Memorable Misses

[northmn]

Somehow the title looked to me like I had a harem.  Last thing I would want.  In firearm efficiency I made the claim that no matter how good you are you are going to screw up.  Actually the screw ups are why its called hunting and not shooting.
Remembering a miss on Ruffed grouse seems kind of ridiculous as some claim a good shot gets one out of four flying. When I was a kid they used to tell me a 410 was best for grouse.  I found out they meant for pot shooting them in the head as they rarely if ever shot one flying.  I had a little 28 gauge percussion I bought at an auction I think.  Dixie used to sell them.  I had a beautiful shot at a grouse with it.  One of those rare openings in the brush where the cover was low and it was flying over it.  I shot and blew off an aspen sapling about a foot from the barrel. The shot grooves covered the whole sapling. I dead centered it.  I could have just about used the top part as a ramrod it was that close to bore diameter.  Wing shooting grouse is its own thing as you do not have time for the niceties used on open field game.
I had a little problem getting my first deer with a ML as Murphy would not let me see one while carrying a ML.  When I would take out the 270 they would be all over the place.  My first chance at one, I was walking carefully through the woods with a 58 and saw one across a clearing. I pulled up and shot and watched a sapling slowly fall over about halfway to the deer.  The deer ran a ways and looked back as if to try to figure out what happened.  That was about the only sapling between me and the deer and again I dead centered it.
Your turn.

DP

[Daryl]

My most embarrasing miss was on the range at Hefley. It was the only paper target round there, 25 yards, 50 yards and 75 yards.  At 75, we shot the standard buffalo target, I managed to shoot a 38/50 with my 3rd shot hitting the left hood, a bull 4" lower than the bottom scoring ring.  I've always wondered if I hadn't flinched, would that miss have been inside the 2 1/2" group with a 9 or a 10 score. My 4 shots in the scoring rings were 2 - 9's and 2 - 10's.  I was shooting the 14 bore with 125gr. 2F. 

[northmn]

I don't know why that reminded me of it, but one lady shooter had a hard time living down the hit made on a realististic looking bull buffalo target. She shot off an intimate protruberace.  Only hit she made at 100 yards.

DP

[Roger Fisher]

Sheesh I've so many I can't even remember 'em!

[Jeff Peters]

I'm with Rodger Too manty to count.

I do remember my nephew's miss once.
Gave him a brand new gun and we took off small game hunting. He called me over just in time to see him miss a sitting rabbit. Big pile of dirt and dust but no rabbit Gave him some good natured ribbing about it.
The boy practiced after that and now he rarely ever misses a rabbit or even a flushing grouse.
Wish I could say the same.
Jeff

[Robby]

I had a chance at the biggest rack I've ever seen while hunting. Had plenty of time, about 60 yards, my 62cal. Jaeger was dead on at that range, I had a good tree to lean against, took my time and squeezed. Clean miss, saw the bullet impact behind him. I stood there, pretty shook up, trying to figure it all out, when I looked down, and saw my thumb was nervously flipping the long range leaf on the rear sight up and down, yeah it had been up, even after repeatedly reminding myself to keep it down. I did get a much smaller 6 point about 15 mins. later, but when I wake up in the middle of the night, its the first deer I think about.
   Robby

[Edd]

I had been standing there in that tree house about three hours. Not one creature had moved near me the whole time. The clock was running out - the sun had already set. Way down the logging road, I saw vension on the hoof and headed my way. I stiffened all over.

The earlly muzzleloading season was well under way. My second day of whitetail deer hunting was about to prove fruitful. I had waited three hours for this here deer and I deserved the animal. The deer came closer. Hey wait a minute, I thought. This deer is going to walk right up to my tree stand. What if he hears me set the trigger on this rifle. OK, I know...I'll just set the trigger before the whitetail gets here. So... I set the trigger. The deer walked closer. The rifle was resting on a wooden rail on the side of the tree house. Simply picking that rifle up caused it to fire prematurely. A three foot streak of flame, licked out across the late evening shadows. Evidently, I must have been blinded by the flash,  cause I never saw that deer again. How much did I miss the deer?? Fifty feet...maybe more. Don't try this at home boys and girls...

Edd

[BrownBear]

My most memorable miss didn't involve a shot at all and that's kinda the point, while many folks know the place now without knowing the story behind it.

