Long story but I want to share all the details to both clear my mind and to let some of you learn from my mistake.
I found fresh scrapes yesterday morning and set up on them last night, high in my climber 20 yards off the field edge. Didn't trim shooting lanes as I had a couple windows to shoot through (I thought).
Just at dusk a real wide 8 pointer walked down the corn edge testing his scrapes. The wind had shifted 90 degrees and was now almost at my back, and he caught a whiff of me...not enough to blow him out but enough to wind him up real tight. He froze just outside my optimum window and we stood locked for 5 minutes...me with my safety off and him twitching and bristling at every forest noise. (never shoot an alert deer....I think I said that once
![Embarassed :oops:](./images/smilies/icon_redface.gif)
I watched him go, marked last sighting in my head, waited until dark and climbed down. Left my climber and gear there, and went and fetched my son. Once again gathered the lights and gear and went out to find him. Over an hour elapsed. Called RJ for help but he had a trail of his own on a different farm to contend with!
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
Picked up REAL serious blood and tracked it for 150 yards or so...it slowed to a trickle as he crossed a green field and we lost it half way across the field. I left Chris on the last blood, circled the field and found his entry into the pines. We tracked through the pines mostly on our hands and knees, successfully going another 100 yards or so to the swamp edge. A few heavy blood spots, then nothing. Marked last blood and went home, helped RJ and called VA. RJ, VA, Chris and me met up at 10:30 PM and went back to last blood with my lantern. RJ immediately found more and got us about another 150 yards into the swamp in 2 hours. By this time the only light blood we were finding was where he brushed the cattails, no more blood on the ground. Called last blood at 12:30am, went home.
I went back out at dawn and grid searched the whole swamp for an hour....nothing! On my trek back to the farm (now over 1km away) I circled the cornfield along his scrape line. I miraculously found 1 tiny drop of congealed blood on the far side of the corn, nowhere near where we were last night, and all his scrapes had been tended. I am confident this buck will survive as he never once bedded the whole time we trailed him.
Woody's guidelines state that a deer hit above the neck bone will generally bleed profusely for 150-200 yards, then stop, and will more than likely recover from the wound. I am convinced this is exactly what happened. Although I do feel bad, I know we went the whole 9 yards and if he survived the night he will likley pull through.
Thanks to VA and RJ, you guys have a ton of experience and it was nice to have a few extra eyes along.
I have now been indoctrinated (reluctantly) into the "lost one" club.
![Sad :(](./images/smilies/icon_sad.gif)
Mike