Halloween BT Buck found at last

[Band]

Expecting my usual disappointment of unsuccessful local Blacktail hunting at the end of the season I felt like I was on autopilot when I wandered into the deep, dark woods after work on Halloween.  This particular area was close enough to a housing development that I didn't feel comfortable using a rifle so I carried my bow instead.

I had hit the edges of these woods a few times before but just couldn't bring myself to plow through thick vegetation highlighted by too many blackberries for my liking.  This day I decide to do just that and am eventually rewarded with finding an old overgrown road which makes the going much easier.  After a couple hundred yards I find what looks like an old fruit tree and go over for a look thinking that apples in a deep forest would be a welcome treat for any deer in the area.  None are to be found.

I look up and see a huge rock that looks way out of place about 40 yards away.  Further investigation reveals that it's shaped a lot like a deer.  Let's see, if it were a deer there would be a head about right there.....hang on a minute....holy crap, this rock has a face and it's staring right at me!

It looks big for a Blacktail and I get really excited and start fumbling for my range finder for a little bit of magnification to see if I can find bone.  I can't, the forest is too dark to make any out quickly and then the deer walks a few steps to my left, still broadside and following the road I had just left, putting a patch of trees between us.  I parallel to my left and the deer stops to look at me again.  This time it only looks to be about 20 yards away and it's not as big as I thought but I see about a 12" wide rack that looks like it likely has 2 or 3 points a side so I draw back my bow and thread the needle just over some tall grass that covers the bottom half of the buck and the arrow sails.  Thunk.  Perfect shot just behind he shoulder blade - my 20 yard estimate must have been right on the money!

The buck doesn't move a muscle until the arrow hits home and then he takes off, continuing up the road and quickly disappearing into the thick forest.  I watch and listen intently for his direction of travel but it has been raining most of the day and dry, crunchy leaves on the ground the day before are now damp and quiet, and I quickly lose sight of him amid the brush.

I want to give him 1/2 hour but it's raining, quickly washing away blood evidence, and it's going to be pitch black in a bout an hour.  I consider my options and decide I have to go after him.  I sneak over to he point of impact and find my arrow.  A pass through, good sign.  I begin my search for blood and find it sparse, very sparse.  The last place I find it is only 30 yards from the hit so I guess that he takes a game trail downhill to the left.  The blood trail disappears completely.  I start getting really worried about my ability to recover this buck given the conditions and decide to do a quick grid search where I think he has gone.  If he is still alive, maybe I can get another glimpse at him and maye another shot, if necessary.  And if he's dead I want to open him up and begin the cooling process.

Darkness falls and desperation takes over.  This is the 23rd big game animal I've shot and the first I am in danger of not finding by nightfall.  I consult my GPS to find my way back out and start thinking about how I'm going to manage to take the next day off work.  And then it hits me, occasionally someone on the forum finds themselves in this boat and they put up a post for help.  Hmmm.

What are you thinking, Band?!  Those guys set themselves up for tongue lashings from others far and wide, and with your reputation you're going to get verbally assaulted from all sides.  Don't do it!!

But I did, and man am I glad about it.  I quickly secured two willing volunteers and spent a sleepless night trying to figure out where that buck might have gone.

Elk247 arranged to come by at 9 am which allowed me to take care of some work stuff.  We meet and greet and then head to the woods.  We review the shot, direction of travel, and the only piece of blood evidence still remaining after the rainy night and then get to work.  It's tough going.  We expand the grid search I had done the night before and bust throughout some of the most gawdawful thick brush you can imagine and come up empty again and again.

We go back to last blood and Elk247 gets a wild hair about the trail going UPHILL and then eventually finds the tiniest speck of blood on the face of the planet and it breathes new life into the search.  Blood disappears again so we follow what appears to be the most likely route and I find the mother load of blood, finally with what we can tell is lung blood.  The problem?  The blood trail starts going off in two different directions!  We languish over possible routes and then we get the call from Kenzmad.  His work is done for the day and he's on the way.  We meet up for lunch and then back to the grindstone.

We spend a couple more hours trying to solve the mystery of the blood trail split and grid searching and then we hear a call from Elk247.  "You guys are going to want to come over here".