I had spent days tracking a particularly large Sitka blacktail buck, but only caught rare glimpses to go with the oversized tracks.  One day I decided to take a break and wait till evening before continuing pursuit.  I edged quietly down near the bottom of this little meadow, about 30 feet from the rim of thigh-high spruce and grass at the bottom.  Then I sat down on a low stump, lay my rifle on the ground and took a big bite of sandwich.

I had about three chews on that bite when I see a huge rack start rising up out of the low spruce and tall grass.  Before I could even reach for the rifle at my feet, there was the buck standing broadside and looking right at me.  I stayed frozen and he kept staring.  Then he hopped out of sight into the dense spruce below in one jump.

Grinning like a fool, I finished chewing the bite, then took another as I turned to look uphill behind me.  There he stood looking down at me, not 40 yards away!!!!  And the rifle was still at my feet.

He left the moment I started a slow move for the gun.  When I told my hunting buds about it when we rejoined at dark, they got a good laugh and immediately named the place Sandwich Flats.

Lots of folks call the meadow Sandwich Flats today, but outside of the three of us on that trip, you're the first to hear the story behind the name.

[490roundball]

mostly, I am a bird hunter.  I never hunted deer until I built my first flintlock, and have manged to take a few since then.  lots say they are meat hunters but seriously I take the first legal deer that gives me the chance.  The one year I did pass up a little one and never had another chance after that.  But at one time I had friends that had a nice little spot, a corner of woods along a corn field.  I would sit on a stool in a blowdown on the edge of an old orchard.  deer would come out of the woods cross the corner of the corn and come broadside to me as they crossed the orchard.  Many years I hunted for less than an hour.  

So the miss?  I sat there waiting for the deer to come down the trail, five minutes into the season I heard a footstep behind me.  I turned my head slowly to see a monster buck going the wrong way on the trail, first and only one to be going to the corn instead of out of it.  I waited for his head to go behind some brush and turned only to have him stay behind the brush.  I leaned forward until my chest was on my knees and my butt barely on the stool and slowly raised the longrifle.  

Now you try to line up a set of sights in that position  No idea how much I missed him by But I am going to make that a target in one of our shoots at club sometime.

Rick

PS -took a nice tender doe a few days later - she came the right way.

[bob in the woods]

My most memorable niss was just out back of the house. Late afternoon, I was out for a look for deer, and had a .62 cal flintlock rifle. A nice, make that very nice, buck came over the crest of a small hill and almost walked right up to me. When he noticed he pulled up short, and was screen by some ferns..foliage etc.  I had hime dead to rights at about 15 FEET away! I aimed at where his chest should be, thinking that the .62 would poke through ..no problem. Well, while I was aiming, he kept his head steady, but shifted his bodyalmost 90 degrees, so I shot where he wasn't!  He gave me a look on his way out of the county. I don't know why I didn't take a neck shot. Too shakey I guess. So...I missed a very big deer from 15 feet. Still have dreams about that.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I once owned a great Hawken rifle of my own manufacture in .62 cal. and it spoke for quite a few heads of game.  I was moose hunting about 6 hours north of here many years ago, and during the middle of the day, had an opportunity to take quite a few grouse with the rifle.  On one such occasion, I took a shot at the head of a grouse that was perched in an alder bush, and it fell dead out of the tree without a wiggle.  When I picked it up, I noticed that not a feather was disturbed.  The ball passing by its head killed it as dead as a stone without any contact at all.  That night we made a supper called "petites poules a soixante deux" - forgive the horrible French for "Little chickens by .62"

[Dphariss]

Last day of the general season last year. Sneaking on mule deer does. One I didn't see suddenly popped up at about 35-40 yards and fixes me in a stare. Easy off hand shot but all I can see is her head and neck. I shoot for right under her chin. Smoke clears, I reload and walk to where she had been standing, no deer, no blood, nothing. I REALLY look cause KNOW the shot was good and the 16 bore is going to produce something if it hit the neck ANYPLACE.
Finally take their tracks. They have crossed off public land and are now safe. In glassing they I find a doe with a floppy ear.
I believe that the deer KNEW I was trouble and I think she moved when the powder in the pan flashed. I have, so far as I know, never had this happen before and I have shot quite a few critters with a flintlock. At least thats the excuse...

