Hunting mistakes and misses

[Snapshot]

Many years ago I was hunting mule deer in Unit 27 with my Dad. We were a couple miles from camp in the bottom of a big canyon. We found a nice place to sit down and eat our lunch. As we were sitting there eating and talking, two decent bucks had jumped up about 75 yards away and were hauling butt down the canyon. We scrambled for our rifles and opened fire the best we could, as the brush was thick and the deer were moving fast.

 

After searching the area for awhile, we found no sign that we had hit either of the deer, so we finished our lunch and moved on to look around some more. Good Times!

[CountryD7127]

this past Jan me and Crazy Buck was huntin javelina and we got into a group of about 15. They ran straight for us....I had on pinned at 20 yards behind a tiny bit of brush....i shot and heard whack.....he flinched and hobbled slowly away....or so I thought...i watched at least 4 or 5 more pig run all around me while i watched thinking i hit the first one...later to find out, they arrow deflected of the tiny brush and whacked right into a tree stump.....then we found crazy buck's arrow with blood all over it and never recovered the pig.

[couesdeerhntr]

A few years back i was with my buddy derick and we were hunting the august archery deer hunt. Glassed all morning only to see some does . Returned back to same spot that evening and glassed up two bucks working down the side of a hill into a creek bottom. Only had maybe about thirty minutes of light left so we knew we had to hall balls. We watched the bucks for just a few more minutes and i knew were they were headed. Put my backpack on with my bladder for a litle hydration cuz i knew i was going to be tired and thirsty. Got 3/4 of the way there an we busted threw a heard of javalina and i thought i had blew the stock because the pigs were right where i thought the bucks would be. Decided to go right to the edge of creek were there was an elevated spot and looked around for the bucks. after about five minutes Cought movement just below me and it was the spike at 45 yards right in open below me and just behind him at 55 yards was a big 3x3 coues. The spike had saw me but didnt no what i was and alerted the big boy in the back decided i was goin to try an shoot the spike so i drew my bow back put my fourty yard pin a little hi and my arrow went knowhere near the deer. Turns out my hose from bladder got in way of string and cause me to miss . Just my luck had it going for me even got to take a shot from a spot and stalk coues and i blew it oh well i am sure i will have many more of those

[azslim]

you can't anchor your bow shot with a call in your mouth, make sure you spit it out before you draw

 

 

few years ago stumbled up on a sow & red, knew there were more, tooted on the J-13 and the lead boar came running at me like a rottweiler with his mouth open wide, didn't know whether to $hit, run or wind my watch. He stopped at about 10 yds, was going to run the arrow down the length of him, drew and realized I still had the call in my mouth, let down and spit it out, drew again an saw my Trapdoor rest had went down so lowered the bow again, reloaded the rest, drew and watched the boar run away.

[200"mulie]

This past January i had my hopes up for a big coues that i had spotted in the afternoon chasing a doe and keeping couple forks away from her. They got into a draw i couldn't see my rovky point. So i decided to hike in couple hundread yards. And try and locate them again. As soon as i got threw the jungle (literally couldn't see more then 10 yards)i finally stopped to glass. Couldn't find anything so figured they are bedded down. I did the same took a 30 min nap. Started glassing again and seeing lots of does starting to move. I debated to move torward where i saw the big buck or not to. This went on for 20 more minutes got everything ready to go. But since i was at the edge of the "jungle" i kept an arrow knocked just in case. I finally decide to move, when i catch movement to my right threw the "jungle". Must of only been 10-15 yards.....i swear i saw something i keep telling myself. I raise my nikon binos...and look and look. And thats and eyeball!! and a base of an antler!....2 seconds later the deer bolts torward this small gorge that ran along the edge of the "jungle". I started calling to him. He stopped behind a tree...and i start ranging the top of the gorge 55-70 yards. Then starts walking along the gorge looking for that deer that was calling....kept on going, i drew my bow, he step out broadside at 65 yards. Put my 60 yard pin a little high, calmed down cause i was shaking this whole time. Released..and hear WHACK!!! I'm thinking yes i just shot my first deer and it was an archery coues!....Pick up my binos and calling at the same time to calm him down. He stops only 30 yards up the hill...and i get a good luck at him.... no blood????? He finally took off up the hill. Now i rush over to where he was standing and there is no blood but my arrow was there broken in half. Got up under neath a big boulder (Loud whack noise i heard) But no blood clean miss. Still had an hour or two left and saw plenty other deer, even the small 2x2 i missed. That night i thought how could i have missed?? I think it happened so fast that i didn't see that the buck ducked. Cause my bow was shooting dead on 20-70 yards before and after. But was a good experience and can't wait for August

[firstcoueswas80]

When I was 14 or so years old, I saw my first two coues bucks while hunting. My dad and I had them at 250 yards (60" or so bucks). I got ready on a solid cross beam of the fence (Wood, not metal) but sense they were feeding towards us, I elected to let them come. There was a small draw between us and needless to say, they never came out.

