in VA you can shot 2 deer a day, 6 during the season and atleast 3 must be atlerless like you said but im pretty sure its 1 BUCK(ATLERED) deer a day

but maybe i miss read or and just making it up in my head, lol

My first muzzle loader deer I shot,(with .54 hawken), did very similar to what you said.
Scarilly so.
It was a doe,50yds, and she fell towards me down a bank, and thrashed around.
I feebly tried to reload as fast as I could ( I had practiced on the ground *&#@!. Big differene in a tree!)
She fumbled around, as I was doing, and suddenly...she just stood up.
I tried to hurry, but she started walking off. I couldn't believe it.
As I packed down the bullet, I just threw my loading rod away, as I tried to put on a cap, and throw the gun up.
She just walked up over the bank, and was gone.
I climbed down, grabbed my loading rod, and saw lots of blood.
I couldn't believe she was alive.
I walked over the bank where I had shot her, SURPRISE, she was lying about 10feet over the bank ALIVE, and she sprang up and became "superdeer" as you said.

I didn't have a shot.

I couldn't believe I had pushed her so blatantly. This wasn't my first hunt, or kill. I KNEW what to do.

I was so caught up with the blood, and how vioently she acted, that I just couldn't
believe she was that alive.

We found her later that day, about 200 yards from where she sprang up.

The bullet had hit her high and slightly back in the shoulder, but under the spine, and went straight through.
I guess the shock "stunned" her nervous system, and caused her to spaz out.

As others have said.
Lesson learned.

Its happend to all of us. Next time put another one in him! Where is the public land you hunt on? I don't know of much around here.
I THINK you can kill two deer a day and it doesn't specify that you can only kill 1 buck but i will double check.
FROM VDGIF:
Bag Limits

East of the Blue Ridge (except on National Forest lands in Amherst, Bedford, and Nelson counties)The bag limit for deer shall be two a day, six a license year. Of the six deer limit, no more than three may be antlered deer and at least three must be antlerless deer.

The biggest buck I have ever shot was with my old .50 cal BP. I was new to blackpowder and really only seriously hunting for a few yrs. I shot him at 20 yards from the ground. He dropped like a ton of bricks, after 5 minutes I walked over to him and was laying there blowing blood and what I thought was his last few breaths. I left him and went walking back to my truck. I got back and nothing but a puddle of blood, blood trail went 20 feet and thats it. Searched for many hours over 2 days and never recovered him.

This was yrs ago and hated myself for taking that big buck and loosing him. I was in hurry to see my trophy and learned so much from that buck. Changed everything I do now after taking a shot.

Of everything posted in this thread this worries me the most.

I've shot it and been instructed in loading and cleaning and can perform all of those. I was also cautioned not to poor powder down a hot barrel so I didn't know how long was long enough.

I fully agree with you. It sounds like a disaster waiting for a place to happen.

There are a lot of things in this post that worry me!!!!!!!!!!

This Disaster is NOT waiting for a place to happen!! it has already happened,, Hunters!!!! BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!!! You are not alone

Doc

Its a muzzle loader, not a torch!!!! It will only stay hot for a few micro seconds and after that you can load it. So how many times have you fired this weapon on your own before taking it hunting? That and how many times have you fired this weapon totally?

dpv-i feel for you. i have had the same thing happen to me 3 times. once in 08, and twice in 09. i have nocked 3 bucks on the ground only to have them take off when my climber hit the ground. i blame this on my choice of bullet--the tc shockwave. the 8 pt in 08 goes like this-shot buck around 400pm. watch him lay there about 60 yards(not moving a muscle). continue hunting till about 10 minutes before dark. get down-as soon as my foot comes off the climber he is gone. i go to where he laid down--not a lot of blood. its in some tall pines(if that matters). i come back at noon the following day w/ my tracking expert. he finds the trail in no time. we go about 300 yards and we kick him up. we find him alive laying on the river bank 600 yards from where we kicked him up. i sneak up on him and finish him off. only one lung was hit the day before. 157 lbs dressed. fast forward to 09. shot a 6 pt and a 6 or 8 pt on the same morning. both hit the ground and dont move(actually thrased a little) . i wait around an hour. keep in mind that they are in brush and i can see them both laying there in the scope. they are gone when i get down. lots of bllod-no deer. we search for about 2 hrs(4 of us). no deer.
iin 08 i used a TC triumph and 09 the pro hunter. 100 gr 777 and 250gr shockwave. after the 09 fiasco(it was on the second saturday of bp season ) i change to the xtp's. im 6 shots, 6 deer since changing. i could nto be happier. i have a bunch of shockwaves to give away now. it seems to me that more energy is expended in the deer using the xtp's. most of the shockwave holes looked like dime size holes with little or no real tissue damage. they shoot great on paper(dont get me wrong) but for Virginia terrain they didnt work for me.