What was your scariest moment.....

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
  • Advertisement

HB Store


huntinnurse
500 Club
Posts: 1570
Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2011 5:37 pm
Location: God's Country
Status: Offline

What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby huntinnurse » Wed Feb 17, 2010 2:46 pm

.....while deer hunting? Did you "get lost"? Another unexpected animal "find" you? Close encounter with another predator and realize you may not be at the top of the chain at the moment?


For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.John 3:16 KJV
User avatar
Mountain Man
500 Club
Posts: 966
Joined: Wed Feb 17, 2010 4:25 pm
Location: SE Wisconsin
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby Mountain Man » Thu Feb 18, 2010 4:28 am

This wasn't real scary but it freaked me out for a split second. I was bowhunting and had just shot a doe right before closing time. The deer went down within sight but I stayed in my stand and I waited a little while. I lowered my bow and climbed down while it was still a bit light out. Just as my foot hit the ground a pack of yotes started yipping, yelping, and howling about 50-100 yards away. I was so startled that I jumped back up a couple of steps into the tree. They didn't come any closer and didn't touch the deer but man did they get my heart going for a minute.
ramblinman
Posts: 159
Joined: Sun Feb 21, 2010 2:16 pm
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby ramblinman » Sun Feb 21, 2010 5:34 pm

Driving my truck on Wisc. opener of rifle season heading to our location and we had about three inches of snow on the roads. long story short, I was driving to fast for the curve in the road and slid straight into a tree. Maybe 40 mph. No one was hurt. We were only 2 miles from camp and one of the guys ran back , grabbed the suburban and we went straight to our hunting spot. It wasn't until late afternoon that I finally called a wrecker to haul my truck away. WHo wants to miss opening day!!!!!
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41553
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby dan » Mon Feb 22, 2010 12:06 am

Getting a small wounded black bear shot off the top of me in pitch blackness...
huntinnurse
500 Club
Posts: 1570
Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2011 5:37 pm
Location: God's Country
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby huntinnurse » Mon Feb 22, 2010 3:30 am

Dan, I bet the angels that sit on your shoulders have to take shifts protecting you!!!!!! :mrgreen: That or they draw straws!!!!!!
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.John 3:16 KJV
User avatar
stikbow26
Posts: 83
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 2:22 am
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby stikbow26 » Tue Feb 23, 2010 2:35 am

When I was 22 I went hunting in Idaho for black bear and one of the guys I was with shoulder bladed a big ole blackie and while tracking it down to the bottom of the moutain it ran into a huge blown down and they convinced me to crawl in after it with a 357 because I was the smallest one at the time. Can you say young and dumb??? Glad he wasn't in there.. I did have to change my shorts after that one.. Walt
huntinnurse
500 Club
Posts: 1570
Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2011 5:37 pm
Location: God's Country
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby huntinnurse » Tue Feb 23, 2010 3:30 am

stikbow26 wrote:When I was 22 I went hunting in Idaho for black bear and one of the guys I was with shoulder bladed a big ole blackie and while tracking it down to the bottom of the moutain it ran into a huge blown down and they convinced me to crawl in after it with a 357 because I was the smallest one at the time. Can you say young and dumb??? Glad he wasn't in there.. I did have to change my shorts after that one.. Walt



:o :o :o :o
BwaaaaaaaHaaaaaaHaaaaaa!!!!!!!!
I would still me changing my shorts!!! :shock:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.John 3:16 KJV
tresleggos
Posts: 181
Joined: Mon Feb 22, 2010 10:14 am
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby tresleggos » Tue Feb 23, 2010 4:46 am

i had a pack of yotes right under my stand once , first time every bowhunting i was crapping my pants.....One time i shot a doe for a earn a buck saw it go down in some thick brush so i went to retrieve it in the dark and it wasnt where i saw it lay. so i look around with the light and i see the deer glowing eyes looking right at me about 5 ft away wasnt that scary but i crapped my pants now expecting it to be in my face aliveee...
User avatar
Sam Ubl
500 Club
Posts: 1647
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 4:38 am
Facebook: https://www.carbontv.com/shows/chase-na ... red-slider
Location: Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby Sam Ubl » Tue Feb 23, 2010 8:15 am

dan wrote:Getting a small wounded black bear shot off the top of me in pitch blackness...


I think you might have to divulge the rest of the story. . .

