yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I headed to the farm for an afternoon hunt. I first headed out to look for an arrow that missed a gobbler on Friday. It was nowhere to be found. I then headed back to camp and built a new arrow and then got ready to hunt. I headed out to a box blind. About 4:20, 4 gobblers entered the field. I made my first rookie mistake. When I had one in position, I could not take the safety off for some reason... It didn't take me long to realize I had not put an arrow in the crossbow. The advantage of a box blind is that I was easily able to load an arrow. By then, the gobblers were even closer. I ranged one at 22 yards and released the arrow.
To me, it looked like a good hit at first. The birds scattered about 10 yards from the impact site then started putting and looking around. The target bird separated from the other three and slowly walked out of the field. He got behind some stuff a few yards off the field. He just stood there. I watched him with binoculars for a bit just standing there. I expected him to lay down there and die, and when I could not see him any more, I assumed that is what he did.
I could not see my arrow and it was not in him when he entered the woods. I picked up something with my binoculars a few yard into the field where he entered the woods and it looked like it could be my arrow shaft, but I wasn't sure. I was pretty sanguine that I had a gobbler in my pocket at this point.
I just sat and watched and the other 3 slowly walked away. I loaded another arrow and just sat back waiting for evening. A few minutes before 5:00, a doe and fawn entered the field. I waited for a good quartering away shot and range the doe at 25 yards when she presented one. I released the arrow. It looked to me like a perfect shot. It entered in the paunch but on a path that would lead through the chest before exit. She had a bee-sting run which is what I was looking for. I thought I made a great shot and would have a great blood trail to follow. It seemed odd that I could not see the arrow. The illuminated nok lit up just fine on both shots.
I only waited about 10 minutes. I got out of the box blind and headed over to what I thought was the arrow I shot at the turkey. It was not it, just a stick. I headed to the impact sight. Feathers everywhere. The arrow was directly passed the feathers under the vegetation with the nok lit up. There was NOTHING on the arrow. No blood or fluid of any kind. No indication that bird was even hit. I must have just grazed him and clipped feathers. Rethinking his behavior after the shot, it makes sense. I did go look for the bird, but he was nowhere to be found and there were not indications of injury.
I then headed over to where I saw the doe leave the field and enter the woods and marked it for later. I then headed back to camp. I got out of my hunting clothes and put on my tracking stuff and took the UTV out to retrieve the doe. Things didn't work out like I expected. I found the first blood about 10 yards into the woods, but that was it. There was no more blood. I could not understand it. It took a while walking circles, but it was an open enough understory for me to find her. The arrow was still in her sticking out. I dragged her to a spot where I could get the UTV and winched her into the bed and headed back to camp.
She was a bit smaller than my last adult doe, only 86 lbs live weight. I was exhausted by the time I was done DMAPping, dressing, skinning and quartering her. After dressing her, I figured out what happened. Even though my window seal in the box blind was about 10-12 feet about the ground and the field slopes slightly away, the arrow exited much higher in the chest than it entered. This could only happed if she jumpped the string and reacted as the arrow was entering. Once again, all the blood had just pooled in her chest. I finally cleaned up, put her in the transport tub, and headed home.
I didn't get far. As I was leaving the farm, I saw 2 lights along the entry road. It was my neighbor and his son looking for a deer. So, I headed back to camp and got my tracking stuff. He told me he had good blood. He saw the deer cross the road and they were looking for blood where it crossed. I asked where they had last blood. They had not marked it and had not even marked first blood. It took us about 20 minutes to find first blood. He was right that it was good blood. It was a great blood trail and very easy to follow. I found the deer in 5 minutes.
By the time I got my doe home and in the cooler and dealt with the liver and heart, I was dead tired...But it was a great day!
To me, it looked like a good hit at first. The birds scattered about 10 yards from the impact site then started putting and looking around. The target bird separated from the other three and slowly walked out of the field. He got behind some stuff a few yards off the field. He just stood there. I watched him with binoculars for a bit just standing there. I expected him to lay down there and die, and when I could not see him any more, I assumed that is what he did.
I could not see my arrow and it was not in him when he entered the woods. I picked up something with my binoculars a few yard into the field where he entered the woods and it looked like it could be my arrow shaft, but I wasn't sure. I was pretty sanguine that I had a gobbler in my pocket at this point.
I just sat and watched and the other 3 slowly walked away. I loaded another arrow and just sat back waiting for evening. A few minutes before 5:00, a doe and fawn entered the field. I waited for a good quartering away shot and range the doe at 25 yards when she presented one. I released the arrow. It looked to me like a perfect shot. It entered in the paunch but on a path that would lead through the chest before exit. She had a bee-sting run which is what I was looking for. I thought I made a great shot and would have a great blood trail to follow. It seemed odd that I could not see the arrow. The illuminated nok lit up just fine on both shots.
I only waited about 10 minutes. I got out of the box blind and headed over to what I thought was the arrow I shot at the turkey. It was not it, just a stick. I headed to the impact sight. Feathers everywhere. The arrow was directly passed the feathers under the vegetation with the nok lit up. There was NOTHING on the arrow. No blood or fluid of any kind. No indication that bird was even hit. I must have just grazed him and clipped feathers. Rethinking his behavior after the shot, it makes sense. I did go look for the bird, but he was nowhere to be found and there were not indications of injury.
I then headed over to where I saw the doe leave the field and enter the woods and marked it for later. I then headed back to camp. I got out of my hunting clothes and put on my tracking stuff and took the UTV out to retrieve the doe. Things didn't work out like I expected. I found the first blood about 10 yards into the woods, but that was it. There was no more blood. I could not understand it. It took a while walking circles, but it was an open enough understory for me to find her. The arrow was still in her sticking out. I dragged her to a spot where I could get the UTV and winched her into the bed and headed back to camp.
She was a bit smaller than my last adult doe, only 86 lbs live weight. I was exhausted by the time I was done DMAPping, dressing, skinning and quartering her. After dressing her, I figured out what happened. Even though my window seal in the box blind was about 10-12 feet about the ground and the field slopes slightly away, the arrow exited much higher in the chest than it entered. This could only happed if she jumpped the string and reacted as the arrow was entering. Once again, all the blood had just pooled in her chest. I finally cleaned up, put her in the transport tub, and headed home.
I didn't get far. As I was leaving the farm, I saw 2 lights along the entry road. It was my neighbor and his son looking for a deer. So, I headed back to camp and got my tracking stuff. He told me he had good blood. He saw the deer cross the road and they were looking for blood where it crossed. I asked where they had last blood. They had not marked it and had not even marked first blood. It took us about 20 minutes to find first blood. He was right that it was good blood. It was a great blood trail and very easy to follow. I found the deer in 5 minutes.
By the time I got my doe home and in the cooler and dealt with the liver and heart, I was dead tired...But it was a great day!
