It was the second week of a snow less deer season and the dreary, gray clouds seemed to scrap the tree tops as they lazily slid overhead.  

I walked stealthily to the edge of the bench I was still hunting and carefully peeked over the edge.

Suddenly, my heart beat quickened. Through the saplings and less than 50 yards away the ivory polish of large antlers glistened.

I raised my rifle quivering with excitement only to drop it in an expression of disappointment.

I dropped down over the steep hillside and walked up to a beautiful 8-point buck with a heavy 18-inch spread and 10-inch G-2s lying dead behind a fallen tree. The hungry coyotes had already been busy. 

The buck had been shot through the liver, a bit far back.

It’s doubtful the deer ran over 200 yards, the hunter that should have had a wonderful trophy had been unable or unwilling to find what was probably the biggest buck he would ever harvest.

With rifle season opening Monday what steps should you always take after taking a shot at an animal? 

A responsible hunter must remember and follow a few simple rules to insure he is being fair to the animal and to the ethics he should hold him or herself to.

After your shot, especially if there is no snow, it’s important to mark the exact spot you shot from.

Marker 1. Use a Kleenex, glove, hat or piece of plastic tape and hang it in a tree. Next, look closely for a stump, an odd shaped tree, fallen limb, log or some other easily remembered landmark exactly where the deer was standing when you fired.  

Keeping your eyes fixed on that exact spot, hurry down and place Marker 2, then begin looking for blood, hair or tracks.  

If you don’t find sign immediately return to Marker 2 and begin your search over again. I find myself always being in a rush at first, but if I lose the trail and return to my marker I am more careful and methodical the second time I begin tracking.

If the animal reacted to being hit, flinched, jumped or kicked, begin searching in the direction the animal ran if you don’t find tracks or a blood trail.  

Deer don’t always bleed at first even when hard it. Hang a third marker where the animal was last seen, you may have to return to Marker 1 to double check this location, and look back at Marker 2 to establish the direction the animal ran. 

If you still can’t find blood, hair or tracks where you believed the deer was standing when you fired, return to the spot you shot from and make sure you were searching the correct area. It is easy to be mistaken, especially if the shot was a long one or in thick cover.

These markers, though simple, are critical to finding your animal. 

I know one hunter and his guide who lost a moose, yes a MOOSE, in a large, waist high, brushy covered, clear-cut simply because they did not mark the spot they had shot from.  

It was a long shot and in the excitement and unable to walk directly toward the animal because of the tall brush, logs and old tree tops they became confused where the moose had fallen. Everything looked the same.

Because they hadn’t marked the spot from which the hunter fired they were unable to return there, making it impossible to line up the moose’s last location again and though they searched for hours, the moose remained hidden. 

Once you have marked the spot from which you shot and carefully fixed the location the animal was standing when you fired, you’ve created a base for your search. 

Simply finding the blood trail may be all you need to do to find your quarry. If the blood trail is slight, marking the trail every 30 yards or so will help determine the animal’s direction of travel.

If you run out of sign, mark the last tracks or blood and search carefully in the direction the animal was headed. However, keep in mind that deer many times turn sharply to the side just before they drop, not making your job any easier.

If the sign ends you’ll need to circle your last marker until you find more. 

If you need help clearly mark the last blood and return with friends. Lining five or six of your buddies up and searching in the animals last know direction for 300 to 400 yards and then circling the last sign if that is unsuccessful should find a mortally hit deer. 

If you cannot find the animal, you will at least have the peace of mind that you did all that was possible and hope the wound was a slight one, the deer escaping to live another day.

Good hunting and don’t lose that hard hit trophy simply because you didn’t follow a few simple steps that can spell the difference between finding your deer or not.