It's yotes for me. While tracking a doe in the darkness a few years back, my buddy and I had finally found her - so had the coyotes. Luckily they hadn't actually reached the deer, but had been following their noses as we found ourselves partially surrounded by what sounded like 5 or 6 different yotes. We were on the edge of a field and could occasionally see their silohuettes, not to mention here them pacing in the dry bean field. They were yipping and everything, a peircing sound at an occasional 20 yards if not closer. To say we were nervous is an understatement... We were a little frantic and I remember one of the two of us suggesting charging them to scare them off, but we felt like they didn't have a care in the world that we were humans, to them we were just shadows of life under the moon. I'd never have thought they would even encroach as they did, assuming our scent alone would scare them off - guess that scentfree approach really does work. Finally we scared them off with cell phone ring tones playing music. . . It was ridiculous. We were shook up enough to drag that deer all the way back without gutting her - neither of us wanted to turn our backs. The whole thing probably lasted a full minute, but that was one of a long minute!
Chase Nation | Reality Hunting TV | http://www.chasenation.tv
Watch Chase Nation on Carbon TV: https://www.carbontv.com/shows/chase-na ... red-slider
Huntmore | http://www.huntmore.io/
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41553
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby dan » Mon Mar 01, 2010 10:32 am

:lol:
I used to have a spot where I field dressed all the deer shot on one of the properties we hunted. The coyotes were thick there looking for the free gut meal. So you could not leave your deer laying around long. My son Dan Jr shot his 1st deer,a button buck. We field dressed it in the spot, then dragged it up to the farm house onto the porch in the house light 5 or 10 feet from the door. I went in the bathroom and washed the blood off my hands. When I came out, Ma infalt asked to see the boys 1st deer. We went out on the porch and the deer was gone. Suddenly I noticed a huge coyote dragging the deer down the driveway with its teeth while walking backwards fully aware we were standing there. 12 year old Jr. ran in the house scared, I ran after the coyote. He dropped the deer and I was able to get it back and put it in the back of the truck. I had to come back a few days later and dispatch the coyote because he was hanging around the door of the house at night scaring everybody who went in and out.
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41553
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby dan » Mon Mar 01, 2010 10:39 am

Sam Ubl wrote:
dan wrote:Getting a small wounded black bear shot off the top of me in pitch blackness...


I think you might have to divulge the rest of the story. . .


I figured everyone had heard that one already...

Junior's bear hunt...

Danny Infalt Jr. drew his 1st bear tag at age 16. We were hunting near the small northern Wisconsin town of Drummond. Junior had high hopes of scoring after seeing the slob bear I arrowed in Drummond the year before. Junior chose to hunt with my Mossberg shotgun instead of bow, this being his 1st bear hunt.

We hunted hard for an entire week with only one sighting the 1st evening, of a small blackie that was passed on. We had only set aside one week of vacation for bear hunting, not anticipating it being this difficult to shoot a bear with a gun. Both of us were feeling little down in spirits. Danny didn't want to give up. We decided we would come back up the next Saturday and hunt one more evening in an area a good friend and local bear expert, Brad Kuhnert, had suggested. It was the edge of a large swamp where local farmers were experiencing extreme crop damage from multiple bears exiting this swamp at night in search of farm crops.

Friday night I got a quick nap after work, then we were on the road most of the night. We passed the time talking about bear hunting. At one point, I told Jr, if you shoot a bear and its not dead... KEEP SHOOTING!! I told him he might not enjoy tracking a wounded bear nearly as much as tracking a wounded deer. Not that either is fun to track, its just wounded bears tend to get attitude problems.

We arrived at the swamp Saturday morning and set up a bait site. We 1st placed to stands side by side then put a bait about 20 yards away. We put a dozen pastries in a circle around the bait then sprayed vanilla extract up into the air to attract bears from down wind.

We then took a ride to Ashland and ate some lunch. When we returned, we heard something run off, and were surprised to find all the pastries gone and the logs over the bait shifted. We quickly, but quietly slipped up into the old Lone Wolf hang-ups and began the waiting game.

This was a long shot. We were hoping to bait a stand and shoot the bear all in one day. Definitely not the best strategy, but the only option left, and besides, you can't shoot one hanging around the living room staring at the TV wishing you were hunting.

We could hear the bear pacing back and forth in the heavy brush downwind trying to smell us. He would not show himself though. Then when we were just about to give up on the bear season, I looked up and saw the bear rise up on two feet to peer over some brush and look at the bait site. I whispered to Danny to get ready! We were almost out of light and the camera would no longer pick up enough light to film.

The bear casually circled the bait taking him right under our stands. He started his slow approach towards the bait giving us a good quartering angle. Jr. raised the gun and squeezed the trigger. KA-BOOM. The bear did a complete flip and was flailing around on the ground. Jr. pumped another solid copper sabot into the chamber and took aim a second time. I told Danny "Don't shoot, he is down."

