What Emergencies Have You Had Before Season Start?

[87TT]

On a non gear related note. A few years ago I was cutting some firewood during the first part of September the day before heading up to my elk camp. I had a little oops with the chainsaw and caught my knee. Wrapped it with a reg and electrical tape, finished loading the wood and went home to call the Doctor. Nearest medical was an hour away so I took a shower and washed out the wound. Ended up with 15 staples and the Doc told me to stay off it, I told him I would try to be careful but that I would be up at elk camp hunting tomorrow. He must be a hunter because he let it drop. It was a little rough getting over deadfall without bending my knee and ripping a staple but I was able to hunt.

 

[Tmac]

This made me think, what gear related (or non-gear-related) emergencies have you had before the season that made you panic? Were you able to figure it out, or did you have to call an audible?

Grenaded a transfer case just before a trip. Had to take buddies rig.

Tore calf muscle 4 weeks before a Canadian Rockies hunt. Convinced doc to write a prescription for 2x the regular P.T. visits with a muscle stimulator to expedite healing. Went on hunt, carefully…

 

[rclouse79]

I dry fired my bow mid August one year. I was able to order new cams in before September, but I was devastated. Life is hard when you are dumb.

 

[MallardSX2]

I have broken a limb 3 days before a moose hunt and broke 2 strings within 2 weeks of elk trips.


Nerve racking.


I have a backup now.

Broke my bowstring this spring 1 week prior to my Alberta bear hunt.

Got everything up and rolling with a day to spare.

 

[WCB]

Had my bowstring get cut 7 days before a trip out west by a archery technician at a Sportsman's Warehouse (about 17 years ago). Tried to tell me strings wouldn't get there in time. Luckily I knew the Regional Manager. Called him right them and he had them take a string of one of the bows behind the counter and get everything set up.

I pulled a bone head move and stepped on my bow during season while on a week trip. installed a backup sight I had and good to go in a few minutes. Now I have a backup bow so no real worries. Somthing goes wrong on bow 'A' grab bow 'B' and hunt. Same arrows and all. (actually the exact same bows different sights and rests though).

Op, I don't know you financial situation and hopefully bow is salvageable. But you could pick up a bare bow for $300-$400 bucks and just put all your accessories on it and hunt it this year while saving up for a new bow. Hell the bow shop your going to may have a used complete package for cheap enough to get you hunting this year.

 

[CMF]

broke a limb a couple weeks before elk season, but got it back going in time

 

[Walkstoomuch]

I was shooting broadheads at a shot out foam block target the night before leaving for a 10 day backpack hunt. When I was done just picked the target up to carry back to the truck instead of pulling the arrows first. The target bounced off my leg first step and there was one broadhead that had passed through the block and stabbed my IT band deeply. 6 stitches and a solid limp for the hunt, still carrying that broadhead around as my number one arrow thinking it has good juju, perhaps my archery dry spell will end this year?

 

[Beendare]

I broke my ankle 8 weeks before 2009 archery elk season the year I drew U76 in Colorado. No way I could do that hunt in a cast- though I did horseback into a drop camp on a mule deer hunt that year in a cast.

My dad was on his death bed in 2013 the year I drew a really good limited tag in Arizona. He was on Hospice and was just hanging on as the 12 day season opened. He passed about 5 days into the season and I just couldn't bring myself to go [solo]

My wife knows how much these elk hunts mean to me and she literally was throwing my gear in the truck and kicking me out of the house. On top of that it was raining hard, set up camp in the pouring rain...and rained for 3 days straight.

All of that forced me into hunt mode- glad I did. on about day 4 I followed a bull for 2 hours in the dark creeping in close as it got light. Good bull with 14 cows and a spike. The cows were onto me and started lining out away from me 100y away. I flipped up my decoy and called. The spike ran in from of the herd and turned down towards me bringing the whole herd by me at 35y...with the bull in tow.

Easy shot, down in 60y.
sorry for the Bad pic...solo and it was raining- of course!

 

[Elkhntr08]

Also not gear related. 8/24/96 cut my left hand off and had to have it reattached. Missed that season completely.
In 2013 I had my right shoulder rebuilt in May, broke my right ankle in August 3 days before I was released on my shoulder. Didn’t know I broke it so went to Colorado for 2 weeks. Found out a month later that it had been broke. Miscellaneous over stupid stuff over the years, but that’s the highlights.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Early 90's. 5 days before a super combo MT/WY deer and antelope hunt my transmission went out on my truck. Got it "fixed" and went. The whole thing went tango on the way home near Thermopolis, WY. That was a CF. Many, many kudos to the small grocery store in Thermopolis for keeping close to 500 lbs of meat in their freezer for us at no charge.

