Well the season has had ups and downs.Lots of deer seen,some nice bucks,few bears,and nice weather.A friend and I have helped a neighbors kid get addicted.He took his first deer,a second deer,and finally an 8 point buck on sat.That's the good.We had a poacher come on our land and shoot a 18point buck via spot light.A sad time.Friday I finally got a chance to get by myself and hunt.I saw 22 deer total.20 were does and two bucks slipped around and got in behind me and I caught them both as they were leaving.I finally got a shot at a large doe before the evening was over.The shot was about 55 yards and right as the hammer broke she turned.She jumped up in the air and bolted.After 2hours of searching,I called it for the night.Saturday morning I was back in the woods looking,3 more hours.Nothing.Today I returned and found her in the thickest spot in that block.The shot was off by 2".On the turn I guess I hit her in front of her onside shoulder barely clipping it and down out in front of the off side shoulder.I barely clipped the frontside of the onside lung and nothing else.Needless to say this autopsy was stomach testing.The buzzards had found her and started on her rear,but I had to know.I hate that the meat went to the buzzards,and I hate thet she turned at the last minute,but that's hunting.The bucks started chasing hard the weekend so maybe in the next two weeks I'll have some more news to report.

hope you have good luck from here on.cotton

Tuff stuff Cotton. Amazing how just 2" makes such a difference in outcome isn't it?
Praying the next one goes better.

It happens to the best of hunters/you hate to lose an animal but God has other creatures who are hungry so it doesn't really go to waste.

That stinks. Noble effort thought...

It happens to the best hunters. That it bothers you speaks volumes about you as a person.

Sorry to here about that. Glad the kid is addicted we need more hunters. I hate a poacher more then anything just about. Any idea who it might be? A few years ago at my buddies farm a bunch of us were roasting some oysters after hunting all day. We were standing around a fire barrel shooting the breeze and enjoying the food when two shots went buzzing over our heads. Someone shot at a buck in the field next to us and both rounds went right over our heads. My buddies father who was a Halifax county sheriff deputy at the time had just pulled up in his patrol car to eat with us. Needless to say he caught the two and they ended their poaching career that night.

Glad to hear you have been able to get a kid out, its what this sport is all really about, passing it on.

Did you get the poacher or do you know who it is? POS people who call themselves hunters...

The poacher is known by vehicle,and the warden paid him a visit,said he just didn't have enough evidence,but he says he has a plan.We'll see.Sad part is in the same field a few years ago someone shot a 14pointer and left it.We recovered his horns so the poacher never got what he was after.This one got away but happened to be seen.And after a week or so people were bragging on this big deer and the reason we know it's this particular gentleman is his truck is exactly the one seen leaving the field.It has a distinguishing characteristic that no one elses vehicle does.

The kid thing is the most fun.Watching their faces,seeing their nerves get all tore up,and the excitement,it's like starting over for me.

The deer loss happens.The shot was perfect but the turning deer made it unperfect.It happens but it doesn't get any easier,still bothers me that the buzzards are getting fat and happy.