It went from good, to bad and then ugly fast

[maineac]

Or my" I hate it when" thread.
Saturday morning started great.  Got up on time, to my parking spot, changed and in stand in plenty of time.  Wind was perfect, overcast and cool, perfect for deer movement.  Watched two fawns, still in spots feed with no sign of mama.  Around 7:45 I look up from starting a text to Brad about it being a perfect morning for deer to move late, and here come two does.  I am i a ground blind and they are walking right at me.  The lead doe turns and heads right to the opening I am set up to shoot.  I draw as she passes behind a tree and she stops right in the shooting lane and snaps her attention on me. I was splitting my vision from the following doe as I drew to make sure she didn't spook, and this doe now staring at me.  I release before I really picked a spot, and the arrow is way low.  I can't believe it (it is amazing how fast you can think in these situations), I practice this shot every day and if anything I am a bit high. She drops at the shot and I see the arrow hit right behind the front leg.  It still looks a bit low, but could be a perfect heart shot.  She spins and is gone.  The second doe bolts, hangs around for a bit then blows and follows doe number one.  I sit and shiver for awhile, combo of nerves and increased heart rate moving cold pooled blood around.

After a about 15 minutes I get up a quietly sneak out to where she was.  NO hair or blood at the site, and I can not find the arrow.  I shoot a stumping arrow and there is no arrow anywhere along the track of its flight.  I slowly start to look and find some good blood.


A bit later I find the arrow



The blood trail is steady, but not prolific after this.  A buddy calls and I leave to go meet him and bring him in to help.  By the time we get back on it it has been almost two hours since the shot.  We follow the trail and jump both deer.  We back out to leave her for another couple hours.  The blood has been steady, but no bubbles and certainly not a heart shot so I am thinking I just punched between the skin and sternum.  However I plan on coming back around 2 to make sure.  

We load up in my truck, and I am a bit scattered, and want to get my buddy back to his truck so he can get home and finish his chores.  As we drive out I call Brad to update him, using the truck bluetooth.  About twelve miles into the trip and my buddy has turned off to head to his house I notice the para-cord I hang my bow from has no bow.  I pull over and check the back of the truck, no bow.  I realize I must have left it on my cap.  Not good.  I get back in to call my buddy, and the bluetooth registers no phone.  What the ...?  I look everywhere.  NO phone.  When my buddy go out of the truck he grabbed his sweatshirt and other stuff.  I thought maybe he grabbed my hone and he was close enough to me as we drove for the bluetooth to have worked.  I scoot to his house no luck.  He climbs in and we back track.  We find the phone along RTE 90.  I will tell you and Otterbox Defender case is not enough to save a phone that comes off a truck cap going 60.


Next we head back to where I park and slowly drive around the neighborhood a couple of times.  We finally spot it about a mile away, after a couple of sharp corners and pulling into a parking lot, dropping my buddy off and heading back out.  It is in better shape than the phone, but will probably get a trip back to the Dan Tolke to have the limbs checked.





So here is my advise.  Check and double check, and NEVER put anything on the roof of your vehicle while you adjust gear, or change clothes.

[Burnsie]

You find the deer?

[Kopper1013]

Sorry bout that, that sucks for sure

[buckeyebowhunter]

Rough day man, I've been there. It happens, keep your head up and get back in the woods.

[Chad Orde]

I have done that with my phone and a quiver, and a deer!

[Bvas]

Originally posted by Chad Orde:
I have done that with my phone and a quiver, and a deer!

You forgot a deer on the roof of your truck?  How did you even get it up there?  

[Hot Hap]

Mike-I did the same thing back in the late 80's or early 90's with a Widow. Put on truck cap and took off. When I came back I found it where I made my first turn. Landed in the grass/not a scratch on it. Sorry about your loss.
How's those wool pants working out?
Good luck-Hap

[wapiti]

I have had more than a few days that started well go completely south after a less than positive occurrence. I feel for yah man! Just have to let it go and carry on.

[Michael Arnette]

What a day :/
I've lost more than one phone in the woods too

[J. Cook]

Dang!!!!  That is a rough morning!

[dbd870]

Very rough indeed!  

[Marc B.]

Things will get better after a tough start like that.

[CRM_95]

Oh man that's not a good day at all..it'll turn around. It always does. Those days happen to all of us at some point I guess.

[ron w]

Been there with the phone and I hardly ever take one with me     .....lol. Hope the bow can be saved....any luck going back for the deer ??  

[Sam McMichael]

Well, you are due for a change in luck for sure. With your current situation, any change is likely to be for the better.

[Mint]

That sucks!

I did that once with a surf board. Learned that lesson over thirty years ago and never made that mistake again.

[jackdaw]

Sorry about your loss, but I love the honesty of your story...!

[vintage-bears]

Hell of a story.
Keep your chin up and carry on!
Good luck

[maineac]

Thanks all.  I have tried to keep a good sense of humor about it.I didn't add that it rained for the first time in a while.  Raindrops started falling as soon as I started the search. Called two blood hound trackers, both were out of town.  I am sure the deer is fine.

[Keith Zimmerman]

Sounds like a leg hit.  And by the looks of the blood.  She will be fine.  Good luck with the phone and bow.