Suddenly the bruin pops up onto all fours and takes off into the swamp. "YOU TOLD ME HE WAS DOWN, DON'T SHOOT!!! WHAT HAPPENED TO SHOOT TILL HE QUITS MOVING"

I could sense a desperation in Jr's voice, this was his 1st bear, and he thought his senile old man had ruined his opportunity. "Relax" I said, he did not go far. We got down and looked at the blood trail. It looked pretty good, plenty of lung blood. I said lets go eat supper and give the bear a little time, then we will come back and find him.

We needed to hit the road the next morning, so we went to a restaurant and had a quick meal. When we got back, it was black out. You could not see anything without a light. A thought crossed my mind about two things I forgot to do. Bring a compass, and tell someone where we would be hunting.

Danny reached into the truck and got the shotgun out. I told him to put it back it was just one more thing to carry out of the woods while dragging the bear. Well, Danny did not get the Indian nick name of "Fears Coyotes" ( We will cover that in a future article) for no reason, and he quickly stated there was no way we were tracking a wounded bear without a gun, or I was going in alone. OK, scardy pants, bring your stupid gun, I told him. We picked up the trail, and soon I realized we were tracking a bit to far for the double lung shot I had thought the boy had made. The blood was heavy though, so we pushed on. After a while we followed the trail up a mound of dirt and found a hole on the top leading down into a cavern.

The blood trail went right into the hole, but we could not see down far enough to see if the bear was down there. One question. Why do I always get the short straw? Anyway, I crawled down there and found a little opening with a bloody bed in the middle of it, but no bear. I looked around and found a small opening leading out of the cavern with some blood smeared on the sides. We had a problem now. That great blood trail had gone away. By bedding down for a while, he had clotted up, and slowed the bleeding. Now the only blood we were finding was where the bear had rubbed his wound against the underbrush. It was not easy, but we were able to stay on his trail for quite awhile. Then, we get to an open area, where the trees have matured and blocked the sunlight from growing under brush. There was no trail to follow, we looked and looked but could no longer pick up any sign. I shined the flashlight around and noticed one tree that was a little raised up higher in the center of the open woods. I thought maybe we could see something from that tree. Yep, long shot, but, I was doing pretty good on the longshots up till now.

We get to the tree and I immediately smell a familiar odor. For those of you who have taken bear, you know what I mean. Bear have a distinct odor, what I was smelling was that odor... Up close! I started getting a weird feeling like I was being watched or something. Jr. said, Dad, you smell that? The light started flashing all over the place... But we couldn't see anything. I even looked in the tree above us. Nothing.

I was just starting to write it off as some weird swamp gas or something, when I looked down by my feet, which were entangled in a mess of the tree's nasty exposed roots, when I noticed one of the roots had a smear of blood on it. I bent over and touched it, making sure it was blood, and was quite surprised to find it very fresh and still wet, even the portion that was rubbed. I new the bear was close. I tried to look for another spot of blood, twisting around like a circus contortionist to look behind me while my rubber boots were somewhat stuck in the tree roots, and noticed a bushel basket sized hole in the ground leading into the roots.

Just as my flashlight hit the opening, I saw two green eyes shining back. In a flash the bear charged out of the hole which was only a footstep away. He was coming right at me!!! I tried to turn and run out of the way, but my feet got caught in the roots and down I went. My flash light sailed out of my hands, momentarily blinded, I could not see a thing. As I hit the ground, I spun around to face the bear and went for my knife. I felt the bear hit my feet coming right over the top of me, when suddenly and unexpectedly, the night exploaded with a loud KA-BOOM. As the flash of light from the shotgun blast lit up the night, I could see the bear at my feet coming at me, a sight I will never forget! One more KA-BOOM and it was over. The boys back up flashlight lit up the woods, the bear had retreated back down the hole.

The whole episode lasted only a few seconds, We stood there for a second trying to come back to reality.

Once I shook off the attack, I approached the hole, shining the light inside (This time Jr. was right there beside me with the shotgun) No bear in sight. We looked around and found another hole. We could not see the bear! Someone was going to have to climb down there and see if he was still alive. You guessed it... I drew the short straw! Well, since I had to go down there, I decided to wait till morning!! Well, sure enough he was dead in the morning.

We sure got some funny looks at registration when they noticed two plastic slug casings stuck into the bears hide along with some singed hair. I just said two words "Don't ask." Then on the way home Dan Jr., starts up, about how he "Saved his old mans life" and a bunch of crazy stuff about being a super hero. I quickly quieted the boy down, by explaining the only thing he saved, was that bear from getting "one serious kicking".

