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Author Topic: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....  (Read 5979 times)

Offline saylean

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Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« on: September 13, 2008, 08:56:49 PM »
So, tough for me to admit, but I lost my first animal ever (animal I have hit).

Story goes:

I head up to a blind a 1/4 mile up a hill (not really a blind, just underneath a tree which is blocked by another dead tree) yesterday morning after deciding to finally elk hunt and leave the coug alone...

Last year, I missed an elk (arrow hit a branch) in this exact same spot.

I am not there more than 10 minutes (I just cleared all the needles and pinecones so I could sit quiet) and shot ranges for where the elk would hopefully appear. I contemplated making more clear shooting lanes but decided to sit.

I am basically under a tree which is in the woods about 70 yards down from a sage plateu in the woods.....overlooking 3 intersecting trails. A dead tree laying down (still has needles on it) blocks my immediate view in front, but behind and left and right are open lanes. A trail runs directly in front on the "blind"...

Anyway..I am sitting there no more then 10 min and I hear crash crash...from my far right (of course where I cannot see). I am looking and looking...cant see the noise maker,...but its getting louder.

I blow on my cow call lightly to entice...nothing comes barging in..but the noise is still on the way..

The more I hear it, the more I think it is cows (moo moo) or a heard of elk...finally I see elk through the dead tree...and lo and behold..a spike! They are coming on the trail directly in front of my blind (within 2 yards or so)...

They are getting so close now, that I have to make my move otherwise I wont be able to be ready as they will be past the dead tree infront of me. I draw back and aim where they are coming by my blind (like I say...very close...4-8 feet).

A cow walks by..and another and a calf..and a gorgeous 5 point....and a cow and another...so now I have like 6 elk within 4-8 ft of me and all I can think is WHERE IS THAT SPIKE as my arms remind me of the need to work out more...

about a minute and a half or 2 passes..and now..adrenaline and fatigue are setting in...im starting to shake...and the bull is smelling something...and they are all eyeing this strange thing in front of them...no spike...I let the bow go slack..

BOOM~!...the bull took off down the hill so fast that he PLOWED over this cow that was directly behind her, knocking her down...the herd exploded.

My peripheral vision picks up the spike, who had seperated to my right (with a clear shooting lane)..but he is trying to hop over some fallen logs at a frantic pace..

My cow call in mouth, I blow on it 4 times very quickly, he stops broadside at about 45 yards (estimated)... center of 3 and 4th pin behind the shoulder and release...ThWACK!

NO! I think I hit a tree branch again by the logs...cause of the sound. I go over and check for blood..sure enough..a hit...found the arrow with no tip left (busted off), 3/4 lenght of blood on it...none on fletching.

The trail of blood was about as easy to follow as fast as you could walk..for the most part...there were times where we did have to look really well. But I give him a half hour head start. Down hill I go and across hill...more blood..blood all over..I think I will find him anytime.

My bro catches up...helps in the search...another hunting member comes from below (after bro and I have tracked across 2 gulleys and waited an additional 20 min) and jumps the elk who is hit high behind the front left shoulder. He was bed down when he jumped him and just jogged off.

We decide to wait an hour to really give him time...which we do. Where he was bed down...blood on the bed and sticks...where he walked too..a nice clot (one of several perviously found)...the tracks led sideways along the hill...but just petered out...no tracks that we could see and no blood...it was a rough track near the end.

We searched all day yesterday (total of 5 people searching all over...up, down, over, under, around etc) and I go back this morning and searched until I had to leave....I can only assume that I shot high and missed the vitals...and he just clotted up and carried on as tough wild animals do.

It sickens me. I am headed back later this week and will be searching the hill side to see if he survived at all..and if he did (I can only assume he will be easily spotted, plus he had unique spikes...short fat ones)...I will do what I can to take him down. My hunting party will also be hitting the hillside, from tomorrow on, since they are still there.

Anyway, I know it happens, but its the first time to happen to me...

I debated about posting this or not..but decided to for the sake of showing mistakes.

Flame on~

PS...saw 30+ grouse
12+ turkeys
100+ elk
4 coug encounters
several deer including a forkie and a 3 by 4
and several sheds..
« Last Edit: September 13, 2008, 09:24:35 PM by saylean »

Offline tlbradford

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #1 on: September 13, 2008, 09:04:22 PM »
No flames, they are one tough animal.  Really bad luck that he got jumped from his bed.
Dreams are forever on the mind, realization in the hands.

Offline Ridgerunner

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #2 on: September 13, 2008, 09:07:11 PM »
That SUCKS, probably one of the worst thing about hunting is losing critters, I lost a deer once to a gun malfunction(really not good) and recently lost a bear.  Major bummer and definately puts a damper on things, hopefully someone turns him up, sounds like it was a good hit.

