Bowhunting Blunders
09-04-2010, 05:58 PM
#11
Typical Buck
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Mid West
Posts: 591
Years ago, I had decided to make the switch from face paint to a head net because I was tired of trying to get face paint off. There weren't a lot of options for headnets back then, so I went down to the Army surplus store and got one of those camo bug headnets. I got home and cut a couple of eye holes in it and thought "Sweet" no more paint. I went out the next morning and shortly after sunrise had 3 bucks walking towards me. Of corase the last one was the biggest one. He stepped behind a tree, I drew my bow, only to discover I couldn't see my pins! What in the world! I realized that the piece of netting I had left between the eye holes was blocking my line of sight at full draw, D**n! I took an estimated judgement shot and missed, no idea were that arrow ended up. I quickly pulled my knife out and proceded to cut the strip out, kicking myself in the process. At that time in my life, it would have my best buck ever. Needless to say I learned a lot that morning, mostly to always practice, wearing what you will when hunting.
09-05-2010, 02:21 PM
#12
Spike
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: South Jersey
Posts: 98
I was 15 years old and grunted at a buck that was about 60 yards away. well to my surprise he turned and sprinted right at me. as im reaching for my bow i hear my dad come over the radio which i had in my jacket pocket. so in the mean time between me getting my bow and trying to quiet the radio the buck ended up directly under me so when i finally reached for the radio for the last time...i dropped the bow right off of my lap and it hit the deer right on the back. needless to say i didnt get a second chance of shootin that deer. many lessons were learned on that hunt.
09-05-2010, 05:47 PM
#13
Fork Horn
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Upstate New York
Posts: 411
Couldn't find my broad head tool today so I decided to work with out. At the end of the day, I sliced by right thumb open while unscrewing a head after some tuning. Father-in-law won't be happy since bowling starts this week.
09-05-2010, 07:38 PM
#14
Spike
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 40
As for me, the first time I had ever bow hunted, a doe came in about 10 yards away broadside. Due the first time and lack of experience of judging yardages from the tree stand, i drew my bow back and release, aiming just a little high. Ater the shot the doe just up and left. Lesson learned, know my yardages first.
09-05-2010, 09:24 PM
#15
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Kansas
Posts: 6,598
This actually did not happen to me but I was a part of it. It happened to my dad!
It was the 2nd week of archery seaon, we were hunting edges of cut corn fields. A good buck came in to my dad. He took a shot but the arrow was deflected, At least that is what we thought. When he went to take a look he found half of the deer's tail. We looked for any other signs of a hit but found nothing. We laughed so hard! We still could not figure out how he cut that buck's tail out. We had a pretty good idea of the buck that he shot at it. It was a real good six pt, no brow tines.
In rifle seaon that buck was actual shot by my uncle. We were able to look at the deer up close. The buck had no other wounds to be found, but he was missing half of his tail!
It was the 2nd week of archery seaon, we were hunting edges of cut corn fields. A good buck came in to my dad. He took a shot but the arrow was deflected, At least that is what we thought. When he went to take a look he found half of the deer's tail. We looked for any other signs of a hit but found nothing. We laughed so hard! We still could not figure out how he cut that buck's tail out. We had a pretty good idea of the buck that he shot at it. It was a real good six pt, no brow tines.
In rifle seaon that buck was actual shot by my uncle. We were able to look at the deer up close. The buck had no other wounds to be found, but he was missing half of his tail!
I got a chuckle out of this one. Funny.
09-06-2010, 07:14 AM
#16
Typical Buck
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Virginia
Posts: 753
My first time hunting (anything, with anything), I shot at a button buck (being a greenhorn, I thought it was a doe) at about 15 yards. He ran off about 10 yards and stopped behind a small pine tree and looked back at where he had been standing. My heart was racing about a million miles an hour. I was sure I had hit him, but then why did he stop and look back, apprently unharmed? Then I looked down, where he was staring, where he had been standing, and I saw my arrow sticking in the ground. I cursed myself for missing completely at such close range and reached for another arrow, since the deer was focused on the ground. Just as my hand reached my quiver, the deer stumbled downhill about 10 yards and dropped. It was a perfect double-lung shot, and the young deer just didn't know what hit it or what happened. And I thought I completely missed it!
09-06-2010, 10:05 AM
#17
Typical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Eastern Virginia
Posts: 661
sitting in the stand and just watching the paths for some deer. This particular spot was a perfect funnel unless the deer wanted to go swimming. So there I sat when a nice 8 pointer starts walking up along the waters edge in plain sight. He was munching away at acorns like a vacuum cleaner. I had to stand up and turn to take the shot, got the quiver all up into a small limb with leaves on it making a little bit of noise. After a few minutes he went back to munching, and I had no shot, waited some more and finally he walked into a clear spot.
In my mind I kept telling myself he was right at 20 yards.. 20 yards.. 20 yards... Sure enough threw the 30yrd sight on him and let it fly..
Arrow skipped right across the top of his back fluffing up some fur and thats it. Deer ran never to be seen, and one good Slick Trick found the rocky ground destroying it.
In my mind I kept telling myself he was right at 20 yards.. 20 yards.. 20 yards... Sure enough threw the 30yrd sight on him and let it fly..
Arrow skipped right across the top of his back fluffing up some fur and thats it. Deer ran never to be seen, and one good Slick Trick found the rocky ground destroying it.
09-06-2010, 12:11 PM
#18
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Nashville, Ohio
Posts: 1,109
O the mistakes I have made over the last decade of bowhunting (Decade!!!?? Am I that old already??) Any way, here are a few of mine:
Hitting the top rail of my ladder stand with the limb of my bow, during the shot. Cracked the limbs of my Golden Eagle Sparrowhawk. I was 12 and too short to clear the railing.
Missed a Buck in a wide open field when i was 13 because i failed to judge the distance correctly. shot for 15 when he was really 25. That was Demoralizing.
Pushed a doe that was paunch shot when i was 16. This was the mistake that i regret the most. Maybe my lowest moment as a hunter. I learned this lesson well and have not lost a deer since.
These are just a few that i remember vividly. I'm sure there would be many more if I got to thinking.
Hitting the top rail of my ladder stand with the limb of my bow, during the shot. Cracked the limbs of my Golden Eagle Sparrowhawk. I was 12 and too short to clear the railing.
Missed a Buck in a wide open field when i was 13 because i failed to judge the distance correctly. shot for 15 when he was really 25. That was Demoralizing.
Pushed a doe that was paunch shot when i was 16. This was the mistake that i regret the most. Maybe my lowest moment as a hunter. I learned this lesson well and have not lost a deer since.
These are just a few that i remember vividly. I'm sure there would be many more if I got to thinking.
09-06-2010, 05:45 PM
#20
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 117
Last year I had a buck walk from behind me while I was sitting on the ground past me on the right about 10 feet away. As he got out in front of me at about 20 feet I stood up came to a full draw and knocked my hat down in front of my eyes. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't see anything. I had to let down my draw and reach up and push my hat back on to my head and at that point all I could see is the infamous white flag!