Raccoon Update

[Furseeker]

Well guys persistence paid off. After I missed my first one the other night I was determined to get my first bandit with an air rifle. So last night my son, my daughter and I went back out for another try. We arrived at the farm around 9:30 thinking we had at least an hour before we would see any action but much to our surprise when we looked into the silage pits there were at least seven raccoons foraging around in the corn pile. When we lit the area up the started exiting single file over the cement wall, the first target was a large raccoon leading the rest of the group. I tried for a head as he was going straight away but saw the pellet impact the wall right above his head. I quickly reloaded and acquired a second target. This was the last raccoon in the line and I wasn’t sure if I was going to get a shot opportunity because I wasn’t going to take a shot unless I had a clear shot at his head. I followed him in my scope as he was walking along the top of the cement wall that forms the back of the silage pit. But just before he went over the wall he stopped and glanced back one more time, big mistake. I lined the cross hairs up between his glowing eyes and sent the CPHP on it’s way. The shot felt good, looked good, and sounded good, but the noise the little rascal made confirmed a hit. He flipped over the wall and out of sight. To get to the other side of the silage pit we had to go back out the road and come back in a second set of gates, but by the time we made it over there with the spot light there was no dead raccoon. I was surprised when my 11 year old daughter was bound and determined to help dad track down the critter. To be honest dad wasn’t all that crazy about being out in the dark in tall weeds and various junked farm equipment looking for a wounded raccoon. We located a blood trail coming off the cement wall extending in some weeds. The three of us looked for about a half an hour before calling it a night.

To be honest I wasn’t going to post about the lost raccoon, I know it’s part of hunting but I just didn’t want to post about it. All night and into this morning the lost raccoon was weighing on my mind. I knew the shot was good and I knew he just couldn’t have gone that far. So after finishing some work around the house today my son and I headed back down to try following the blood trail again today. That decision paid off, my son ended up finding my first ever air rifle raccoon harvest. In total he only went 8 to 10 yards after falling of the wall. How we didn’t see him last night is beyond me, but as you can see from the pictures there are plenty of hiding spots in all the old broken down farm equipment. It’s too bad we didn’t find him last night but I was not ready to give up to easy so that’s why we went back today in the light.

[longislandhunter]

Outstanding, congrats on a fine air gun trophy.  Good shooting and great pics.  Now load up and get ready to whack those other 6 bandits 

Jeff

[dk1677]

Nice shooting there! Looks like a good sized one

[JimH]

Good follow up and nice pics. Seven coons in one place, I guess you'll be posting some more photos soon!   

[Atchman2]

I almost always missed my coon high.  That is because they are usually closer than you think and normally I sight in at 20 yards.  That means you need to aim low and at 30 plus yards high!  AND it is dark AND you are excited, etc  

Nice shooting my friend! Congrats on your first raccoon!  

[shadow]

Outstanding bro it's good to see some of the hunt brothers here get after dem Bandit's too. Great pic's and that's how you do it you went back the next day to continue the search for the Bandit, thumbs up for you bro. I've had to wade into a almost 3ft deep creek last year to retrieve a Bandit that had thrashed right into it. What a picture me standing in the middle of a creek in the middle of the night hauling a water logged Bandit out lol. Ed

[only1harry]

Nice job Dave!  Congrats on your first bandit with an airgun!

You have plenty of coons there, so I am looking forward to the next one.  I know you 'll get that big leader of the pack   With help from your kids, you are guaranteed to track them down and find them every time, hehe. 

Just so you know, a raccoon's death dance can easily make it end up 6-8yds away. Now if they have a little bit left in them, or do a longer death dance than usual, they 'll go 10yds like this one did trying to get under the old farm-machine.  They do some acrobatics when mortally wounded.  It's similar to a squirrel's, but each hop/jump can be as much as a 3-4ft leap. 

[Atchman2]

Yeah the big death dance just about took out my game camera once!  I even got it on video tape where the game camera got hit by the death dance! 

[Furseeker]

Thanks guys. I was plenty happy to find my first raccoon. Harry I was wondering if what you mentioned about the death dance was the case here. He was on a wall at the back of the silage pit when I hit him, the shot knocked him off the wall, out of sight on the other side. The blood trail we found that night really wasn't a trail, as it was just scattered about not really headed in any one direction. He probably flipped and flopped around before rolling down a slight depression near the truck he was found under. Randy it seems like I remember the footage you were talking about, I think you posted it here didn't you? Anyway thanks guys and I hope to have a few more under my belt in the near future.

[only1harry]

Exactly, you can't really follow a "blood trail" with a raccoon when it's fatally hit.  It flips and flops and blood splatters everywhere.  At night you can see it a lot better with a flashlight.  You notice blood everywhere in every direction when you shine the light on the ground. 

Keep that Disco well pressurized at peak power and I know we 'll see a bunch more bandits next to your gun in the coming days and weeks.

[1377x]

congrats
nice shooting!

[The Knot]

very nice hope it's the first of many more nice team work family style