2018 HuntingNY Bow/Archery Harvest Thread

[phillifan22]

I got my first deer ever with the bow tonight in the pine bush. For some history, my dad introduced me to the sport of hunting when I was basically in diapers and I’ve loved it ever since. I got my hunting license and everything at 13 (although I may have partaken before that ).

So my first ever bow hunt at 13 years old I took a shot at a doe at 55 yds and missed low. Since then (I’m now 25) I have taken several deer with the gun, but each and every bow season I’ve gone without even drawing my bow back. Sure the years in college made it harder to hunt, but I still went a few times a year. After college I moved to the Capital district, which was just over two years ago. I hunted public land but work has got in the way of me hunting as much as I wanted to.

Started hunting at the pine bush a few weeks back as I relocated from Clifton Park to Rotterdam. So today I went in for a mid-day hunt, and had to be home by 4 to start traveling back home for the holiday (Syracuse). I was starting to head out when I see a deer broadside at 20 yards. It’s facing away and I start to draw back and *snap* my string attached to my peep hole breaks, the deer doesn’t move (he was staring over a knoll which I think had a doe on the other side), so I do my best to put the sight behind the shoulder and let it rip. This was my first time shooting at a deer in 12 years with the bow. The deer runs about 10 yards, stops, and starts trotting over the small knoll before it sounds like it runs or crashes. Well s*** I thought I missed, deer didn’t act like it was hit.

I walk over to where the deer was, no hair or blood, so I figure what the hell I’ll follow the tracks and see if I can catch up to him. I go about 20 yards following the tracks, and see this massive pool of blood. HOLY HELL I HIT IT! Then I look up and a foot away from the blood is the buck staring at me laying in a bush. Nearly jumped out of my pants! Did the old eye ball test and he didn’t budge. From shot to find was under 1 min.

I started harvesting him (first time I’ve ever done this on my own), and found the disintegrated double lung and heart shot. Absolutely perfect, especially for the first shot in 12 years. Arrow went through and through but I hope to find it one day. I think I still have a little shake and adrenaline going now and this was 6 hours ago. God I love this sport. Patience always pays off.

 

 

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[Rebel Darling]

Thursday, November 15, 12:15 pm.  11 yards, 15 feet up, stopped at my wind.  I let the arrow fly.

First buck I've called in.  First deer I've called in for a kill.  After seeing movement behind me, I used a single, light bleat, followed by a couple of quick grunts.  He wandered for a bit, but came right in.

I glassed the arrow from the stand, and it was bright red.  I waited 30-40 mins, after having watched him bound out of site at 20-30 yards a rip.  I never heard him crash, and lost his movement in the thick trees.

 @grampy kept my head in the game through a difficult track... 

I had a hard time finding blood past point of impact, and when I did, it was a couple of drops every few feet (see oak leaf in photo for example of blood trail), and then nothing for 15 - 20 yards, and then nothing at all.

I searched for more blood for an hour, backed out, called deer search, and texted grampy to let him know and get his opinion on the situation.  After a couple of hours, with a snow storm on the way, and a fella who was going to check in with his fiance before he could commit to bringing a dog over, grampy laid it out plain: "you gotta get out there."

I stalked likely trails, and found a couple drops of blood by a pass in a stone wall.  I walked across and straight for a while.  It didn't feel right, and I didn't find anything.  I doubled back, stood for a bit, thought about deer movement, and started walking the wall line, up the grade and towards a clearing.  No blood, but about 60 yards up the way I saw the brown of his fur, back to me.

In the end, he was either more quartered to than I thought, or the arrow deflected off a branch or a rib.  Lungs, liver, and out through the stomach.  Stomach contents plugged the exit wound.  He ran a total of around 300 yards from point of impact, bedded down, and died right there, just like in the picture.  Sad, but also kind of beautiful.

Many, many thanks to grampy (unsure I would have found the deer without his extra push), his hunting buddy, Gary, and all the folks at Deer Search who were generous with their time and experience.  I even received a phone call from John Jeanneney, the fella who wrote the book on finding wounded deer...  For this adult-onset hunter who is still looking for a crew of hunting buddies, I was amazed and humbled by the community's offering of all they could to help, what amounts to be, a complete stranger.

Edited November 23, 2018 by Rebel Darling
Grammar

[Hock3y24]

Idk why I’m slacking this yea on uploading my photos, probably because I’ve been so busy. Anyways I got this one the last week of bow literally behind my house.

I knew this deer, he has a messed up pedicle and was a messed up spike/unicorn last year. Had trail cam pics of him this year and he had a tiny antler on that side he broke off.

My little one got to help dress and drag for the first time (all 500 feet).