does when the meat will go to waste? I have tried to find somebody who would take the deer I shoot, but nobody is ever interested. The butchers in my area will hook a hunter up with a food kitchen, but the hunter is gonna pay full tilt for the processing. I can't afford to pay out that kind of money and I don't have time to butcher deer for people. As a result, I shoot animals that fit the standard that I set, and nobody else. If I end a season without taking a single deer, that is my choice, and I'm fine with it. If I shoot a deer two years in a row, it will take three years for me to consume the meat. My standards are high this year for that very reason. I still have meat in the freezer right now from the last season.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

man i think there is a term for this, Ground shrinkage.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Oh well ,just think you can hunt the PA Rut next fall . If your going to Alberta to bowhunt,don't ever think those buck's come easily ,they are the most illusive deer your gonna hunt .

nubo

RE: I'm bummed.
 

As I said,this wasmy 3rd shot this season. The first 2 were doe's, so I am having a good season.Not getting a "good" look at this buck was the mistake I made, and I honestly regret it. Thinking about it, I truely believe I would have gotten a shot at a much better buck during the rut.I learned a valuable lesson from this because I'll missa fewgreat days in the woods.[&o]I never quit, I've still gota week inAlberta ahead of me.;)

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Quick question why are you bummed out you shot a nice buck and youre on here complaining on how small it is and that its not a "real deer" compared to what you might shoot in Canada[:@]stop complaining and be proud of what you shot!!

RE: I'm bummed.
 

congrats man, he may not be what you set out for but that still is a very nice buck.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

1. Number of Deer DOES NOT EQUAL Amount of Experience....otherwise an average joe who shoots everything he sees and kills 35 deer in 3 year down south would technically be more experienced than a savy hunter who limits what he shoots at and hunts for and has only killed 15 deer, but has passed on more deer than the first hunter saw

2.he NEEDS to hunt the wayt he wants to, which appears to be for bigger bucks than the one he just recently downed, no problem with setting goals and standards. He may very well have been hunting longer than you have, just hasnt stacked up the number of deer that you have.

3. Trophy Hunting has NOTHING to do with shooting does, in fact, most huntrs who target bigger bucks shoot does for a better buck to doe ratio. "trophy" hunters pass on small bucks, not all does. he even told that he has already shot two does this year so far.

4. So hunting has to be about this? people can't set goals and standards or limitations in this sport just as in anything else in life? just because he targets bigger bucks doesnt mean he kills animals slower, butchers them wrong, or doesnt eat the deer.

im sorry but i dont agree at all with your post. if you dont like that he tries and shoots bigger bucks, dont read his posts.



Congrats on your deer tho man, anything with a bow is an accomplishment, IMO. another lesson learned when it comes to judging bucks. Still a respectable deer and like you said, you have Alberta still to chase the big boys:D Best of luck to ya, and again, congrats!

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Hey early, didn't you see the milk on his mouth gleeming in the moonlight?:Dj/k brother you can always use the hide to make a couple of key chains. [X(] Good shooting bud he will eat good.

RE: I'm bummed.
 

Thanks guys, I actually feel better.:D:D