Dan

[Dan]

Yea though I have shot trees whilst chasing quail in the tall timber and twigs with deadly effect while trying to lay low the finest of bucks, perhaps my most embarrassing, yet most fortuitous miss, was the day way back when, during my late high school years, that I mortally wounded a 1960 Ford Fairlane 500 with an Ithaca 37 20ga.  I managed to shoot the floor board but missed the dimmer switch and the left front tire, or everything else of great significance.  I was then, and remain, a master with fiberglass resins.  The repair was made before my ears stopped ringing or my parents got home from playing golf. It was after the car was sold and I was home from the sunny climes of S. Viet Nam that I presented to my parents such a tale.  Such was my magic with polyester resins.  It was a day when I learned a great many things about firearm safety and the lesson has served me well for decades since.

On the other point, my first misses was embarrassing in public places and I eventually got rid of her.  I have danced with the devil and she had excellent attorneys.

[northmn]

Taylor reminded me of a couple of incidents squirrel hunting.  I had heard of barking squirrels and tried it.  At that time I was hunting with a 45 and about 40 grains of powder.  I shot, bark flew, the squirrel jumped as if hit with rock salt and went up a couple of tiers in the tree and started chattering.  I swore had I spoken "squirrel"  that I would have learned a few words to add to my rather complete vocabulary of profanity.  One of those "you had to be there" incidents.  I did not even try to shoot that one again as I felt he earned his second chance at life.   Another squirrel I had shot at with a 32 and watched some rather interesting acrobatics before he fell out of the tree quite dead.  The autopsy when skinning showed the only mortal wound to be an obvious impalement on a sharp branch which must have happened while falling.  One paw was shot off.  That was one unlucky critter.

DP

[Daryl]

I tried barking squirrels once, the pine squirrels we have here.  I found out one thing, "if you wish their flesh for fare, one shouldn't use a .69".
; That was a repeat or close proximity of a phrase I read once in the now defunct Primitive Rifle Magazine.

[Candle Snuffer]

I've been pounding my brain on memorable misses and having missed many a times with shots I felt I should have made,,, all I'm coming up with is memorable hits...

I guess it's the bad shots a person puts behind them and moves on remembering the good shots and wanting to duplicate those...

I'll keep thinking...

[northmn]

You have to look at the misses with a sense of humor.  If one did not screw up one would not learn from experience.  Companies like to hire experienced help because they feel that another company had to pay for that person's flub ups.  Over the years I have found that "the buck of a lifetime" is a matter of attitude.  It just isn't that important to me to shoot the biggest baddest buck in MN like it used to be.  In a way you get where you would like to see them live to improve the gene pool.  We hunt with muzzle loaders because they are a greater challenge which adds to the fun.  The last few years I have shot deer with a bolt action I worked the action and caught the case for reloading.  Missing, screwing up or getting outsmarted by a deer or pheasant is what keeps me hunting.  I remember a grouse that often flushed from one area and got away.  A hunting companion finally snuck up on the site and got the bird.  I think he was a proud of that grouse as he would have been a deer.

DP

[Daryl]

I'll tell you about a memorable miss - Years ago, when hunting with Taylor, I watched him pop 3 or 4 grouse with his .45 3 1/4 Sharps, offhand, out to ranges of 50 to 60 yards, neve missing the mellon. His sights consisted of a tang mounted peep sight and silver blade front.  Taylor would shoot and the heat would disappear.  I watched with binocs - absoltuely amazed at his accuracy.  Later that day, he had a shot at a Lynx at about 25 yards - and missed shot going over the critter's body.  When I asked him how he'd missed after head shotoing all those grouse, he said he couldn't see the sights for dollar signs.  At that time, a freshly holed, unskinned late fall Lynx locally, sold locally for $500.00. Mid 1980's I think it was.

[Leatherbelly]

My most memorable Misses name was Barb,the rest don't count or hold a candle too!

