Well, coyote gotta eat too

[Buffboy]

Hunting corn, only choice because that's where the deer are and it's still too wet to bin. Had a few passes on small bucks and does. Let a big mulie doe walk with her two fawns too. Too early in the season to be shooting wet does. Anyway, in the 3rd corn field with my short 454 carbine, "nice" buck, standing 30 yards, only can see it's neck and head, hate neck shots, but it's all I got. Drop the hammer and a cast 325gr flat point smacks hard, I hear it hit. Buck goes down in a heap. I reach down for the sunglasses and small binocs I'd dropped to shoot, it's up running/staggering right at me. I short stroke the rossi and click the empty case that had fed back into the rifle.

Brother and I track the blood trail thought the corn for about a 1/4 mile to the end, it heads for another strip we were planning to hunt but we've lost the trail.

I take the end because I think it's in there. There are 4 of us 150 yards apart and we are staggered 100 seconds. I get about halfway through this 50 acre, half mile long strip and there he is, laying with his butt to me at 25 yards. Click, I'd just cocked the hammer, and forgot the short stroke from before. Lever a round in, aim for the base of his neck again as that's really the only shot I got, (again, I hate neck shots) hear the bullet hit. He's off and running down the rows. I loose sight in the corn. I get turned around and can't even find where I shot from. *multiple expletives deleted*

Brother crossing down further crosses the blood trail, says it's a lot more than before, he stomps a bunch of corn to mark the spot, continues through, because he didn't know I'd hit it again. When we clear the field, we try to find his mark, we try for a couple hours and we can't. Brother has to leave to go back to the Hills. I go back to see if I can cross the blood trail, or maybe find the deer, gridding the strip. About half way through, getting close to dark, cell phone call, Dad's car is broke, won't start, I gotta go get that running. By the time I do, it's dark, and there's no way I'm gonna find it in the dark. I was having a hard enough time staying oriented in that 8 foot tall stuff in the daylight. Coyotes have found it by now, all that will be left is bones and probably darn few of them.

I'm tired, sore, it's been 20 years since I didn't recover a deer I've hit and I'm not happy about it.

[don Tomás]

Some days its chicken and some days its feathers. Thanks for the reminder that stuff like this does happen to other folks as well...

[kimwcook]

Neil, that just sucks, but that was your kharma for that day.

[AJMD429]

Like you said - coyotes gotta eat, too. Still a bummer.

Think how many deer are hit by cars and stagger off to a similar fate, though. Overall, we who hunt probably cause the most humane kills vs. automobiles or packs of wild dogs or disease, and 99% of the time we get the meat as our 'reward'. The other 1% goes to the coyotes.

Better luck next time. Corn's wet here too, and it's really made hunting harder.

[rjohns94]

Very sorry for your lost deer. I have lost one, bowhunting and i still don't know how i lost it. I watched my deer drop from the stand and waited just a bit long, got down from the stand walked to where I saw the deer go down and nothing. No blood, no deer, no tracks. I looked for an entire weekend and other than where I hit the deer, no blood, no arrow, no deer. Was sick about it for the longest time. Perhaps the crows or jays or buzzards will lead to that deer. Blessings

[deerwhacker444]

I feel for you. I lost one with my bow a couple weeks ago. Shot looked good, got plenty of penetration but couldn't recover it. I guess it happens. Maybe he'll be like 86r's 5 horned hell goat and live for another day.

[Nath]

Bad luck Sir.

Nath.

[20cows]

I shot one that must have vaporized.

[FWiedner]

Yep..., them big bores is impressive.

Tough break. We'd like to think every shot was perfect, but 'taint so.