idahoelkinstructor

I have a story about the one that I wish would have gotten away alive and well. I remember Oct 10 1990 like it was yesterday. I was 16 at the time. I was excited because my father allowed me for the first time, to invite my friends Danny and Casey (2 brothers and my best friends) along for the elk hunt. I was not succesful in the archery hunt, Oct 10 was opening day of general rifle bull elk. We set up camp on the 8th, and we had a day to scout before opening morning. We foung several heard of elk in the general area. It was decided by my father that we should split up in three groups. My mother, sister and brother in one group. My Dad and Casey in one group. And Danny and I together. Danny and I decided to hike in the furthest. We woke up a 3:00 an started hiking in the dark. At daylight we spoted a samll heard of elk with a raghorn bull. We couldn't get in range in time before they disapeared. Two hours or so later, we were in range (200 yards) of a lone 6 point bull. Just as we were about to shoot a voley of shots rang out, above and behind us, killing the bull. Turns out a group of six hunters on horses, also spotted the bull and all six started shooting. They were about 500 yards away. Danny and I were angry and depressed. To top it off it was starting to snow hard, making it impossible to see. We decided to try to wait out the storm on the edge of a very steep and narrow canyon 200-300 yards accross. After a early lunch and a little nap next to a blazing fire. We were talking and debating our options. It was letting up and we could start to see accross the canyon. As I was looking I saw a cow elk steep into a opening. We quickly put out the fire and gathered our gear and Rifles. We moved to where we could have a better look. After about a half an hour we could find 4 elk all cows. I was getting restless, and stood up ready to go. Starting to walk away, I saw a fith animal stand up from its bed. It to looked like a cow, but a closer look through my scope revealed it was a small spike bull. I told Danny it was a bull and he needed to shoot. He shot first then I shot (resting) and Danny fired again right after me. We saw the elk hit the ground and slide down the mountian. At the same time I saw Elk running everywhere. I saw three big bulls and was trying to get a shot at one of them. I couldn't get a clear shot so I didn't shoot. But we ere excited because we had a elk on the ground or so we thought. After crossing the canyon to the other side we found where the elk had hit the ground and slid down the mountian. He slid into some thick trees and he got back on his feet and was up and running. We lost his tracks in other elk tracks and we could find no blood except where he had slid down the mountian. We looked for him all day with no luck. We went to camp in the dark and brought back my father and brothers to search for him the next day. By late afternoon my Dad said we had tried our best, and we wouldn't find him. I was so sick with worry, that I didn't hunt for 2 days. Danny and I each killed small bulls later on in the trip, but I couldnt stop thinking about that Spike. To this day it is the only elk I have lost. Before each bowhunt I promise myself that It will never happed again, That I will do my best to kill, and retieve each animal that I pursue.

hunter25

Every day I think about the big one I missed last year in early November. Thinking what could I have done differently to end up with big guy on my wall. He came in from behind me at about 15 yards, flung an arrow his way. Hit a very small branch off a sapling which caused the arrow to go a little high...completely missed him. I just shake my head everytime I think about it.

NEWSHOOTER

Wow, If you do not know the difference between 18 and 32 yards I must question what a gimme is!

I do not mean you should look at a distance and know the exact yardage but damn thats a 14 yard difference.

BagginBigguns

Alright, I have another one. Yeah, the list goes on...[&o]

Exactly one week after missing the big non-typ that I told about earlier, I had yet another encounter that leaves me miffed, to this very day. Same scenario, same stand, different buck. It was Friday afternoon, now after the first of November. The galing winds from the prior week had subsided, but the cold temperatures remained. This was the first opportunity that I had to hunt since my blunder the prior week, and I was pumped to try rattling again. I was on stand by 2PM and did not have a response to my first rattling sequence. Around 3PM I heard some rustling off to my right coming from along the edge of a pond about 75 yards away. I soon saw the tips of some very long tines extending from the thick underbrush as a beautiful 10 pointer made its way down the path along the shoreline. I knew that the path he was on would only lead him out of range to the adjacent oak ridge, so I gave a couple quick grunts from my tube. No response. A couple more grunts. Still absolutely no reaction to the call. At this point I was desparate to get his attention. I knew he would soon disappear as he seemed intent on staying his course. So, as a last ditch effort, I grabbed the ol' rattlin' horns and lightly tickled them together. As if I had just jerked the leash on his collar, the buck whirled and made a beeline right for me. I was so suprised that I nearly dropped the horns. I quickly stashed them to the side and grabbed my bow. He hit the old overgrown 4-wheeler path and followed it, which would lead him right into an opening that I had cut in the brush ealier that afternoon to provide a 20 yard, broadside, "open" shot. He neared the opening and I gave an early whistle. I was not going to let another bruiser pass up an opening and sqaunder another opportunity. It worked perfectly as he stopped exactly in the opening. I was already at full draw, and I settled the pin behind his shoulder and touched off the shot. The arrow was right on path until it just barely whisped a tiny twig about half way to the target. It ruffled the hair on the big buck's back, and he exploded off into the woods.

