Don't look now ladies, but the Bunnies are making a charge. [video=youtube_share;xE6qgQHK6Pw]http://youtu.be/xE6qgQHK6Pw[/video] So I'm not going to post this and act like I made the world's greatest shot on this guy. I didn't. It was Friday evening, and I perched over a white hot scrapeline. I had a strong inclination that there was one buck in particular who was the likely culprit. I was right. He came in tending scrapes and was quartering-to at a 45 degree angle when I drove an arrow through the ribcage (just behind the front leg), and angled it out through the liver, paunch and belly. I took the shot that I was given. I'm a hunter. Sometimes Mother Nature just decides that she's not going to give you a perfect broadside shot. One look at the arrow, and I just backed straight out. He needed time. Fast forward to 2:00 today. The blood trail was minimal, and there were moments where I began doubting myself. The weight of the world was weighing on me like an anchor. If I didn't get this buck, I was honestly going to hang up the bow for the balance of the season. We've all been there and felt the abject sickness of archery failure. The sweat soaks your hat to the brim. Stress headaches set in. You question your shot and wonder if the angles measured out the way that you remember. You lecture yourself about your decision-making. Every single detail of the hunt is placed under the microscope. Mistakes are magnified. I did what anybody else would've done. I pushed on. Finally, I saw this. Sweet Mary. You know, there's something serene about seeing a big monarch buck in a scene like this. What a way to end it. What do you say about something like that? Honest to god, I put on a lot of mileage, and this was one of the coolest sights I've ever laid eyes on. This guy was a warrior. Despite the massive organ damage and wound channel, he managed to cover the better part of 400 yards, never once laying down, until he just couldn't go any further. He went into the water with no sign of struggle, no drama. He just sunk in there and took his last breath with nobody around to even witness it. Nature is amazing. There were several bluegills feeding on the open wound and hanging out around his head for cover. The water in this old strip pond was like an aquarium. It was really something. I wish you guys could've seen it. L H1 - 4.75 H2 - 3.75 H3 - 3.75 H4 - 3.5 G1 - 5.25 G2 - 4.75 G3 - 6.25 G4 - 5 AB - 1 MB - 21.5 R H1 - 4.75 H2 - 4 H3 - 3.5 H4 - 3.5 G1 - 5.25 G2 - 4.75 G3 - 5.75 G4 - 4.25 AB - 2.25 MB - 21.5 IS - 21.5 140.75
I hit a rabbit on my way to work this morning. Has to be a bad sign for the Fuzzy Wuzzy Bunnies.... Congrats on an awesome buck though, and great pictures to go along with it. Shot scenarios like that will happen if you hunt long enough, but in the end you got the job done on a beautiful buck!
Fran... Copy this and save it to Notepad... YOU are the King of Archery. You talk a lot of smack, and back every word of it up... Truly, Congrats buddy... that is an awesome deer. Congratulations.
Thanks for the kind words, fellas. Man, I feel so good to have it end the way it did. I seriously was thinking that it could've ended in a sad story. Aaron - You're not having such a bad year yourself. You're all over that score sheet, bro! Congrats to you on a great season so far. You might need to take up the art of smack talk. Just don't take any advice from Tony. You'll go buckless for the next 25 years. Cole - That's my favorite picture from this whole hunt. Every successful hunt yields that one picture that you plug in as your screensave on your phone. The water picture really captures the wow factor on this deer, and captures everything about his will to survive. From behind, he just looks really impressive. And to see that, just submerged in a dead-still pond, frozen in time. It really was something that I'll never forget. In all honesty, this buck is framed-out, and he looked awfully impressive on the hoof. He scores better than I'd guessed (I undershot him by 7-8" on my estimate), but he just doesn't really take great pictures. I think it's because none of his tines are parallel. It's hard to get an angle where you can see the real tine length on him. The water picture is probably the best look at him, honestly. Man, his guts were COLD!
Congrats on a great buck and thanks for sharing the story with pics and words. Blessings......Pastorjim
Way to go, Fran ... that is one impressive buck and story! You put in the effort, you deserve that guy! Way to go, Brother!
Fran Congrats on the buck ole buddy! He's a stud! Enjoyed the story and the awesome pics. Did he come into tend the scrapes near dark? Just curious.
What a great read! Congratulations Quik on a super buck. I can't get over those water pics, that's one tough deer.
Awesome Bunny. Glad it ended well. Backing out on a bad shot seems easy to talk about and harder to do. Great buck.
