Memorable misses

[Roosiebull]

Let's hear some stories of misses that won't leave your mind. ( those nightmares often turn into great memories that we learn from and replay often )

[TimeOnTarget]

I've got 2 misses that instantly come to mind, twist my stomach into knots and in general, just make me sick.

Thanks A lot Roosie

1st one was on a big whitetail buck that I'd been after for going on 2 months. he was a giant 4x4. Just what you think of when you think of a thick heavy antlered midwest bruiser. I hunted him most everyday burning vacation hours like crazy. I'd either come into work late, or leave early. A lot of days I did both. I saw what i dubbed "the browtine buck" multiple times but always at a distance. the walk into a particular stand took me right by the end of a shelterbelt that i could look down the rows of trees as i went by. Low and behold, bedded not 50yds into the trees i spotted a big buck, I just kept walking and pretended that i hadn't spotted him. I didnt want to spook him away, which was certain to happen if i stopped and eyeballed him. I figured this had to be browtine but wasnt certain.
My stand at this point is only about another 20yds away. I quickly but quietly get into my stand and begin anxiously waiting. 40 minutes later, i see antler tips moving through the brush, coming my direction. I get the binos on him and sure enough, its browtine. Enough with the binos, I grab my bow and come to full draw, he will be walking out the end of the shelterbelt that he was bedded in any second now, I'll have a 30yd gimmie. He walks out onto an old path that the farmer uses to move hay and stops. This couldnt have been any more perfect, just like it should happen. I settle my 30yd pin right behind his shoulder and squeeze my release. The arrow crashes into an old wooden slat snow fence just beyond the deer. my arrow had zipped right over his back. browtine disappears back the direction he had come from.
How could have missed such an easy shot? I'll tell you. I had bought a new bow during the summer leading up to this season. My new bow was conserably faster than my old one. My old bow had 20 30 40 50 60 pins. Well my new bow had 30 40 50 60 70 pins. In the heat of the moment i had reverted back to my old thought process and used what was now my 40yd pin, sending the arrow right over his back. This buck was shot a week later on a neighboring property. I don't recall what he scored exactly but it was in the 150's and he sported over 13" browtines! hence the name i had given him.

makes me sick to this day that i messed up on this big fella.

I'll stop back in later a 2nd story.

[Swede]

I was sitting in my favorite stand one mid morning when a 330 class bull, with a lone cow started up the draw below where I sat waiting. As soon as I saw them I got my bow off the hanger and was standing at the ready. Up the draw they came on a steady walk. The bull was certainly going to come in and wallow. There was no doubt about it and the wallow was barely 20 yards away in the open. This was going to be my biggest bull ever. Everything was perfect and the two elk had no idea I was in the country. On they came through the last little stand of trees before they entered the open wet area just in front of where I stood with arrow nocked and ready.
The sun was warm and a gentle breeze was blowing upslope. The situation was perfect until a cold downdraft hit me hard in the back. I could not believe it. The two elk turned instantly and ran off crashing brush and dead sticks as they fled. One fickle downdraft had saved the bull's life and deprived me of the trophy of a lifetime. That happened 20 years ago and it still haunts me. I did not "miss" in the common way. I missed getting an excellent shot by just a few seconds.

[WapitiTalk1]

One that always comes to mind happened a good handful of years ago in a WA wilderness area. LSS, I called a really nice 6X6 Roosey off his cows and he stopped nicely broad side (on a hillside a bit above my elevation) at what I "guessed" was 40 yards (farthest pin on my sight at the time). This is back when I was shooting my old Darton Viper with fingers, and, to that point had never carried a RF. I floated the pin just a hair farther back in the "<" and touched an arrow off. The audible "crack" told me what I needed to know and I sat down to gather myself, mark where I'd shot from, visually noted where the bull was standing and the angle he headed to join his cows and blow outa there. After 20-30 minutes, I slowly moved up to where the bull had been standing and found my old XX75 2216 embedded in the soil immediately under where he had been standing... No blood, hair, anything and after I'd paced the distance back to the spot I had taken the shot, the distance was a hair over 50 yards and I had obviously shot right under the bull. Two things happened not too long after that.. I actually started carrying a RF and I finally bit the bullet and bought a newer, faster, flatter shooting bow and started shooting a release.

[Roosiebull]

My most memorable one was 4 years ago...

I hunted the first 6 days, no shots taken, passed up a bunch of spikes, but no branch bulls gave me a shot.

