Lost an elk

[cpalm9]

Lost a bull elk this weekend. Hit it too far forward and only got about 5” of penetration. I’m thinking a shoulder blade shot based on the arrow shaft.

Searched for a long time, only 4 very small drops of blood and the trail is lost in thick timber and deadfall. I feel awful.

I know the bull likely survived and will be fine. But how do you cope?

 

[echampion8]

Have a buddy that lost an elk and he knows two guys that lost bulls this year too. Sad year this year.


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[Jbehredt]

Dave Barnett has a good article on gohunt that my wife really appreciated when we lost the meat on her bull last year.

 

[id_jon]

I had a similar thing happen this week. I made an absolutely terrible shot at 12 yards with my longbow and hit him right in the shoulder. Luckily I was able to stay on him, bugling back and forth, until I was finally able to get a good look at him in a clearing and confirm that the hit was nonfatal. I was so preoccupied chasing him that I never took the time to follow his track, but I never saw blood on the ground or found my arrow. Sometimes your best just isn't quite good enough, as much as it sucks, failure is a part of hunting. I know I would feel way more sick about it if I wasn't able to confirm that he'd probably live.

 

[Beendare]

Delete

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[GSPHUNTER]

I did the very same thing on my very first elk hunt, never found it. Still bothers me to this day.

 

[coloradodrifter]

My first buck I shot with a bow was a 180 class and I did the same thing. I tracked him for hours just to find his tracks cross into private about a mile from my shot. A week later I shot a little 4 point with what I thought was a perfect double lung shot. By the blood and how far he went it must of been one lung and liver maybe. He went about 600 yards and crossed into private. I was so sick I sold my bow. I didn’t shoot a bow for a few years. As much as we try to make killing an animal an instantaneous death, it hardly ever happens that way. All you can do is be remorseful, learn from it and do better next time.

 

[Kylerjay05]

In 2017, I shot a cow low on her front shoulder, broke it and couldn't connect on a follow up. I stalked that cow well over 2 miles to the top of a ridge and lost blood. Just before dark I bumped her at 50 yards. Her shoulder was so badly broken, her front leg nearly slapped her in the back as she stood and spun to run off on 3 legs. She disappeared down over the edge of the ridge into thick enough timber that I never saw her again. Still hangs with me...

 

[cpalm9]

Maybe turn it into a learning experience…

if that’s the route you wish to go here are a couple questions you can ask yourself.

Is my bow tuned to perfection, shooting BHs the same as my FPs?

Is my shot process under pressure working for me?

Is my practice routine reinforcing my pressure shooting?

Is my shot timing right? Are animals moving on my shots necessitating some change?

Does my effective range, equipment choice or technique need some adjustments To be more effective in the field?

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I’ve been going through things to try and figure out how to improve for next year. I’d like to try to add more oomph to my setup. Maybe some heavier arrows with larger broadhead.

As far as I’m concerned, my elk tag (just a Montana general tag so nothing special) is done so it’s going to be a long year of replaying things in my head

 

[Scoot]

Hunt long enough and this will eventually happen. It sucks. It also SHOULD bug the hell out of you. Hopefully that will motivate you to consider the questions Beendare asked. Maybe it's none of those, but often it is. Maybe it was just one of those deals that's wasn't meant to be.

I've been really fortunate to lose very few critters in my almost 4 decades of bowhunting. I'm pretty picky on shots I take and, importantly, I've been lucky with clean misses too. The few times I have hit and not recovered an animal, it's eaten me up inside. Lots of lost sleep and beating myself up.

 

[Scoot]

I’d like to try to add more oomph to my setup. Maybe some heavier arrows with larger broadhead.

To improve penetration you're better off with a smaller head with less steep angle to the blades. Heavier arrow-- yes!

Out of curiosity what broadhead did you use and how heavy is your arrow (total weight)?

 

[cpalm9]

To improve penetration you're better off with a smaller head with less steep angle to the blades. Heavier arrow-- yes!

Out of curiosity what broadhead did you use and how heavy is your arrow (total weight)?

Slick trick viper trick. A friend recommended a two blade with the bleeder blades.

 

[Fatcamp]

Lost a buck opening day this year. Did so much right but punched the trigger at the end. Sadness.

 

[Whaledriver]

Good advice above. Turn the failure into motivation. Next time you want to take a day off from shooting, remind yourself. Speaking of shooting, change your practice. Make it as realistic as possible. Run the heart rate up. Put yourself under time pressure, quick shots,, weird angles, through the branches, on your knees, long holds, ect. Don't practice static low heart rate, it will not help you in the field.

 

[Rich M]

Archery hunting means losing game every now and again.

practice more, take better shots.

not much out there for archery equipment that will penetrate an elk shoulder. So focus on your form and the decisions you make in the field.

It is gonna sting for a while. Keep your chin up.

 

[Gatorgrizz27]

What’s your arrow weight? Those are good heads and I’d expect them to punch through a shoulder blade, not sure anything is going through the main bone on an elk.

This is what a Slick Trick Magnum did to a steel gate that got in the way a week ago. I’m only shooting 55 lbs but it’s close to a 500 gr arrow.



Buddy killed his elk with a similar setup but 70 lb draw weight. He hit the ball and socket joint on the off side shoulder. Sounded like a wooden baseball bat hitting a home run, head lodged in there but looked reusable.

 

[Wapiti1]

You obsess about it for a while, and then decide if you punched you tag or not for the year.

If not, then you try to not let it happen again. For me, it's almost always something that I did. File that little nugget away for future use, and get back after it.

It's not an archery thing, its a hunting thing. Animals are lost with all weapons due to a variety of reasons. You just get back on the horse, and ride.

Jeremy

 

[Scoot]

It's not an archery thing, its a hunting thing. Animals are lost with all weapons due to a variety of reasons.

This! The weapon doesn't matter, the outcome isn't always what the hunter wants.

Also, the broadheads you were using are good heads. Curious to know what your draw length is and what your arrow weight is.

 

[FerZam]

Best thing to do is just learn from your mistake and make sure you are taking a good shot next time.

 

[AaronMColeman]

I was in the army and jumped out of planes a lot. I hated it and was more terrified every time I did it. The old jump masters always said, the moment you stop being scared is the moment you stop jumping. Being scared makes you think through the process, check equipment, and not make silly mistakes.

Same with hunting, the moment an injured or lost animal stops bugging you is the moment you should stop hunting. I believe strongly in the ethic of hunting, but everytime I shoot something, even a clean quick death, I still have a little feeling of guilt. I think that keeps me sharp on my skills in the off season, and careful with my shot selection. If I ever shoot something and don't have that twinge of guilt I'm going to stop eating meat entirely.