The last 3 days was Maryland's 3-day Early muzzleloader season. I decided to carry my recurve to try and shoot another doe. About 9:00 a.m. I had a big fat gray squirrel running around the base of my tree. As I was was watching it I was thinking about all of the squirrels I have passed up with my bow because I didn't want to screw up an opportunity at deer but, I've never had deer come by right after passing up a shot at a squirrel. So, I thought screw it I'm going to shoot this squirrel.
I swap my broadhead for my judo point and proceeded to skip an arrow off a log an inch in front of the squirrels face. My arrow bounces out through the woods another 10 yards. I re-nock an arrow with a broadhead and no sooner hang my bow back up and I hear the unmistakable sound of deer coming my way from the direction I had just shot at the squirrel.
I grab my bow turn back around and see a beautiful 115"+ eight point coming up a trail that will lead him by me at 10 yards but, also happens to have my squirrel arrow laying on it. He gets to my arrow, stops and stands there facing me at 30 yards. I assume he smelled my arrow because at that point he makes a sharp right, leaving the trail and cutting behind me and downwind of me. As he comes behind me at 15 yards he catches a wiff of me and stops again, where I can't shoot, one step before a 10-yard long opening. I see his nostrils flare for a second and he makes three big jumps right through my opening, trots off to 50 yards and looks back at me. Of course the four does following him all line up in the middle of the opening, and my plan was to shoot a doe this weekend anyway, but I don't because he's still standing 50 yards away looking back. They ended up being the only deer I got in bow range this weekend.
Needless to say, I won't be shooting at anymore squirrels.
I swap my broadhead for my judo point and proceeded to skip an arrow off a log an inch in front of the squirrels face. My arrow bounces out through the woods another 10 yards. I re-nock an arrow with a broadhead and no sooner hang my bow back up and I hear the unmistakable sound of deer coming my way from the direction I had just shot at the squirrel.
I grab my bow turn back around and see a beautiful 115"+ eight point coming up a trail that will lead him by me at 10 yards but, also happens to have my squirrel arrow laying on it. He gets to my arrow, stops and stands there facing me at 30 yards. I assume he smelled my arrow because at that point he makes a sharp right, leaving the trail and cutting behind me and downwind of me. As he comes behind me at 15 yards he catches a wiff of me and stops again, where I can't shoot, one step before a 10-yard long opening. I see his nostrils flare for a second and he makes three big jumps right through my opening, trots off to 50 yards and looks back at me. Of course the four does following him all line up in the middle of the opening, and my plan was to shoot a doe this weekend anyway, but I don't because he's still standing 50 yards away looking back. They ended up being the only deer I got in bow range this weekend.
Needless to say, I won't be shooting at anymore squirrels.