I had to work a few days, then back in the woods. I hunted that first morning back close to home, didn't find anything i liked, so I went a half hour north, with a spot in mind.

On my way up the forest service road I saw where some elk had come off the bank and crossed the road, then remembered a ridge I found that was behind me that looked very elky...I turned around and changed my plan.

I parked and started up the steep ridge in big second growth timer, that was full of salmon berry choked drainages...there was a big flat bench I had in mind.

I was taking my time up the mountain, trying not to break a sweat, it was warm out. I got almost to the top and stopped for a minute, I cow called softly a couple times and listened for broken silence...nothing.

The area had no elk sign yet, and I was on a big elk trail. The beauty of this classic elk habitat had me paying full attention regardless of the lack of sign. I made it to the bottom of the bench and paused, watching and listening, I looked up and to the left and caught movement...the woods were still, but this huckleberry bush was moving around...I took a couple more steps to get a clear view and see a dark face...bear...

I keep watching, not very excited, but I do have a bear tag...just not looking to fill it. I pull up my binos, and realize I made a false ID...that's a cow elk! I sneak a little further to where the bench flattens and take a knee, I range a tree by her for reference...to my surprise, she is only 41 yds, and that looks far in this environment. She can't be alone.. I hope.

After a couple minutes I hear otherwise elk around feeding, then they start filtering out, within just a few minutes I have several cows in front of me from 40 yds, to too close for comfort (less than 10 yds)

My wind is not perfect, kind of quartering, but nobody is acting suspicious, and the cows start dropping off slowly to my right down into a salmon berry filled drainage, and I still hear elk I cannot see yet.

Now I just have a few stragglers in front of me, most are over the break, then I keep hearing this low whiney but somewhat constant sound, after a bit, I see the back Forks of a bull...cool!

I have everything ranged, and he steps out at just over 30 yds, my heart beat went way up...monster!

He went behind some trees, I came to full draw, he came out the other side still whining, and stopped perfectly broadside..I held, because he wasn't behind brush, but it was kind of twiggy, and I had lots of open room to shoot still.

He has his neck stretched out, still making a moaning whine, then trots through all of my shooting lanes and over the side, he then comes my way, all I can see is his antlers, then disappeared. I snuck over to see over the edge, and 2 cows come busting out of there and almost ran me over, but kept running.

I see him coming up the hill pushing more cows, then stops at about 10 yds and starts trashing a huckleberry bush, his body was behind a big tree, he was quarters away, and I am watching his perfect charcoal black 7x7 rack tear up this bush, I decide I need to make a shot, I just need to walk to my left a little, he will not see me, and I will have a perfect point blank shot.

I get to where I can see his vitals, draw my bow, and now I want one more step to open up his whole body, I take the step and he turns, and is looking down at the cows, then starts to turn in front of me, but now at this angle I have a hemlock limb in my face...I need to get by it, I time it so he is behind a tree and take the one step needed, still at full draw.

My broadhead hangs on the limb, and lifts the arrow off the rest, I lift my bow and get the arrow off of the limb and back on the rest (I thought)

Now I'm clear, at full draw, and this giant black horned roosey steps out perfectly broadside in the open at 16 yds, I settle my pin and shoot, I hear the arrow hit wood and the bull takes off...I had no idea what the heck happened, but I knew I missed...I didn't hear or see it hit him.

The whole group took off, I start kicking brush and pull out my bugle and give the meanest bugle I could, I hear them all stop, then hear one coming back towards me through the salmon berry. I nock another arrow and draw, I see the big bull materialize, he is now about 30 yds, quartering to, and in the brush, looking right at me, after a minute, he wheels and they all bust again.

I tried to cut them off once more, but it was of course a futile attempt.

I sat there in denial...I need to find my arrow, I couldn't have missed. I walk down and see my white fetching in a tree, I walk down to it and look...clean.

I unscrew the arrow, and look it over, notice a black smear on the white wrap, then look at the arrow rest, and see a slick spot on the rest...my arrow was between the rest and the riser when I shot...I guess the heat of the moment got the best of me...I was sick. I just missed a slam dunk shot at the biggest bull I have drew on...best case scenario turned train wreck!

This was all new to me area at that time, but I got right back on them the next morning, had him at 51 yds for awhile, but that was too far for me, and I was stuck where I was with a cow bedded less than 20 yds in front of me.

