RIGHT ON BY MIKE BRIDGE TRACK I'd been seeing several nice bucks, and I was hunkered down along a field edge, hoping one of them would come happening by. The 7-point that stepped into the field just before dark wasn't quite what I was looking for. But a 20-inch wide 8-point was right behind him. I reached for my rangefinder. Estimating the distance to a deer in a field can be tricky without one. The little dips and rolls can make a deer look closer or farther away than it really is. But the rangefinder pinned the distance at 38 yards. My crossbow on a shooting stick, I settled the sights behind the quarteringaway buck's shoulder and shot. I could see it running for about 70 yards across the field until it entered the woods. Not knowing where I hit the buck, I wanted to give it some time, so I returned to my house to grab some flashlights, then went to the spot where the buck was standing. I found my bolt, which showed all the signs I'd hit the buck farther back than I wanted. I followed the blood trail, but it quickly began to fade. I couldn't find any sign where I thought the deer entered the CHANGING HOW WE RECOVER DEER FEBRUARY 2020 19