Last PM I got a call from an older disabled gentleman that belongs to my hunting club. Him and his wife hunt the early archery season with crossbows. His wife had stuck a doe about dark and the deer left the plot.
I grabbed my el cheapo lights from China and my 6.8 with the ATN ThOR on top. I took out the BCG for safety reasons and in case a warden happened to be in the area. (I ALWAYS have my Glock 32 on my hip though.)
They showed me the spot that the doe was standing in and there was bright red blood but with no froth to it. I stepped back and took a look with the thermal and I could not see it. Too long of time had passed(approx.1 hour)and it was cold. The ambient air temp was 62deg.
I slung my rifle and broke out my <$15. 2000L light from China. We found the direction the deer took thru the tall weeds and began to follow. This small light has one 5000mAh battery in it. After about 30 minutes of finding smallish wipes of blood on the tall stems of grass we came to a old skidder road. We looked for blood in the line that the deer had taken and found none. I figured that the doe had gone right or left down the road.
We turned off our lights and I turned on my thermal. I walked about 50yds down the road to the right and saw nothing with light or thermal. I went back to the starting point and started down the old road in the other direction. When I got down the road about 40yds I lifted up the thermal and took a look. I could see something down the road partially hidden by the tall grass. What I do in this situation is if the "target" will not move....I move. I took a step to the right,then to the left. I could see several bright red spots in a sea of green(a setting on my sight). I switched to black hot and now could see 4 or 5 black patches that were partially hidden by tall brush. Sometimes this is a rabbit so I stood their and watched for the target to move. I did not,so I advanced and the target became more clear. It was bigger than a rabbit.
As I got closer and moved latterly I could see that the target was the doe on the ground surrounded by shoulder high clumps of brown grass and weeds. She was dead,and now that two hours had passed since she was stuck with the broad head she was still plenty hot to be seen with my thermal.
I called the older lady up to my position and let her take a look thru the thermal. She was amazed. She called her husband who was on the ATV,he brought it up to our position and we loaded the 90'ish pound doe on the front rack. We walked behind the ATV on the way back to the club road so that he would mash down some of the brush for us and make the walking somewhat easier.
This was the ladies first kill with a crossbow and she was EXTREMELY happy that the doe had been recovered. SO WAS I. --- pruhdlr
EDIT/UPDATE ---> (10/30 noon) The ladys husband called today. He butchered the deer that night and told me the expandable broadhead that they use passed thru the deer somewhat high. It did not hit heart or lungs. (I suspect a little far back also). The lady was shooting the crossbow from an elevated stand approx.20ft in the air.
I grabbed my el cheapo lights from China and my 6.8 with the ATN ThOR on top. I took out the BCG for safety reasons and in case a warden happened to be in the area. (I ALWAYS have my Glock 32 on my hip though.)
They showed me the spot that the doe was standing in and there was bright red blood but with no froth to it. I stepped back and took a look with the thermal and I could not see it. Too long of time had passed(approx.1 hour)and it was cold. The ambient air temp was 62deg.
I slung my rifle and broke out my <$15. 2000L light from China. We found the direction the deer took thru the tall weeds and began to follow. This small light has one 5000mAh battery in it. After about 30 minutes of finding smallish wipes of blood on the tall stems of grass we came to a old skidder road. We looked for blood in the line that the deer had taken and found none. I figured that the doe had gone right or left down the road.
We turned off our lights and I turned on my thermal. I walked about 50yds down the road to the right and saw nothing with light or thermal. I went back to the starting point and started down the old road in the other direction. When I got down the road about 40yds I lifted up the thermal and took a look. I could see something down the road partially hidden by the tall grass. What I do in this situation is if the "target" will not move....I move. I took a step to the right,then to the left. I could see several bright red spots in a sea of green(a setting on my sight). I switched to black hot and now could see 4 or 5 black patches that were partially hidden by tall brush. Sometimes this is a rabbit so I stood their and watched for the target to move. I did not,so I advanced and the target became more clear. It was bigger than a rabbit.
As I got closer and moved latterly I could see that the target was the doe on the ground surrounded by shoulder high clumps of brown grass and weeds. She was dead,and now that two hours had passed since she was stuck with the broad head she was still plenty hot to be seen with my thermal.
I called the older lady up to my position and let her take a look thru the thermal. She was amazed. She called her husband who was on the ATV,he brought it up to our position and we loaded the 90'ish pound doe on the front rack. We walked behind the ATV on the way back to the club road so that he would mash down some of the brush for us and make the walking somewhat easier.
This was the ladies first kill with a crossbow and she was EXTREMELY happy that the doe had been recovered. SO WAS I. --- pruhdlr
EDIT/UPDATE ---> (10/30 noon) The ladys husband called today. He butchered the deer that night and told me the expandable broadhead that they use passed thru the deer somewhat high. It did not hit heart or lungs. (I suspect a little far back also). The lady was shooting the crossbow from an elevated stand approx.20ft in the air.
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