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Unfortunate Events Lead to Missed Opportunities

T

Tknapp

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 8, 2022
Messages
257
Last evening i got set up 30 yards from the edge of a known buck bedding location. I set up and the night was going well. Doe's passing thru to feed and a small spike. The spike on my weak side keeps looking behind him nervously, so I suspect a bigger buck is approaching. I spin myself backwards on my platform to get a good weak side shot. after 10 minutes of nothing coming I hear a twig snap to my strong side. A descent 8 point is making his way thru the thick toward me. I having plenty of time and a good tree blocking me from his view rotate into position to take the strong side shot. at the end of my rotation my tether hits my range finder connected to my gear strap with a gear tie and it somehow comes unhooked and my rangefinder falls. on its way to the ground it managed to hit my my platform. the top step and the bpottom step of my top step then hit the top of my second stick to then hit the only rock in the woods to make a terrible cracking sound. Needless to say with the buck at 35 yards he deciced he didn't need to be there and left.

What unfortunate event have you had happen that ruined your chance at a harvest?
 
Not that. Most others you might could think of but definitely not that one. LOL, I feel your pain. One of the first deer I had an opportunity to shoot with my bow, as I drew, I watched the arrow slide down the rest and fall to the ground. Didnt hit anything and didnt make much noise when it stuck in the ground but enough to make the spike I was about to shoot turn and leave. Unfortunately for the deer when it turned to leave, that turn put it broadside to Dad at 20. So not only did I not make sure my arrow was fully nocked but Dad shot MY deer before I could get another arrow on the string. It was an awesome hunt that I can see as clearly in my mind as if it happened yesterday. Got me some learnin's and WE got a deer. :)
 
It happened on Ohio private land many years ago.
I saw 3 deer together about 100 yards away and something seemed odd with what I was seeing. The 1st was a normal spike but it was that 2nd deer that was strange. When I got a better look I realized it was a very pretty piebald 6 point...just a yearling but it was the only piebald I've ever seen while hunting. It was beautiful, maybe 40% white.

Then I saw the 3rd deer...a gorgeous 10 point probably in the 160" class. He was perfect in every way.

They (very) slowly were working their way towards me.
Finally after an hour or so, the spike walked right through my shooting lane at 12 yards. 25 yards behind him came the piebald. He too walked right through my shooting lane and I could have easily shot him but 40 yards behind him was the 10 point and he would surely come down the same trail and offer a gimme shot.

At that point the spike and piebald were somewhere below me maybe 50 yards away. But I wasn't paying any attention to them. My eyes were locked on Mr Big. I already had the recurve part way up and a little tension on the string.
The wind was perfect and stable. It really looked like I was finally going to get a crack at an Ohio bruiser.

I was fully in position for the shot that was sure to come in less than a minute.
Then, out of nowhere, the spike and piebald came busting back up the hill and past me in a panic. Needless to say, all 3 deer vacated the county.
WHAT THE (expletive) JUST HAPPENED??!! Then the culprit(s) emerged...3 lousy, miserable, rotten, stinkin mutts were out for a trot thru the property! I've hunted that property for 27 years now and that was, and still is THE ONLY encounter I've ever had with dogs running loose.
The 3 mangy mutts weren't even aware that they just chased out one of the best bucks I've seen to this day. They were just out for a romp but the real killer was their timing. Had they been 1 minute later, JUST ONE MINUTE LATER, I would have had a slam dunk at that 10 point.
To this day I still wonder...would I have rather killed that buck or those dogs!!
Haha, maybe just as well...I probably would have choked!
 
bigmike23 said:
My beast stand autisticly screeched at a buck 15 yards away
Click to expand...
You have an autistic beast stand?

I had something similar happen to me when I hunted out of a summit viper tree stand. A nice 9 point was working in and I had to turn to shoot. I had a carabiner on my linemans loop of the harness and I forgot about it. I pinged off of the only piece of the stand the wasn't wrapped or covered..... needless to say he didn't stick around..
 
I dropped my rf'er from up the tree just the other day. My hunt was over. I have zero depth perception and completely rely on it - however, no deer around so it didn't mess up anything else.

I did have an incident a few years back in my climber. I have a 3rd hand bow holder on my climber and it allows me to climb up and down with my bow at the ready. I can stop in mid climb and shoot going up or down. When I use my climber I hook my safety harness to my tether and put it as high as possible and raise it as I go up and lower it as I go down.

I got to maybe 4' off the ground and I hear something. I'm dead still and silent and notice a group of doe maybe 45 yds off. My intent was to step off my climber real quiet and quietly move to a spot that would've given me a 30-35 yd shot. I guess I either thought I was closer to the ground than 4' or sat there quietly so long I just forgot. I never unhooked from my tether and took what I thought was a small step and got jerked back and fell all over everything within a 2 mile radius. I spooked deer I didn't even know was there.
 
