johnf Posted November 1, 2009 Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 I went hunting with a friend today on some of his family's land. I had what is know there as the "doe stand" apparently it's on a travel corridor where you can pretty much get a doe any time you go out there. Well, that's the theory anyway. We had a football game last night and it went pretty late so after getting showered in my worm dirt soap I got on the road and out to the hunting cabin about 11:30 last night. We talked about the plans for the next day and turned in for the morning hunt. I got set up in my stand with about 15 minutest to spare before first light and waited for the world to come alive. At about 7:30 I heard it for the first time. The sound of deer dogs on the run. I know this excites a lot of guys, but for me it like seeing the Dr. put on that one glove. especially when I'm bow hunting. So I hear the dogs make their rounds. They go down a ridge to my west to the river, run the river for about 1/2 mile or so then up a ridge to my east, then they come by me. Again not exciting to me cause I don't want to see a running deer while I'm bow hunting. About 8:30 or so they run a yearling past me, and when I say run, she flew past me. Probably saw her for all of 5 seconds total. She was flying. That just got me fuming. After the dogs run past things settled back down and the squirrels started moving again and all was quiet in the woods for about an hour when the same thing happens minus the deer. After things settled back down, I hit my can a couple times and settled back for my 9:45 nap and look over to see a decent, not huge, but respectable 8 pt. buck about 15 yards to my left. I waited for a clear shot, aimed and remembered,(by the way this is my first archery deer, I've missed 3 this year and just started hunting with a compound and have been really frustrated with my shooting while hunting) that my last deer I shot under, so I aimed in the middle of his chest. Apparently I forgot that when your sitting down, you still have to bend at the waist. Dang! SHOT HIGHT, really high, looked weird the arrow hit just under the spine and the fletchings were sticking out at the angle of the shot, but the broadhead was sticking up like I shot up at the deer. my only guess is that the arrow broke on impact and that's just how it exited. So I waited a good 45 minutes before climbing down. I went to where the deer was the last time I saw it and found very little blood so I decided to wait for a while and went back to camp for a couple hours. After a few cups of coffee and a burger, my buddy and I went back to the spot and started looking for blood again. No dice, not even a drop more than I had found before. As we were walking the trails trying to find some blood, here they came again, the dang dogs They were coming down the ridge to my west, the direction the deer was headed at the last blood found. I just knew they were going to run him out of the country. They got to the river and started east. When they got to the South they didn't seem to be moving so I decided to investigate to see if maybe they found him. After about a 1/3 mile walk down to the river I look up and see his "rack", and he's still alive, and three dogs were all over him. Just then the thought hit me, "Seems a bit smaller than I remember" I pull out my Glock and was going to put him down, but then decided to do the legal thing and do it with my bow. He jumps up and into the creek. The dogs took after him, I pulled up and put one right in his chest. In about 10 seconds he's spent. One of the dogs was in the creek with him and grabs him by the head and starts pulling him. I figure as long as he's doing it I don't have to get my feet wet so I start calling the dog to me. He pulls the deer all the way up to the bank and I didn't get wet at all. Go dog. This dog stayed with us all the way up to camp, he never really did let me pet him, but got some prime scraps after we got the deer quartered up. So here he is, my first bow kill. I think if I had gone with that 45,000gr. arrow and a pick Ax for a broadhead, he would have dropped on the spot. And here he is with my new best friend. I would have never found my deer without him. Ouch that really hurt. Oh yeah subtitle "ground shrinkage" Seems dying in the creek caused this average 8pt to turn into a very small, but legal, 6 pt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichiganHunter Posted November 1, 2009 Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 lol...i didn't know that creek water had that reaction on horns....hmm perhaps you should further explored that reaction. Congrats on your first buck. SOO....did that dog find his way back home or did he end up moving?...lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnf Posted November 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 He was from a camp up the road. Running dogs is illigal in Arkansas during archery season. Thus my beaf with them in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted November 1, 2009 Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 Way to go John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Kat Posted November 1, 2009 Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 Thats an awesome story for a first archery deer. Glad ya got to share it with the dog too lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruttinbuc Posted November 1, 2009 Report Share Posted November 1, 2009 You got it done, John! Great Story on your first deer. Way to go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawgitall Posted November 3, 2009 Report Share Posted November 3, 2009 Sounds like some great memories were made! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWSmith Posted November 3, 2009 Report Share Posted November 3, 2009 Congrats on your Buck with a Bow!!! I've been in a few of those cold water creeks before...LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyohunter Posted November 3, 2009 Report Share Posted November 3, 2009 congrats on the buck.... i wont rant about the dogs, but i dont like them in any season...but hey, you got your buck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly Posted November 3, 2009 Report Share Posted November 3, 2009 John, I just loved that story! At first we hated the dogs, then we love the dogs. At first the buck was an 8 point, then it was a 6-point. Congratulations on your first archery kill! You the man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfletch7441 Posted November 3, 2009 Report Share Posted November 3, 2009 The first one's always the hardest, then it's the second, and after that the third, ... You get the picture. Congratulations on a fine buck! Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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