Craziest ending to a hunt......

[Rhwrhwrhw0426]

I hunted with a ten to 15 ft wide creek to my back. One morning I hear a ruckus upstream and watch two decent bucks lightly spar in the creek for a bit just splashing and tinkling horns. A little later right behind me a hear splashing. I always see beaver, but turn around to check it out and it's an otter. It plays and scratches itself on both banks slowly going downstream. A log bridges the creek downstream and as the otter swims below I see a bobcat lying there watching the otter who swims just a foot or two below it. The bobcat watches then crosses the log and the marches right under my stand. This was a few years ago in steuben county when both species were protected and extemely rare. The only time I've seen any of the three highlights of that hunt in the woods.

[YFKI1983]

I pride myself on shooting only mature deer. I let tons of deer walk every year and I am ok if I don't fill my tag. I only say this, because this one deer......my biggest regret......has a story that fits this thread.

I had a 2.5 year old 8 point on trail camera (most people would probably shoot, but I knew he was young and needed to grow). I showed the picture to everyone at hunting camp the night before opening day and said DO NOT shoot this buck if you see him.

Queue up opening morning and here comes that deer. I recognized him immediately. He was hot for a doe and started chasing her around in front of me. 45 minutes later, he was still in front of me. I guess that was my threshold for not shooting a deer because for some reason I just couldn't stand him being in front of me any more. I shoot. I have never missed a deer. I have never shot at a deer more than once. And of ALL deer, one that I didn't even want to shoot, I spine this one. He drops in his tracks and is thrashing with his head as his legs don't work. I knew I spined him. I got out of my stand and walk over to him. I hunt with my muzzleloader, even during regular gun season. I use powerbelts and pre-formed pellets. I had 3 pre-loaded in a plastic "quick loads" that morning when I walked out. The first one got loaded in my gun in my tree stand. That left me 2 more.

As I walk up to this deer, my regret seeps in deeply. In my mental lapse, as I attempt to load the second round in the muzzle, the pellets fall into the snow. Disgusted and frustrated, I pull out my last "quick load" and drop it in the muzzle. My mind not being focused, i never pushed the powerbelt down the barrel. When I pulled the trigger, the powder went off with a boom and my bullet popped out of the end of the gun like a cork gun with a "pop" and bounced off the deer. The deer, now in full panic mode, desperately tries to do anything to get its legs to work. I have no more shots left, so I am now digging the snow for the dropped pellets. LUCKY I find them, load the gun properly, and put one last shot in him to finish him off.

Super embarrasing and ridiculous. The deer serves as a reminder every time I am in a tree stand to not pull the tigger. A small silver line if you will.

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How did the rest of camp feel that you shot the buck you labeled off limits to everyone lol

[beachpeaz]

How did the rest of camp feel that you shot the buck you labeled off limits to everyone lol

Oh, I get crap to this day. Like I mentioned, anyone else in my camp would have shot that buck. So, the fact that I said not to, then did, ugh. They will never let me live that down. Lol

[NFA-ADK]

Never forget my second year hunting with my best friend and hunting partner Shawn in the Catskills 1989.  It was our last day and we where heading out just before dark.  Walking down a dirt trail covered in rocks we where not exactly quiet, a buck must have been on the side of the trail and at about 20 ft he found out we where not deer!

 

His snort growl was loud and fierce!  (We both jumped!)  Then he bolted in a direct line away from us, anything in his way was broken, snapped or ran through for 50+ yards and he was not stopping!   

 

The sound of this beast crashing through the woods at tops speed was something I had never heard before and his growl at us was unnerving to say the least!  We both had our guns at the ready and said what the hell was that!  Gave us a good scare, lol.  My first close encounter with a big buck and he scared the hell out of us!    

 

 

 

 

[Tio1]

2005 in PA the last 3 days of archery: Day 1 as I'm driving to my spot I see a giant buck cross in front of me chasing a doe. It runs into an area that I won't be hunting. Day 2 I see the big fella now in my area hounding a doe. He stops for calling but won't leave doe. This is an evening hunt so I stay in the woods late so I can leave under cover of darkness.

Day 3 last day of PA archery. My plan is to hunt from climber last place I saw him until 8:30 and if no sightings move climber 100 yds to the trail where I saw him the previous night. 8:30 am break down stand as quietly as possible and move 100 yds. Find tree, climb, trim a limb, and start grunting. 9:00 am 136" 10 pt dead. A hunt I will never forget

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[jjb4900]

bunch of years back, my Buddy and I were scouting and reposting property the weekend before the rifle opener......as we're walking, we come across a "dead" Spike that looked very fresh, I reach down and grab his antler and he comes to life and starts thrashing around, gets up and keeps stumbling and falling down......the only Bow we have is a few hundred yards away in the truck......my Buddy jogs back to get his bow and I stay and watch the deer, he eventually gets back and kills it....the next day while butchering it we find a Bear Broadhead stuck in one of the neck vertebrae....guess it wasn't in deep enough to sever the spinal chord, but in enough to paralyze him every time it moved the right way......some of the meat around the head was a little funky, but all else seemed fine (I'm still alive) and the entry wound was only noticeable when you looked for it.

