Tell us "your" Buck Fever story(s)

[nybuckboy]

I got one and hopefully I learned from it. About 7 - 8 years ago it was about the 3rd week of SZ. A fresh snow had fallen and it was like walking on cotton. I spent the first part of the morning on watch and about 8:30 am started to still hunt. I was sitting near the top of the hardwoods and started walking up through the hardwoods. I was carrying a semi-auto Rem shotgun with a scope.

I crossed a small ravine and came up into a old field with a few small saplings. I looked down and there was very fresh bed. I looked up and standing broadside was a huge 10 just looking at me. He could not smell me as the wind was westerly and he was south of me. We both were frozen in time staring at each other no more than 20 yards away. How'd he get there I thought without me seeing him.

I had, had my shotgun across my body as I was walking holding it with both hands. At least a minute went by, maybe 2 but it seemed like an hour. We continued to stare at each other. In desperation I tried to slowly move the shotgun into position to shoot from the hip. After all I thought it's only 20 yards and there was no way I was gonna get him in the scope at that distance. I can remember leveling out the shotgun best I could and pulled the trigger. I completely missed him.

What I learned from this and I knew it before... but have vowed when faced with this again this is what I'll do. Let him make the first move regardless of how long it takes. As he makes his move he will more than likely take 2, 3 or 4 bounds and stop to look back. That's what they tend to do when not really spooked. In that time will lift the gun and get him in my scope and then pull the trigger.

Do we ever stop learning?

[WingNut]

Last Saturday (still bow) I a doe running.hard and cuts of hard to me right. Seconds later a spike oases where she turned takes a hard right on a trail 20 yards in front of me. Stops turned around comes back at me and runs within feet of me stand.... 30 seconds later a palmated 6 does the same thing. I draw on him but knee is shaking so bad it's hitting my Stanton and making clanking.g noise ... I tried to sit down but it didn't work out. Good day though.

[biggamefish]

Hopefully you learned not to shoot from the hip. That's just crazy.

[nybuckboy]

Hopefully you learned not to shoot from the hip. That's just crazy.

Yep

So no one else has buck fever stories... huh must be the only one here or the only one comfortable enough to tell it.

[Nomad]

Yep

So no one else has buck fever stories... huh must be the only one here or the only one comfortable enough to tell it.

I'd guess your not alone. Myself 35 years of killing deer I honestly can't remember, getting shakey or nervous shooting at one.I've missed and made no so great shots at times ,been busted, but I've always been calm .

Now opening day my oldest daughter did. She's home from grad school in time for O.D. this year a first. I set up a folding chair in a grassy hedgerow had her sit there and I went 150 yards or so further down.

Oh IDK a few minutes after 7 BOOM followed by a phone call from her " I shot at a deer" ! OK I'll be down. Watching a low half knocked down corn field she heard something coming,so she flicked off safety and then there it was a nice buck 30 yards broadside... in a dirt area . However her gun was not up on her shoulder but across the chair arms.

He turned front quartering to her and stared hard . she knew what was up I guess.Its unclear if he ran and she fired or she fired and it ran. What is clear is she was shaking and super excited and had a hard time remembering too much about it.

She did know where he stould (no blood or hair) where he ran through hedgerow (again nothing) and several rows of corn checked for 50 yards each way nothing.

Then my 2 hunting buddies started calling me after hearing the shot, " was that you or your daughter"? Kinda funny as by that time most OD's I'm filling out a tag, this year she almost did .

[shawnhu]

Yep

So no one else has buck fever stories... huh must be the only one here or the only one comfortable enough to tell it.

I wish I had a buck fever story to tell. Unfortunately, haven't got one yet.

[ELMER J. FUDD]

Yep

So no one else has buck fever stories... huh must be the only one here or the only one comfortable enough to tell it.

Last saturday of SZ bow, I was hunting with another forum member who shall remain nameless. We/ I saw lots of buck poop. He thought it was funny because at least 3 times I stuck my finger in it to see how fresh it was! That's dedication right there!

I guess there's different levels of buck fever. Lol!

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[Doewhacker]

Last saturday of SZ bow, I was hunting with another forum member who shall remain nameless. We/ I saw lots of buck poop. He thought it was funny because at least 3 times I stuck my finger in it to see how fresh it was! That's dedication right there!

I guess there's different levels of buck fever. Lol!

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I think you got a fever after poking at the poop and just so everyone knows I was there and I swear I saw him lick his fingers afterwards.

[Doewhacker]

I have had deer fever before, didn't matter if it was a buck or doe in my early days things would get a bit fuzzy when a deer came in. I do recall having a doe come in once and my leg got shaking so bad I looked like Elvis in a tree stand.

[ELMER J. FUDD]

Well inadvertently, we stopped to sit and stake out a draw. I had some beef jerky and was hungry, so yeah whatever. I ate the beef jerky...

