[Whitefeather]

What are some of the coolest things you've seen while bowhunting?

One of my favorites that comes to mind took place last year..


On a crisp November morning while out videoing myself...I turn my head and see a flash of something about 60 yards away, coming straight toward me, almost as if in slow motion. Taking a second to confirm it as a Cooper's Hawk, it continues on it's never changing path...directly at my face! When it hits the 20 foot mark, I then take a deep breath (freezing motionless all the while) and hope that at sometime it decides to change it's course. Not a chance! Double As it continues forward, it swoops directly over my right shoulder so close that I hear the whistle of it's wings in the air, and down over the hill. "Whooo", I thought..."that was freakin great!"
My video partner Tim Ward (PAOutdoorsman) was out taping someone else that morning. As he meets me that afternoon, I proceed to tell him about the encounter. He says.."WOW, I bet that was cool!" We then strap in on opposite sides of the tree, facing directly away from each other, and prepare for an over the shoulder kill scene on video.
At about the two hour mark, over my shoulder again from behind me...comes the same Cooper's Hawk! After watching it disappear over the hill, I turn to Tim as our faces meet inches away from each other. He says "WAS THAT YOUR HAWK?" I said...."YES IT WAS!!!"

It was one of the coolest things i've witnessed in the outdoors. :thumbs_up

Post up a cool, scary or unusual story for us all to read... :beer:

JP

 

[PABowhunt4life]

THE ABSOLUTE COOLEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN HAPPENED LAST YEAR ON THE LAST DAY OF ARCHERY.



I watched a buck hound a doe for about 10 minutes in circles around me, then she stopped about 10 yards away. When she stopped he kept going and he speared her with his half rack and almost sent her legs over head. After that little incident they both calmed down and he bred her right in front of me. He should have been a beautiful 8 point, but he was misssing the right side of his rack, busted right above the brow tine. If he would have had both sides, that would have been the most expensive piece of a$s he'd ever had lol. This is the first and only time I have ever seen this take place.


Most amazing part is they chase them for 3 days and it's over in 3 seconds. She stops, he flops his legs up on her, wiggles and he's done lol.

 

[SlowBowInMO]

This happened last year to me, I don't know if it was my coolest ever but it was really neat anyway. It kinda reminds me of your hawk story as well but is much tamer.

I had an owl that frequents my hunting area swoop in and land right in front of me in another tree near my stand, only 3-4 yards away. It was right at my level and staring dead on at me....I surmised he had seen my eyes moving as I sat in my stand and had come to check it out. We sat there staring at each other for at least ten minutes, it was very special to me. I finally decided he hadn't figured out for sure what I was and so I started shifting the rest of my body a little bit so I wouldn't end up smacked in the head. He calmly vacated the premises at that point. Pretty bird indeed.

 

[GTR]

Owl catch a rabbit.

GTR

 

[jdslyr]

Owls

Last year one morning I arrived in my treestand extra early. I decided to lay my head back and catch a couple winks before light. I suddenly realized the tree or stand was shaking as if a critter was climbing up or down the tree. I sat there eyes closed, wondering what it was. I couldn't hear any claws scratching the bark of the tree, just slight shaking of the tree. Finally I opened my eyes and leaned forward to see what it was. A huge owl was perched between my legs on my climber stand. We noticed each other at the same time and he took off like a bat out of hell. I launched my bow off my lap, luckily I caught it before it fell to the ground. Freaked me out, but was a neat experience.

 

[Hickory Creek Stalker]

Busted.

The coolest thing to happen to me so far is to get busted by one group of deer coming down the trail as I was deciding to take the only shot opportunity I had (all season) on another deer going to the left of a fork in the trail. The group saw me, clearly I was out too far over thier trail while hunting another trail that the lone deer was paused on. They barked and all the deer took off. It was only a few seconds but it was fun and I learned something.

Deer -1
CityBoy -0

 

[LDM]

Last year I saw a six point stand on its hind legs and go all around an Autum Olive tree twice eating the fruit. His front hooves never touched the ground. Two days later I had a flock of turkeys come through the woods and gather at a holly tree. This hen would climb up a mound and jump in the tree and all the others would run and get the berries. Then she would do it again. She must have done it ten or fifteen times.

 

[oggie2635]

2 years ago i saw a sparrow hawk,( at least that's what we call them,) flying around. as i headded up a skid road it flys in 3 or 4 circles and then swoops down and hits a tree limb on a pine tree, and strait to the ground in the skid road. i thought it must be drunk but it had caught another bird off the limb and pinned it to the ground in the road and then killed the bird it caught. i thought this is cool, don't see nature like this too often. he was in my way and i needed to get past but i didn't want to ruin breakfast, so i waited till i was sure his pray was dead then walked on by. he flew off but i figured he'd be back to eat after i left. sure enough on my way back by 4 hrs. later the dead bird was gone. survival of the fittest i guess. but that was pretty cool to see.

