Bull Down 6.5 Sherman strikes again !!

OP is telling two different stories. 1st story is that the bull was shot twice at 50 yards and bedded down 30 feet away from being shot .

Second story is that the bull was shot twice at 50 yards and crashed into a "dirty gully".

Ramrod , which story are we going with here ?

ramrod79. Don't let this get to you. We were not there but love to comment (as we should). A few years back I watched my 16 y/o daughter (my baby) from about 1/2 mile away through my binos take a shot at a coues buck she found. It was bedded in dense grove of oak trees and had no idea she was taking a shot. She took her jacket off and steadied the rifle in it while lying in a prone position across a big rock. After the shot she called me on the radio and said it was hit but she was going to wait a few minutes before rushing in. I thought it was a great call and watching it all unfold almost brought me to tears (almost). Looked and acted like a pro. Sometimes the best move is waiting especially if you know the animal was hit good and the chance of losing it are high. Even a heavily wounded elk can put a lot of distance between you in a very short period of time when spooked. I just want to know if your 66 y/o dad out packed you guys?

can1010 said:

is this really any different than what archers do every day. people shouldn't be so quick to judge

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I am a very good archer with lots of ethics, have guided many a punk of all ages and wallet depths.
A well placed and proper broad head will always outdo a well placed bullet. Look up the shock- impact statistics.
I personally joined this forum because running point(getting up close and personal)has gotten a bit boring. Middle ground(200-400ish for me) is old hat(standard gun ranges for me). And F.Y.I., 1500 f.p.s. is my max range for hunting big game with ANY bullet. But that is just me.
I will gladly pick chit with the chickens in an open forum or personal.

I'm a believer in quickly dispatching animals, but I think Ramrod did the right thing under the conditions. I won't second-guess a situation that I was not a witness to. Only the hunter can make a decision to wait or go in immediately, possibly spooking the animal. An elk, wounded even fatally, and charged with adrenaline, can cover many miles before expiring. Sometimes it is far better to give them some time. JMO

I am an archer as well. Have killed several mature bulls with archery gear. 15-30 minutes wait with a good hit is common.... however, leaving the area or whatever isn't. That crap is for TV and gut shot deer...
I commenteted going off TWO 50 yard shots into a non moving bull that then laid down or otherwise went out of sight. In MY book that calls for immediate action up to and including jumping him up and pounding him again in any part you can hit. Good grief the bull was only 50\100 yards away, even if you just sat there, if it got up or was thrashing at least you would be able to nail him again or whatever.
Just my opinion, I wasn't there and wasnt pulling the trigger so who knows.

I am sure if you ran up to him after the first two shots and shot two more times these p...ies would be telling you that you shot to much that so insensible. You did what you felt was right so.... Carry On and Congrats

BTW, congrats a getting a bull. Just because I said something critical doesn't mean I think poorly of you. Good job!

OP should be cleaning and packing out an elk at this point so I don't expect a response for a while .

Fact remains, two completely different stories.

WeiserBucks said:

OP should be cleaning and packing out an elk at this point so I don't expect a response for a while .

Fact remains, two completely different stories.

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Well, maybe the stories should have waited til the meat was out.
Got stuff to do for a cow elk hunt in the morning. Y'all have have a good night, specially the ol man packin the meat.

ramrod79 said:

Well before all you start on your you should have I guess you would had to saw where he was at. I shot him 2 twice a 50 yards in dense timber and he soaked those up then he went down into a dirty gully crashed in there. Rather than possibly push hiM out walk 10 mins back to truck call for help let him sit. 35 mins later I got back to gully he was done used chain saw to get him out of dead fall gully.

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Yeah, the only way he was going anywhere would be if you pushed him out. With the snow it's not like you could have lost him had he wondered off a ways before crashing anyhow.

A whole lot of pretty smart people think it's very good idea to wait 15-30 mins before approaching any downed game animal for that reason, and to of course avoid getting eaten, gored, or smashed by dangerous game

Experience is an awfully good, but often hard teacher.

ramrod79 said:

Well before all you start on your you should have I guess you would had to saw where he was at. I shot him 2 twice a 50 yards in dense timber and he soaked those up then he went down into a dirty gully crashed in there. Rather than possibly push hiM out walk 10 mins back to truck call for help let him sit. 35 mins later I got back to gully he was done used chain saw to get him out of dead fall gully.

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The internet turns us all into experts with omniscience and x-ray vision. Well no that's not true but it sure leads to a hell of a lot of kneejerk judgementalism.

WildRose said:

Yeah, the only way he was going anywhere would be if you pushed him out. With the snow it's not like you could have lost him had he wondered off a ways before crashing anyhow.

A whole lot of pretty smart people think it's very good idea to wait 15-30 mins before approaching any downed game animal for that reason, and to of course avoid getting eaten, gored, or smashed by dangerous game

Experience is an awfully good, but often hard teacher.

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A whole lot of experience has also led me to think when a person tells two different stories, only one might be true.

The original story is pathetic at best. The second story holds a little water .

It's very easy to judge somebody from a distance or the choices they make... But unless you are there, you know nothing. Opinions are just that, and you know what they say about them... They are like a$$holes, everybody has one and they all stink. Well done on taking a great bull and you did exactly what you should have done. I know first hand on what happens when you push an animal before they pass... I regret not waiting, if I would have taken 30 minutes things probably would have turned out different. Congrats!

I guess I'm the only one who noticed that he said shot 2x at 50 yards and bedded 30 feet away. Going to get help and he should be dead in an hour.

I'm quickly losing respect for most of the people who responded to this thread .