[DanielT]

Shot a doe one morning...let her lay for an hour before tracking....found her within 80 yards...but in that hour a fox had chewed her tail completely off already...as I saw him running away from the scene

[DanielT]

Love all tales

[DirtyNailz]

First doe with a bow, the night befor was Jameson n chicken wings...hot wings. The next morning I go into the woods n pick a random tree I think looks good. The first thing that happens is I climb to the top with my climber and as soon as I stop my water bottle falls out....shoot but I'm not going down to get it. A little later I pull out my bottle of powder for wind direction n give it a light squish n the top pops off and I got white powder allover....im just shaking my head at this point...then..mind you I start getting gas from the chicken wings..I give up n start farting no deer is coming near me....but low n behold a nice big doe comes in 70 yards out n lays down.....I watch her for what feels like 2 hours wondering if I'll get lucky... she eventually comes slow walking over to my 30yrd marker comes out from behind a tree n I double lung her.runs out to 70 yards and lays down i watch her for an hour then climb down and....have a drink of that water I dropped. That was my first doe with my bow.

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[DirtyNailz]

First buck with my bow, I hunt the same tree opening bow just about every year. Well I'm up hunting not seeing much so I decide I'm going to make the move and have coffee. I get into my bag pull out the coffee and wonder if it's going to screw me..well I drink and see nothing so next I want a snack so I hang up my bow and pull out my cookies those short bread pecan cookies I'm munching a way when I here Some noise right to my back left.. first I'm like screw those squires I'm finishing my last cookie but as I take that last bite I see movement that's way bigger than a squire I had to Jam the cookie bag in my pocket grab my bow an in 5 sec stand up n draw on a huge 8 point (20yrds) I smack him he runs 30 yards and I just hear a crash. I'll find the photos n post them he had a huge body I put or rather tried to
put him on my Sportsman 500 my atv is all jacked up n wheel spacers 27inc rims he sunk that thing right down I'll find t he picks you guys will like em.

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[The_Real_TCIII]

I think I've posted this before but I shot a buck last evening of archery years ago and he died on a creek bank. I went to roll him over and there was a water snake next to him, in the snow

[growalot]

I've told this before,but craziest May have been the doe I shot and knocked down at 30 yrds with my 20 ga., just to see her get up and walk away...in an area that gave me no other shots. I watched her walk up the hill feeding as she went,then at the top tail went straight up and she went down. I get to her and no blood and no hole...gutted and blood gushed out of her...she had a small hole in her liver...look in body cavity..no hole...skinned her and found slug intact with plastic wadding attached just under her skin. Not even through the hide. I know it was exactly 30 yrds because I bow hunt from that stand.

[DirtyNailz]

Here is a Pic of my Bow Buck 2014 on the ATV

[Pygmy]

It was opening day of rifle season in PA many years ago.  I had previously set up a hang on stand and since an all day rain was predicted, I even had an umbrella mounted over it.

My buddy dropped  me off in his truck and drove down the road about half a mile to go to his spot. I walked to my stand and prepared to climb the tree. I then discovered that my fanny pack was missing... My AMMO was in my fanny pack and I assumed I had dropped it on the walk in to my stand...Using my flashlight, I backtracked, hoping to find the fanny pack. I met some other hunters coming into the woods..If I were using a 30-06 or a .270, I could have asked to buy a couple of shells, but my rifle was a 7 x 57, and I knew chances were slim that anybody had a rifle in that chambering.

I walked back and forth TWICE to the road...No pack....It was daylight now, and rifle shots were going off...

Finally I decided that I must have left the pack in my buddy's truck, which was parked about a half mile away. Down through the woods I went like a crazy man with my empty rifle, sure that any minute a big buck would jump out in front of me..

I reached the truck...BONANZA !  My fanny pack and my ammo were lying in the back, just ahead of the tailgate..I loaded my rifle and headed back up through the woods toward my spot,  hoping somebody else was not standing there, listening to the rifle fire  around me...I must have heard 20 shots by that time.

I had to cross a hayfield to get to my stand.  I started across the field and a deer limped out about 150 yards from me..It was a buck. He had a broken foreleg....I dropped down to a sitting position, and shot his OTHER foreleg out from under him.  Then I walked up to him and finished him off.. He had already had a tough morning. Not only was his foreleg broken by a bullet, but another bullet had broken his lower jaw and another had left a deep crease along his back.  I  did a favor when I shot him.

It was a short drag down to the road.  After I got him in the truck, I still had a long walk to go back and get my stand, umbrella, etc. which I had never used.  It rained steady all the rest of the day. I was the only one in my party who killed a buck that day.

[The_Real_TCIII]

11 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

It was opening day of rifle season in PA....

Probably could have just stopped there lol. I thought you were going to end with "I was wearing the fanny pack the entire time"

 

 

[Fletch]

I think I have shared these two as well. Back oh 20 years ago I was hunting some NiMo and town land along a creek. I had a buck come in and put a good bowshot on him. He took off and I heard him splash across the creek. I waited a bit then got down and tracked him. The creek was rain swollen and too deep without swimming so I marked the spot and hiked out, drove around and came in from the other side which is non hunting due to town buildings. I left bow in car and hiked back to the creek and picked up trail he cleared the woods and a small field and died right in the back lawn of the Police station! Guess he was going for help!!

Another out of that same stand a few years later one morning I put an arrow good into a nice buck. I tracked him to the creek and the creek was lower and there were 2 prints right a couple inches into the water then nothing. A deer trail ran along the creek and another split off back into the woods. I looked for more sign all friggin day and was baffled. The next morning I was back and wandering down the side of the creek probably close to a mile and I see an antler sticking out of the water at a deadfall. The stinking deer fell over dead right at the creek and floated all that way. The water was in the 40s so the deer was absolutely fine but weighed a ton dragging out that creek bottom!

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