I was on him for the next 3 days, but my lack of knowledge of the area kept me a step behind, and they finally went into private timber land closed for fire season.

About a week later, they had not came back, and I finally killed a smaller bull. That one still haunts me, but I appreciate the vivid memory of that evening...it was amazing. The whole scenario and how it played out...I am in a strange way happy the bull got me that night.

[Lefty]

Ive posted some of them before.. some sad days. Big Saskatchewan and Minnesota whitetails, too many ducksa and geese, a few fox and coyotes.
How about shooting at the same bull( using the wrong pin) as he kept getting closer last miss was at 23 yards.
Or maybe the 360 bull ( before the 60 day wait) again wrong pin,.. Full draw I switched from the 53 yard 55 yard pin to shoot a cow with my 17 yard pin , the bull turned offering the best shot leg forward. the rancher teased me about that bull his hired Mexican killed it with a late season muzzle loader, in the hay yard

I had a messed up rifle scopes and didnt realize it, I had killed two does on a doe hunt, switched scopes. My wife witnessed me missing a huge 24 wide 30 high 3x3 at 80 yards running, later that morning I missed a 200 plus 9x11 mulie I had my eye on all August. After testing three different boxes of shells I thought I was holding 1 1/2 " groups with my wifes 30.06,November In Montana. Deep deep snow. I drove my snow machine as far in as I thought safe to get back out. An hour before shooting a group of guys came in , parked the same place and hiked of a ways off.
Later I heard another machine come up my track, At first light I was settled for the day, great view , good rifle rest, good location. Just after sunrise some character walks in on me. Im generally a nice guy or at least cordial. After a few moments and our "discussion". The fellow made the comment about his plan to hunt here! beside me! the discussion fell apart, after he mentioned it was too hard to hunt anywhere else except follow my snowmobile trail and my footprints He asked where else he was suppose to hunt? I suggested he had the whole state of Montana, but not here. I quietly told him to "get outta here" he starts walking away busting a trail plowing snow with his waist and belly. The fellow is 50 yards away and the bull steps out, I drop my gun over the log, the bulls busting snow walking downhill. the bull stops,.. looking towards the other fellow I put the crosshairs on the crease, squeeze the trigger and the bull charges down hill,.. lots of crashing and banging and roaring in the thicket below me, then silence.
I see the hat of the other fellow in the snow 60 yards away,.. but he's gone.
Later looking at the track in the snow he was moving quickly,.. Did the guy ( me) that quietly yelled at him shoot at him also ? I walked down to my bull,.. or so I thought. no blood no hair the area all torn up Im sunk to my armpits in snow. The bull ran down hill onto a sleeping bear under the snow, both bear and elk wanted out of the gully. 20 minutes later a single shot,.. and a bunch or whooping an hollering , That bull measured 357 green.
( And the hat was gone. )


For Christmas I got a new rifle. both scopes were Redfields (original 1972 and 1974 ) Both scopes the sealant had dried and the lenses would move. I sent them in and with a small fee bought two new scopes,..Kind of bugs,.. I just sent that one scope back in to be fixed by Iron Sight for a rebuild

[Roosiebull]

one I learned a couple lessons from.

it was probably 90 minutes shy of first light, hunting a river, I had my drift boat backed down the ramp, ready to launch, but I was just hanging out, waiting for gray light to run down the river to a spot in mind and start my hunt....as I sit in the completely still darkness with my window down, resting with my head on my arm out the window I hear a bugle, straight across the river, and probably 500 yds away....ok, I need to launch the boat.

I get the boat launched, jump in and start silently easing down the slow river with my electric motor, I go to a spot about a 1/4 mile down stream, where I think I have the best approach to sneak in on this bull....it's a perfect morning, chilly and heavy wet fog.

I get the boat tied up to a vine maple up on the bank, and start in with a flash light, I had to go up this little alder choked grade, then through about 1/4 mile of young timber, then I will come to a small swamp where I plan to try to relocate the bull without getting close enough to pressure him. I get down to the swamp and bugle, I sit in silence for awhile, it is now starting to break daylight, so I work up the other side, through a small stand of timber, and to the edge of a grown up clear cut, then below me is a big flood plain field, the bull bugled from the field or the cut, so I was now really paying attention.

