Mule deer
The buck was standing on a hillside across a ravine, he was below me facing uphill and directly away from me. He and about 6 does had just been spooked out of the brush by a couple of elk. He kept looking back and forth, follow the does going up the hill, or go back to the safety of the brush in the bottom of the ravine.
I hadn't been able to get a good look at the rack but it was getting close to the end of the hunt and I was confident that it was a bigger buck than the few I had gotten before, which was my goal.
I decided to take him.
Most of my experience had been with white-tails and I had hard time remembering when I saw bucks that they generally don't disappear in seconds like white tails, also I tend to be somewhat excitable and rush my shots. This time however, I remained calm, took off my pack, set it on a dead fall, and laid down with my rifle rested on the pack.
I estimated the range and figured I would have to hold about 10" high. I got settled in and squeezed the trigger, the buck seemed to react as though he was hit, but I wasn't sure. He took a few steps to my left and stopped broadside, I took another shot, this time he turned around and ran about 25 yds, then stopped broadside again facing to my right. I settled in and fired a third time, the buck dropped on the shot.
I called to my hunting buddies to let them know I had a deer down and directed one of them to the buck before I left my shooting location, we estimated the range at 325 yds.
Upon examination of the buck we found an entrance hole in the back, right between the shoulders, obviously the first shot, and if my memory is correct an entrance hole on the right side just behind the shoulder, the third shot.
We also found a bullet in a hind quarter that was very well mushroomed, but we did not find an entrance hole, and there was no bloodshot meat. We probably did not take as much time to investigate how that bullet got there as we should have, but we were anxious to get him cut up and packed out. I obviously hit him 2 times right where I planned, and I believe I hit him all 3 times.
Not as long as many of the shots in the stories posted here, but I was pleased, especially with my self control.
I was also pleased with the buck, it turned out to be a 22" wide 5X5.
I was shooting a pre 64 model 70 - 270 Win, with an older Redfield 4-12x scope, and Remington 130gr core-lokt psp ammo.
Maybe I had a little help that day from an angel named Jack..................