 

[Hunthigh1]

I broke my ankle 8 weeks before 2009 archery elk season the year I drew U76 in Colorado. No way I could do that hunt in a cast- though I did horseback into a drop camp on a mule deer hunt that year in a cast.

My dad was on his death bed in 2013 the year I drew a really good limited tag in Arizona. He was on Hospice and was just hanging on as the 12 day season opened. He passed about 5 days into the season and I just couldn't bring myself to go [solo]

My wife knows how much these elk hunts mean to me and she literally was throwing my gear in the truck and kicking me out of the house. On top of that it was raining hard, set up camp in the pouring rain...and rained for 3 days straight.

All of that forced me into hunt mode- glad I did. on about day 4 I followed a bull for 2 hours in the dark creeping in close as it got light. Good bull with 14 cows and a spike. The cows were onto me and started lining out away from me 100y away. I flipped up my decoy and called. The spike ran in from of the herd and turned down towards me bringing the whole herd by me at 35y...with the bull in tow.

Easy shot, down in 60y.
sorry for the Bad pic...solo and it was raining- of course!
View attachment 746083

What a wife!

 

[Still Hunter]

August 30th 2018. Was cooking in the kitchen. I cut a cabbage in half, made two notches in the core and was twisting the knife to pop out the core and I had just finished sharpening the knife, instead of popping out the core, it flew right through that cabbage like thin air. Sliced right thru and cut my thumb to the bone and severed the ligament in half. The saddest part of that is the little voice in my head said, "don't do that you are sort of cutting towards yourself", Cancelled that elk hunt! Note to ALL! "Always listen to that little voice in your heads guys"

Of course my oldest son pulled the Surgeon aside and told the surgeon to put a pin in through the knuckle so I could not move it at all or I would use it and permanently mess up the tendon. I was not pleased when I found out during my Post Op Visit and they removed the bandage and the splint.

The Surgeon told me it was the quickest repair he ever done. He had never seen a straighter or cleaner cut in all his life. Problem is they had to go back in and redo it about three weeks after the surgery because a fabric membrane they used inside had a bacteria in it and my thumb almost rotted off from the inside out due to the infection.

 

[DooleyVT]

An Appendicitis 4 hours before I was supposed to leave for my first archery mule deer trip. I left 12 hours after surgery the following day, drove 30 hours and shot my first mule deer 3 days later.

 

[Jaquomo]

I broke my draw hand two weeks before the season. The orthopedic was also a bowhunter and set the fiberglass cast with my hand and wrist in anchor position (finger tab). Never shot better. I killed my bull on day one, ran down to Red Rocks for a Kinks concert after packing him out with a buddy's horse. Came back and killed my first P&Y muley the day after that. Man did that cast stink with animal blood. We finally sawed it off in camp at the end of the week.

 

[waspocrew]

Definitely not as emergent as others, but in early Sept a couple years back, I had a pretty rough kidney stone. Tried to pass it for a couple days, then finally called it quits and went to the ER. Luckily, one of my friends was an urology resident and knew the attending taking care of stones that day. CT confirmed what I already knew - had a 6mm stone that was lodged in my ureter. A few hours later, had surgery to remove it and a stent left in place for three weeks spanning from my kidney to bladder.

Flew out from a Cleveland to Wyoming the week after surgery and killed my best bull during archery season. Would’ve been rough had that stone hit me while out in Wyoming!

 

[wavygravy]

Hurricane Harvey in Houston arrived the night before I was to drive up. I delayed my departure a few hours, but we woke up and thought everything was fine so I packed up and headed out. 16 hour drive later and just as I was hiking up the first trail my wife Inreached me saying she was being evacuated and the house might get flooded... 16 hours drive later and I was back in Houston. Great season, house didnt flood at least.

 

[applesauce4000]

Also not gear related. 8/24/96 cut my left hand off and had to have it reattached. Missed that season completely.
In 2013 I had my right shoulder rebuilt in May, broke my right ankle in August 3 days before I was released on my shoulder. Didn’t know I broke it so went to Colorado for 2 weeks. Found out a month later that it had been broke. Miscellaneous over stupid stuff over the years, but that’s the highlights.

Um, you cut your hand off? Please indulge us!

 

[applesauce4000]

Wow, some of your stories are bananas. Glad you're all living to hunt another day.

Maybe we just need a general life emergencies thread. People have some serious stories out there.

 

[applesauce4000]

Last night, wife says to me, "If you're able to get a tag tomorrow on the leftover, we'll talk about a bow."

Guess who got the tag?! I can't believe it. Well, the bow shop has like 3 lefty bows, no flagship bows. One they have is an Elite Terrain. Might have to see if the wife's ok with the $700+ price point. It will be (if we buy it) an upgrade for me even though it's a cheaper bow for many.

 

[Elkhntr08]

Um, you cut your hand off? Please indulge us!

Compound miter saw will do a number on ya.