I was walking down a clay road through the middle of the cut, I was going slow and listening, I wanted to make it to the far side so I had access to cover for calling. I got to the edge, now I am on the transition between the tall grass field, and cut, there was a thick nasty line of tangled willow, cut grass, salmon berry, and all of the rest of the types of coastal brush (blackberry included of course)

I decided to bugle again, I was still on the corner of the road, but decided I would have time to get to cover if the bull answered, I would at least hear him/them moving, and the fog was cover in itself... I let out a half hearted location bugle and was listening, didn't hear any sign of life at all, I was looking around when I glanced up the clay road just in time to see a black elk rack materialize out of the fog, he stopped briefly and looked to my left, I took a knee.

I somehow got turned around, arrow out of my quiver and nocked, he paused and chuckled, I ranged him at 51 yds, and facing me, I held tight. he decided to leave the road to my left, went behind an old slash pile, and I stayed low and started cutting the distance. I got to an opening and peeked up, he is right there, I thought 30 yds, I range him at 31, then got sloppy and instead of staying down and drawing, I drew standing and he caught me, he couldn't make me out, and didn't look like he was going to bolt, but he took a couple steps, and stopped and was looking at me, he was quartering away slightly, wide open shot, and I settled my pin and took the shot.

I watched my arrow go right under a heart shot, it was close enough I still had hope I killed him, I watched him go through a gully, up the other side and stand there, then cows start nervously coming out of the woodwork, there were probably 20 or so.

now i'm looking at this 260ish inch 6x6, scanning his light tan hair for any sign of blood, and I cannot see any, I was losing faith that this was going to have a happy ending. after a bit, all of the elk trot off. I walked back to where I shot from, and ranged the tree he was by...42 yds...how can that be, it seemed like he only took 3 or 4 steps, and not straight away from me. I went looking for my arrow, and quickly found it, clean as a whistle...bummer.

I went back in the next day, found them again about a mile away, the wind was blowing that day, so I didn't hunt them that afternoon, it wasn't practical, it was a swirly mess in there....I never made it back after him, despite my plan to hunt him the next morning, I found a nice 5 point in a different spot that night, in a really good scenario, and killed him the next morning.

I got on him right off the bat the next season, day 3 I had him at full draw, 24 yds, but my good luck turned bad, I got busted by a rogue cow, and I never got a shot...a local kid who I have a bunch of respect for got on him 2 nights later, went home, ate, showered and hiked way back in there that night, slept on the spot and killed him the next morning, he ended up being a 288" bull that year....very solid 6x6 roosie.

lessons learned...NEVER call in the wide open...EVER, if I wasn't on that road with nowhere to go, I think I could have called him in close that morning.
never get lazy, do everything in your power to stay out of the bulls sight until you are putting your pin on him, I easily could have stayed low, drew my bow, and slowly raised up and killed him, but I stood in the open, and drew my bow, he caught movement.
when you range a bull, and he takes a few steps before you get a shot, pay attention to where he was, so you can evaluate how far he moved, I learned they can cover enough ground to need another pin, without looking like they moved much, elk take big steps.

my sister in law found both of his sheds from the year I missed him, I thought that was pretty cool.

[Roosiebull]

it's the off season...there has to be some good miss stories around

I will share one more from "back in the day" for me

this was several years ago, must have been around 2004, when I was starting to learn some basic concepts...if you are not in elk, you need to find sign in the heat of the day.

there was a gated logging road I had always wondered about, and after a dead morning hunt, I decided to walk this road out during the heat of the day, in season scouting.

I walked through a bunch of trash, steep on both sides, no reason for elk to be anywhere, finally got to the top of the ridge, and the road started going back down after about a mile. a half mile later if flattened out a good deal, not there were game trails in the young timber, but nothing fresh. I kept going probably another mile, and this road dumped into this meadow that looked like a golf course, perfect green grass, chowed down to about 4" tall...wow! I walked through the middle of it, and I smelled elk, and there was a good deal of fresh sign....the afternoon wind was swirly, so I decided to make it a plan for the next morning.

