A banner day in the woods Pic added

[contender]

A banner day in the woods


Well, today was one of those days that will stand out for sure.

Our deer season ends on 1/2/22. So, we are getting down to the wire. I still had one legal tag to use locally. I've been trying to get that last buck tag filled. The weather has been EXTREMELY warm & not very good for hunting. (A new Christmas day record high of 71 degrees which broke the old record by 4 degrees as an example. Plus,, so warm I actually caught a copperhead snake for a lady on Christmas day.)

Well, we had a Low Pressure front come through last night & it rained some,, and then was clearing out by daylight. Still overcast,, not quite as cold as it's been,, (55 degrees at 6:30 am,) a bit foggy & dripping wet everywhere.

About 7:43 am,, a coyote came strolling in. I will ALWAYS shoot a coyote anytime I can,, even if it means missing a chance at a deer. Well, I shot him, and he hit the dirt in his tracks. DRT. Made me SMILE! Well, about 9 am,, a buck I had seen on camera as one I'd like to kill, can out. I immediately identified him as a shooter,, and was settling in for my shot. He spotted the coyote, and stopped,, and turned to leave quickly. I rushed my shot,, using my El Dorado in 45 Colt, and hit him. I knew by the way he reacted,, it wasn't my best shot. He ran off. I sat back,, deciding to wait a bit.
After about 1/2 an hour,, I slipped out to track him. I went to where he'd been when I shot,, no blood. I headed the direction he'd gone,, searching for any sign. None. I know the normal trails & such,, so as I searched,, WITHOUT any sign or such,, I covered a good area.

Lo & behold,,,, I found a shed deer antler, typical rack for an 8 pt buck, lost last year. Not much rodent chewing & in pretty good shape. A NICE find,, but still my deer wasn't there.

I backed out & started over,, slowly & carefully trying to find ANY sign he may have left. And knowing I'd already covered much of the area he'd headed towards,, I decided to search a different area. Deer OFTEN circle back to a place they had just been,, knowing they had been "safe" there. Well, about 100 yds away from where I'd last seen him, in a different direction from where he'd been heading,, I found him.

I'd made a "bad" shot. I hit him further back than I'd been aiming. I think it was because he was moving & getting ready to high-tail it out of there. Basically I gut shot him. It didn't cause much meat loss,, but I felt bad for that shot. However,, I KNEW I'd hit him, and I KNEW he deserved to be found.
Now,, NORMALLY,, I use my T/C Contender & make neck shots, dropping deer in their tracks. And having dropped the coyote,, (as well as killing a deer a few weeks back with it,) I was comfortable in using my .45. Yet,, this type of shot where a deer can run off bothers me a bit. Yes,, I found him. Yes, it was a "kill". But in my way of hunting,, animals deserve a better shot placement.

So,, a banner day in the woods,, by killing a coyote,, finding a shed,, and killing a buck,, ALL made it good. But I'll NOT forget my bad shot placement.

PS; If I can figure out how to get the pics off my phone,, and onto my computer,, I'll post a picture.

[clintsfolly]

Congrats

[seminolewind]

You took the only shot you had and made the best of it. Stuck with a difficult tracking job too. Oh, and killed a coyote. I'd say well done. Congratulations!

[onegoodshot]

Congrats!
Im a computer idiot and just learned how to post.

postimage.org
www.bing.com/videos/search?q=postimage&docid=607987045099128223&mid=DA4C04E2D0B43BA8E09EDA4C04E2D0B43BA8E09E&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

[parallaxbill]

You should be able to upload them directly from the gallery on your phone. I do it all the time.

[jfs]

good on the coyote and that you found gut shot buck...

[Odin]

Congratulations on sticking with a tough shot and seeing it through. I've never really had to track a deer in adulthood, but lost a small gut shot doe in my youth. I felt so bad, but I hadn't the skills or knowledge... it affected my hunting for years afterwards. So it's good to hear you recovered yours.

[contender]

Well, I was able to figure out how to transfer the picture from my phone, to my computer,, & then get it put here. I'm NOT the computer phart,, eeerrr smart phone type,, and it's a challenge for sure. But it only took me 4 tries,, so I feel good to finally get it moved over. It's MUCH easier to just use my normal camera,, but I didn't have that one with me.

It's been a LONG time since I had such a badly shot deer. But I have helped others in tracking their deer. I'm usually pretty good at reading sign,, but this one,, well, he challenged me. But I did NOT want to give up. Can't stand the thought of losing one,, and especially feeding the other coyotes around.

I do appreciate the kind words though.

I did hear that my neighbor killed a coyote this morning. I hope it's from the same pack. His was a female.

[squawberryman]

there's so much about that photo that is right and good

[KRal]

Congrats, contender! Definitely a day in the woods you won’t forget soon. I think the only thing that would’ve made that photo better, is if that 45 was in it.

[contender]

KRal,, I forgot to put the El Dorado & the Barranti NW hunter in that picture. Dern it! of course,, that picture is already quite full!

I did think of it much later,, after the yote disposal, and the deer cleaning,, when I was looking at pics.

[bula]

A good day for sure. 
my best friend, oldest friend, quit hunting years ago due to making a poor hit on a medium sized buck. 
he called me over to help. We waited a while then a tough trail. There was very little blood and other deer had been using the area and tracked criss crossed over each other. The deer bounced up and we both cut loose with the muzzle loaders. Clipped hair found, no better blood. Convinced him, we should go hom. He'll lay in the snow, we'll find him edible in the am. We did, but he never hunted again. We fish together yet, so it's not all bad. 

[45MAN]

bula: AS YOU KNOW SOME DEAD DEER RUN FURTHER THAN OTHERS, EVEN SOMETIMES WITH IDENTICAL HITS, YOU JUST NEVER KNOW WITH GAME. TOO BAD YOU BUDDY GOT SOURED BY THAT EXPERIENCE, WHICH ENDED WELL.

[bula]

Yes. He owned 40 acres in the middle of what's known as "Frog Alley". A swamp, surrounded by Amish farms. 
Had to go into the river to finish and get out, my best buck ever. Hmm.. me and my keyboard don't seem to be on the same page today. 

[junebug]

Now that's a cart FULL of I'm having a good day.