[Snapshot]

Back in the mid 1990's, I was sitting on a ridge looking into a deep canyon that came off the rim, in unit 27. I moved around some trees to get a better view of the upper canyon, but left my rifle and pack up against a tree on the other side 20 yards away. I caught movement out of the corner of my eye, and saw a big mulie buck moving in the bottom of the canyon. Of course my gun was 20 yards away. He must have saw me move, and took off into some thick stuff. I never did get a good bead on him, or ever see him again.

[JLW]

Simple mistake I won't make again...I ate really spicy peppers the night before a hunt. Three pit stops later on the way to my blind this August had me set back about 1hr late. I got about 70 yards from my blind and I'm staring at a really nice buck standing 15ft from the blind...grrrr I was cursing those hot peppers. MISTAKE that won't happen again guess I'm a gringo for sure

hahaha! that's funny only cause I can relate!

I definitely have to watch myself before a hunt!

I once glassed 3 nice coues bucks when takin care of business! blew the stalk after though! haha!

we dubbed that spot the shitty spot haha!

 

You glass while taking care of business? I'm not that good an multi tasking.

not usually but had a good view and saw some shiny things moving so I had my binos on and picked them up and bam 3 nice coues bucks just feeding maybe 500 yds out.

 

James

[POB]

Ten or eleven years ago I was hunting Javi's in January down by Canelo when i spotted a group on the hillside about 400 yds. away. I Snuck up to about 20 yds below a big boar and drew back when I noticed a small branch about 3/4'' hanging down across his vital area. Well knowing that I can't anything that small I went ahead and released the arrow, Of course it hit the branch, deflected under the hog, hitting the ground . This caused the fletched end to snap up and hit him in the belly, which in turn caused the pig to jump about four feet in the air,squeeling like mad, with all four legs spinning like some kind of cartoon. When he hit the ground he was doing about fourty MPH and didn't stop till he was about a half mile away. I just laid on the ground and laughed till I cried. He was the biggest boar I've ever seen.

[Elkhunter1]

During last Aug. bow hunt as I was driving up into one of my favorite canyons I came upon a vehicle in the middle of the road and two hunters sitting under a tree having lunch. After talking to them for a minute, they told me that the rest of their party was up on top looking for a 4x4 they spotted earlier. I spotted a good buck bedded under an oak tree just five minutes after getting to my glassing spot.

 

This shot is through my 20x60's at about a mile away.

 

After spending three hours climbing up to the top of the canyon I was about 150 yards from my target. I dropped my pack and started the sneak. I got to about 80 yards from the tree he was under when I found a three foot wide, three foot deep crevasse surrounded by decomposing granite. As I was contemplating my next move the good face wind I had stopped and the situation just got worse. As I tried to ease into the crevasse I heard what could only be described as a fart. After easing up to the rock outcropping I needed to get to, I peaked out around the rocks I was only 35 yards from the tree. The tree was still there but the buck was gone, I guess that "fart" noise was him snorting at me. NO SHOT TODAY. Almost four hours and about a five hundred foot change in elevation, all I had was a long walk to the truck.

[Antmo23]

I was on my first bull elk hunt and within the first 15 mins, my hunting buddies called in a 360 6x7. He came in with 3 cows, I stopped him broadside at what I thought was 45 ( I ranged the cows as they went by) and missed under him and absolutely smoked a P&Y ponderosa, lol. And to make matters worse, 20 mins and 300 yards later, I missed ANOTHER P&Y bull! Scratched him with one blade in his brisket. Before that moment, whenever I watched an elk hunter on tv say that "that was a great encounter, and it doesn't get any better than that" after a miss, I thought they were full of crap! But after it happened to me, well shucks, that was one of the best days of hunting I've ever had, and it doest get any better than that!

[KYLES96]

I was archery hunting down south when I drove up on a water hole. It was mid day during the August hunt and probably 90 degrees. I was on my ATV, I noticed a truck had just pulled out as I pulled in.

Being the truck had just departed, I figured there was no chance of anything in the area. I decided to walk over the berm to see how much water was in the hole.

