Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire The closest/easiest shot you ever missed?

I saw a string about your best shot some time back,what about your worst.<BR> About 5 years ago during deer season I was hunting with a crew of 10 doing drives in hardwoods,pines and slashings on a mountain ridge. My stand was known as the stone tree due to it having a big rock in the "Y" of this old tree that forked in to 4 parts,I never stood there before . As I found the tree it had a "Y" about 10 ft up .I had a pistol and a 12ga and all shots would be less than 60 yards so I climed into the tree and waited with pistol in hand.<BR> After a time I heard a shot from another stander to my right 150 yards away through the brush and pines. A moment later out pops this doe coming staight at me but weaving side to side to get between the trees. I shot once at about 40 yd ,then at 30 ,then at 20,then at 10. I was tracking the deer but it was bouncing back and forth faster than I could adjust. I stopped tracking the deer as it passed 2ft under my right foot. It then stopped on the other side of the tree 10 yards away, where I could not shoot because of the size and location of the branches and just looked at me .It was like she was just shaking her head at me in amazement. Those guys remind me at the begining of every year about that. But i'm not the only one,last year the owners son,after 20yrs of hunting ,he missed the buck off his life there,a monster 10 pt. 5 shots at 15yards or less as it ran a circle around him. It seems he's taken the pressure off me. HE,HE,HE

2 years ago I flat out blew a shot on a huge Cape Bushbuck in South Africa. Range about 100 yards standing comletely still broadside. I took a solid rest on a tree limb, took all the time in the world and just flat out missed him. To this day I can see the crosshair steady on his shoulder.<P>I have no idea what happened and know it wasn't the rifle since we checked the zero right after that. Just plain blew the shot. After 4 safaris, that is still the biggest bushbuck ram I've ever seen and that includes mounted heads. But, it gives me a reason to go back.<P>Mac

I didn't miss this shot, the deer was bullit proof !!!<BR>Me and a hunting buddie spotted a herd of deer in the scrub oak and brush, there was a nice buck with the herd, but they dissapered into the brush, so we split up and put the sneak on them. All of a sudden the bucks head pops up about twenty yds away. I take careful aim right where the head meets the neck and fire, very sure of the shot. The shot sounded very loud, and I look over to see my friend, about thirty yds to my left, he had fired at the same time, with a clear view of the deers neck, hes sure he nailed it. We walk over expecting to find a headless deer, but no deer to be found. No blood, no hair, nothing ! We track the herd for two hours through the thick brush, but never find any trace of a hit. Later we talked and we were both sure we hit the deer, I mean a standing shot at twenty yds ?<BR>I can still see the crosshairs on that deer neck as I pull the trigger !

2 years ago, after doing a ton of scouting and watching deer for archery opener, i had found my spot. sure as clockwork, the biggest whitetail i'd had the opportunity to hunt pops out on the trail. 12 yards, wide open. he was rubbing a tree branch, and then just stood there. i let an arrow go, watched it fly true, right over his back. he jumped, ran about 5 yards to my right, and i did it again, at about 15 yards. i was baffled.<P>------------------<BR>Hunting is not a matter of life or death. It is much more important than that.

I have never missed a shot while hunting!!!<BR>My rifle and shotgun, oh yes, a bow back in the fiftys have had a few problems. Had four very large bucks standing about forty yards from me, they spooked and started running to my right, they were against a cliff and had to pass about 100' from me. My first bow hunt, I pulled on a huge bolder they had to pass and when I thought the lead was right I let the arrow go, all four bucks passed the spot, the arrow hit the boulder bounced up in the air and almost landed at my feet. See it was the bows fault for not being fast enough. I won't even go into the shotgun thing, it always has some problems like tightening up when birds flush all around it, or a fast moving dove doing acrobatics, or a mallard wearing armor plate coming head on. The only deer I remember my rifle having trouble with was crossing a sagebrush flat broadside, but he was practicing ballet with springs on his feet bouncing up and down like something in a shooting gallery. My 270 must have been ill that day and coordination was off just a might but that deer found out how high he could jump before he hit the Pinion trees about 30 yards away, we were shooting about 100 yards. -- no <P>------------------<BR>A hint to the wise is sufficient! Smiles are contagious, infect everyone!