That's right, our resident blood hound has followed a possible route of travel and found the buck!  Here is the ATL pic.  As you can see, some critter has already began the feast.



Here is the mighty hunter with his prize.



I'm a Seahawks fan.  Be quiet.

And here are my new buddies Kenzmad and Elk247.  Shoot your animal, call them, and go watch TV.  They'll do all the work for you.  Trust me on this.



After 13 man hours of searching, in the future I may think twice about taking a bow shot while it's raining just before dark in the thick forest.  Hey, I DID warn you guys about the thick forest, right?

[huntnphool]

Way to go guys!

[3nails]

 Very cool to recover the animal! Great job in seeking help on here also. Outdoorsmen help each other when needed. Nice buck also! Most of the meat was still good?

[hunting4sanity]

Glad you found your deer, sounds like there are still some good guys out there, awesome job.

[Turner89]

Cool story Band. Nice blacktail also.    Good job guys helping out

[Band]

Very cool to recover the animal! Great job in seeking help on here also. Outdoorsmen help each other when needed. Nice buck also! Most of the meat was still good?

I had to cut off a portion where the animal chewed on that back leg and the inner thigh area of the back legs had some bone souring, unfortunately.  But yes, most of it was salvageable.  I'm guessing the small body and cool temperatures helped in that regard.

[Becky]

Way to go guys! Both those guys have been tremendous helps to people on the forum numerous times. 

[bendotti]

 

[blackveltbowhunter]

Awesome buck and story! Congrats

[h2ofowlr]

Nice work. I would imagine their are more than a few deer and elk that are lost due to the challenge of finding blood trails.  It's nice when it works out in your favor.  How far did the deer travel from the location you shot it?

[Taco280AI]

Glad you kept at it and found him 

[Bigtine96]

Good team effort, way to get it done guys

[carpsniperg2]

Glad this worked out and you got your deer. Some great members on here

[Wea300mag]

Great Hunt-WA teamwork. 

[dc1608]

good job guys on staying with it.

[Band]

How far did the deer travel from the location you shot it?

We all guesstimated 150 yards.  I just reviewed the waypoints on my GPS and it looks to be about 180 yards.  Must have been a tough little guy.

[Blacktail Sniper]

Great job to all involved!   

[zackmioli]

congrats on finding your buck and good job putting in the work to do the animal justice. congrats to all involved.

[Rooster1981]

Cool story, and congrats on a nice buck.

[bowhunterforever]

Nice work guys Congrats

[3nails]

 So is he busted up on his right side or is that how he developed? Might make a cool euro.

[GUscottie]

Congrats to the hunter and a kudos to the two men who helped another out!

[Band]

So is he busted up on his right side or is that how he developed? Might make a cool euro.

That back point busted off.  Looks to me like it happened while he was in velvet.  I'll be skinning the head, sawing from the back of the skull out through the bridge of the nose, boiling it, and putting it on a plaque.

[Savage3006]

Congrats! Glad you were able to recover and salvage it. Kudos to those who helped find it, too. Nice job guys!

[FSTaxidermy]

Congrats! great recovery job, way to stick with it guys 

[dougdrake]

Nicely done fellas

[MLBowhunting]

Nice job guys

[elk247]

Band- Thank you for giving me the oppurtunity to be on your blood trail. Congrats on your blacktail buck  kenzmad- thank you for the help and the cope. Good luck with your dad. I wish you guys the best!

[kenzmad]

Band- Thank you for giving me the oppurtunity to be on your blood trail. Congrats on your blacktail buck  kenzmad- thank you for the help and the cope. Good luck with your dad. I wish you guys the best!

Thanks man, we leave saturday for montana for the cow hunt. Nice meeting you and your nose is welcome in my camp anytime Band, nice buck and ya, that was some thick stuff typical westwrn wa stuff though. Hope to see you guys around sometime, and ELK247, pm me about your septic issue

[elk247]

Pm incoming

[akirkland]

Love the brotherhood. Its refreshing honestly. Nice buck by the way.

[kenzmad]

Pm incoming

You got one too.

[KFhunter]

pretty cool right there