New year, new way to fail!

[bsnedeker]

So this was going to be my year...year 4 seriously chasing elk with the bow, I'm taking the first two weeks of season off and I'm gonna get it done! Week 1 starts out strong, my hunting partner connected on a 5x6 less than an hour into season. Over that week I have three close encounters with a nice 5x5 bull (30 yards, no shot), a spike bull (got to 86 yards before he caught me), and finally a cow (mis-ranged her and shot underneath her at what I estimate was 60 yards in retrospect) and I felt I was going to connect on something in week 2 where I was going to be hunting solo as my partner headed back to work.

Day 1 of week two, I hike to the top of the mountain and wait for the sun to come up. As soon as it comes up I start hiking to my first spot and almost immediately something flies up from the grass in front of me and slams directly into my right (dominant) eye! The pain is INTENSE! I stayed where I was for about 90 minutes trying to get whatever was in my eye out, but nothing worked and the pain was getting worse. I hike the 2 miles back to my truck and drive two hours into the nearest urgent care where they gave me some numbing eye drops and sent me off to an eye doctor. He removed something from the inside of my eyelid that had embedded itself and was extremely sharp, so everytime I moved my eye it was scratching the surface. Since I'm not going to be able to shoot anymore I pack it in and head home and lay up in bed for a couple of days as my eye gets better.

So yeah, found a new way to fail this year! Of all the random stuff that can happen on the mountain getting hit in the eye by a bug or whatever was not even on my list of possibilities. Have another eye doctor appointment today and they will hopefully take off the contact bandage and tell me everything is good so I can get back out there. I'm so glad I live in MT and can hunt the entire season or I would be really bummed!

Just thought I would share my newest failure with the group! Good luck to everyone and congrats to those that have had success!

 

[RR2012]

Man what’s the chances of that happening! Hopefully you can get after them again. Good luck stick with it.

 

[Fatcamp]

Well that sucks.

 

[Doc Holliday]

That stinks! Did you ever figure out what it was that went into your eye? Part of a seed pod or something?

 

[bsnedeker]

That stinks! Did you ever figure out what it was that went into your eye? Part of a seed pod or something?

Not sure, it was one of those two things for sure. It wasn't particularly windy and from the flight path I think it was a bug, but it was light colored like a seed pod and there was a bit of a breeze so it's possible it was that also.

 

[ChrisAU]

Damn!

 

[JLane330]

Sorry to hear that! Eye injuries can really knock you down!
Always seems like injuries are one step away from ending a hunt. A few years ago I was helping a buddy on an elk hunt, which ended after he got run over by his own truck (Cummin's on 37's) and got a heli flight out. This year he pulled a giant piece of a rock off the ledge as we were descending a steep area. Hit him in the leg and luckily didn't crush his foot (super close). That could have been an end to the hunt but thankfully wasn't. A few days later a rattlesnake slithered next to him under a tree he was sitting at.
Maybe I'm the bad luck? lol!

 

[LongWayAround]

I hear you on new ways to fail!

Today is day 14 of hunting for me. Five close calls, no blood on my knife yet. Day eight I was taking down my cot as I've done many times but somehow I pinched my left index finger and the tip popped like a zit. It shot blood on the two adjacent fingers and all over my palm. Guys in Wyoming probably heard me howl... I took one Sunday to rest and worked four days after it with 9 usable digits. Fortunately, my finger is mostly functional now. At least I can get my gloves on again.

 

[midwestwi]

I guess i am not alone with the bad luck then! Truck broke down 10 miles from my destination in Colorado. 1050 miles from home in WI. It is still sitting at the mechanic shop. Long story short i had to get a rental back home and never even left civilization while in Colorado. A waste of the whole vacation. The hell with it though, as soon as they are done i am going out to get the vehicle and going up the mountain. This was supposed to have been my first trip ever out west!!


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[Rangerpants]

Jeez, that's rough! Hopefully you heal up quick!

 

[coppermushroom]

Man that stinks. I walked into a branch in the dark one time that tore the contact in my dominant eye; for years I have carried spare contacts and only used them that one time. Saved the hunt for sure.

 

[Cosmono]

Yikes that sucks! Hopefully your eye will heal up quick.