firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted October 25, 2006 so this year, i think i might do a little hunting by myself. im wondering what you all who hunt by yourself do if you shoot at a buck. heres the scene: the buck is 400 yards off ( or what ever distance) your laying down prone and have the buc your sights. at the shot, you loose sight of the buck because of the recoil. how do you kow if you hit the buck? how do you know where it went? how do you find the spot? this is the only thing that really worries me about hunting by myself, please shed some light thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shortpants Report post Posted October 25, 2006 Take your time. Study the area in the bino's as well as with your naked eye. Pick out a landmark that will direct your eye to the spot where the buck is. If you can film the shot off a tripod that helps. Just like with archery, follow through on your shot. Concentrate on the target even after the gun goes off. Move only your trigger finger nothing else. have your bino's handy but don't panic and grab them right away. If you lose him in the scope take a second to look for him in the scope. Don't panic! If you can't find him in the scope look with your naked eyes for a running deer. If he's on the move you'll find him with your naked eye even at 400 yds. Watch where he goes and get another shell ready in case he stops. Don't take your eyes off of him even for a second. If you can't find him with your naked eyes grab the bino's and glass the spot where you shot at him. Watch for him to move down hill and into the lowest spot. Don't panic! Put the bino's on the tripod and really pick apart the area. If you never saw him run away then he's there somewhere and probably dead or on his way to dead. If you filmed it review the film. After an hour or more slowly work your way over to the last spot you saw him. If you get to a spot where you can see pretty much all of his escape routes, stop and set up. Now throw some rocks his way and be ready. Never lose your original landmark. If nothing happens, slowly work towards the landmark and look for your buck or any sign of a hit. Don't panic! Good luck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted October 25, 2006 a possible solution i had though of was this: have the binos affixed to his position before shooting. after the shot, if he is gone, look through the binos and see if it is possible to see blood, broken rocks or hopefully, a dead deer. if the dead deer is not there, i was thining using marking tape and put several pieces around the exact place i was shooting from, range the area again and when i get to the general direction of where the buck was, range back to where the tape is and go from there turning over every rock for blood or a deer. how does that sound? thanks for the long reply! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ultramag Report post Posted October 25, 2006 that same thing happened on my first coues.It was almost dark, 375 yards, I set up prone, I sqeezed the trigger, the gun went off, recoil made me loose the deer,I did not know if i hit him, before the shot I found a group of ocitillo he was standing buy and there was a doe next to him,after the shot the doe was still there and looking at the direction the buck was standing she later ran off. I have a feature on my gps that gave me a bearing so I followed it and found my first buck dead in his tracks I could ot see him from my vantage point where I shot due to the brush. Its a good problem to have if it happens. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted October 25, 2006 "Its a good problem to have if it happens. hoping thats what happens to me! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
COUESAZ Report post Posted October 25, 2006 I always know if i made the shot count by the return of the thud. Make sure your eyes stay open the whole shot. I am not saying that to make you sound like a wimp that flenches or is scared of a shot. But you would be suprised at how many hunters i have seen shoot will blink in that split second of recoil. If you keep your eyes open you will see what way he goes. Snug that gun in tight and firm and the recoils should not throw you off far enough to lose site. All the info shortpants gave was good. I would say that your naked eye is your best chance after the shot. If you shoot and he is no longer in site of your scope my guess is he is flat butt running down hill from you in a high rate of fuel consumption. If it is a good shot like you will make he will most likly drop on the spot Thus still in your scope site. The hard thing will be to not lose him after he is down. So make sure you mark your shooting spot very well as well as the spot you shot him at and where you see him down at. This way you have three locations to go back to and trace your shot again. To many people make a great shot on a great buck and waste it to not being able to find it. I have lost one deer in my life. It was an archery buck . I found it four days later about 20 yards away from the spot i thought i saw him go down. By this time he had some coyote eating on him and he may have been drug to this point. I am not sure. My brother and a friend lost a booner of a buck two years ago because they could not remember the exact spot they shot from. OOPS it took me to long to finish the post with putting the kids in bed. It sounds like you are thinking right on with marking the shooting spot. I would not waste the time at first to jump up and look through the binos for blood . I would be looking for a deer running away from the are. And if at all posible to hear him running from the area. This is hard if you do not have your ears protected during the shot. I have a set of foam plugs for those time i get to set up the shot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ultramag Report post Posted October 25, 2006 GOOD LUCK....IT JUST ADDS TO THE STORY Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
