First screw up of 2020 season

[YFKI1983]

So I hunted Thursday through Saturday. I normally don't have many sightings on my property this early in the season but I guess my new stand is in a good location as I saw a handful of doe each day.

I got busted 2X. Its still so thick and I don't want to cut too many limbs. Both times I was looking one way and when i turned my head, had a doe at 10 yards staring at me. I don't know how the heck they are so quiet sometimes. Luckily in November you can usually hear them before they come into view. Took off both times. One time it started blowing the other did not. All the other ones I saw passed through out of range of any clear shot.

Finally, Saturday afternoon, I see one coming and was able to stand and get ready. The new ladder stand I bought, which is one of the more comfortable stands I've sat in, has a flip up seat so I have the whole platform to work with. I don't know if I was too worried about getting busted again or was just careless but I drew, she stopped in one of my few lanes and I released. I did not realize i was not all the way to the end of the platform so I did not lean all the way over the shooting rail. The bottom of my bow hit the rail. She ran off but I could tell it wasn't a hit as I didn't hear the familiar pop and it looked more like a spooked bounding off than a death run. Missed. I couldn't tell if my bow hitting the stand made the shot go up down, left or right but I'm very annoyed at myself as I practice shooting a lot but did something so careless. I could also lower the bar a few inches but didn't think to do that either.

I'll be back there after Halloween. Hope I'm on my game if I get another shot this year, especially if its a buck.

Any new hunters out there, learn from my mistakes. There are plenty : )

 

[moog5050]

At least it was a clean miss.  I will take that over a bad hit any day.

Edited October 5, 2020 by moog5050

[rob-c]

New hunters, heck I had  been hunting for years and I caught my bottom limb on the top rail of my climber. Mistakes happen and as was said clean miss,  best scenario  hands down ..

[Zag]

Yrs ago I’m hunting my old spot where I grew up. Early Nov and I have multiple bucks (one is deff a shooter) chasing for late morning in the corn fields a couple hundred yards away. I hit the grunt call a few times with no luck then I did a long deep grunt and the biggest buck stops everything and immediately takes of towards me, I’m in disbelief he coming. A few times he hangs up but another grunt here and there keeps him coming but now he’s getting close and coming around down wind. He is just about to an opening and I draw, he now smells something and stand there and stands there. I don’t want to let down so I see a branch right below my bow and I rest the cam on it to help release some arm stress, finally he walks into the lane and I release.... I forgot to take the bow off the limb. Never even saw the arrow on release. Never forget that hunt! 

[YFKI1983]

37 minutes ago, Zag said:

Yrs ago I’m hunting my old spot where I grew up. Early Nov and I have multiple bucks (one is deff a shooter) chasing for late morning in the corn fields a couple hundred yards away. I hit the grunt call a few times with no luck then I did a long deep grunt and the biggest buck stops everything and immediately takes of towards me, I’m in disbelief he coming. A few times he hangs up but another grunt here and there keeps him coming but now he’s getting close and coming around down wind. He is just about to an opening and I draw, he now smells something and stand there and stands there. I don’t want to let down so I see a branch right below my bow and I rest the cam on it to help release some arm stress, finally he walks into the lane and I release.... I forgot to take the bow off the limb. Never even saw the arrow on release. Never forget that hunt! 

at the rate i see big bucks, that would take me a while to get over!! I guess thats the beauty of bow hunting. So much needs to go right

[BowmanMike]

Making mistakes is a big part of learning. Just dont keep making the same one.

[FullDraw_9x]

This happened to me in a climber. When I shot, the bottom cam hit the rail and sent the arrow left of my aiming point. Luckily I hit liver and recovered the deer but now I always practice a draw when I get on stand to make sure my rail is clear of my bow when shooting