Last Labor Day I had 3 mule deer bucks feeding towards me on a trail.My angle was wrong for a shot,so when all thier heads were down I came to full draw and stepped out of cover onto the trail.I estimated the distance at 20 yds,it was 35.The first arrow landed right under the belly of the first buck,to my amazement he did a small hop stopped and sniffed at the arrow and looked back at me.I swear he smiled and dared me to try that again,so I did and put the second arrow over his back.That one smartened him up and he walked behind a bush and stared at me so I turned my attention to another buck standing to my right and just cut the hair on his back and put the arrow into a tree.They finally had enough of this and stiff legged it up the timbered slope,I thought I could hear laughing but it was only the wind in the trees.

I'd much rather plead the 5th on this question, but since we're all friends here.... <P>2 years ago in doe season I saw a herd of 12 coming through the brush off the hill opposite where I was sitting. I knew they'd cross the creek and come right up to me, so I sat down and rested the rifle across my knees and waited. Sure enough, they come right up through the field to a distance of about 10 yrds. The lead doe saw me at this distance and stopped, trying to decide if I was a danger, and wether to turn or go on. Just as she stopped to look at me, I centered "Ole Bettsy" on her noggin (no use wasting meat at this distance) and sqose. Imagine my surprise, when following the blast, her and all her kin exploded by me for the woods behind me. She dang near run me over! I think I could have tripped her if I'd tried! I still don't know how I missed that shot, but I think it just wasn't her day to die.<BR>7mmbuster

A couple years ago i was hunting with my uncles, cousins, and my dad. well i was sitting in my cousins tree stand when a nice 8-10 pointer walked out 20 -30 yds away and just started grazing in front of me well i had my old 30-30 with iron sights and i was confident i could put one through both shoulders and drop him where he stood .. well i raised my gun and BOOM!! there he goes with his flag raised and me sitting there wondering what the hell happened.<BR>YoungHunter<P>------------------<BR> MARLIN 35Rem. THE ONLY WAY TO GO!!!!

Last fall I was trying out some loads at our National Forest rifle range.<P>With my rifle on sandbags, I was seated at the shooting bench. I had heretofore put about half a dozen shots in the X ring of the target I was shooting at. When, despite all the shooting, (or perhaps because of it!), out walks a good sized groundhog at the 100 yard line. I had a shell in the chamber ready to go. I kid you not, he stopped right in front of my target...<P>And I can't bear to tell you the "rest of the story." I'll just refer you to the title of this thread. <P>Wizard <P>(But definitely not the wizard of knocking off sitting duck groundhogs at shooting ranges).<P>

I have blown a few peep shots in my day, but my all-time favorite was a woodchuck at less than 30 yards. Crusin' around in the countryside for 'chucks with my buddy. We pull up and glass both sides of the valley. He spots one way out at the end of a hayfield on his side the road and proceeds to creep into the field for a bipod position.<BR>I look down the hill on my side and there's a knotty head sticking out of a grass clump, 50 yards or so away. <BR>Snuck out the legal distance from the road with the 25-06, cuz it was the most handy rifle, dropped to one knee, set the crosshairs on his face and squeezed the trigger. Never touched him. <BR>The last shot I had taken was at 500 yards, never clicked the turret back to zero. Bud said it served me right for shootin' at a poor little rodent at 30 yards with the 25-06.

It's nice we can be honest and polk fun at ourselves! Miss number one came during a drive in the WI hardwoods. Another driver and I came together on a small ridge top. Standing head on to me is a little doe. Why aim for the chest when you can aim right between her eyes? Heck, she was only standing about thiry feet away!. Well, we could talk all day about the dump, stupid, untrained college kid who had never shot slugs in that double before, but being kind friends you won't. The other guy shot her and there was no sign of my even getting close to her. Big miss number two came a few years later bowhunting in a tree line along a cornfield. A six pointer came walking down the lane from one direction and an eight pointer was coming from the other! WOW, which one should I shoot? They come nose and nose under my tree, the six whitles, the 8 grunts, they both look up at me and run. The bow never gets off my lap! That was 25 years ago and when I close my eyes I still see them! That's what hunting is all about. Doug