Tough Doe, Long (successful) Search. Slightly Poor Shot. 6.5 147 ELD-M.

[Mike Islander]

Shot a large doe last night on a powerline. 180 yards just before last legal light (6.5 147 ELD-M, 2400 fps). Couldn't see which way she ran. Shot entered about the vertical halfway point, about 6 inches behind the crease. Exit was a little lower on the other side, about the size of a quarter. Right through a rib on the way in, but didn't get the explosive wound channel these are known for.

I searched for about 30 minutes after dark, finding no blood beyond the initial impact point, and then was joined by four of my hunt club members. Finally found a tiny drop of blood across the street from the powerline, about 20 yards away. We hit the woods and searched for about another hour or so before finding her. Attached is the GPS track recording that I started after about an hour or more in. The lines shows the last 30 minutes of us tracking blood like bushmen in very scrubby woods, then us dragging her out to a field. It was amazing how we would find one tiny drop of blood, smaller than a pencil eraser, then 15 feet away we would find what looked like a murder scene.

Thankfully she eventually brushed against a lot of smooth saplings, leaving blood about 2 feet above the ground. Again, I started the recording well into the search, and that 30-minute portion alone
measures 0.8 miles that she wandered around. The doe was shot slightly back
and slightly high, hitting both lungs but in the back, leaving them partially working. Without the usual upset, no damage to liver and large heart blood vessels intact. Did not hit the heart at all. Amazing how long they can live with limited lung function.

I've been lucky enough to have not lost a deer yet, and man it sure felt awful for a while there. These men stepped up and literally lead the charge into some incredibly nasty thick woods until we found her. Great group of folks we have at our club.

 

[Bwhntr]

Wow. Glad you found her. Nothing worse than the feeling of not recovering an animal

 

[kodyshriver]

Glad you found her! Some deer do weird things. I made the same shot on a buck last year with 168 vld & had a silver dollar sized exit. Red carpet blood trail the whole way, but the buck still managed to run 600yd before piling up. Can’t say the bullet didn’t do its job, or the shot placement wasn’t adequate (although not ideal). Adrenaline maybe?

 

[Mike Islander]

Glad you found her! Some deer do weird things. I made the same shot on a buck last year with 168 vld & had a silver dollar sized exit. Red carpet blood trail the whole way, but the buck still managed to run 600yd before piling up. Can’t say the bullet didn’t do its job, or the shot placement wasn’t adequate (although not ideal). Adrenaline maybe?

She was getting enough air to aimlessly wander hundreds of yards, perhaps thousands, depending on how accurate my tracker was. Tough girl.

I'm a bit shocked by the ELD-M holding together like that. Expected a nice splashy pass through.

 

[Jackal66]

I've had some that were gushers and left a good blood trail, and go almost a half a mile.
Then, others that didn't bleed, and fell over.
I think it's always the adrenaline that matters

 

[Laramie]

You have any pics of the actual entry and exit?

 

[Mike Islander]

You have any pics of the actual entry and exit?

Wish I did. It was after midnight by the time I got her up to my warehouse due to a bunch of issues (tree knocked out the power at our remote hunt club; had to drive miles for ice. etc., etc.). I also had another man's deer I promised to take care of and gut (was supposed to drop it off at the processor, but they were long closed by the time we found my deer). So by the time I finished and got them on ice, I was trashed. I then cooked up a beautiful fillet mignon that I planned on cooking on the island...camping! I had to pack my stuff all up and leave camp. Still, definitely one of the best steaks I ever ate after midnight! You see that I am pretty fried in the photo.




However, if you look at the photo, the entry wound is just to the left of the knot in the strap, midway up the body and several inches behind the crease. Exit was on the right side about 4" lower; a better location, but less damage than expected and no damage to the heart. Definitely hit both lungs, but blew right through without any shedding of pieces that I could find. Directly hit a rib on the way in, breaking off a chunk about the size of a quarter, and blew through a rib on exit about the size of a 50 cent piece.