Help me find this buck

[admiral04]

Back in late october i went onto a friends property for an evening hunt hoping to get a crack at a buck he and i have been watching on his trail cam for the last couple yrs. long story short, i got my chance and messed it up. Shot at him at 28yds. He was broadside and had an embankment on the other side of him. I didnt have a good follow through so i didnt really see where my arrow hit but i heard it hit something. After 2 days of searching i never found the arrow which was odd because it should have hit the bank behind the deer, but i never found blood either. After consulting the full details with fellow beast members i decided i must have missed him and just lost the arrow. However, i spoke with the property owner yeterday. He and i are the only people who hunted his property and it is posted. He said he has not seen, nor gotten pics of that buck since that day after having pics nearly everyday for the last 2 yrs under his feeder. This really makes me wonder. Maybe i hit him back or just right and he didnt bleed enough for me to find blood. Also, thinking back i had focused my searching along the creek thinking he would head for water. Keep in mind i gave this buck a full 24 hours before looking for him. Just wanted to get your thoughts and show a topo of the area. Maybe i should have gotten away from the creek and looked for him to maybe be bedded further up the hill looking down for danger???what do you think he may have done if injured. Im going to go in this wknd and try my luck finding his remains if he even is dead. Where would you look? Orange=stand where i shot him, Pink=the path he rain as far as i could follow his kicked up leaves, Purple=the area i searched for him to be dead in a bed

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[xpauliber]

Which way was the wind blowing? I've read that deer instinctually break into the wind when wounded. You may want to search there.

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[admiral04]

Which way was the wind blowing? I've read that deer instinctually break into the wind when wounded. You may want to search there.

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Unsure of wind that day

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[UntouchableNess]

Tough call.

From the map you provide, it looks like he was headed down then up. I find it odd a mortally wounded buck would head up hill for any length of time unless it is the final death run (short sprint). I'm sure it happens, just think he would have tried to follow a path of "least resistance".

Is there a really nasty thick area in that direction?

[admiral04]

Tough call.

From the map you provide, it looks like he was headed down then up. I find it odd a mortally wounded buck would head up hill for any length of time unless it is the final death run (short sprint). I'm sure it happens, just think he would have tried to follow a path of "least resistance".

Is there a really nasty thick area in that direction?

he did run down the hillside we were on to the creek, crossed the creek and thats where i lost the leaves he kicked up. I dont think it was a final death run. I think he probably went and bedded somewhere one last time. I assumed he would lay down in the creek and focussed my efforts there but am now think maybe he went to higher ground a j hooked to a bed where he could look down at what was coming behind him. Sound logical?

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[admiral04]

Would it be an expected thing for a buck who was shot at and spooked to completely leave a property completely after living there for so long? This is what makes me think he is expired. Just seems a little odd to have constant pics and sighting of him the. Nothing sonce that day whatsoever

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[UntouchableNess]

maybe he went to higher ground a j hooked to a bed where he could look down at what was coming behind him. Sound logical?

Sounds logical to me. Find a vantage point to lay down and watch the backtrack. J hook to let the threat track past then slip out. Like I said, I'd be looking at thickets or next to blow downs.

[Chris Conroy]

Don't underestimate how tough a deer is. He may have moved off the property after being shot. I have a friend that shot a doe and we tracked it almost a 1/4 mile and found a few beds with blood in them. We never found her, but did end up getting cam pics the following year of her, and he had hit her really high in the shoulder blade. She seemed fine in the pictures other than the scar. We never found his arrow either.

[Edcyclopedia]

Unless you know where you hit the deer or have the arrow to help distinguish a solid guess it's a tough one to speculate.

So - if it's mortaly wounded I would guess you would find it in less than 100-150 yards...

Without blood these deer can disappear in a 1-foot pothole without ever finding them.
Especially considering their last breath would likely be in thick cover (possibly bedding, as that's where they feel safe).
Water could be another direction to look for, as you already mentioned...
SLOWWW grid searches every 10 yards or so (200 yards in each direction) and then into a circular grid every 10- yards too.
Use the tracks function on your GPS to confirm you didn't miss any nooks & crannies.

All else fails go to bedding areas farther away...

Sorry to hear of the anxiety this crazy sport hands us all at one time or another.

[MOBIGBUCKS]

Which way was the wind blowing? I've read that deer instinctually break into the wind when wounded. You may want to search there.

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Unsure of wind that day

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Hey Admiral,

go to wunderground.com

Look up area history and input your nearest city or zip code. It will show you the prevailing winds for the day you were out there. Might be worth a shot based on the above advice.

[goldtip5575]

Any sign of crows or other birds in the area in the weeks after your shot.Crows were going crazy on a drive we did muzzle season and lead us to 2 dead bucks.A nice 150s 12 that someone ended up claiming from almost a mile from where he shot it bowhunting and a small fork.

[admiral04]

Unless you know where you hit the deer or have the arrow to help distinguish a solid guess it's a tough one to speculate.

So - if it's mortaly wounded I would guess you would find it in less than 100-150 yards...

Without blood these deer can disappear in a 1-foot pothole without ever finding them.
Especially considering their last breath would likely be in thick cover (possibly bedding, as that's where they feel safe).
Water could be another direction to look for, as you already mentioned...
SLOWWW grid searches every 10 yards or so (200 yards in each direction) and then into a circular grid every 10- yards too.
Use the tracks function on your GPS to confirm you didn't miss any nooks & crannies.

All else fails go to bedding areas farther away...

Sorry to hear of the anxiety this crazy sport hands us all at one time or another.

Great idea to use the trax so i know where i missed. Didnt think of that

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[dan]

Which way was the wind blowing? I've read that deer instinctually break into the wind when wounded. You may want to search there.

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Or down wind... They like to know if there being followed.