Offline MichaelJ

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #3 on: September 13, 2008, 09:07:46 PM »
Thats rough bro, but thanks for posting!  This site is more than a hunting site and people should realize that they can post the dissapointments along with the success stories!  I've ALMOST been in that situation and trust me, it aint no fun not finding an animal...  Good job in searching all the next day!  That's an easily left task as every minute seems like hours!!!  Best of luck in the next couple days!

Michael
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Offline saylean

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #4 on: September 13, 2008, 09:08:08 PM »
Really bad luck that he got jumped from his bed.

agreed....the trail was very easy to follow before that happened...from there on..it was a ghost.

and thanks to the rest.  ;)


Offline ShirtGuy77

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #5 on: September 13, 2008, 09:26:19 PM »
Why would you say "Flame On"?  You are doing all you can to find this animal, which is very respectable.

Now if you would have said, "we have done all we can, and it appears this animal was not mortally wounded....so I hunt on." then I would expect you to get roasted.

Personally, keep looking, and if you don't feel you fatally wounded this animal, hunt on.

Offline DeKuma

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #6 on: September 13, 2008, 09:27:07 PM »
I appreciate you posting your trip and the disappointments that go along with it.  I know it sucks, and you feel sick, but we have all been there or will at sometime or another.  Rest easy bro.  You deserve it.   If you ever need, you know I am here.
- Scott

Offline saylean

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #7 on: September 13, 2008, 09:29:09 PM »
Only posted Flame On cause this is the internet...where flaming is more frequent than in San Francisco...

Of course..I forgot I am on hunt wa.com...where most are very cool. If I posted this on say...Craigslist I would get death threats.  ;)

So..ya..  :)

Offline GEARHEAD

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #8 on: September 13, 2008, 10:38:30 PM »
I'm not going to say don't feel bad, because you will....for time time. i did the same thing a while back, first bow hunt, first day, and at 20 yards stuck a cow. arrow appeared to be embedded about 2/3rds in, right up tight behindthe shoulder, as i watched her runaway with my arrow in her.  began following a good blood trail, or so i thought. a father and two older sons (fsr 21, near Packwood, maybe 1997, if your on here thanks again) helped me, and located the blood trail. i followed that trail up hill for half a mile, until dark and batteries ran down. took it up the following morning for another half mile, when the blood ran out, and the track, disappeared within a heavily used game trail. for a few years straight, i would revisit the area, hoping to find my arrow or something and to this day it bothers me and have not picked up a bow again, yet every year i want to. i will always regret it, but to this day i can't figure out what happened, as i saw what appeared to be a perfect shot. i guess sometimes, *censored* does fall on your head. sorry for your experience.

Offline ShirtGuy77

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #9 on: September 14, 2008, 02:38:28 AM »
Only posted Flame On cause this is the internet...where flaming is more frequent than in San Francisco...

Of course..I forgot I am on hunt wa.com...where most are very cool. If I posted this on say...Craigslist I would get death threats.  ;)

So..ya..  :)

Well, at this point I think we all realize this isn't your average site.  I have never seen a more positive site that supports what we all do and the style in which we do it.

All the other sites are BS in my opinion....

Oh yeah, 38 days until Monroe Pull Out...(when I head to Idaho for my elk hunt)

Offline Hunting Cowboy

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #10 on: September 14, 2008, 06:06:59 AM »
Sorry to hear. It has to be one of the worst feelings. I've lost a couple of black bear and both times I enlisted the help of friends & family who assisted in dedicated and exhaustive searches. To come up empty handed is one of low points of hunting. Especially when doing everything  possible to recover that animal.

For me, I was heart sick about not making the recovery, not that I came away without my trophy. (If that makes any sense) It's something I beat myself up over for a long time. My advice is "Don't beat yourself up!" Don't let this experience sour ya. You'll be that much more appreciative of your future recoveries.

Offline elkaholic

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #11 on: September 14, 2008, 07:53:49 AM »
Thats a feeling in your gut that is just miserable, hang in there!

Offline PA BEN

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #12 on: September 14, 2008, 08:03:53 AM »
If it makes you feel any better elk can live and a lot do if hit in the shoulder, as long as infection doesn't set in. It sounds like hitting a tree with a baseball bat. A friend of mine hit a cow in the shoulder, she ran, stoped, bit the arrow, pulled it out and ran off, never to be seen again.

Offline boneaddict

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #13 on: September 14, 2008, 08:06:17 AM »
No flames allowed!  It will eventually happen to anyone, if they hunt alot.  Only time flames would be allowed would be if it happens over and over again to the person, or they didn't put the effort in to recover the animal, neithr of which is the case here.  Sorry Saylean, its a tough thing to endure. It is an aweful feeling.   I hope all turns out well.  They are an extremely tough animal.

Offline Ray

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Re: Lost my first animal ever...heart broken....
« Reply #14 on: September 14, 2008, 08:31:25 AM »
People do flame. But anyway I'll say what I said in my personal message. You'll get another elk some other time. I know the feeling all too well since I lost that nice bear in the wilderness just a few days back. I'm looking for redemption and it will only make me better as I am sure it will for you too.

 


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