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mudingbuck

mudingbuck

PMA Member
Its that slow time of year on here again. So I figured I would ask this. What is the biggest deer in your opinion that you have shot and never recovered? What did you shoot it with? Do you think it was a fatal hit?

I shot a 10 point buck back in 2010 that scored right at 150. I know what he scored because a guy that hunts the same land found it a month later durning shot gun season. I shot it with a 3 blade rage.
 
Probably 10 yrs or so ago, I grunted/can'd in a 145-150" 9pt.. He came in stiff legged and thrashing anything and everything in his way. He popped out on the field edge directly below me and I had him at full draw in a wide open shooting lane but he was just slightly quartering to me. He only needed to take a couple more steps to come out again on the otherside of a branch to be perfectly broadside at 5 yds. He stopped at that branch and put his head up to make a licking branch for a scrape and picked me out. I was still at full draw and had a small hole through the branches to his vitals. When i shot he turned sharply at me and ran away. I thought it sounded funny and I could see pieces of my aluminum arrow and fletching laying all over the place. All i can figure is that when he turned, the arrow shattered off of his rack. Thankfully he wasnt wounded but thats probably the biggest i have "hit" and got away
 
Knock on wood...... I have never lost a buck. (I have shot 2 in the spine though!) Seems as if the good lord looks after me! But i did watch a friend of mine shoot a buck i was trying to kill. I was sitting in the tree with her, 8 yard shot broadside. Arrow hit just above lungs and just below spine. Never recovered him, makes me sick. Probably 170+ gnarly buck. I did shoot a 300" elk high in Colorado and never found him...
 
Great thread and a great idea.

I've hit a couple of decent ones and not recovered them, but the first thing that came to my mind when I read your thread was a buck I missed probably 15 years ago. Spent an entire afternoon in the stand and had an amazing rut sit when, just before dark, a giant buck followed a doe up into my shooting lane. He mounted and bred the doe right in front of me, and just as he "dismounted" I sent an arrow a few inches over his back at 20 yards :confused: I sat in the stand with my head in my hands for an hour after legal shooting light :moon:

NWBuck
 
November 8th 2010. Middle of the afternoon in a tree that we have killed some good ones out of.
Total arrow weight of 565 grains tipped with a fixed two blade cut on contact head, shot m out of a perfectly tuned mathews drenalin maxed out at 71lbs.
12 yard shot hit high in the shoulder. Honestly got less than 3" of penetration.
Watched the deer for over an hour trying to get another shot. Waited about 12 hrs to track. Blood everywhere from a muscle hit then dried up.
Fast forward to late muzzeloader season and he steps out with one antler.
Ended up with a few pics late season, picked up both sheds and had pics in 2011. The year I hit him he would have scored 150 ish a 6-7 yr old gnarly mainframe 8.
He was found this year's shed season by the neighbor, with a mystery arrow in him that doesn't belong to anyone that we know of that hunts anywhere near this property.
One of the longest histories we have had with a single deer. when he was found this year he might score 140 at the most. Same mainfraim 8 with some odd stuff and a small drop.
First deer I've ever shot and not recovered but it was nice to know that I didn't hurt him too bad and that he stayed pretty healthy in his old age.

Sorry for the long read.
 
This buck I hit low with the mloader 12/6/2011, just grazed his opposite upper leg, leaving him with a limp. I tried to work the long bloodtrail out over the next couple days, thinking it was alot better shot than it was and he had to be dead, untill he showed up on camera again, favoring the leg a bit. I hunted him untill January 9th when I was able to get him with my bow, later in the day of this picture. The 2nd bloodtrail was much shorter.



After the first shot in December running past a camera.


I was getting pictures on the mock rub trees a couple times per week, always favoring that left front leg, but still tearing stuff up.




And finally got my hands on him.


 
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4 Bucks 2 Does...4 bucks with the shotgun and 2 with the rifle. Let's just say I'm not going to be losing a deer anytime soon now. I'm already practicing for opening day, both with the shotgun and bow.
 
Very sweet buck 6x6.

I have only lost one early on, which would have been my first bow kill. The arrow hit a branch and struck him in the neck. He walked away with the arrow sticking out both sides of his neck. That was a quarter of a century ago.:grin:
 
2001, Thanksgiving eve - Saw two bucks sparring in the distance, rattled at them and a third bucks head popped up and headed my way, 10 point in the 150-160 range. First buck I ever drew on, Not sure what happened, had a complete pass through with a muzzy, meat hunter and I tracked him a quarter mile that night, then 2 miles the next morning never found him.

2001 Second Shotgun season-- Fell asleep in the stand in the afternoon, woke up just in time to have a 160" 10 walk in front of me at 35 yards. Put the gun on him and squeezed the trigger, he mule kicked and barely moved, pumped the gun and shot again, same reaction with a mule kick then he ran onto the neighbor piece. We started to follow the trail about half hour later, jumped him about 50 yards in, he ran within 40 yards of neighbor kid who shot at him twice but missed. Never found him, found what looked like shoulder bone at sight of first 2 shots. I was sick over that one, first and only one lost when using gun.
 
This past season had a 15 yard broadside shot at a mid 170ish in early Nov. Hit him in the hindquarters. He lived on, but may have gotten taken in gun season. Long story short. I rushed the shot, and didn't take the time to settle the sight pin
 
I shot a 165 inch (approx.) buck this fall with shotgun in Iowa and I thought he was dead as he dropped like a rock. He twitched and then stood up and ran away, I fired one more shot and must have missed. We looked for ever and never found him.

