The winds were funky this morning. Got started with a NE wind, then SE, then E? Never seemed to bother the deer. They still all came in downwind. lol
Had two under my stand before I could verify what they were. No antlers, but I didn't want to kill any button bucks so I passed. Finally daylight and I verified one button buck and one was a yearling. They were joined by a basket racked 8pt. Eventually they moved off and I had more deer moving in. It appears maybe their momma had circled around behind me while I was being a statue so as to not get picked off. They met up with her to the south of me and disappeared. They came and went from sight for the next 30min or so. Then I had a huge doe come out at forty yards. She was unsure so she turned around and headed back into the cover. The second time she came out and stared me down. I never moved. She was still at 40yds. She began to turn to head back to cover so I repositioned when her head was down. She was playing the whole game. First the head bob. Next the "I will act like I am looking away, then snap my head back to see if I can catch you moving" game. She lost. I was motionless. She was still unsure and I felt she was heading back to cover for good. I pulled my bow up to draw and she looked. I froze. I waited. She looked down. I drew. She looked up. I waited more. She looked down. I anchored in a hurry and got her in the sights. I wasn't sure how long it would be before she bolted so I released the arrow. Clean miss at 40yds. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Looking back, I realize I made multiple fundamental mistakes. I was wearing a different face mask today. Instead of the thin material one like spandex, I was wearing a fleece mask. I did not focus on my anchor point with the kisser button. I am not sure I even bent at the waist because I didn't want to get picked off on movement. I didn't follow through. To sum it up, I rushed the shot. I won't say she "ducked the arrow" because I am not sure if she did. Given her level of alertness, and the distance of 40yds, I would say it is possible. However, in the end I just plain missed. I rushed my shot. I screwed up. I let my fear of not getting a shot (if she bolted) cause me to flat out miss. I can't say I had jitters or was nervous, but I can say my lack of concentration on the fundamentals during the moment of truth got the best of me.
Time on stand: 3.5hrs
Deer Seen: 5
Shots taken: 1
Total time on stand:22.5hrs
Total deer seen: 53
Deer per hour: 2.3555
Shots taken: 1
tags filled: zip
