Tom2008

I waited 2 hours before looking and then we searched for her for almost 4 hours. The trail got washed away because it rained. While we were looking for her the blood trail was already washing out some and it was only a mist.

BowHuntingFool

Thats a tough one when it rains overnight! I just had the same kinda problem with the heat, a race against time, luckily I found her in time! When you loose a blood trail you can try a grid search, sometimes it pays off! This thread is a great learning tool and is reposted here year after year! We all read it and re-read it several times a season to keep our chops up! No disrespect but like I said a couple 4 hours isn't enough time in my eyes! JMO!

http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=2272257

She might be dead in the area, what were your temps like???

Urban_Redneck

Sorry to rain on your parade, but I think you shirked your responsibility.

You owed your ham shot doe a some daylight hours of seaching... when the blood washes out you follow the tracks, walk circles, etc.

If it was a 160" 10point would you have seached for it in the morning?

royak

Congrats on your deer

Tom2008

The next day it got up into the 70s. I got out of there right after I shot that second doe and got home to cut her up. It was actually 80 back home. Its tough to follow tracks on a ground covered with damp leaves. We coudn't even see any tracks when we were on the blood trail. I think I arleady answered the buck question.

GMMAT

Congrats on your doe.

If you don't mind me asking, though (I think the others have pretty well covered the search)........

Did you ever think about a follow up shot on the doe you did get down? She's 20 yds away.....and expiring for five minutes?

greenboy

Wow you guys th guy gost got his first deer cant we just say congrats instead of ragging on him for something hes obviously sorry about? Hey tom congrats on the doe man

Tom2008

No I don't see the need too. She wasn't getting up and passed quickly. She laid flat on the ground her head wasn't up or anything. I could see the arrow moving in her neck, but that was just from the blood that came out. When it stopped movingI knew she had passed. It might not have been5 minutes I'm just putting a guess on it. If anything it happened a lot quicker than that even.

Rob/PA Bowyer

With this statement it appears through your words that you guys never went back. You relied on what HE said. And it also appears he walked away from the blood trail.

Not according to your original thread. I'm sorry, it seems like your story is changing.

Again, your saying here that Dave is the only one following the blood trail but yet you say we, we, we. In the end, it was Dave who was the only one following and you didn't go back on his word alone.

And not enough blood is still blood.

So if there was blood present.....why stop. Just because it's ten feet apart, there is still a trail and by your words.....it's continous?

True, we can only go by what your telling us but what I read your telling us is that Dave alone made the decision for you to quit when there was still a blood trail. I'm sorry but Dave didn't pull the trigger, he didn't have the investment you had in the hunt. I do not quit looking by what some else said. Perhaps you should read Matt / PA's recovery persistance on the buck he killed. He looked for 3 days with ZERO BLOOD. You had blood and quit in one night/4 hours. Your respondibility was to look the next morning NOT shoot another one regardless of the rain. AGAIN, Matt had zero blood, 3 days and found it. You had blood and it appears by the writing on the wall that you cut the artery in the hams. That deer is probably dead and you gave up. Sorry, that's the way I read it by your own words.

The wait was appropriate, the search was not. Again, your saying the blood washed out SOME...not totally and again, Dave was the only one looking at that point according to your own words?

Again, you shouldn't have shot the second deer (congrats again) without first exhausting the search for the first one. Exhausting means grid searches etc...Temperature shouldn't have been a factor had you not shot the second one.

Great question, why didn't you shoot her again to speed up the expiration?

Gut Check

If you notice, everyone has said "congrats but..."

I am sure that Dave is an accomplished hunter. The beauty of this board is you get to here and learn from the experiences of hunters across the nation. This information is priceless.

There is a difference is being maliciously critical or giving you constructive criticism. And I think everyone has done the latter.

As I said before, congrats but take the information everyone has shared with you, absorb it, and remember it for your future hunts.