Blood trail

[eastfork]

OK long story short we got on a whopper of a bull this morning mean my son did his 1st archery hunt the bowl came in between me and him he stuck in the shoulder I never seen a shot I heard his shot I Cow called the bowl world was able to stick another one and I'm in the front it was quartering towards me pretty hard.   It look like my arrow had 16" to 18" of penetration. The bull did not bowl or run he more or less stumbled in fact I thought he was going to tip over right there. If I the guess he actually looks sick he can a hunched up and wandered and almost teetered at 75 yd. Then he turned and headed for the brush there is a lot to rochus. I could see the all their trees thrashing around and I thought he has given off as little death thrash.

I was wrong after waiting an hour we went in and found fairly decent consistent blood but he never bedded down and he thrashed right through brush piles over logs through salmonberry bushes with really no rhyme or reason on his path. After falling consistent blood for 2 to 300 yd I decided to wait-a-bit longer. He had still yet to bed down after waiting for more hours we went back  2 searching. Following his bloodness tracks it seemed like he was very clumsy footed. There was consistent blood but not great. They almost seem like his main was blood soaked anything that he walked through or brushed up against would have blood on it. Along with drops on the ground. After about 685 yd from the shot to the last blood. In the pine needle Duff the blood was very hard to track.

From where he was hit to Las blood he pretty much was on a straight line.

Question is, Was he fatally here or is it just a flesh wound. Why has he not bedded down. Is he headed for water? I'm lookkng for everyone's thoughts. I need a plan for in the morning

[jstone]

One lung?

[Stein]

I'm no expert but that looks like lung blood, bubbles for sure in there but it is a bit dark 

If so, it depends if he got both lungs or just one.  If he went 300 yards I would say it's doesn't look good for double lungs.

[3dvapor]

get his direction and start again in the morning.  looks like gut liver shot dark blood.  Good luck 600yds is alot of ground but you never know.

[JimmyHoffa]

Maybe my computer screen, but looks like some of that blood could have come from a lung.

[Fatherof5]

I don't have much experience with elk, but I've seen a lot of deer head to water when wounded. Is there a seep, stream, or spring in the area?

[eastfork]

Yes. There is water. And he is in route to it.

[lokidog]

Good luck tomorrow, it's going to be a long night, I'm sure....

[Crunchy]

One lung for sure. 

[Quackwhacker]

Definitely sounds like one lung. Pray it caught some other vitals. They produce blood at an amazing rate. Hopefully he piled up next to the water and you find him. Good luck!!

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[JakeLand]

Maybe gather a crew up and do a grid in the direction he went

[jasnt]

Peroxide in a spray bottle will help you find blood.  Good luck

[HntnFsh]

Looks like 1 lung to me. I'm tickled for the rain we are getting, but I hope it holds off for you!

[trophyhunt]

Also sounds like you got part of the liver, look hard and long this morning, good luck.

[Old Man8383]

Stay on the track!  I've walked one or two trails of wound game in my life.  My guess is your bull is down.  Please consider. Hopefully you marked the trail when you stopped last night.  Lack of blood trail can be from clotting, or his bleeding out, lack of blood pressure reduces the amount that will flow out before they go down.  Since he's been stumbly from the start, his trail might not tell you if he's going down.  Usually as an elk bleds out he becomes less coordinated and his tracks spread out to maintain his balance.  If you can read this in his tracks then he's definitely going down.  Also when they stop running or moving fast, their tracks aren't so deep in the soil.  So the reason his tracks might become harder to read as you go along is that he slowed down.  Another good sign he's going down.  He's headed down hill, path of least resistant which is another good sign he's going down.  If I read your text right he was hit in the shoulder.  Shoulder wounds bother elk more it seems and maybe because they're concerned if they bed up they won't be able to get back up latter, but it's been my experience shoulder wounded deer and elk tend to walk and not bed.  If you got a lung or the liver they'll bleed out and die maybe on their feet.  Becareful you don't walk past him.  Some times they literally fall off the down hill side of the trail and if it's brushy their tracks just disappear and they're hidden by the brush.  Or they turn, step off the trail and go a little ways down hill as they start to blackout.  When the blood stops start looking up on the brush he would walk through.  You've already notice a high blood trail; towards the end before he goes down that maybe the only blood sign left.  I would not use a grid to search for him.  From the last known point you had his track (and make sure it's his track) put your best tracker on his trail and somebody with them to look on both sides and ahead for a bedded or downed animal.  Mark the trail (toilet paper) as you go.  If you loose the trail.  Go back to where you last had it and search from there to find it again.  If all else fails, have your party fan out on both sides of the line he was traveling and proceed slowly ahead.  He's probably piled up against an obstruction he couldn't get through or around or as he was passing out he turned and stumbled off the trail before going down.  Good luck.