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[lesha24]

First week of bow in WNY this season, decided to sit one morning by myself(we film our hunts so usually switch up who films with my fiance), it was about 20 minutes after sunrise and I heard something coming behind me, the one time I decide not to look bc I think its a squirrel as it usually is and out of the corner of my eye to the left I can see a brown blob, instant adrenaline and heart pounding so loud I can't hear myself think. I finally turn my head slowly to look and see a nice buck standing there. We do deer managment on my property and I knew we only shoot so many bucks a year and they have to be atleast 3 yrs old and outside the ears, we had a stare off for about 3-5 minutes and I noticed had had a broken tineso was a nice 7pt. I was nervous to make the shot when he gave me that perfect broadside shot at 20 yrds, being unsure of age and if he was what we are looking to take. I think nerves got the best of me and I passed on this buck for the morning. After getting back to camp I told everyone about my encounter and come to find out we had several photos on our wall from our trail camera and they couldn't believe I passed on him. I kicked my self in the ass after thinking about it and unsure if I would ever get a chance at him again.... Two mornings latrer (oct 9th) my fiance and I "Rock, paper, scissor," who would hunt that morning and I won, we sat in our food plot with standing corn with soy beans with a 60 yrd shooting lane infront of me. Had a nice buck cross our shooting lane at 45 yrds (I was not comfortable making this shot and possibly just injuring the deer) after he left we decided to use the grunt call a few times and see if we could bring him in closer. no more than 10 minutes later we had a buck come in at 60 yrs and grunted again, came runnign in head down and everything and gave me a perfect 10 yrd shot! Needless to say when I tracked my buck and found him 2 hours later it was the boy I passed on 2 days prior. He's in my profile picture on the site, I'd say it was a great first buck ever, especially with my bow :]

[mlammerhirt]

Unless you have ice runnning through your veins everyone gets the shakes every now and then. There is just something special when an amazing deer presents a great shot. Just human nature, some people have the ability to calm themselves others never will.

As far a people stating they never get nervous or shaky I call B.S.! And you might have to reconsider if your a hunter or just a deer killer??

[Robinson446]

When I see a rack, i stop looking at the rack and focus on one thing, make the shot count. only thing i let cross my mind is shot placement.

[tughillhunter]

oh my god, i shake like a ----- eating a hot dog every time i raise my rifle to a buck. takes me a while to calm down. lottsa deep breaths. Does, not so much. I use to gett all nervy every time I saw one, but not anymore.

[New York Hillbilly]

WOW, I have lots of them over the years. Some resulted in me just not shooting, once or twice a miss, but normally I keep it together and make the shot. Because of my years of bow hunting I for the most part hunt the same way with gun and they are usually very close when I'm shooting even with the gun. And when deer are real close to me the adrenaline pumps like crazy whether I'm going to shoot or not. LOL!

I was bow hunting a bunch of years ago and had a tracking string on my bow at the time. I had been introduced to the tracking string by a outfitter in Bathurst, New Brunswick, when I went bear hunting for the first time. Anyway, I was in my tree stand and a high rack six pointer came slipping up on me and was looking straight at me. I don't think he saw me but it was unsettling with his gaze on me. I waited till he looked down to draw back, knowing he would then either take a step forward on the trail or turn to leave an expose himself to a real good shot. I was pumped at that point but in control.

When he looked down I raised my bow, and with my bad technique I have a habit of raising my bow skywards, drawing and then lowering, aiming and shooting. It is something have always done,like a I said a habit. Well, I also was using the release that my cousin had given me before he died, and although it was getting old and beginning to fail mechanically on occasion, I struggled with the idea of not taking it with me. So, I tip my bow to the sky, draw back and at about three quarter draw the release lets go and sends my arrow through the tree tops with about a mile and a half of this blaze orange tracking string in tow. Now draped through the tree tops is all this orange string. To my amazement the deer just stood there. NOW..........my mind was racing..what the hell......heart pumping.....confused...now what do I do....what happened........is he gonna take off.....c'mon get a grip.....

Ok! With the deer still there and still seemingly unconcerned, I pull another arrow from my quiver, cut the still attached orange string with the broad head, loosen the broad head, twist the string around the arrow, tighten the broad head to secure the string, stand up, attach my release, point to the sky, draw the bow and................twang...whoosh........off through the trees again goes my second arrow and string. This time again at three quarter draw and the release lets go. To add insult, or I should say "assault" to injury, this time when the release let go I pop myself in the mouth and almost knocked myself off my tree stand. Ok.....that's it, I'm done! I felt totally spent.

I stood there at that point and all I could do was laugh, as I watched the deer calmly just turn around and exit on the same trail he came in on, as if totally unconcerned about my antics, and as I looked at the seemingly endless amount of this blaze orange string decorating my tree tops. Once he was gone and my legs stopped shaking enough I could climb down without falling, I got down. I pulled as much string as I could get free from the trees and had to leave the rest a testimony to my fiasco. I did find one of my arrows and the other as far as I know remains someplace up in a tree.

I retired the release and stopped using the tacker string that day. Both remain in my pile of "stuff" and whenever I see them I think of my cousin "Doug" and that "high rack six point".

Edited November 29, 2012 by New York Hillbilly

[Meat First]

Was bowhunting last year with my buddys son and it was his first deer season. We were in a double ladder stand on field edge when 4 does run across the field heading our way followed by a nice 4pter. I told the kid to get up and ready for a shot. then the stand starts shaking and I didnt realize it was the kids leg. He said he couldnt stop it from shaking. Well the buck never came into range but it was funny and we can rib the kid now unmercifully.

[josephmrtn]

i missed the same buck TWICE this yr before i got my buck the first time i shot twice and missed both times and the second time i grazed him and took off a little hair.... he was a 4 pt i think (could've been a six)

[the blur]

My heart just starts to PoUnD.

[Marcygirl]

I always thought that shaking was from the cold lol, happened many times before and I am sure it will happen many times again, funny thing is now it usually happens after everything is over, sightings, shot, ect