I got home and my brother called me, complaining about his slump (I had got him into hunting a couple years prior) we compared notes, and he wanted to come with me the next morning, I wasn't really looking for company, but he isn't picky, and said if there is a bull, you can shoot, if there are only cows, I can make a play...I agreed to that, and told him if there are any branch bulls in the bunch, there would be no cow or spike shooting (back when you could shoot cows)

we started in about an hour shy of first light, we made it to the edge of the meadow, and we are looking at 2 tan shapes, my brother thinks they are elk, I know they are stumps...until they move!

light finally gets there, and I almost felt bad it was 2 nice branch bulls, we watched them as they fed together, then would lock horns, go back to feeding, lock horns, etc. after a bit, we heard a cow chirp across the way in the trees, then a 3 point came out, and got in on the action until he was scared into the trees, while there were 3 bulls in the field, we listened to a 4th raking a tree. the 2 that were out there were a nice 5 point, and a 6 point...both way big enough for me, but they stayed 70-80 yds out.

after a while, the antler clashing got more serious, and they got into a pretty good scrap, and the 6 point pushed the 5 point all the way across, now I had a small stand of trees between us, and the sun was getting high....now is my chance.

(a little back story, I had left my range finder on the top of my pickup after target shooting a couple days prior after a morning hunt, drove off and forgot for a few miles, tried to find it later with no luck, so I didn't have a range finder....my brother did, but those details were learned after the fact)

these bulls are fighting, so I get low and cover ground while I can, when they break, I stop and freeze...they start again and I move. I finally get to the stand of trees, which I think will put me about 20 yds....I realize I am wrong, they were further, but not too far. I have to make a guess, and guess 40 yds, after a bit, the bulls break and start feeding, I come to full draw on the 6 point that is broadside, settle my pin and let an arrow go, I see my arrow go low, and the bull donkey kicks and takes off, the 5 point stands there for a bit, then trots off....

now with no elk around, my brother walks to me, and asked how far they were, he was surprised when I said I think 40, he said it looked like I was point blank. he saw the whole thing, and I said it looked low, but left and right, should be heart.....we wait 45 minutes.

we decide to not worry about the arrow, and go check the trail he went down, after about 20 minutes of looking for blood, I decide we need to go look for the arrow, doesn't take long and I find, it, clean as could be. best I could tell, my fletchings grazed him...we ended up tracking them through one canyon, and caught them leaving a clear cut across the next....not even a drop of blood, or a single hair. at about 1pm, we got back to the field, I paced it off at 52 yds....it looked much closer in that wide open short grass field.

[Da White Shoe]

Oh, there's been a few misses that sometimes wake me up in the
middle of the night.
I had drawn a moose tag in Wyoming, back in the 80s'. We'd been seeing a real monster nearly every evening... right in the big park by camp, but I'd always goofed it up, one way or another.
One afternoon at camp, my Dad suggested we ride horses over to a lake to do some fishing. It was something like day number ten so, we both needed a break from chasing elk.
We saddled up and rode across the big meadow to climb the ridge on the other side. Just over the top, we ran smack into the giant Shiras bull. He had his normal cow and calf with him... all three moved off, but none of them seemed very spooked.
We baled off, tied up and started after them... Dad slipping along behind. I hadn't gone far when I spotted the cow with her calf, completely unaware of our presence. Looking around for the bull, I finally caught a glimpse of horn rotating above some brush. He couldn't see me where he was, so I started sneaking in on him. Well, the big eared bullwinkle must've heard me. He was slowly moving off, trying to follow his cow and keep an eye on me at the same time. Playing the cat and mouse game, I nudged him into the big timber at some point. I ended up using a big Ponderosa to make a mad... although, tip-toed dash to close the distance. Once there, I stepped to the side and saw him, broadside. Ribcage, in the clear! The only problem was, that's ALL I could see... ribcage!
I wasn't getting any closer. I had a big pile of deadfall between him and me... which also meant, I couldn't see the ground between us at all. There was just nothing to judge the distance... and, this was well before laser rangefinders. So, yeah... I shot well under him. And, for that, I get to replay the magic VCR in my head... watching that Boone and Crockett rack disappear over the far ridge.
I ended up killing a small bull with a rifle a few days later, on opening day.

[WapitiTalk1]

OK, now I’m dragging up a painful memory… I’ve tried to block this one out of my memory bank but this thread has recalled it…