I was sick. Two wall hangers, two twigs, one week, empty-handed. I learned an important lesson from this. I am now EXTREMELY thourough in clearing my shooting lanes. Not necessarily wide lanes, just absolutely clear off obstructions. One single twig can be the difference between a trophy on the wall and tag soup.

BagginBigguns

"" is right! I felt pretty stupid after that mistake. It's obvious in hindsight. Not so obvious when the buck of a lifetime is standing there, wide open, begging to be shot.[&o]

ahunter55

I am starting my 48th year of Bowhunting Biggame & can relate to MANY of those missed chances at a TROPHY. I chalk it up to experience & that it was not to be. If I had successfully taken every trophy animal I have released an arrow at I would be sought after by all the Bowhunting Mags. ect. As it is, I am just another Bowhunter & have no regrets. I have 2 very respectable P&Y Bears but one I missed was taken a week later with a rifle that makes them look like babies. I missed a tremendous Caribou but have a P&Y 50" Bull on my wall, I have 4 very excellent whitetails but have missed more P&Y & a couple B&C Bucks than most ever see in a lifetime-I missed a 160 this season-wide open-shot him for 30 yds. & was 32 & watched the arrow pass "JUST" under his front leg. I have taken 12 Mule deer & 1 nice Buck but know I have missed over a dozen B&C Bucks with my Bow. I know of 1 Bull Elk that might have made me famouse (I really don't need that) but my arrow was just a little to low.
I don't let the experiences haunt me. I just say, it was not ment to be. I have tons of GREAT experiences & that is waht it is all about. Sure, we all want that animal that will be considered TROPHY material & i think mostly for self satisfaction that we managed to outwit an animal of that caliber on his turf. As far as my misses go-am I a bad shot, do I get flustered on a Trophy class animal. No, I don't think so as my hunting record will attest to my success & as far as a lousy shot, I have posted my share of perfect indoor, outdoor rounds. I just think we must do our best & what happens is ment to be-of course we can help that some in being a good Bowhunter & know our limits. Good luck to all this fall & the big boys better be careful this year-I am not missing anymore (you think?)

Beagle001

o man o man. imagine a greenhorn bowhunter. his first year bowhunting, but has previous experience gun hunting. only in 8th grade he gets his first bow (that he has yet to this day). after "missing" a doe the hunter is determined he will get a deer. the doe miss wasnt really a miss. he didnt have the release on right and ended up quick firing into the ground. anyways. he was in his brand new climbing stand. his first time hunting in it. it is mid-late october. he gets settled in, and after sitting for 1 1/2 he glances and sees it is 4:30. at that moment he realizes there are deer legs 30 yds in front of him. he sees some white antlers over the deers back, the buck is working a scrape. then the buck stops and starts heading strait for the bowhunter. the buck walks five yds in front of the tree and there is no shooting lanes. he turns and gets to about 20 yds and the boy draws his bow and settles the pin behind the shoulder. CLICK! he pulls the releases trigger and watches the arrow go right underneath and behind the shoulder. CLEAN MISS!! arrow is stickin out of the ground and as the big 9 point turns and runs he snaps the arrow. the buck is never seen again.

Beagle001

that was me two years ago in my first year of bowhunting. im still kind of a greenhorn to it. but isnt everyone? always learning something new. yeah that hunt haunted me. but i am kind of glad i did miss him. better than wounding him and i learned to bend at the hips, not your arms. i would have been very full of myself had i got that buck. that is one of the hunts that haunts me.

mordecaia

WHY did I start reading this thread....

