A long read but I need help finding a first time archers deer (14 years old_ I got a call yesterday evening at 5:30 from my cousin in law. He is 14 and I got him into archery this last summer. He arrowed his first deer (an 8pt) and they wanted to know about tracking it since they have always been gun hunters. First question I asked was where did he shoot the deer and his response was "Well I don't know, I was shaking to bad!!" He was excited. I then asked him about the arrow, dark blood, no bubbles, no green, did not stink. Liver shot, told them to wait a MINUMUM of 3 hours perferably 4. Well, I had some stuff to do and was trying to get over to them before they started and I barely made it. I tracked very light blood for about 50 yds and then a good puddle, then nothing, then a light trickle and then several good puddles. They were freaking out as I was going through the woods with a flashlight picking out these specks of blood at a walk. Then there was a nice size puddle and splatter between 3 trees and then nothing at all! As I went to my hands and knees they (2 adults) went around me and started walking everywhere. This was about half way up a pretty steep incline. I think he stalled there and then cut back and angled back down the hill but by then it was completely trampled on and I lost the trail. We ended up searching for 3 hours and then everyones flashlights gave out except mine and they called it a night. I'm heading back over this evening to try to pick it back up. ANy suggestions on what I should do now? It dropped in the 20's last night and the high today is 47 or so, will the meat still be good this evening? Any help would be great. BTW, when I showed up he and his dad just walked outside to meat another buddy of theirs and I hear the boy tell his daddy "Dad, I'll never pick up another gun. That had more adreninlin than even my football games!"
here is what i do that has helped me find many deer, mine and others over the years, trick passed down to me by my bowhunting "big brother" who happens to be the Commander of a SWAT Team in the midwest....tracks blood a lot 1. find the arrow and inspect it like you did 2. get a roll of toilet paper and rip off and place it by spots of blood that you find. doesnt have to be every little spot but enough so when you lose the trail you can turn around and see the "Arc" of the path of the animal! surprising how well this works. when the blood is "lost" and you continue the curve/path of the blood you'll find it again. 3. if that doesnt work check your rules/regs and see if you can use a dog 4. lastly get a bunch of folks 4-5... and start where you last saw the blood and fan out. in a line or in a circle 5. oh one more... go back to where it was orginally shot, they like to double back meat should be fine!!!!
Good luck. If you have a gps take it. Look in bedding areas, blowdowns, under pines, that kind of stuff. Meat should be fine.
I second the toilet paper suggestion. A few years ago I liver shot a big eight point. We trailed spec after spec for 150 yards and then lost the trail. We looked at the angle of the toilet paper we had marked the blood with and decided to walk in that direction. Fifty yards later there he was. Good luck
I was once told you can use a spray bottle and hydrogen peroxide and dried blood would still bubble up. and you can use a food coloring to make it different colored bubbles. Also, does the blood lights really work and worth the cash?
I read some reviews on the blood lights and there was a lot of mixed comments on them. I probably wouldn't spend the money on one.
meat should be fine. the toilet paper works as long as there is no snow on the ground. (just makes it tougher to see at night) If you go out with others, leap frog from one blood site to another. One person stays on a spot, while another looks for more blood. this eliminates your future trails from getting trampled, & lost forever. take your time. if you go to fast you will miss a speck. this yr I tracked a deer w/a friend of mine for 2 hrs in the dark. At times the speck of blood was 8' apart, and I mean speck. Look hard. If you absolutely loose the blood trail, time to break out in grids from the last blood site. this takes a few to do. one stays w/the last blood & doesn't move at all. 2 others or 4 others start a slow & meticulous line search about 6-10 apart moving in a line perpendicular to the last blood site. you start say east to west & return same way. when you've search 180 degrees of the last blood site, move out further & repeat again. last yr another friend of mine showed me this technique, & trailed a deer (that didn't die) 600 yds across 3 fields & found where he had bedded down. Good luck, keep at it & you'll find him.
I guess not much more can be said then what's been said already but I'll add one thing and then throw out some good luck as well!! It's to bad that some of the adult's had to get out front and wonder around foolishly (My biggest pet peeve on a blood trail). It sounds bad when you tell them nicely to get there buts back when there's still a chance of finding decent blood yet but It's something a person has got to do. Good luck and getting the boy his 1st bow kill!!
Sorry for the delay. I only have internet access at school. We did find it! A little basket 8pt. It was a liver shot and it did exactly what I thought. When I got there the boy's dad had already started the grid search and found it about 200 yds from our last blood. It did turn back and went back down the hill and traveled up a creek runoff and died about 10 yds out of the ravine. As far as the meat, he was still semi warm to the touch around his stomach and chest. It was probably a good thing we lost the trail, I doubt he was dead when we wer searching for him. Weird thing was, there was NO blood around him at all. Oh well, he got his first bowkill and now is hooked. His dad has now pick up his old bow and will be trying for his first until the end of the season! Thanks for the help guys and gals. I appreciate it.
congrats on finding it. there is 1 thing about this that kinda bothers me tho. il admit i absolutly love to bowhunt. i do get more of a rush with a bow than i do with a gun. but in a way it sadens me that he doesnt want to gun hunt anymore. if you believe in the 2nd amendment then this is a bad thing. the more ppl we have owning and shooting guns legally and responsibly the safer the 2nd is. i applaud the young man whole heartedly on his bow kill tho and good for yall for not giving up on it
Oh, he and his dad are gun nuts and shoot all the time. The kid owns more guns than I even when he was 7. In fact, they have a fire safe with 20 or so guns and still have them hanging on the walls in their rooms. He is not giving up on his gun rights, just don't wish to hunt deer with one anymore.
i bought it in august. over 1000 for the build i wanted. now that iv got it i cant find the time to put it to any use lol. maybe someday
Congrats on finding that deer. That's awesome that you found it, being his first deer and all. Now it's just years and years of psychotherapy for another obsession crazed archer.