Hunted a remote, gated Washington State area 2-5 September 2014 on MT bikes with my hunting buddy Duke. Were into elk daily but the first good shot opportunity presented itself WED evening in an unexpected way. My buddy and I were walking down a cat road that splits two newer clear cuts. We were heading for the bottom of the cuts that has a patch of mature trees (we’d seen elk there before on our scout trip a few weeks ago, and, earlier during our hunt). Before we made it down through the cuts and to our destination, we saw 4 cows feeding left to right, across the road we were traveling on at the bottom of the cut, probably 200 yards ahead (75 degree temp; 4:30ish PM; wind blowing right to left across the road). Out of a ravine came a very pretty (wide, pretty tall, and symmetrical 5PT) bull feeding behind the cows. Cows went across the road and the bull continued to feed behind them. We were pretty much pinned down on the road above them and I figured we’d wait till the small group moved out of sight to the right and then move down and plan a stalk where the wind would be in our favor. This bull obviously wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer because he curiously left his cows, went back across the road, and started feeding below the road in my direction. He obviously wasn’t tweaking too hard yet and was not concerned about leaving his group of cows. I couldn’t move (way too open and very noisy on the gravel road) so I sat right on the edge of the road between two 3 foot saplings to see how things would develop. Bull moved to 90, 80, 74, and then 60 yards below me and continued to feed, dropping his head and coming up occasionally with a mouth full of salad. As he moved behind and then cleared a brush pile, I ranged the spot he would step out and it was a hair under 50 yards… this may work out I thought! Quartering to me, quartering to me, quartering to me, broadside with head down in the salad bowl! I touched off an arrow and my arrow flew his back by several feet! The Ripcord Code Red arrow rest failed to drop and caused my arrow to sail the bull! Wait, it gets better. I manually worked the rest up and down several times and it seemed to be fine again (but perhaps not). Two more shots with the same result (dumb bull wouldn’t leave; he appeared to be very hungry)….closest shot was around 45 yards with same end result with my normally very accurate projectiles flying feet over Bullwinkle’s back. Put me into a state of ticked off like you’ve never seen (ever heard of a conniption fit?). The bull finally figured out something was going on (gee, it could have been three arrows whistling over his back and hitting the debris in the clear-cut behind him) and trotted off back down, away, and in the direction of the cows. Here’s the clincher. I took the bow I had at the time (Alpine Archery F1) to my archery shop twice during the previous month because the rest seemed sticky and not dropping properly all the time after he’d installed a new string for me. Was wondering if the down cable cord was possibly causing the issue? Each time he tinkered with it a bit and said it was fine even after I told him the cord seemed to be sticking inside and the rest wasn’t dropping all the time. I actually asked the owner of the shop to just replace the rest if he felt at all I would have trouble with it hunting and he again, said the Ripcord was fine and dandy. Two lessons came out of that episode. 1. I’m not a fan of the Ripcord Arrow rests although many others love them (another one of my hunting buddies has had trouble with a Code Red he had in the past also) and 2. I’ve really dove into doing most of the bow attachment installing/tweaking and tuning myself. Note there is no elk meat or antlers the bike cart in the pic below, just gear

IMG_0960_JPG.jpg (186.46 KiB) Viewed 8942 times

[Roosiebull]

haha, that reminds me, I need to take this QAD off my bow and order a new whisker biscuit

is that a Hawkeye bilt cart?

[WapitiTalk1]

haha, that reminds me, I need to take this QAD off my bow and order a new whisker biscuit

is that a Hawkeye bilt cart?

Good eye; ya, its a Hawkeye cart that belongs to one of my buddies. I was able to track down one of the fellas and get a new hitch pin for the cart I borrowed. Here's their facebook page if anybody is interested in one of those carts (very good game cart). https://www.facebook.com/HawkeyeBilt

After digging around a bit the next spring, I ended up getting one of these (thread with pics below). I'm not sure if he's still making them but a darn solid game cart!

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5785&p=68607&hilit=meatpacker#p68607

[Lefty]

We need to renames this threat

True Confessions

Seems like I m is good company

[Roosiebull]

We need to renames this threat

True Confessions

Seems like I m is good company

some of my favorite most vivid memories in the woods were misses.....I enjoy those memories, and remembering the emotions, wanting to do it over again so bad, but in real life, you don't get that luxury...some not just misses, but those scenarios that were so close and just didn't happen, it gives the same emotional effect.

[CurlyTail]

I have two stories to share - but still too painful. Maybe in a year or so.

[Roosiebull]

I have two stories to share - but still too painful. Maybe in a year or so.

It won't hurt as bad to type them out, let's hear them...always something to take away from those stories, I like hearing about close calls as much as success...it is all part of the experience, none of us capitalize on every opportunity...that's the facts.

We also learn as much or more from failure than success. It's easy to cloud the lessons learned in success...but impossible in failure...we either have to face what went wrong, or fail again with denial.

