North American Whitetail » Deer of the Day

Hunter: Dylan Beach-Bittner, age 12
State: Minnesota
Score: 241 green score
Gear Used: .270 rifle

Kill one of the biggest bucks ever in Minnesota and you’re pretty much the honorary Lil Wayne of the state, just a couple steps away from an entourage, a few bottles of Cristal and your own rap song. Well, almost.

Just ask Dylan Beach-Bittner, a now somewhat famous 12-year-old from Northern Minnesota who shot a 27-point buck on November 3 and has found his way into headlines and even a video featuring the redneck rap “Da Turdy Point Buck.”

The buck—which weighed in at 229 pounds and scored 241 inches—was well known in the area and was killed on Dylan’s aunt’s property near Sebeka, Minn. Dylan’s stepfather, Wilbur Verbeck, said they had no idea how big the deer was when it first entered the field, but only realized their rare fortune when they walked up to it.

“I was stunned. It was just absolutely amazing,” Verbeck said. With a green score of 241—which would have been even bigger if one of the points had not been broken off—Verbeck said it puts Dylan number eight overall in Minnesota and about 130th worldwide.

“Yeah, he called his brother after he shot it, and he couldn’t even talk on the phone, he was just so excited,” Verbeck said. “I’ve never seen a deer like that before. It’s just incredible.”

Dylan’s mom, Jeannie Beach, said as soon as she told her family about the deer they knew exactly which one it was.

“I was half asleep when I called my sister and when I told her it was a 27-point buck she knew which deer it was,” Beach told the Brainerd Dispatch. “‘He got the monster! He got the monster!’ she said.”

Dylan, who has hunted the last four years with his stepfather, said the giant buck came into sight about 100 yards away and then made its way toward their stand. Shaking from nerves, Dylan prepared for the shot and waited for the “OK” from Verbeck.

At 50 yards, the buck turned broadside, which is when Dylan made his kill shot with a .270. The deer made it a few yards before falling, but it wasn’t until Dylan and Verbeck got to the deer that they realized just how epically massive the trophy was. Celebrating and sharing a few high fives, Dylan said it’s a success he doesn’t expect to repeat in his lifetime.

Verbeck said they plan on mounting the deer and taking it to a few shows around Minnesota. As for Dylan, he’s got bragging rights among friends and family for a long, long time.

Hunter: Lindsay Groom
State/County: Ohio/Franklin County
Score: 158 inches, green score
Gear Used: Parker Tornado crossbow, G5 T3 broadheads

After a long stretch of scouting and waiting, Lindsay Groom’s patience finally paid off.

With the help of her husband, Kevin, Lindsay scouted this buck for two weeks from a blind before coming across its path again on Nov. 7. That afternoon, the bruiser buck came within 10 yards, at which point Lindsay made her shot with a crossbow. They searched for it as the sun faded, but weren’t able to locate the buck.

Kevin was able to get the hunt on film, and after watching the kill shot again they decided to track it the next morning. They were able to find the deer just 30 yards away from where they stopped looking the night before, and both breathed a sigh of relief.

Lindsay’s buck, which green scored at 158 inches, was her second buck ever and her third deer overall.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Randy Walk, president of Hoyt Archery
State: Kansas
Score: 225 inches

With 37 years of bowhunting experience under his belt, Randy Walk has probably seen it all. What he hadn’t seen until now was the trophy whitetail of his lifetime.

That all changed on November 6 when Walk was hunting in Kansas with his friend Jay Verzuh. From about 300 yards away he saw what was obviously a monster buck walking a treeline, working does and chasing another buck. In a moment he’ll not soon forget, the giant buck started walking toward Walk’s stand. He made a five-yard shot to seal the deal.

“He is a giant buck. Eighteen points total with nine on each side. He has been green scored at 225 inches and some change and is clearly the largest whitetail deer I have ever seen on the hoof or on the ground for that matter,” Walk said in a statement issued on Facebook.