Similar to @Allegheny Tom ‘s story but with a smaller buck. Just happened last season.

The Buck Escaped

Ugly feeling inside. I'm in a tree for 5 hours yesterday and 20 minutes left of daylight a nice 8 pointer (min) walks 50 yards from my tree. i call him to me and he is slowly walking my way as a result of interest in my doe decoy. My heart is bumping b/c I'm patiently tethered and hiding...
saddlehunter.com
 
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biggest buck of my life (easily pope and young) trotted right under my stand while i was at full draw....my shadow was cast on the ground right in front of him....i was low in the tree...as i rotated slightly downward to shoot an easy shot....he saw a human looking shadow move in front of him and ran away like he'd hit the nitrous button...at least that's what seemed to happen, maybe he winded me
 
I had this guy in my yard, right behind the archery target several years ago; late October. Two does in the beanfield had his attention, and I was about 80 yards away in a tripod stand at the woodline. A snort-wheeze got him heading my way, and then I caught movement to my left. My neighbor's barn cat, a pure white tom, was moseying along the treeline, sticking out like a sore thumb. Buck spots him, spooks back toward the does, and that was all she wrote. Saw him once more right after a downpour, 15 yards from that tripod...which I wasn't in...because of the downpour. He was taken a week later by another neighbor during blackpowder season.Screenshot_20200927-134543_Gallery.jpgScreenshot_20200927-134556_Gallery.jpg
 
paradocs said:
I had this guy in my yard, right behind the archery target several years ago; late October. Two does in the beanfield had his attention, and I was about 80 yards away in a tripod stand at the woodline. A snort-wheeze got him heading my way, and then I caught movement to my left. My neighbor's barn cat, a pure white tom, was moseying along the treeline, sticking out like a sore thumb. Buck spots him, spooks back toward the does, and that was all she wrote. Saw him once more right after a downpour, 15 yards from that tripod...which I wasn't in...because of the downpour. He was taken a week later by another neighbor during blackpowder season.View attachment 73620View attachment 73619
Click to expand...
I hear cat tastes like chicken.......
 
2 quick ones:

1. I was setup on a field edge and had multiple does feed toward me. More than willing to fill the freezer with one, I let them get inside 20 yards for an easy shot and slowly started to draw my bow. Mid-draw, my d-loop let go, firing the arrow in a slow motion arc over the closest deer’s back. Naturally they didn’t stick around.

2. I was watching a nice 8 pointer in velvet work his way across the side of a hill right toward me. He got to 25 yards and I drew my bow because no matter which path he took from there I had a good shooting lane and should get a high percentage shot. Unfortunately, I did not know that there was also a deer behind me who spotted me drawing and blew multiple times while running off! The velvet buck froze behind a tree with no shot angle. He stayed there for about 5 minutes, watching and listening nervously while I was as still as can be, hoping he’d still come by me. But eventually he just turned around and walked away.
 
Somewhere on this forum in the past I’ve relayed my peeing on stand stories and basically in a “nut”shell, I failed to take two 130-150 class bucks within 30 minutes of each other going by my stand due to a full bladder!!!
 
It was in my climber days. Went out Wednesday after our opener to a spot i hadn't been. Climbed up, got settled. Look to me left and see feet coming, fast and right to me. I stood up, grabbed my bow and was directly under my stand. So I shuffled my feet to spin 180 degrees. Came to full draw but couldn't turn my upper body far enough. I looked down to find a golf ball sized limb between my cam and string and couldn't shoot and he busted me
Went back the following night but switched trees. Faced the direction he came from the night before. It was raining lightly and couldn't really hear a thing. Same deer came in from behind me and got to 10 yards to my right. Never did get a shot at him. If i had to guess this buck was 150+
 
In the last five years two events regarding 11 pointers have defined my losing streak (other than some does to fill the freezer)… in 2018-19 I drove 2.5 hours back and forth to a farm chasing one deer. Friend lost his cell phone at camp and we got into the woods 45 mins late. Finally I’m climbing the tree and the buck slowly walks by at <10 yards just as I’m getting to the stand. He walks off.

Last weekend a 3 year chase culminated in another obsession buck <10 yards being surround by six others in a bachelor group, they were all around my tree and I just could not get drawn.

these two encounters were the only times I’ve seen each of em.EFBDB987-1E27-4194-BB16-766F2D16FC4E.jpegF96110E0-4F9C-4550-8271-AD914DB45A9D.jpeg
 
Kicked a buck out of his bed a week ago. Hunted him the next day and he came in the back door on me and spotted me moving. Snorted and walked away.

Decided to go back in tonight. Wind was swirly and not sure he smelled me or even if he’s still in the area. Can’t use cameras on the property so I have no idea and can’t keep track of him

Hoping I didn’t miss my one chance on this nice mature whitetail. However it is what it is. I knew my first sit would be the best and i simply set up wrong. Learn and move on
 
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