[cohunter]

I've missed more than my share... hit an awful lot of limbs while carrying cow tags in the brush country. But three stories stand out in memory:

The second bull I ever shot at I crept over some slide-rock and eased into position on top of a large boulder. Laid my rifle on top of my jacket and took steady aim. Squeezed off a shot but forgot to consider the altitude of the barrel and not just the scope. I could see the elk clearly, but my bullet hit the very rock I was laying on about three feet in front of me.

A couple of years later, my scope got knocked or something but I didn't know it. Last night of deer season I took a shot at scraggly looking deer at about 200 yards. He just turned and looked at me. I shot again and he turned my way. He closed the distance to 150 before my third shot. I took my fourth around 125. Missed for the 5th time at 100. At that point my gun was empty. My dad pulled my pack (used as a rest) out from under the gun, unzipped it, opened the box of shells and handed me one which I quickly shoved into the chamber as the deer ran straight at us. With my scope still dialed up to 9x power all I could see at 4 yards was a blurred patch of hair, but I pulled the trigger anyway and he piled up about 6 feet to our left. I thought we were going to be gored to death. Out of 6 shots, only one hit. Took the rifle to see what was wrong - I was hitting about 12 inches high at 25 yards

Last fall I tried hunting mule deer during the rifle season with my bow. Through a crazy set of circumstances I ended up at what I thought was about 35 yards from a beautiful 180 class buck. I quickly and confidently placed my 20 YARD PIN low in the crease (shoulder was obstructed) and shot right under him! I must have missed low on the shot as well, but my heart sure sank watching that arrow fly and that buck walk forward into the brush.

There you have it - three stupid mistakes to avoid.

[Swede]

Cohunter, your shot into the rock right in front of you reminds me of when my next door neighbor bagged his car. He was shooting over the roof of his near new 69 Chevelle SS. He cut a long line of the vinyl top and steel roof. The coyote got away unscratched.

[WapitiTalk1]

Cohunter, your shot into the rock right in front of you reminds me of when my next door neighbor bagged his car. He was shooting over the roof of his near new 69 Chevelle SS. He cut a long line of the vinyl top and steel roof. The coyote got away unscratched.

Chevelle SS abuse! I hope you gave him what for Swede. Can't believe he was road hunting in a Chevelle .

[cohunter]

Sheesh! That would have been worse!

[Swede]

I did not say a thing. What can you say? He had a friend in the car when he shot. The friend said he busted out laughing when he realized what had just happened. Then he started wondering if sanity had left him, as he watched the shooter was going around mumbling to himself. Maybe sanity had left them both.
That wasn't the final indignity to the Chevelle. It was soon traded in on a Datsun 240Z. I think he should have traded the other way.

[Swede]

It is interesting that most of the people working at the remote station back in the early 1970s had no truck or jeep. I think most hunted and/or fished. We had a lot of snow too, but most folks just had a car. I was fortunate to have an older two wheel drive Chevy pickup. It was reliable, but the heater took forever to warm the cab. In addition dust blew in under the doors until the snow covered the roads.

[Roosiebull]

I have one more...maybe my most painful...and first misswith a rifle...

A little back story, I had a Tikka 270, it was a tack driver, in the off season, my buddy and I started shooting after work a lot. I had a bdc reticle on my scope, and we started reaching out a bit, I sighted in my bottom mark for 500 yds, that is where we were shooting mostly..had fun, and it got boring shooting the 8 inch gong at that range...it really grew my confidence in rifle shooting.

My cross hairs ended up zeroed at 240 yds, about 4" high at 100.

Buck season came and gone, no issues killing a buck at 140 yds...held low, knew where my rifle shot, bullet ended up exactly where it needed to be.

Fast forward to mid winter, walking in right at daylight to do what I did on nice winter days, call for lions.

I got above the cut I was going to call in, just see a bit of the cut...Beautiful red Sky morning, and I hear a deer blowing...my first thought was it saw me, but how?

I walk a bit further and see 2 does running up the hill in the cut, then moments later, here they come right down the road at me, they didn't see me until they were point blank..then froze...okay, something else spooked them...they trotted back down towards the cut, and I figured it must have been nothing too scary.

I took a few steps to where the deer left the road, look down, there they are, not wanting to go back down, they started side Hilling below me...hmm.

Something spooked them, I think there is a lion down there, so I get to an opening and start glassing...I start scanning with my naked eye and spot a shape that doesn't fit, put my binos on it to see a big lion crouched down in the grass looking at me!