Walk, who grew up in Utah in a bowhunting family, said this was by far the most amazing hunting experience of his life.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Richard Buker
State/County: Indiana/Vermillion County
Score: Estimated 170 inches, awaiting official score
Gear: Mathews Outback bow, Beeman ICS 340 arrows, Montec T3 broadhead, Nikon Action binoculars, Tru-Fire X-Caliper release, Trophy Taker rest, Montana Black Gold sight, Tree Spider harness.

For Rich Buker of Clinton, Ind., bowhunting isn’t just about taking a trophy animal—it’s about a lifestyle, tradition and countless hours of dedicated labor.

Buker—who’s spent the last 20 years hunting on his family’s property in Vermillion County—has devoted himself to improving a deer population that was once less than impressive. He’s run trail cameras, planted and maintained food plots, hung stands, and tracked whitetails for years. And after an enormous amount of toil, Buker finally has the trophy buck to make it all worthwhile.

On Oct. 28, Buker crossed paths with a buck he’d been tracking on camera for nearly five years—a 170-inch monster that until now had eluded him. On a windy evening he thought about getting down from his stand and calling it a night. He’d even tied a drop line to his bow in preparation for the descent. But then the wind died and he decided to hang around for a bit longer. Funny the way it is.

It was a fateful decision, as he soon eyed a massive buck working the treeline and then headed across the field toward him. At 35 yards, he stopped the buck with a grunt, placed his shot perfectly behind the shoulder and squeezed off a shot. The biggest buck he’d shot in his life ran 75 yards and then dropped within sight.

When he made it to the buck, Buker said he “was jumping around thanking God for such a great buck. I immediately collected myself, pulled out my iPhone and snapped some pictures before I ever laid hands on the deer.” He couldn’t believe what lay before him, after all the toil and patience.

As it turns out, persistence wins the day.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Jared Oeder
State/County: Ohio/Warren County
Score: 190 inches, green score
Gear: Horton crossbow, Rage broadheads, Moultrie trail camera

At just 19 years of age, Jared Oeder has bagged his fair share of trophy bucks—three over 150 inches—which is more than a lot of hunters will ever see in their lifetime.

Apparently it keeps getting better and better for Oeder, who killed his fourth sizeable buck on October 7. The buck was his biggest, with a green score of 190 inches and plenty of mass to go around.

On an afternoon hunt in early October, Oeder spotted three does walking in a field, and then in time two bucks trailed behind. With his dad there to film, Oeder waited until the monster buck stepped into the field, rattling branches and making his way closer to them. He readied his Horton crossbow and prepared for the shot, which came at about 40 yards.

“The special excitement to this hunt was the fact that this particular deer was new to the plot this year,” Oeder said. “He was only seen a few times on our Moultrie game camera and a couple of times on other hunts.”

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Michael Morgan
State: Kansas
Score: 178 6/8
Gear: Hoyt bow

Sometimes life is about second chances.

Just ask Michael Morgan, who watched the buck of his dreams walk just out of shooting range at least three times in 2011. With leased property in Kansas, Morgan returned in 2012 hoping to improve his luck and found a sweet slice of redemption.

After checking trail cameras before the 2012 season, Morgan said he didn’t see the drop-tine deer in any pictures. He assumed the monster had been killed or had vacated the area.

Then on November 6 his second chance came, out of the dark morning sky. At first light, a stud buck stepped into an opening and Morgan perked up.

“I saw the drop tine and I about had a heart attack,” Morgan said. “Luckily it happened fast. I didn’t have enough time to get nervous. Two steps into the field and he hit an opening. I set the pin and squeezed the trigger on my release.”

Morgan said the deer ran for 100 yards and then collapsed. When it did, he spotted a second drop-tine and almost fell out of his treestand.

