Mightyrjq
11-02-2005, 01:31 PM
Got one last night while archery hunting in a "commercial area" on the border of Newport News/York Co. There is a narrow funnel between a swamp and a highway that I have been hunting ever since my father-in-law told me of a huge 6 pt. The first night I went out I saw him, and he was right - this was a 19-21" spread deer that wandered this stretch of woods. Never got him last year, every time it was something different - wind was wrong or he would sneak up behind me at 2 in the afternoon and hustle across the shooting lane while I was half asleep. He may have gotten that big because he was so smart. At the end of last season I saw him running with 2 other bucks. Last night I shot the small one of the bunch, but hey, I ain't passing up a 15" 8 pt during archery! [grin]
It was getting late and the deer were moving, though nothing had yet come within range. It was at that time of twilight when one side of you is too dark to hunt when he emerged from the woods about 20 yards on the dark side. Luckily for me I have a habit of having my bow ready to draw during the last half hour of shooting light. (I developed that habit last year when he crossed my path really fast and I wasn't ready) He was on the move and luckily for me, he passed under my stand - I drew the bow - and continued into the light side. At first he gave me the perfect quartering away shot, but he then turned slightly more away giving me a less than optimal, but still acceptable moving shot. I didn't want to whistle and didn't have time to get my grunt call to stop him. I shot, he flinched, tucked and ran. Good hit, but how good??? Now the good part is that it happened so fast that I didn't even have time to count points and get buck fever, I just knew that he was a shooter. I gave it a couple of minutes and retrieved my arrow. Blood, but not a whole lot. I returned later, found a sparse blood trail which led to a huge blood trail and then ultimately to a nice deer laying about 75 yards from my stand. I use a chisel tip - expandable broadhead and it did the trick. However, because of the grazing angle of the shot, it left a 4 inch gash in the ribs, but the chiseled tip buried in - went through a lung and exited through his chest. It was enough to do the job.
The toughest part was getting him home in my Honda Civic! (dressed and quartered him in the field)
Hope these photos upload...
It was getting late and the deer were moving, though nothing had yet come within range. It was at that time of twilight when one side of you is too dark to hunt when he emerged from the woods about 20 yards on the dark side. Luckily for me I have a habit of having my bow ready to draw during the last half hour of shooting light. (I developed that habit last year when he crossed my path really fast and I wasn't ready) He was on the move and luckily for me, he passed under my stand - I drew the bow - and continued into the light side. At first he gave me the perfect quartering away shot, but he then turned slightly more away giving me a less than optimal, but still acceptable moving shot. I didn't want to whistle and didn't have time to get my grunt call to stop him. I shot, he flinched, tucked and ran. Good hit, but how good??? Now the good part is that it happened so fast that I didn't even have time to count points and get buck fever, I just knew that he was a shooter. I gave it a couple of minutes and retrieved my arrow. Blood, but not a whole lot. I returned later, found a sparse blood trail which led to a huge blood trail and then ultimately to a nice deer laying about 75 yards from my stand. I use a chisel tip - expandable broadhead and it did the trick. However, because of the grazing angle of the shot, it left a 4 inch gash in the ribs, but the chiseled tip buried in - went through a lung and exited through his chest. It was enough to do the job.
The toughest part was getting him home in my Honda Civic! (dressed and quartered him in the field)
Hope these photos upload...