TFOX

I know this is a bow forum but considering I am a bow hunter almost exclusively and spend the gun season taking my daughter gun hunting and the fact that I post here quite frequently,I thought I could post this story here.

I' m sorry but the fact is this is a gun hunt so I will have to move it over to the deer hunting forum. Hope you understand.


This started last year when my daughter was only 8 years old(to young to shoot enough poundage to bow hunt).We were hunting a favorite gun stand beside a huge bedding area and about a half hour into the hunt,a nice 2 1/2 year old buck came in chasing a doe.The 2 deer stopped at 20 yards but the doe spotted us when I was trying to get my daughter in position and the buck still hadn' t turned broadside.I gave her some questionable advice because I told her to shoot the buck while it was quartering to us. I knew the doe was going to run and the buck was going to follow.I figured the gun,although small would do the job.Well,I was both right and wrong.She made an awesome shot because I could see the blood behind the front shoulder as it ran off.She had to hit the front shoulder and penetrate into the heart to do this,or so I thought.I waited a few minutes to calm me and her and then I got down to check for blood.PERFECT trail so I proceeded,the blood was huge and frequent so I just knew we would find it.After tracking about 75-100 yards into some VERY THICK cover we jumped a deer.I thought it was a different deer but after going to where the deer jumped,I found a puddle of blood about 2 feet in diameter,so I knew it was the deer.Naturally I backed out and came back about 3 hours later,in the dark,and started tracking again with some friends.We lost the blood that night so I went home and came back the next day with another friend and looked for a few more hours but could find no deer.The biggest problem was we were right in the middle of the bedding area and this was the thickest stuff I have ever seen.It was an overgrown sage brush field with briars and stuff about 6 feet tall.We literally was crawling around trying to find the deer but it just wasn' t to be,or was it.



Naturally my daughter was heart broke and so was I because I knew it was my fault,first I suggested a less than perfect shot and then I started tracking to soon.Even with a small caliber rifle,I thought we would be ok,boy was I wrong.


Well we jump forward to this year,we had already hunted 1 weekend together and were seing deer but were having the worst luck imaginable getting a shot.We went to the place where we stay when we hunt and we walked in the garage and the person was sitting there with a $#it eating grin on his face and when we got close to him,he held up a deer skull with a nice 10 point rack.He asked my daughter if she recognized it and immediately her eyes lit up and said yes.Believe it or not,a friend of ours was looking for a cow that got out that week and stumbled across this deer head less than 100 yards from where we were looking for her deer the previous year.The darn thing doubled back on us and actually when into less cover on top of the hill.Unless the coyotes drug it up there.



I know it is hard to believe that a deer would still be around after a year in the woods and not have been eaten by rodents,but the skull had no flesh and no hide around it.The skull and rack was also bleached out from the sun and was IDENTCAL to the deer she shot the year before and in the same area.I am about 90% sure it was her deer and she is 100% sure it is her deer and that is what matters.Needles to say,even though this year was tough,it has been a succesfull one for her and I think she is now completely hooked.I know we didn' t get any meat off this deer and that is very important but she does have the antlers and will charish them for a lifetime.

Scar955

I' m a little confused. From the tone I' m picking up in the post, you consider what happened a success because your daughter has a 10-pt.

I don' t want to cast the first stone, but I would think there are a lot of lessons to learn from what happened. Maybe I misread and that' s what you were going for, but I didn' t pick that up.

Did you talk to here about what happened and how the shot should not have been taken in the first place?

Anyway, just my reaction to the post.

TFOX

I consider it a succes because she finally has something to hang onto as a memory,not just the memory.Yes,she knows that the shot,for her equipment,wasn' t the best shot and that it won' t happen again.I know we hunt for meat but that isn' t the only reason.Memories are really what I hunt for.And from time to time,it is nice to have a visual.That is why we take pictures isn' t it.



Secondly,the shot wasn' t really a bad one.A high powered rifle will usually drop a deer in it' s tracks when shot quartering to you.I made a bad judgement because the caliber was small and I have learned not to do that again with that gun.I actually used the gun before the hunt to make sure it would be ethical and was confident in it.


I really don' t need the ethics police to tell me about what is ethical or not.I am a very ethical hunter and teach ethics to my children.I made a mistake but it wasn' t due to ethics.Yes it would have been nice to get the deer at the time and to have had the meat but that wasn' t possible so the next best thing is the rack and knowing the deer didn' t suffer for days on end.The deer had to of died shortly after we jumped it due to where the skull was found.

bayonets

Well in my opinion I think it was a excellent story and I am happy for your daughter.Too bad you couldn' t find the deer untill a yera later but I' m sure there were so lessons learned.Good hunting to you and your Daughter.

GVDocHoliday

What size caliber?

kyarchery

Those things happen probably a inch or two either way and it is a different story. I hope to have my son out there in about 10 more years!

I watched a guy on the outdoor channel last night take a very questionable shot on a quartering away deer just for the camera. (with a bow) He made a great shot and got the deer but if not for the camera I don' t think he would have shot!

B&C Wanna B

T FOX, I grew up in Henderson KY. I lived on Old Barn Court in the big neighborhood across from K-mart. I am related to the the Denton, Reeder, and Eblen families. My last name is Dawson. Not sure if you know any of them but its kinda cool to see a guy from home on here. I am actually planning on hunting in henderson next year on our family farm. I ll be down in about a month for christmas.
Ohh yeah and Congrats to your daughter on the buck.

kyarchery

Do you guys know a Tim I forget his last name from Henderson. He has or had a guide service for deer and geese. I goose hunted with him several times. He also had a sporting clays range there that had the state tourney several years back. They killed some big bucks up there.

TFOX

kyarcher


I think you are refering to Timmy Stulls and I believe he is actually from Sebree but has leased up quite a bit of ground here in Henderson.Most of the locals are a bit pissed about it.That' s the way it goes when money starts to take over.


Gvdocholiday



The caliber was a .223 and yes I know it is small but legal and I did use it myself first. I was using Hollowpoints to ensure the maximum damage and I think this was what caused the problem with a bone hit.I have learned to treat the gun as if it were a bow and only take the kinds of shots that I would take with a bow.Live and learn.[:' (]

mikej92280

TFOX, tell your daughter I said congratulations on the rack. I had same thing similar happend to me. Only my uncler found him while coon hunting a couple months later. Although I did not recover the deer correctly its still a good feeling that I have the rack in my possesion.