Pulling the bear out of the hole:
Image

Image
Image
User avatar
Casper
500 Club
Posts: 974
Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2010 10:20 am
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/casper.kohlnhofer
Location: South Central WI
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby Casper » Mon Mar 01, 2010 1:55 pm

Mine is kind of a girly thing to admit, but as some of you know already that I almost stepped on a skunk last year while walking to my stand in the afternoon. I was walking through knee high alfalfa. I looked down and the skunk stood up and my foot was about to land on it. Turned its but towards me, I was like OH S%*%!!! and I took off running the opposite direction. At that moment, I strongly believe I was the fastest man on the planet :)
The Healthy Herd Pro Staff
User avatar
Sam Ubl
500 Club
Posts: 1647
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 4:38 am
Facebook: https://www.carbontv.com/shows/chase-na ... red-slider
Location: Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby Sam Ubl » Tue Mar 02, 2010 8:17 am

Excellent story Dan! Great pics, too. Does the footage still exist?
Chase Nation | Reality Hunting TV | http://www.chasenation.tv
Watch Chase Nation on Carbon TV: https://www.carbontv.com/shows/chase-na ... red-slider
Huntmore | http://www.huntmore.io/
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41553
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby dan » Tue Mar 02, 2010 12:23 pm

I only have the recovery on film.
User avatar
Hodag Hunter
500 Club
Posts: 3837
Joined: Sat Feb 27, 2010 5:14 pm
Location: Northern WI
Status: Offline

Re: What was your scariest moment.....

Unread postby Hodag Hunter » Tue Mar 02, 2010 2:55 pm

First black bear hunt in Alberta with the bow. Being this was my first bear hunt our 3 man group chose a guided hunt, trying to gain a feel for pursuing bear before we drew our WI kill tags.

We hunted abot 80-100 miles north of Ft McMurry, Alberta.....way up in the sticks with tent only as our accomidations. First day out buudy and I are teamed with our guide in the truck and argo.....others in camp take the river boat. Well the truck trip consists of 20-40 miles of road travel and then 2-15 miles of argo travel after stopping the truck. The closest my buddy ever hunted to each other was about 25 miles as the crow flies. No doubt about, when dropped off you are on your own......praying the argo or truck doesn't breakdown because you will spend the night in the bush.

Well, at the first bait guide takes us in and shows us around, I take the first setup but ask why the stand is placed in that 7-8 inch diameter limbless tree practicly by itself. I see plenty of trees with better cover, but the guide responds, you don't want to be near a tree a bear can climb easy. I'm like, yea ok. He then instructs again do NOT let a cub climb above your head if one runs in your tree. Again I'm like yea ok.....he responds these are not WI bear, be carefull, they have little fear of humans.

Within the first hour two cubs apear and start hitting the bait but no momma shows. Cubs feed for a while and seem content except every time the wind blows and snaps branches they run to a tree and climb 3-5 feet up. After about 45 minutes of the tree up and down climbing the wind really picks up and a larger branch breaks off a dead pine and crashes to the floor. At this sound I hear the sow woof loud, she is out of sight and the cubs run to my tree to climb.

I start to get a little nervous as there about 4' off the ground and I'm only up about 11-12'. I decide to hang my bow up and get "ready" in case the cubs decide to climb further. Well with my movement hanging the bow the sow woofs two more times, cubs must be thinking; danger climb further up, not down. First cub I kick him right off the stand as his paw reaches over. He falls to the ground balling all the way. Second cub is on the backside and as I turn to him while sticking my fist down he turns tail and runs down. The next moments all happen fast..... as I am spinning in the tree I see movement out of the corner of my eye, its the sow. She hits the tree running at it with her shoulder like a linebacker hits a tackle dummy. Darn near knocks me out of the stand. She then stands on her hind legs and starts raking the tree while snapping and popping her teeth. I guess this is the scary part.

After what seems like minutes, probably was 30 seconds she backs down and sits on her haunches and pops her teeth and woofs a half a dozen more times. By this time I have the bow drawn and aimed at her yelling for her to run away....she just gets up and starts pacing back and forth inbetween the hemlocks woofing the whole time. The sow would have been legal to shoot but frowned upon with camp we're in.

Finally her and the cubs just melted into the swamp and I sat down to gather my wits. Started chuckling to my self as my leg is shaking uncontrolable and thanking the guide for not putting the stand in a differant tree with cover.

To shorten the story, seen one more large bear that night but came and left the bait fast with out a shot. I hunted that same tree the next night and killed the second bear as I was ready for the quick entrance and departure.

Lots of stories with that first bear hunt......even tracked a bear my buddy shot the night before with his bow and we found alive the next day tracking.....I didn't have a gun. But really not that scary as the bear only came with 20 feet of me that time.


  • Advertisement

Return to “Deer Hunting”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 58 guests