Crimson Arrows
Well-Known Member
Here is the Bison I was lucky enough to harvest with my bow on Sunday, 12/7/2008. I had switched to slick trick (1" standard) and practiced many hours with them in cold weather. There is no doubt the fly as well as anything I have ever shot. I was shooting an Xforce at 70 LBS and after two stalks in which they busted me I was able to get an arrow off at 30 yards. The flight was perfect and it hit right behind the shoulder, buried to the fletching . The outfitter stopped later and asked if I had got a shot and I said yes..it was perfect..should be right over the hill. We followed the blood and I said the arrow had just not quite made it through the other side but he should be down. As we crested the rise though.....He was standing there looking at us with steam coming from his nostrils and blood dripping from a hole right behind his shoulder! I thought... no way this is happening. He trotted off slowly and I went over and sure enough,a pool of blood.
30 minutes later...I stalked up on him and got another arrow off, right at the elbow crease and he literally just stood there, took two steps and snapped the arrow off like a tooth pick. Then he lowered his head and started grunting while walking right at me...pawing the ground. You know your in trouble when the outfitter takes off before you! I hid behind a tree and said to him, "what should I do... don't know where to aim anymore?" He said just keep in the same area..he will go down." I fired one more into the vitals and he walked off again...started to stumble and was done. The arrows had took one lung and clipped the other on the first shot, the second had gone dead center through a rib, staying intact and getting one lung. Neither broadhead tip was blunted at all. The third grazed a rib and got into the lungs again. This one I never found. The heads perfored but I don't know what else I could have done different?
I was really at am emotional crossroad. I felt bad for him but again had fulfilled a dream I had for years. I thought I did everything I could correctly and Dan said that he has had as many as 9 shots with rifles before. I guess I wanted to capture as much of the hunt as I could. It wasn't like stalking them on the prairies out west but with limited tag opportunities and low draw rates, I felt it was as close as I could get. There were no cages and they live out there on 500 acres all year. I thought it would be easy but it truly was amazing how challenging it was to get close enough.
He weighed 1300 lbs and all I can say is that they are unbelievable animals. I learned so much about them on this hunt and its really sad as to how many there once was and what became of them. Luckily there are about 350,000 left in North America and to see them up close and personal was one of the few times I just shook my head out there..they are just so big and intimidating. A mixture of emotions came over me on this animal as they are part of so much history and he took so many arrows. I hope you know what I mean by that but I guess we all hope for one shot kills but I did all I could. We are using evey part of the animal and have alot of the meat to enjoy the entire winter.
If anybody can help me post pics I'll send them. Thanks for reading everybody!
30 minutes later...I stalked up on him and got another arrow off, right at the elbow crease and he literally just stood there, took two steps and snapped the arrow off like a tooth pick. Then he lowered his head and started grunting while walking right at me...pawing the ground. You know your in trouble when the outfitter takes off before you! I hid behind a tree and said to him, "what should I do... don't know where to aim anymore?" He said just keep in the same area..he will go down." I fired one more into the vitals and he walked off again...started to stumble and was done. The arrows had took one lung and clipped the other on the first shot, the second had gone dead center through a rib, staying intact and getting one lung. Neither broadhead tip was blunted at all. The third grazed a rib and got into the lungs again. This one I never found. The heads perfored but I don't know what else I could have done different?
I was really at am emotional crossroad. I felt bad for him but again had fulfilled a dream I had for years. I thought I did everything I could correctly and Dan said that he has had as many as 9 shots with rifles before. I guess I wanted to capture as much of the hunt as I could. It wasn't like stalking them on the prairies out west but with limited tag opportunities and low draw rates, I felt it was as close as I could get. There were no cages and they live out there on 500 acres all year. I thought it would be easy but it truly was amazing how challenging it was to get close enough.
He weighed 1300 lbs and all I can say is that they are unbelievable animals. I learned so much about them on this hunt and its really sad as to how many there once was and what became of them. Luckily there are about 350,000 left in North America and to see them up close and personal was one of the few times I just shook my head out there..they are just so big and intimidating. A mixture of emotions came over me on this animal as they are part of so much history and he took so many arrows. I hope you know what I mean by that but I guess we all hope for one shot kills but I did all I could. We are using evey part of the animal and have alot of the meat to enjoy the entire winter.
If anybody can help me post pics I'll send them. Thanks for reading everybody!