 

[bamabandit]

Watched a redtail hawk swoop down through the trees and snag a squirrel off the ground. Was awsome to see. Funniest thing i have seen was a fawn racing around a hardwood bottom i was hunting one afternoon. Its mom was feeding out infront of me and this thing just took off running flat out in a huge circle and made 8 or so laps. He looked like he was racing around a dirt track i was biting my lip to keep from crackign up laughing although i don't think anything would have heard me as he was creating so much noise running through all the dried leaves. Oh and the squirrel that crawled up through my vbars on my stand and stared me strait in the face as i was facing the tree.

 

[buckmark1]

Coolest and funniest

One of the coolest things was calling in a pair of Bard Owls. I heard them hooting way off and I answerd back. they hooted again, very excited, with that cackle, monkey sounding call that they do. I answer back. The next thing I know I see a pair of big eyes sailing thru the trees right at me. I just closed my eyes and thought "This one is going to be close". They landed in the tree just off to my right and touch higher. They then proceed to make the biggest racket I have ever heard owls make. They carried on hooting and cackling, and so on for about 30 seconds. I guess I really offended them and they were coming over to defend their territory. I figured it wouldn't take them long to find me, and sure enough, as soon as one made eye contact, they split. Very cool indeed.

The funniest was a group of fawns in mid Nov. come spilling thru the woods just making all kind of noise. There were 4 of them and I think while their moms were out somewhere with their new boyfriends, they were going to cut loose. They were running in circles all around me. In front, to the side and behind my stand. I swear it looked like they were playing tag. I actually started to chuckle out loud.

Its witnessing things like that, that the non-hunting public just don't get!

 

[Bow]

Two bobcats at less than 10 yards. One in 1999 and one in 2004.

 

[rackaholic]

I have seen several Fishers, but I saw one take down a gray squirrel and proceed to eat it closer than twenty yards from my stand.

 

[trebor69]

watched a bobcat stalk and kill a groundhog

 

[chumly]

Watching the sun slant down through leaves, listening to the sounds of the forest, not too cold, not too hot, a million miles away from my job and the telephone and noise. All this is pretty cool to me.

 

[Dude608]

was stalking last year and noticed movement and it was a fisher it came withing 10 yards of me and never noticed I was there. I thought that was pretty cool

 

[BradMc26]

I once had a little knot head spike come bed down right under my stand and chew his cud.

He stayed there for about an hour and then got up and then slowly fed away from me.

 

[pointndog]

Coolest Thing

Once sitting in my stand I caught movement in front, and when I looked up I saw a sparrowhawk coming straight at my face. Luckily I had my bow in hand and out it in front of my face. The hawk ran into my quiver full of arrows. He started to fall and got back to flying. I watched him fly off. Thinking it was all over. A minutew or 2 later, I caught something out of the corner of my eye and here he was again, he buzzed right in front of me. Sure felt like the end of his wing brushed me, but it might not have. Had me shaken a bit. I guess all he could see was the white of my eyes.



Also once in Wyoming antelope hunting I shot a doe antelope.(Didn't make a good shot. Was to low.) 2 young bucks came up to her and took turns breeding her for about 15 minutes. I have pictures to prove, you can even see blood on the ground from her. I actually have about 15 pic in sequence. I had to wait till she was to weak to run off to finish her. Needless to say she didn't fare to good at the table cause of all this.

 

[Elkcaller]

Elk hunting in Colo some years ago I was sitting on a ledge watching a trail in a small meadow about 50 or 60 yards below that came up around close to where I was.
After a bit a doe came busting into the clearing with a coyote on its tail, I thought this should be good.
Well the doe started running the outside of the meadow in circles and before to long the yote dropped off into the scrub and poof another yote about 30 40 yards down took up the chase this tag team hunt went on for about 10 15 min till the doe was pooped and backed itself up into some brush to defend itself
well she lost, 12 Coyotes came out of the wood work and she was down.
It was like a pack of wolfs on her.
I will never forget the screams she made while dieing and being eaten, sent chills up my spine and was a bit hard to watch
Most amazing thing I have ever seen.

Elk

 

[gmherps]

I saw 2 fox skirting a cedar brush line.

 

[HardwoodsgreenH]

2 years ago durring early bow season, I saw a large moma doe with a spotted fawn attack a bobcat. She was all over that cat, chasing it around and around, knocking it down and pushing it, pawing it. The bobcat finally got away from her and ran off. Mom was pissed!!