I came over the top and saw a 160" velvet Mule deer walking in. I was 46 yards away from the buck (I later ranged it), my bow was 35 yards away on the front of my ATV.

I slowly walked back down to the ATV, un zipped the case and knocked an arrow. I came back over the top as slow and quietly as a person could. The buck was gone,,,,,I was absolutely sick. He must of heard the zipper. Aughhhhhh

[plee911]

This isn't a big game hunt and was about 20 years ago to boot but what the heck its still good for a laugh ( After the fact ). Was out hunting cotton tails with my little brother. I was 16 and he was 14 at the time. Being the older and better shot I had taken the 22 rifle and he had taken my dads break barrel 16 ga shot gun with bird shot since he didn't have to be as accurate. Well we were walking through a push area west of Heber and I spot a bunny. Line up take the shot and miss well this bunny runs around a pushed juniper and up into a hollow trunk that's laying over. Well I walk over to the stump and see its only about 2 feet long so I think I can reach up in and drag him out. (Don't get ahead of me now this doesn't end how you think) Well I reach up into the stump and I can just barely touch the fur but cant get a grip on him. Well I think to myself ill go to the end and bang my rifle on it and scare him out where I can get a shot at him. well as I go to walk to the back my little brother comes running up to see what I am after and I real quick explain that the bunny is in the trunk. Well I am standing right next to the base getting ready to bang on it and my lil bro yells ILL Get HIM. Before I can think or react he shoves the barrel of that shot gun all the way into the trunk and pulls the trigger. Well the trunk exploded and I thought I died. Several minutes later after I stopped screaming I realized that I wasn't going to die at least not right then anyway I start patting my self all over and wiping the blood from all the places I was bleeding from. Eventually I realized that the only damage I took was from the fragments of the stump exploding and that I am not seriously hurt. Well I get a case of the giggles that I cant stop and my little brother starts crying and cant stop because he still thinks im gonna die and the giggles are the end approaching. Well I finally stop laughing and convince him that I am going to be alright and he gets a cheesy grin and starts looking around. I ask him what he is looking for and he says the rabbit. I show him the red spray around the remainder of the trunk and the little pieces of fur and flesh laying all over and explain to him that he must have had the barrel of that great bug gun pressed right up against that poor little rabbit when he pulled the trigger. We both got our butts whipped by my dad after we told him what happened. My little brother for not being safe and me for not making sure he was being safe. Could have ended badly but still one of the best memories I have of hunting with my Little Bro.

[bigbuckfever]

I was on a rifle hunt for coues at one of my favorite hillsides about 20 years ago.  I got settled into my little spot on the side of the hill I had carved out on a previous trip and spotted five of six deer right away.  One of the bucks was about a 110 buck and I was pretty excited.  I laid down with the bipod extended and squeezed off the shot at about 250 yards.  I lost sight of him at the flinch of the shot and when I looked where he should have been, I saw nothing.  He had been standing at the front edge of the clearing and I wondered if he had fallen back into the brush along the edge.  I felt good about the shot but couldn't see him.  A few minutes later a doe walked over to where he was standing and cautiously sniffed and poked around the edge of the bushes where I just knew him to be.  She wandered off and another doe did the same thing.  This was all I needed to confirm I had a 110 buck down.   As I sat shaking I noticed another buck walk out of some scrub bushes on the slope.  He was a TOAD.  His body dwarfed the other deer still on the slope and his antlers were Oh My God size.  Here I am with an awesome buck down (yeah, right) and I can't shoot at one of the biggest deer I had ever seen.  He wasn't spooked so I crawled out of there and went back towards camp to find my hunting buddy Dylan to see if we could possibly get him on the toad.  He had heard my shot and was walking my direction.  We crawled back into my spot and he was still there.  The buck was walking away from us and about to crest the open hill.  I told Dylan not to shoot unless he gives him a good broadside shot, as a buck of this caliber deserves a clean kill.  At the last minute before disappearing, he turned to eat some fruit off a staghorn cholla, putting him broadside at 340 yards.  Dylan made the shot so we went to get out two downed deer.  When we got down there, there wasn't a sign of my deer.  Nothing!  No blood, no deer, nothing.  I must have missed him after all.  After spending what seemed like an eternity looking for my deer, we made our way over to Dylan's cactus and found blood.  The buck was only about 50 yards from the cactus and he didn't disappoint.  

 

I went back the next morning and shot a nice 3x5 at my same spot.  His antlers could fit inside Dylans buck.  Some mistakes are still painful after 20 years, lol.

[bigbuckfever]

Here's some pics of Dylan's toad and my 3x5