Sometimes being conscientious sucks

[David]

My story of the weekend...

I was out for a morning hunt driving my ATV down a logging road. As I approached a "Y" in the road I saw two people on an ATV come bombing down one side of the "Y" and head up the other. That was the way I wanted to go, but... they were going fast and I was going slow so I thought I'd head that way anyways and eventually they'd out-pace me (plus there were a number of lines off that road I could take).

I head down the road 200 yards and see them off their bike with their guns out. I pull over, shut off my bike so as not to scare the game, look where they were pointing and see a buck at the tree line just up the hill. I wait figuring if they get it and need to track/haul it out I'll give them a hand.

Next thing I know they are putting their guns down, unloading and getting ready to get back on their bike. I wave at them and point up the hill, they walk over to me. The guy (him and his girlfriend - new hunter) says "two does". To which I respond "what the hell do you mean 2 does! There's a buck right there - you were here 1st - take him!" . At that point I should my rifle and watch the buck turn and walk into the trees.

*sigh*

If I'd been ready to shoot an animal out from someone I would have had my deer. Plus I was only out for the morning as it was my 5 year old's birthday and I was heading back into town - skunked.

Karma better give me a monster next weekend.

Me.

[Sofa King]

you should have shot.
they saw does, you saw buck.
but then, I should have shot also on several occasions and didn't.

[Quince]

What goes around comes around. If they didnt want it you should have blasted away.
I spotted a buck with a doe a few years ago truck hunting and me and my buddy got out of the truck, the buck was over 225m away. Told buddy i was putting on bipod for better shot, while i was getting it out of the truck he took a shot at the buck and missed. He apologized for it after but hes been skunked for 3yrs now......

[markomoose]

Good for you David !I did the same thing a while back.I was on my old 3 wheeler and 2 guys pull up behind me on 2 quads.I said go ahead as I was driving slow.I pull around the next corner and buddy is off his machine trying desperately to chamber a round.His rifle was covered in snow and the bolt froze.By by buck.Good karma will shine on you! Cheers Mark

[skuntor]

One thing I've learned is to look very closely at "does"!

[Sofa King]

I've had on so many occasions been delayed two minutes leaving camp, and when I get on my way, a guy will have just gotten in there just ahead of me, and I round a bend and there's an animal down.
happened a few years ago with a immy moose, and I stopped and helped the guy load it, as he was alone with his very young son.
and the latest was last year, had the bike warming up, still dark with the horizon just starting to lighten.
I was just pulling out from camp when it started to lightly rain.
spun the bike around quickly to get my rain jacket and put it on.
while doing that, a truck passed by my camp which was down this old trail off a road off a road.
I was just getting back on the quad to get going, and I heard a shot.
I made my way down the road and there the truck was with a decent buck down that was right out in the open on a little hillside.
them's the brakes.

[Sofa King]

One thing I've learned is to look very closely at "does"!

yup.
I overlooked one this year already.
it was earlier this season with adriatacum.
it was dark when we started walking, and we got to an area to look below as it had just gotten seeing light shortly before.
right away we spot a deer right below us.
I looked quickly and had instantly dismissed it as a doe, then adri says no, it's a spiker.
I always have big, symmetrical, 4pointers in my brain, so I had completely sluffed it off as a doe and was already scanning for the other deer that surely had to be accompanying it.

[Big Lew]

We always remember the animals that someone got because we either let hunters pass, or
hunters went into an area we were heading to while we were stopped for lunch or pee break.
We forget that we've got many animals just after other hunters have either passed or
come out of an area and not seen anything. It only takes a few seconds for an animal to
either disappear or appear. When I took my youngest brother hunting for his first time I
was explaining this to him as we pulled over to let a vehicle by that was coming out of an
area. As soon as we got underway again he saw a dandy buck standing 50 yds away.
He shot it while I could still see the other vehicle about 100 yds from us. You've got to be
in the right place at the right time as well as look intensely into the nicks and crannies
rather than just scan over an area. We saw a doe (they were open) and a band of about
6-7 including a large buck in that same relatively small but hilly area that those other hunters
had just left.

[Cookie1965]

I was out this weekend, drove up a FSR in the dark Saturday morning without a real plan in mind. I picked a cut block and at first light I set off to still hunt for a couple of hours. While I'm at it a truck drives by well after first light. I get back to my truck, have a cup of coffee and drive farther up the road, only to see the guys from the other truck dragging a 2 point out. I guess I stopped a cut block or two too early. Oh well, I met those guys up there a couple of weeks ago and was happy they got a buck. A little later in the day I missed getting a shot at a spiker because I was too slow to see that it had antlers. Oh well, that's hunting.

[Ron.C]

David,

good on you for waiting patiently and give them the chance. And they won't be the first or the last hunters to overlook a buck standing in plain sight.

[Bugle M In]

Sounds like a case of tunnel vision for those 2.
happens probably a lot, people not looking around after spotting 1 animal, such as you described
good on you for waiting, and your frustration with them is deservedly right!
Maybe you will be popping a shot of jagermeister after standing beside a buck soon...good luck!

[139grainsofhell]

My uncle ran into a couple guys that had an leh for doe and were in the wrong region so he offers to show them where Thier region starts, so they follow him as they were driving he stopped saw some fresh tracks in the snow and about 80yards away there was a 5x5 whitetail standing there he couldn't see it but the other guys could and boom, he didn't end up showing them where to get Thier doe lol.

[RadHimself]

^^^ that right there is funny

[Sofa King]

it doesn't always pay to be a nice guy.
shoulda just told them to go learn the regs and regions.

[Singleshotneeded]

You should've gotten ready, and when they didn't take the buck, shot it yourself. They must be spending way too much time watching tv and not enough time in the woods. :-)

[curt]

I think you did the right thing 100% the only unfortunate thing was there were no younger generation hunters a long to witness the respect and sportsmanship you showed.