Wailing wall

[BowmanMD]

Well, my late whitetail hunt came to an end today, and unfortunately my tag is still in my pocket. Last night I missed the biggest whitetail that I'll probably ever see alive. He was very close to 120 inches, and that's being conservative. I had him at 300 yards with a rest, and I'm guessing that I must have shot right under him because at the shot he jumped straight up in the air. We went back in the morning and found no blood or sign of a hit. I'm pretty bummed about the whole thing, so I thought I'd come share my grief with you guys on the MM wailing wall. Oh well, I guess I can give it another shot during the archery hunt. I just can't get it out of my head how huge that buck was and I blew it!

 

[huntsonora]

Well, most of us have been there one time or another. I know that this will be hard to swallow but the best advice I can give you is just enjoy the good that came out of it. Most people will never see a deer of that caliber and that is something that you will remember for the rest of your life. Another thing is try to think of the lessons learned from your experience. A lot of seasoned hunters make mistakes and try to push it from their mind and in my opinion thats the worst thing that you could do. Dont over analyze the situation but remember what happened and try and think of thigs that you may have been able to do that would have put you in a better position to kill that deer and the next time you have an opportunity like this one, your experience last night will help you. Who knows, next time the deer may be bigger. I know that these are things that I have done and things I have taken from these types of experiences have helped me grow and mature as a hunter. Good Luck, Drummond

 

[bullwidgeon]

Coues deer are notorious for acting like Keanu Reeves in "The Matrix" and dodging bullets like I dodge fat chicks at the singles bar ;-)!!! I am a victim of being "Matrixed" and so are several others on this board(Bura till just recently )!!! Just be happy you saw a toad like that. I have been "Couesin" it for 9 hard years and only seen one buck remotely in that caliber and I didn't even have the tag then! They are still out there and the oppertunity may come again!!
Good luck
Bret Mattausch

 

[Bura Nut]

BowmanMD: I know what you mean about missing right at that yardage, maybe like me you were already figuring out which wall in your hunting room you were going to have the mount on. Sorry about that, but you will get it right next time.......... Allen Taylor......

 

[Quail_Runner]

BowmanMD,

Yeah it sucks to miss, I wouldn't know the feeling Here is a little tip - sight your gun in prior to the hunt ;-) Well, next year try not to break your leg prior to the hunt.

On a serious note, don't let this bother you too much. You and I both know that is the way it goes sometimes, and you will have ample opportunity in the future to score even larger deer... well, maybe not larger. Just think, in a few years you will be able to chase all the Utah muleys with your bow, and the pain from monster coues will be eased with the 200" typical on your wall. But for now, the best advice I can give you is to ditch that "Bird_Runner" as a partner, you seem to have much more success without him around.

 

[BowmanMD]

Thanks for commiserating with me, guys. You're probably right, I'll be a better hunter because of it, but that doesn't ease the pain of missing such an incredible buck. Glad to hear that I'm not the only one that's "been there, done that." And I have a feeling that this isn't going to be the last time...

 

[antlerboy]

BowmanMD,
All I want to know is what unit and what hill I should be on to look for this monster? GPS coordinates would be great. Just kidding. What a bummer! I've never seen a buck that big ever and I'd be a little bummed too. Congrats on seeing a buck of that calliber, that in it's self is amazing.
Josh