Post by jack on Sept 17, 2022 10:44:59 GMT -5
This morning was the opener of a private land doe only season around here. So as much as i have been enjoying the squirrel hunting the past couple days, I thought I would slip out this morning and see if I could not wrangle some back straps for breakfast. About 7:30 three does made their way down a run about 75 yards from my stand, and one was notably bigger than the others. I had a fine rest and although the light was still pretty poor in the deep wooded area I was hunting I got a nice broadside shot so i let fly.
I was toting a newish Magnum Research BFR in 500 JRH - 7-1/2" with a 2X Burris in place. This is a set up I purchased for my Africa adventure in 2024, and this was in fact first blood for this rig. I was shooting a 400 gr SWC, dropped from one of Miha's fine molds and powder coated, fired off with a charge of Titegroup, at a nifty 1150 FPS. A finely accurate load in this pistol, and a near duplicate of a load I have used for some time in my 500L.
The result:
Sorry for the poor cell pic - some dummy left the camera in the "vanishing zone" (Kitchen table) this morning.
The shot was actually 76 yards. She made it 34 yards after the hit. And there we go - breakfast backstraps . . .
The thing is, I had figured on taking a pic, pontificating a bit about my story and then we move on. But it turned out this particular deer incorporated so many things that we try to teach to newcomers and kids when they take to the field, lessons that often get overlooked, that I thought I would pass them on - forgive me if I am being windy!
First, was my follow through/observation at the shot - If you notice the wound under the trigger guard, you can see it is not to bad for centering up top to bottom, but is clearly a bit rearward from ideal. As I started my squeeze, I was tight behind the shoulder and rock steady on a good rest. Just as I felt the trigger break I very clearly saw the deer taking a step forward. I heard the impact and knew it was a hit, but i was immediately concerned about the possibility of a poor hit. Rather than zip right down to investigate and risk pushing a deer that may have been hit too far back I took about 45 minutes break to let her stiffen up if need be. We always stres follow through to new shooter, and this was a great example of SEEING where my crosshairs were at the break. I was pretty confidant it was a solid chest hit - but caution rules. And as exciting as getting rough down range to see what happened can be, it almost never hurts to give them a little time just in case.
Next lesson was when i reached to spot the deer was standing. NO BLOOD, nada. I carefully searched the fairly flat clear area where even small traces should be visible. Nothing. The tracks where the deer exited were quite clear - the skid marks my son calls them. And I had seen the direction the deer was headed when it hit the brush, so the careful search began. 34 yards does not sound far - it is not across a parking lot - but in thick cover, lots of briars along the run, deep shadow from the heavy forest canopy, and ground cover that closely matches a deer natural coloration and it can SEEM like a mile! Having hunted this area for decades I had a good idea where a deer was likely to run, but slow and steady, trying to follow the kicked up dirt were i could find it, and making VERY slow arcs was the order of the day. After a half hour of looking for tracks, or blood, or anything, I looked head and saw a spot of white beside a cradle knoll and there she was. Very dead. I back tracked her a little before setting to the chores, and the first spot of blood i found was about ten feet from her. NONE from there all the way back to the point of impact. And the lesson here; is that this is not so uncommon. They can take a while to start leaking regardless of the diameter of the bullet. It was a good double lung hit, chest was full up, but the hit was a tad high and back and she hadn't filled up enough to pour out til she ran out of gas. As we try to press home to youngsters and newbies DON'T GIVE UP till you are ABSOLUTELY sure of a miss. I had seen my cross hairs and heard the impact, and these observations convinced me I had a good hit - STILL, I would be lying if i said there was not a nibble of doubt in the back of my mind as i failed to turn up even a few drops of blood! (Did I see wrong, did something deflect my shot, did my scope give out, etc) A lot of things can sneak in your mind if you let them - KEEP LOOKING.
Anyway - a little leg work and a little Sherlock Woodsman - and the real work began. Gotta go finish the chores up for now.
I was toting a newish Magnum Research BFR in 500 JRH - 7-1/2" with a 2X Burris in place. This is a set up I purchased for my Africa adventure in 2024, and this was in fact first blood for this rig. I was shooting a 400 gr SWC, dropped from one of Miha's fine molds and powder coated, fired off with a charge of Titegroup, at a nifty 1150 FPS. A finely accurate load in this pistol, and a near duplicate of a load I have used for some time in my 500L.
The result:
Sorry for the poor cell pic - some dummy left the camera in the "vanishing zone" (Kitchen table) this morning.
The shot was actually 76 yards. She made it 34 yards after the hit. And there we go - breakfast backstraps . . .
The thing is, I had figured on taking a pic, pontificating a bit about my story and then we move on. But it turned out this particular deer incorporated so many things that we try to teach to newcomers and kids when they take to the field, lessons that often get overlooked, that I thought I would pass them on - forgive me if I am being windy!
First, was my follow through/observation at the shot - If you notice the wound under the trigger guard, you can see it is not to bad for centering up top to bottom, but is clearly a bit rearward from ideal. As I started my squeeze, I was tight behind the shoulder and rock steady on a good rest. Just as I felt the trigger break I very clearly saw the deer taking a step forward. I heard the impact and knew it was a hit, but i was immediately concerned about the possibility of a poor hit. Rather than zip right down to investigate and risk pushing a deer that may have been hit too far back I took about 45 minutes break to let her stiffen up if need be. We always stres follow through to new shooter, and this was a great example of SEEING where my crosshairs were at the break. I was pretty confidant it was a solid chest hit - but caution rules. And as exciting as getting rough down range to see what happened can be, it almost never hurts to give them a little time just in case.
Next lesson was when i reached to spot the deer was standing. NO BLOOD, nada. I carefully searched the fairly flat clear area where even small traces should be visible. Nothing. The tracks where the deer exited were quite clear - the skid marks my son calls them. And I had seen the direction the deer was headed when it hit the brush, so the careful search began. 34 yards does not sound far - it is not across a parking lot - but in thick cover, lots of briars along the run, deep shadow from the heavy forest canopy, and ground cover that closely matches a deer natural coloration and it can SEEM like a mile! Having hunted this area for decades I had a good idea where a deer was likely to run, but slow and steady, trying to follow the kicked up dirt were i could find it, and making VERY slow arcs was the order of the day. After a half hour of looking for tracks, or blood, or anything, I looked head and saw a spot of white beside a cradle knoll and there she was. Very dead. I back tracked her a little before setting to the chores, and the first spot of blood i found was about ten feet from her. NONE from there all the way back to the point of impact. And the lesson here; is that this is not so uncommon. They can take a while to start leaking regardless of the diameter of the bullet. It was a good double lung hit, chest was full up, but the hit was a tad high and back and she hadn't filled up enough to pour out til she ran out of gas. As we try to press home to youngsters and newbies DON'T GIVE UP till you are ABSOLUTELY sure of a miss. I had seen my cross hairs and heard the impact, and these observations convinced me I had a good hit - STILL, I would be lying if i said there was not a nibble of doubt in the back of my mind as i failed to turn up even a few drops of blood! (Did I see wrong, did something deflect my shot, did my scope give out, etc) A lot of things can sneak in your mind if you let them - KEEP LOOKING.
Anyway - a little leg work and a little Sherlock Woodsman - and the real work began. Gotta go finish the chores up for now.