[Dave B]

I had a case where my miss saved a couple of guys from spending a cold night in the woods or possibly worse.  I was out hunting ML Elk in a new area in the cascades up out of Natches WA. A big snow storm was coming in and I was by my self. I was on the back side of a mountain walking in on a logging spur when I heard the crashing of some Elk coming over the top. The clouds were reducing visiblity to nill then thinning out to 50 yds. I stopped to wait to see where these elk would cross my road. The spur wrapped around the mountain on the up hill side of a closed drainage (no roads down there) I had spied a old metal lathe out behind a feed store back in Selah and the guy agreed to sell me the lathe and I could get a trailer to haul it home if I got to the rental shope by noon they closed at !:00 pm on that day.  The elk hit my road and the cloud cover cleared out to 50 yds. I had a big cow in my sights. I had a klatch with out spark all the moisture had dampend my frizzen and there was no spark. I re cocked and took aim at the trotting elk that was now going down the slope in to the canyon. I thought if I take her she's going to the bottom and a storms coming, Im by my self, and theres a metal lathe waiting in Selah HMMMM. I ll go fro the lathe. Well the snow started to fall now heavy and there was 4" already by the time I made it back to camp to pack up. Visibility dropped to 20'.  Up comes two guys with shirt sleeves and one rifle. They are lost and want to know where their road is. Well by my map they are on the wrong side of the mountain. No compass, no coats and already 2hrs over due. I gave them a ride down and aroiund the mountain back to there base camp and went and got my lathe. I later heard a guy died in his camper when the snow fall being so heavy collapsed it on him and he couldnt get oiut.

[chapmans]

 The very first time I took my son deer hunting, and he was carrying a gun, he was 11 years old,  I fixed up a a short stocked perc in .45 cal with a bullet barrel, we sighted it in at 50 yds with 65 gr of fffg goex and a 285 gr buffalo bullet, he could keep them in the 10 ring all day off of the bench and I knew he was ready.
  On opening day  we were standing along the edge of a woods, I looked up and all I saw  was this huge set of antlers coming towards us, the buck was trailing a doe and I hadn't even seen her to start with , they were to our left and only about 35 yds away. Then the buck started angling towards us, now for the big mistake, I grabbed my rifle, instead of his, because the deer was so big and mine was loaded with 90 grs and a 300 gr conical I set the rifle on the rest and cocked the hammer and my son got ready, as the deer was moving broadside to us I used the grunt call and stopped the deer at 25 yds, but it was behind brush, it took the 3rd grunt to stop him in the open , my son started aiming and he aimed and aimed and aimed and I finally said you better shoot, when he pulled the trigger  the cap didn't go off , if looks could kill I would be dead, this was the buck of a lifetime and the cap didn't go off!! I reached down and recocked the hammer but the cap came off in the nose of the hammer so I turned around and grabbed his rifle and when I cocked the hammer the doe busted us and took off with the buck right behind her . My son was so mad at me for not giving him his rifle ,but it would have ruined him because we found the sheds and our CO said the deer would have scored in the 170's. When we got home I put a new cap on my rifle and it went off just fine. I just don't think he was supposed to kill that deer. He is 17 now and has killed one or two deer a year ever since but he still talks about that monster that got away.
  Steve C.

[Daryl]

Good story, Steve.  Actually, the gun didn't go off because it was loaded with a slug.  Had it been loaded with a ball, it most certainly would have fired.

[Mike R]

....you mean you guys actually MISS!  ?  Holy Cow!  I never admit to missing....just cannot pry out any memorable ones--of course that may be due to a nearly 64 yr-old brain....got too much stuff in there to remember misses.  Didja hear about the unbelievable shot I made back in.....?

[Daryl]

Made a bunch of those myself, Mike - and just like you, I was alone when they happened.

[Mike R]

Made a bunch of those myself, Mike - and just like you, I was alone when they happened.

<cough>...I had witnesses to a few of them  ....some of them even think I do that all the time!  I did recall a memorable miss, but it was with a bolt rifle--followed by a memorable hit! Witnessed. My buddy and I were out in a field in good o'l PA looking for groundhogs.  I had open sights and a brand new rifle that shot 6" high [before I put  a telescopic sight on it].  We caught one away from his hole at about 75 yds and I made a clean miss at a sitting 'hog--shot over it! It broke into a frantic run as I ran another round into the chamber, swung, and with it on the dead run, I put one into its noggin.  My buddy instantly forgot the clean miss.  Of course it was dumb luck, but I wouldn't admit that then! Later that day I sealed my local fame by dropping a 'hog at a paced 265 yds with a round through the heart.  Misses?  I don't remember any stinking misses!