[Mil6161]

I hit a doe late yesterday afternoon...and lost the trail VERY early...about 2 drops of blood...and within minutes of getting off my stand it starts heavy POURING RAIN...
ARRRGGGGGHHHHHH!
I looked and looked...got lost in the Connecticut woods, in the pitch dark (Had to listen for a distant highway to find my way).....3 hours later no deer.....no arrow...no nothing.....
I learned a tough lesson last night...and the worst of it is I'm a teacher and I couldn't call in or use a personal day because of parent meetings....
I will look for it after school...kinda hot so there goes the meat.....
I feel terrible!
Just had to vent.....
Mil6161

 

[CMR]

Ya still sick to your stomach?

Last year I shot a doe. I heard something crack/thwack on my bow and shot a little far back on her. I waited an 1 hour and a half before I started tracking her. Had some good blood sign and tracked her to the swamp on the property I hunt. It was getting late so I held off until the next morning. Started tracking her where I left off. She kept doubling back at least three times and after three hours tracking, I couldn't find her. Last drops of blood were heading into the thick cottontails and the blood stopped. Couldn't find her.
Still makes me feel bad......

 

[Mil6161]

sour!

I had alot of trouble sleeping.....man this is tough to deal with.....worst then I thought it would be...I know how one of my buddies felt last year....he face looks just like mine as I looked in the mirror this morning..........

 

[hoyt3]

I lost a doe last year after a hit that was a touch too far forward. I found literally 10 drops of blood and my broken arrow. I know she made it. I looked all friggin day, even through the rain like you said. I knicked a doe that I shot at a few years ago in rifle...bullet was deflected and killed another doe. the bullet knicked the doe I was after in the tail. guess what, I killed that doe on the third day of rifle this past season...I'm looking for the doe I hit last year. you just may get another opportunity at her.

 

[old Graybeard]

Bad break for ya but it happens sometimes.

 

[TheCamoGhost]

that is the worst feeling! Was the hit good? Keep us posted. Flingr

 

[AdvanTimberLou]

it happens, your doing the right thing by going back today after work, I hope you find it! Keep us informed.

 

[Mil6161]

hit....

I think I hit the shoulder.....It is so think and swampy where I was hunting it could have been under the brush, ferns, swamp etc.....
It was dark and raining I felt like I was in a horror movie....fisher cat ran by me...bats were flying around....
I'm lucky I made it out in the time I did.....

 

[CMR]

Since the blood might have been washed away by the rain, keep in mind to look at the plants/bushes/etc.....look for bent or broken limbs. They'll point the way the deer went.
Good luck!

 

[Matt G]

What part of CT?

 

[buckfeverben]

Chris,

I feel your pain....I lost a doe myself down in CT on opening day, between the rain washing away the sign, and the warm weather limiting my recovery time frame, it can be very tough this time of year.

However, just remind yourself that in nature, nothing is ever wasted. Not to mention you are still helping control the population at the very least.

 

[Dude608]

Lost my first deer I ever shot still makes me sick when I think about it. Made every rookie mistake possible on that deer.

 

[Mil6161]

Northeast corner....

What part of CT?

Thompson.....

 

[Meat]

At least you feel bad

I think the key to this is that you feel bad about losing the animal. I talk to so many "hunters" who don't even care that they lost an animal. That makes me sick as well.

I lost my first deer with a bow. A friend and I searched for 2 hours in the fog and misty rain to find nothing. I was sick for days thinking what I did wrong and what I could have done different.

Keep your head up! Happens to us all. Learn from your mistakes.

Meat

 

[Meleagris1]

Sorry to hear that. Good luck in looking for her.

Shooting deer in the evenings is tough. Luckily I am self employed and can take the next morning off, but I would so much rather shoot a deer at 9am, get out of the woods, eat lunch, relax, tell the story to a buddy, and get back in the woods with plenty of time and daylight to search. Of course I still hunt evenings, I just keep this in back of my mind.

The other thing is weather, especially on evening hunts. I always watch the weather to see if rain is coming. If we have rain fore-casted, I still hunt, but may hunt different locations (places where its easy to find a downed deer) and I am especially conservative with my shots.

Even doing this though, things can still go wrong. It happens to ALL of us. The important thing is that we never stop learning, and we keep hunting.
Good luck!

 

[SEOBowhntr]

I think the key to this is that you feel bad about losing the animal. I talk to so many "hunters" who don't even care that they lost an animal. That makes me sick as well.

I lost my first deer with a bow. A friend and I searched for 2 hours in the fog and misty rain to find nothing. I was sick for days thinking what I did wrong and what I could have done different.

Keep your head up! Happens to us all. Learn from your mistakes.

Meat

Good Post, Meat!!!

I think this statement:

"key to this is that you feel bad about losing the animal."

Speaks volumes. I know many guys who wouldn't have even put forth the effort if "it was just a doe!!!" This attitude makes me sick. But these are mostly gunhunters. Most of the bowhunters I know, like myself, will put on a very good effort to retrieve an animal, be it a doe or a buck.

I lost what would have been my first P&Y buck 2 yrs ago, and after a large grid search, like nearly a square mile, I resolved the I had trespassed enough, and was likely not going to find him. Broke my heart, not only because it was such a great buck, but because I felt I'd failed in my obligation to take the animal quickly and cleanly. Losing deer happens, regardless of who you are, and how good you are, even Chuck Adams has likely lost an animal or two in his illustrious hunting career. Practice, Practice, Practice, and try to make sure the next one comes out in your favor. Persistence and patience pay volumes in bowhunting.

 

[slinger09]

If you hunt long enough it is going to happen. Don't let it get you down. Learn from it and go on.