Thanks for all the help Hunt WA community.
I had a fun late archery season. Got into whitetail bucks and elk in my local area. Tough going with the snow.
Then hit areas south of Ritz for an archery special buck tag.I found that some of you were right about this tag. I saw a TON of deer! Not too many masher bucks but several that many of you would be proud to have on the wall.
Any way my third trip out I started figuring things out. With minimal cover, this was gonna have to be a belly crawler stalk on a bedded buck. I see two does on a low ridge, one kinda spots me so I duck out of sight. A few minutes later she’s feeding but still looking. So I start glassing her vicinity as she’s looking down ridge intently. Bedded buck. Several points and nice width. Looking away from me, sweet it’s go time! Back pack off, I hand and knee crawl toward what is the only real cover around, small sage bushes, maybe knee high. Range him, range bushes, quick math I’ll be to 40 perfect! As I pathetically crawling trying to not sound like a bull in a China shop, he lazily gets up and stretches! Darn this could be a do over. He’s not spooked just wandering around feeding. I keep going. I get to 80, need another 20 to do something. Oh yeah, doe bleat in pocket, make some noise. He non chalantly sort of heads back my direction. Once he’s within range I put the finder on him, 65, takes another step and looks away. Draw back, brain to autopilot, bubble, pin, release. Fletching buried and stopped! Looked kinda back but then we are our worst critics.
After looking in the wrong spot for blood, finally worked up hill to the point of impact and some blood, then more and more. I knew there wouldn’t be a ton because the arrow didn’t fully pass through. I found him at the end of a 100 yard jaunt piled up with an arrow poking out. Turns out it was a heart shot and took out some lung tissue as the whole front end was a clotted mess.
Learned a lot on this one, got some great advice from some of you, practiced longer shots all summer and into fall, and got on some great private land. Thanks everyone!