I knew the way the deer acted was not good for me. Probably an hour had passed when I climbed back up in my stand so I could kick my butt for screwing up! I didn't even have time to hook back up to my safety rope and here come another buck. Well he ended up stopping in the same spot the other buck was at when I shot.... I knew the distance now and took out my frustration on him. Not one of my finer decisions of my life. Oh I made a great shot and he ran about 40 yards and fell over...he was just not the caliber of buck I have shot the last 5 or 6 years! I had a buddy from Kentucky hunting with me that morning so I texted him what had happened and said I was getting down to see how bad of a mistake I had made! When we meet up and talked a little I said...Hey worse thing that can happen is we find the big buck and I'm bucked out for the year.
Well we waited 5 hrs and took up the trail of the bigger buck....no more blood was found! The next day I let the neighbor to the south know I had hit a big buck and told him the circumstances. Told him to keep a look out for birds or yote activity in the area. Never had I had a deer act like he did with the mule kick and have the heavily blood covered arrow but find such little blood on the ground... I was perplexed!!
Well exactly 21 days later I get a text from neighbor saying that he was hunting back by the river and saw a deer leg on the trail when he was walking in and would look when he got down later that morning . I sent him a couple trailcam pics of the buck I shot the morning of nov 11th but still wasn't expecting anything. He said it took him no time at all to find him....the story had come to an end! He had probably went 500 yards or so...about 400 onto neighbors farm. So I'm bucked out in Illinois!!! Had a great hunt with my daughter on sunday of our 2nd gun season to top off a pretty good season!
Glad you closed the book on that buck. It certainly sucks not recovering the buck quickly, however, at least you have some closure to the hunt. Both are fine bucks. How does an initially unrecovered buck, yet recovered later on work for the contest? Since you tagged it, would a pic of you with the head and bow and a brief story and then the pic of the dead buck w/ spine etc. count as your "bonus" deer since you did recover and tag it? Congrats to your daughter! That is fantastic. That's what it is all about!
I'm not gonna even ask to enter him in the contest even as a 50pt bonus deer. Hope we don't get beat by 45pts!! Lol Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J320A using Tapatalk
I messaged Fitz on it.. just out of curiosity. I have seen entries of bucks found afterwards... as long as their tagged.. however, it's your call... no stress here! lol Just glad you found him... I lost one this year and have had no closure... makes me sick to my stomach. Nothing worse.
Thanks, with a lot dying of EHD and all the poaching. It's been a rough year for me. It does get frustrating. I've seen a few last weeekend, but didn't have a shot. On a good note, I did buy this yesterday. Hopefully have it ready by next weekend. Sent from my SM-S327VL using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
Fitz just wrote back... He said we can enter ILL Bucks recovered deer as long as it is tagged as a bonus deer. Just saying... since you tagged it, it is legit. He says people have done it before.
I’d enter it for sure if burned a tag on it, I’d do the same. Sure is too bad things went how it did on recovery but at least the closure is better than nothing, and an awesome rack. I still go nuts over thinking of a shot or two with no final end from previous years. I woulda loved to have seen deer with healing wound or found remains just to know Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
congrats everyone, your kicking tails and taking names, i know the contest is NOT over but there is no way your going to loose. Congrats again
Well, I went out today and no alive deer seen from stand! I looked over and saw a doe laying about 60 yards from my stand. I walked over and it was a shotgun hole and it was not really a bad shot. I am guessing that it was from the neighbors property and they did not want to go on the property I hunt to get her. I do not like this since most hunters get a long with tracking deer. I rather have the deer taken off than left on the land to die.
I WILL NOT GIVE UP and have more tags to fill for my family to consume in the future! Had deer steaks tonight woot woot. LOL
Don’t give up dawg. I went out yesterday am behind house after that 8 pt I had in yard. Saw a nice red fox. No deer. Snow came fast. Had to go to wife’s Xmas party. As I’m getting dressed this pic fine through from where I was sitting in am. Ugh. Hope to see him tomorrow since we can’t hunt Sunday in mass Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
congrats there Ill hunter. that is a nice buck and glad you found him. plus it'll put points up for us and spread the distance out with the 2nd place team. I'm on going out to hunt a doe. Got till 2nd week of Jan to get that done. Dawg keep at him. you'll get him. I'm amazed how many bucks are still showing up on camera.
Western you use the camera that send pics to your phone? Which model do you use? Do you like it? Does it require a cell phone package on the camera?