2 yrs ago my second year of bowhunting, Im in a small field less than a 150 yds from my house. Got a treestand about 17 feet up overlooking the field which isnt but about 30 yds wide at the most by about 80 yds long. Just rained pretty good the night before and the creek behind me is running kinda swift and noisily and Im thinking to myself (outloud in my head) aint no deer gonna be coming across that creek with all the rainwater running in it. AS SOON as I think that ,I glance to my right and see a deer with horns crossing the creek. Holy crap, its not the biggest deer Ive ever seen but it will be the biggest one Ive ever taken with a bow. I reach up and grab my bow from the easy hanger where its been hanging since taking my stand at around 3 pm that afternoon, Arrows already nocked and Im cool altho My hearts beating somewhat faster than it was 20 seconds before.

I take another look for the deer and see him standing behind some brush and laurel just on the very edge of the field, just standing there not moving, as if hes just checking things out to make sure everythings cool before he moves out into the open. Musta been ok to him cause he just eases out as pretty as you please without a problem in the world or so he thinks.

(Now long before I had placed some big rocks at 20 and 30 and 40 yards( the 40 yd rocks were back into the woods on the other side of the field) just so I know exactly what my yardages were. )

So anyway Mr Deer and his horns( which I had totally elimimnated from my mind) just as cool as can be, walked out and moving slowly dropped his head to feed some. NOW COMES THE PART WHERE I CAN STILL CUSS TO THIS DAY -I had those darn rocks there and I knew the yardage. I saw the 20 yd rock and I knew the deer was beyond the 20 yd rock, maybe 25/27 yds. WHY IN THE SAM H%$&^^ did i ever put my 20 yd pin on his rib cage i will never know. The very next sound I heard after releaseing my arrow was a loud sharp crack as my carbon arrow exploded into a hundred pieces after hitting another rock that was buried in the soil of the back field.

I couldnt believe it as the deer just barely jumped and slowly walked the other few yds across the field and into the woods, angling off to the left and uphill while turning back at least 2 times to stop and look and try and figure out what kind of a creature was spewing forth such horrendous profanity from a tree that had never uttered a sound before.

He did stop just one more time about 100 yds away and looked back again just before he went over the crest of the hill, only this time it was quiet from the tree, as my heart was in the bottom of my boots.

Oh yah the time of 5:15 pm always gets me down- thats the time I took the shot.

buttonbuckmaster

OK, this is why they call me the buttonbuckmaster. Because those are they only deer that hang around long enough for me to shoot.
Any way, this was in 2000, and a gun hunt , not a bow hunt, sorry but that is the way it happened. Last day of the Illinois shotgun season and my dad, my best buddy, and I are setting up a drive on a small patch of timber that always has a few does and maybe a small buck from time to time, but never anything big. Dad and I go the south end and start the drive and my buddy is blocking the north end. Dad is unarmed, he already killed out. We spread out about 50 yards apart and I head to a blow down just in the timber where the deer bed alot. As I get closer, I see something that looks like a deer bedded down with a HUGE rack......looking right at me. It was sunny and alot of glare that day, so I thought, this can't be a big buck just looking at me. I walk closer, still unsure, and I see it move its head to look in dads direction, and IT WAS HUGE.I'm thinking he's a big typical 10 or 11 point, score near 165-170. ( Lot on my mind at that time, going through a nasty divorce) So I think maybe my luck is going to change for the better. Now is when it gets good. I stop take aim, already thing how great he is going to look on my wall, and fire. This buck jumps up and spins through the nastiest brush I have ever seen and nearly runs over my dad, who is unarmed. My dad said " I think you hit him good, he's running towards Jason shaking his head and stumbling!" I walk over to where he got up and guess what I found???? I 9 1/2 inch chunk off of his left g 2!!!!! That's right , I hit him in the rack!!! My buddy got one shot, dropped him like a bad habit. Turns out to be a 14 point that scored 173 and some change. Oh, did I mention that when I shot, he was 20 yards from me....laying down looking at me!!! I will never live that down. My buddy did let me keep the the g2 as a remimder of how lucky I am. The taxidermist mearured the broken piece that I kept and fixed it very nicely. Sometimes you just can't win.