“That moment was with out a doubt the absolute most gratifying, fulfilling moment I have ever experienced in the woods,” he said.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Brian Herron
State/County: Sullivan County, Missouri
Score: 184 Gross Score
Gear: Mathews Reezen 7.0 bow, Carbon Express Maxima Blue Streak arrows, Rage broadheads

As any veteran whitetail hunter knows, one season typically has enough emotional ups and downs to warrant a ride at a theme park.

Brian Herron knows it all too well because of the 2012 season. He went from elation to despair and back to elation in just a matter of months, first spotting a trophy deer on his trail cameras in July. As the season went on, trespassers intentionally drove four-wheelers through an area where the deer hunkered down at night, erasing any chances Herron had of bagging a monster buck.

But as fate would have it, an opportunity arose for Herron to lease the land where the buck—dubbed “Mister Massive” by his son, Jayden—frequented. On November 9, Herron turned at the sound of what he thought was a squirrel, only to find Mister Massive banging his rack 10 yards away.

“I stood up with my knees shaking and pulled my bow back to full draw. By this time he was standing broadside at 20 yards, and I went to aim but my peep sight was twisted,” Herron recalled. He stealthily turned the peep sight with his teeth, then touched off a memorable shot.

“I saw his split G2 and the kicker off his brow tine and literally almost fell over. I grabbed his massive antlers, and with tears in my eyes I started saying “I got him! I got him! I got the big one!”

Reflecting on the patience required to endure a season filled with setbacks, Herron said he gives the thanks to God.

“This was one of the best days of my life, and a true testimony that when you trust in God to handle things, you never know what you might get in return.”

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Robert Gramoll
State/County: Wisconsin/Juneau County
Score: 202 1/8 inches, green score
Gear: Remington Model 7400 .30-06 auto-loading rifle

Persistence wins the day.

Just ask Robert Gramoll, who thought about packing it in early on the second to last day of Wisconsin rifle season, having been shutout to that point during bow and rifle seasons. A couple of buddies told him to stick it out, which he did. It was a decision he won’t soon forget.

That day he struck whitetail gold, spotting what was clearly a wall-hanger approaching through the woods. At about 75 yards the monster buck spotted him and turned to run, but by then Gramoll had touched off a shot with his Remington 7400 .30-06, dropping the buck dead in its tracks. When he got to the buck, he finally realized what he’d shot—a 202 1/8-inch monster that beat out the previous county record for typical deer by six inches.

“I was hunting with my boss on his property, and when we walked up to the deer, our mouths dropped. We couldn’t believe it, we were both in shock,” Gramoll said. “I’ve been hunting my whole life and never seen a deer like this. It’s like winning the lottery.”

According to John Ramsey, a scorer for the Wisconsin Buck and Bear Club, Gramoll’s buck will most likely be the new Juneau County record and place top 10 in the state. All that waits is the required 60-day drying period, but according to the Star Times, Ramsey believes it will be more than enough to take the top spot in the county.

As for Gramoll, it was all about being at the right place at the right time. When he was met by a crowd of onlookers at the town general store, several landowners had trail camera photos of the deer in velvet. But in the end, Gramoll was there when it counted. He battled through the season, as he had many, and was rewarded.

“At first I was so discouraged, I just wanted to go home. We hadn’t seen a damn thing during bow and rifle seasons,” Gramoll said. “But you know I stayed, and that kind of says it all. I’ve been real blessed with this monster buck.”

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Mike Moran
Province: Saskatchewan
Score: 180 inches
Gear: Remington 7400 .30-06, Nikon Monarch scope, Winchester Supreme Accubond 180-grain bullets, Cabelas outerwear, Cabelas Saskatchewan PAC Boots, Little Hotties Warmers chemical packs

Can lightning strike twice?

That thought passed through the mind of Michigan native Mike Moran as he passed on what he’d deemed a shootable eight-pointer during a Thanksgiving hunt in the Saskatchewan wilderness.

