Bow Ben
Member
After a bunch of trail cam pics in July, August, and September Numero Uno disappeared by mid September. I hunted the early muzzle seaosn this year and saw very few bucks let alone any mature deer.
Fast forward to my November 5-16 vacation time to bow hunt like a mad man. The first few days were very slow with little movement where I was hunting.
The morning of November 8th I had a small doe and 2.5 year old 8 point come by my stand. The 8 walked off but the doe actually bedded down 10 yards from my tree and I was filming her with a little Canon Vixia video camera I had mounted on an arm.
It was about 8:45 and I had just shut the camera off when I looked over my right shoulder and spotted a buck coming toward me through the timber so I turned the camera back on and started filming. I could tell it was a good buck but wasn't sure how big so I kept following him with the camera getting good footage. He hit a opening about 60 yards where I got my first real good look at him and instantly recognized him....it was Nemero Uno and he was heading my way! I kept on him with the camera until about 35 yards when he started milling around and turned quartering away. I drew my bow but there wasn't a good opening and he wouldn't hold still so i let down and kept on him with the camera still getting GREAT footage. He turned back toward me and I followed him with the camera for a few more yards until he was inside 30 yards and at that point I let go of the camera as I wasn't going to risk screwing up a shot at world class deer over getting it on video. He came up to a scrape at 25 yards and turned broadside and began working the scrape hard, throwing leaves and dirt everywhere and working the licking branch. He looked like he belonged on the cover of Field & Stream, it was a beautiful site. I drew my bow and settled the pin behind his shoulder. I let the arrow go and saw it hit way back off where I was aiming. I flat out gut shot him, I was completely sick and disgusted with myself. The worst shot I have ever made on a deer in 20+ years of bow hunting. He trotted off about 60 yards and stopped and humped up and stood for 5 minutes and did not move. It took him 15 minutes to go the next 80 yards when I lost sight of him going down a ridge toward some heavy cover. I knew I had to give him a lot of time. I sat until 11am and then backed out.
I went back to camp and went over my bow and found nothing loose or anything that had moved. I shot 25-30 arrows at 20 to 40 yards and every shot was right on which further irritated me for having made such a poor shot.
I went back to the same stand the morning of the the 9th. I sat until 9am giving him a full 24 hours before I began my search. I climbed down and went to the ravine I saw him heading dow into to see if I could pick up a trail. I found zero blood or any sign of a hit so I began scanning the other side of the ravine toward the thick cover I saw him heading toward. My heart skipped about 10 beats when I saw a deer body laying on the edge of the thick cover....it was him and he was dead in his bed! He had only gone about 150 yards from the shot and laid down in his bed and died.
He is a truely unbelievable deer. He has 20 points total, 12 on his left side and 8 on the right. The mass and palmation on his left side is just crazy. He grossed 192 inches and is most likely the best buck I will ever take in my life. I feel very lucky to have crossed paths with a deer of that caliber and be fortunate enought to harvest him. Oh and one more thing....I took him off of public land. :way: Good luck to everybody still hunting.
Fast forward to my November 5-16 vacation time to bow hunt like a mad man. The first few days were very slow with little movement where I was hunting.
The morning of November 8th I had a small doe and 2.5 year old 8 point come by my stand. The 8 walked off but the doe actually bedded down 10 yards from my tree and I was filming her with a little Canon Vixia video camera I had mounted on an arm.
It was about 8:45 and I had just shut the camera off when I looked over my right shoulder and spotted a buck coming toward me through the timber so I turned the camera back on and started filming. I could tell it was a good buck but wasn't sure how big so I kept following him with the camera getting good footage. He hit a opening about 60 yards where I got my first real good look at him and instantly recognized him....it was Nemero Uno and he was heading my way! I kept on him with the camera until about 35 yards when he started milling around and turned quartering away. I drew my bow but there wasn't a good opening and he wouldn't hold still so i let down and kept on him with the camera still getting GREAT footage. He turned back toward me and I followed him with the camera for a few more yards until he was inside 30 yards and at that point I let go of the camera as I wasn't going to risk screwing up a shot at world class deer over getting it on video. He came up to a scrape at 25 yards and turned broadside and began working the scrape hard, throwing leaves and dirt everywhere and working the licking branch. He looked like he belonged on the cover of Field & Stream, it was a beautiful site. I drew my bow and settled the pin behind his shoulder. I let the arrow go and saw it hit way back off where I was aiming. I flat out gut shot him, I was completely sick and disgusted with myself. The worst shot I have ever made on a deer in 20+ years of bow hunting. He trotted off about 60 yards and stopped and humped up and stood for 5 minutes and did not move. It took him 15 minutes to go the next 80 yards when I lost sight of him going down a ridge toward some heavy cover. I knew I had to give him a lot of time. I sat until 11am and then backed out.
I went back to camp and went over my bow and found nothing loose or anything that had moved. I shot 25-30 arrows at 20 to 40 yards and every shot was right on which further irritated me for having made such a poor shot.
I went back to the same stand the morning of the the 9th. I sat until 9am giving him a full 24 hours before I began my search. I climbed down and went to the ravine I saw him heading dow into to see if I could pick up a trail. I found zero blood or any sign of a hit so I began scanning the other side of the ravine toward the thick cover I saw him heading toward. My heart skipped about 10 beats when I saw a deer body laying on the edge of the thick cover....it was him and he was dead in his bed! He had only gone about 150 yards from the shot and laid down in his bed and died.
He is a truely unbelievable deer. He has 20 points total, 12 on his left side and 8 on the right. The mass and palmation on his left side is just crazy. He grossed 192 inches and is most likely the best buck I will ever take in my life. I feel very lucky to have crossed paths with a deer of that caliber and be fortunate enought to harvest him. Oh and one more thing....I took him off of public land. :way: Good luck to everybody still hunting.