I drop the bipod, chamber a round and make a yardage estimate...200, hold right on it..all I see is the head and it's left shoulder..enough for me. I put the cross hairs between the neck and shoulder and shoot...he gets up and takes off, gone in 2 bounds.

After the shot I realized how rattled I was, I almost threw up, and I'm not a puker...I had the worst buck fever of my life, but I watched the cat through the scope the whole time...though it didn't go airborne like they do when hit, I couldn't have missed.

I waited a bit and walked down, easy to find his track, and I was happy to see it was the big Tom track...I started tracking, and after about 20 yds of no blood started to worry...ended up staying on his track for almost 200 yds..no blood...started over like 4 times...nothing.


I finally went to the spot he was, ranged to where I shot from...141, and very steep...my heart sank..I shot over him. I finally found where I blew a chunk of rotten stump up above him, but followed the track a couple more times in denial...I was sick.

About 2 weeks later, a guy I know who was staying on a near by cattle ranch killed him...5 yrs of the cam pics of him, and hunting him hard, got an easy shot and choked...then he got killed by pure luck....I was happy to know one less lion was on the prowl, but sick I didn't capitalize on the opportunity.

I missed my next lion too, inside 20 yds...only 2 misses with a rifle...then finally got one last spring...of all things, dropped it at 497 yds...go figure.

Still on the quest to kill one on purpose...way too much time invested to give up now....never knew I could get so addicted to failure, love trying though.

[Da White Shoe]

That's a heartbreaking story, Rosie.
I've got another one...
We were bowhunting elk in Colorado, horse-packed in 6 miles in an otc unit... I think about 2010. The three of us had walked a mile from our spike camp in the dark and, right at first light... found ourselves in the middle of 6 or 8 bugling bulls. Two of us would work in towards a bull, while the lone caller hung back... only to have another bull bugle closer... in a new direction!
At one point, I was 70yds behind my brother... who had a bull right over a rise, no more than 150yds from him. Unknown to me at the time, our buddy Jake had went after a bull behind us.
Right then, I heard a bull thrashing brush to my left and, at the same time, my brother cow called. Now, I don't know about you guys, but to me... when the forward guy, (shooter) calls in this senerio, he forfeits his right to have me as his caller!
So, naturally... I stalk off to the left to see what I can do with this other bull. I dropped into a thin strip of timber and broke out into a pretty big meadow. The bull was still raking, nonstop and it was plain that it was coming from a large patch of 12' high willow. I weighed my options, and saw that... by circling a little to my left, I could keep a large spruce between me and the sound of the bull in the willows. It worked perfectly and I soon found myself right in front of the big spruce. Now, which way do I go around it? It was impossible to tell which way would put me on the same side of the willows as the bull. So, I just guessed. I went right.
Slowly peeking out around the spruce boughs, I found myself staring through a tangle of willows into the face of a bull that was just going to town with his rack! I quickly realized that his eyes were closed and I backed up, out of sight.
Going around the other way, I was forced to stop 16yds from the bulls right hind quarter. Any farther and I risked being seen. So, I just got ready and waited... still having no real clue as to what kind of bull I was dealing with.
Meanwhile, my brother hit a limb shooting at his bull and it spooked... and, of course, it came charging through my little meadow. My bull turned 180 degrees and exploded out of there.
I whipped back the string at the same time that I came to the realization that this bull was the same huge bull I'd seen from horseback just 2 days earlier! Really wide 6x6 with good points all around! After that sighting, I'd decided that he was at least 340" and probably more like 350"!
I was frantically mewing with the diaphragm as he ran and, amazingly... he stopped, broadside and in the clear! Still at full draw, I quickly estimated the distance at 50yds.
The pressure of the situation just plain got the best of me and I started second guessing the distance. Pretty much forgetting to aim and definitely not focusing in and picking a spot. I didn't even see the arrow in flight. Where I found it stuck in the ground left no real clue as to which direction I missed. Standing where the bull had been, I used my rangefinder on the tree I was standing next to.
It read 51yds.
This has been very difficult for me to type out and re-live...
just so you know.

As a side note, our buddy Jake killed a very nice 5x6 almost the same time I was missing mine.

[Roosiebull]

Ugh, that is a haunting miss...but what a morning you guys had!!!

[Da White Shoe]

Ugh, that is a haunting miss...but what a morning you guys had!!!

Nothing like those kinds of elk days!
They are rare... as I'm sure you know.