COOSEFAN Report post Posted October 25, 2006 I think one of the biggest problems I've witnessed is taking too much time trying to find the deer in just the scope. Definitely scan fast with the scope the immediate area of the shot, then pull away and look over your scope with your eyes scanning the whole picture for any movement. Always be ready to shoot fast and stay in your shooting position until you are positive nothing is moving. Like has been said already, landmarks are your #1 tool out there, I will make mental notes on several landmarks and there proximity to where I want to be when I'm over there. Marking your shooting position with flagging is a great idea, never forget exactly where you shot from! Another common problem hunting solo is when there is several deer near your buck. After the shot, deer are running all over, you just have to be certain you are always on YOUR deer and that can be tough. Always alot better to have a spotter with you! JIM> Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ghost hunter Report post Posted October 25, 2006 I'm almost always hunting solo (some times my choice, others not) but I haven't lost one yet. (Knock on wood). Shortpants had alot of good ideas, and you hit on one I've used. If given the chance, I'll wait on the shot until the buck is either near a readily identifiable landmark before shooting or wait until he's in the middle of the hill (gives me a follow up shot if needed while he's still very visible). If he's gone after the shot, I know he's down some where close to that area. The other that I've used, was to set my spotting scope up directed at the bedded herd of javies on my archery hunt. As I worked my way to them, I kept looking at the scope with my binos, until I could tell I was looking directly back through it. By then, I knew I was close anyway. You could use this with your example of having the binos set at the shot. Hunting solo is fun sometimes but it makes you change your style because you have to factor in safety. Good Luck Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted October 25, 2006 "The other that I've used, was to set my spotting scope up directed at the bedded herd of javies on my archery hunt. As I worked my way to them, I kept looking at the scope with my binos, until I could tell I was looking directly back through it. By then, I knew I was close anyway. You could use this with your example of having the binos set at the shot." i could see this working.. only problem is i dont use a spotting scope and i only have one pair of binoculars. i guess i could use my scope on my rifle. lots of good ideas. keep em comin Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
missedagain Report post Posted October 25, 2006 Very good topic Casey, thanks for starting it I have been in that situation a few times where after the shot the animal has just disappeared. There is probably no cure all answer, but there is definitely some good advice on this thread. Sometimes I will use landmarks a few hundred yards away from where the animal is. Such as picking something on the skyline and approximating the animal to be about x degrees from that. Never be in a hurry to leave the spot you shot from, the blood trail or the animal will be there when you get there Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kilimanjaro Report post Posted October 25, 2006 Casey, or you could just not hunt alone!! Not only could all that stuff mentioned above happen, but its just plain BORING to me!!! I always liked having mi amigos or my old man there on my hunts.. makes for a more memorable hunt to me.. Besides, those deer get awful heavy carrying out all by your lonesome! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
COOSEFAN Report post Posted October 25, 2006 Casey, or you could just not hunt alone!! Not only could all that stuff mentioned above happen, but its just plain BORING to me!!! I always liked having mi amigos or my old man there on my hunts.. makes for a more memorable hunt to me.. Besides, those deer get awful heavy carrying out all by your lonesome! Completely agree! I remember my solo kills FAR less than the ones shared with family and friends! Besides, in todays world....especially in Coues country, it unfortunately is too dangerous to be out there by yourself. I was in 36B last year ALONE and didn't like it one bit! I was going to kill the first buck I found just to get home, took all the fun out of it......except for the few moments that I had a buck spotted and killed! Take a buddy, someone will go! JIM> Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted October 25, 2006 i totally agree on trying to not hunt alone. but some days my dad just flat out doesnt want to hunt hard. and, in all honesty he cant hike like i want to. i want to get out there and hike and kill a nice buck this year so this leaves me only with this option. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DesertBull Report post Posted October 25, 2006 I prefer hunting by myself. I hunt as long as I want to, quit when I want to, go wherever I want to go, eat the food I like, etc. I have only a select handful of people that I share my hunting time with. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