After (7) counseling sessions I can finally talk about it (kidding).
 
November 7, 2005 8:15am. A 150ish 10 pt sneaked in behind me. I had been sitting with my bow laid across my lap. When I drew, the arrow stayed against the riser and the back of my broadhead caught the riser and pulled the arrow off the string. I let down and got my arrow squared away. By then he was 23 yards quartered away. I misjudged the distance and he dropped a bit, causing a high backstrap hit. I tracked him several hundred yards before the blood dried up. I assume he lived on, but never saw him again.
 
IL gun season a couple years ago...first light opening morning. I watched a dandy walk down a fence line right to me. he turned broadside about 80 yards out. there was a little brush in the way, but nothing I would ever think twice about shooting thru with 50 cal muzzleloader. I shot, he mule-kicked and ran off. I was 100% confident i had just hammered him. several hours later, we decided to start trailing him. never found a drop of blood or strand of hair. Jkratz and I looked for quite awhile before deciding i must have missed. never have gotten over that one.
 
Just do a search on here from my younger years. There are plenty of stories from 10 years ago to keep you busy for a work week. :D I missed more than wounded. Just a dumb kid who hunted too much and had access to IW. I know for a fact, I have missed two booners. One being a nontypical 3 legged freak.

Some of the ones that haunt me I never got a shot at, but had in range... Rule #1- Kill when you can.

One time in highschool the neighbor messaged me and asked.. "Thanks for screwing up my cape." He's an Iowa Whitetailer that has killed some bruisers.

He killed the buck I bounced one off of the night before. When they come to call I get all shook up. Not a giant, but I was still pissed.

backshot_zpse88c225a.jpg
 
First season bow hunting first buck I ever drew on. Broadside at 30 but he had me pegged and dropped and turned at the shot. Waited until the next morning to track. Blood ran out after 150 yds. When I got home from tracking I get a text with this picture.

forum
forum


The deer survived to the following season.

If you want to know more about this deer search Liv4ruts posts.
 
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Day after thanksgiving last fall. After a few sightings I finally had this one coming to a grunt/can sequence. He got to 25 yards, I was at full draw waiting for him to stop and he got nervous. Turned ran about five yards and stopped. I guessed he was further than he was and he jumped the string. Hit him above the vitals in no-mans land. Watched as he walked away through the timber with the arrow buried to the fletching. Went out with a group to look the next day and only found two specs of blood. During gun season the next week a young kid in our group ended up getting him. It was his first buck and after seeing the look on his face the mistake didn't bother me as much. Everything happens for a reason, but a lesson learned none the less.
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http://iowawhitetail.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=610&pictureid=14592

Halloween morning 2010, just as the sun is clearing the horizon, I rattled this guy up to 15 yards and as I'm settling the pin everything turns into slow motion! I was wearing a brand new coat with a stiff collar and as I was settling in for the shot it pushed my arrow off the rest and wedged it between the riser and rest, requiring a complete let down.

As expected, he was on high alert by the time I had everything squared away the second time. I got to full draw again and was able to touch off a shot, however sailing high over his back and I couldn't believe it. I was still in disbelief because I had no idea what happened but I was about to find out as I replayed the events over and over! (everytime I drew it either popped my arrow or was applying some amount of pressure).

Although this was an all-time low in my hunting career I was able to learn a valuable lesson and I'll always shoot with my hunting clothes on whenever possible!! Thanks for listening...now maybe I can move on!!
 
I do have a pretty good story that still haunts me to this day. Not a bad shot or a miss but pure stupidity on my part.... It was right in the middle of the rut probably 4-5 years ago, i had a little 120" 8 pointer chasing a doe around me for half an hour. When the doe finally escaped the buck just hung around at about 100 yards. I decided to grunt at him and see his reaction. After several grunts i got his attention. He started rubbing a tree and getting mad. As i was enjoying watching the little buck thrash around the little tree a giant managed to sneak in on me. He let out a grunt and scared the crap out of me, i was turned around in my stand looking at the little buck and this buck was within 25 yards straight in front of me. I turned my head only to watch him catch sight of the smaller buck. He immediately took off in a sprint at the smaller buck. I learned a lot from that!
 
Back in 2004 I dumped a 173 inch brute with the slug gun...he flipped out in the field, got up and went running towards the road. I saw a truck coming down the road and dump him out the window, quickly loaded him and took off. I found out after the fact who it was, and found out the score when he took it to the local bar for a big buck contest... not a happy camper. He was spraying blood both sides of his trail for 5ft on each side all the way to the road...

Another one happened in 2006, I was hunting a buck I had dubbed "Twin Towers" He was bedded with a doe one day in the middle of a picked bean field that I help farm. I talked to the neighbor and started a sneak down the fenceline with my bow in hand. I didnt realize he was walking straight at me at the same time and at 35 yds our eyes locked. I just tucked down and drew at the same time as he watched me realease, he started to spin and I hit him right in the shoulder blade. I had a close eye on him the next few days since shotgun was opening, and had pictures of him with the wound. At 7:04 that opening day I got a picture message saying the group had got him, and shooting time wasnt for another ten minutes...not a happy camper either.. They said he was over 160"..I just loves him because of his tall mule forks he had...
 
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