With history on his side—he had previously taken a 138-inch 12-pointer, a 159-inch 12-pointer and a 167-inch 16-pointer on past hunts—Moran headed back up to “the Land of the Giants” to try his luck again with Grant Kuypers of Buck Paradise Outfitters.

His guide, Ty Selk, mentioned two big bucks in the area: “Splits,” named for his two large, V-shaped split brows, and another elusive buck nicknamed “Kickers,” a chocolate-colored monarch that had been scouted for three years without a determinable pattern.

“If you had to draw in your mind the ultimate dream, ‘Kickers’ was the reality of this vision,” Moran said.

Starting four weeks into the season, Moran headed out at 4 a.m. the first day and was welcomed by a 140-145-class eight-pointer; he was definitely a shooter, but Moran decided to pass with bigger goals on his mind.

The second day, he said, was uneventful, with one six-point, a spike and plenty of does, but no trophies.

On the third day—Thanksgiving Day—Moran headed out to the stand in the bitter cold, with temperatures dropping to -15 degrees Celsius, determined to bring back a trophy.

“The sacrifice of missing the holiday with my family was also part of the equation in my obsession,” Moran said.

After passing on yet another good-looking eight-pointer—and wondering again whether it was a mistake—Moran said a nice, wide buck soon limped into his field of vision around noon. “Splits,” he thought.

“I raised my weapon, focused on my scope, and I thought, it’s time for business,” he said. “No time to videotape, no time for pictures, no time for a profile shot; what would I do when faced with the biggest buck of my life?”

After letting the buck take about four steps, Moran fired a bullet from his Remington 7400 .30-06 right into the buck’s brisket. The buck didn’t take another step before dropping flat.

With his adrenaline pumping, Moran rushed in to inspect, but was surprised to discover while this buck indeed had a split brow, he didn’t have two, and he was much bigger than “Splits”; it was that ghost of a buck, “Kickers.”

“Only in a dream I could write a better tale, but this time it was reality,” Moran said. “Nothing worthwhile or of tremendous value has ever come easy in my life. This is no exception, but the dream did come true and I am forever satisfied after hunting since age 14 and 27 years in the field. The time was now,” he said.

“This buck has it all just like the drawing of the school kid characture buck and it was mine.”

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Payton Mireles
State/County: Indiana/Starke County
Score: 154 3/8 green score
Gear: Marlin .357 Magnum lever-action rifle

Practice makes perfect.

That’s the lesson Payton Mireles, age 10, learned firsthand in 2012 after bagging an amazing Indiana buck. Mireles spent the offseason practicing with her Marlin .357 Magnum lever-action, honing her skills for a chance at a great buck.

Her persistence paid off on the first morning of opening weekend, as the monster buck chased a doe down a trail right in front of where Mireles was positioned. She got in shooting position, squeezed off a shot and watched as the buck tried to run off. Seventy yards into its flight, the trophy buck dropped dead.

Mireles, who hunts with her Uncle Jimbo, was ecstatic about killing her first buck. Uncle Jimbo said they’d seen the giant on trail camera photos and named him “the King.”

As for Mireles, she’s set the bar pretty high for the rest of her life, but it’s a memory she won’t soon forget.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Andy Morse
Location: Oceana County, Mich.
Score: 183 4/8 inches net score (non-typical)
Gear Used: ScentLok clothing, Big Game ladder stand

November 19 is a day Andy Morse won’t soon forget.

That’s the day Morse killed a giant buck he’d never even seen before. The massive buck was estimated to be six-and-a-half years old, has 16 scorable points, a beautiful drop tine and a net score of 183 4/8 inches.

The night before, Morse had been struggling to properly sight in his .30-30 and was going to use his .50 caliber muzzleloader for the evening hunt. At the last minute Morse’s dad suggested that he call his grandfather to borrow his old .30-06. Morse’s grandpa quickly obliged and drove over to deliver the gun.

“He gave me a handful of what I would learn later was 25- to 30-year-old ammunition. Out the door I went to hunt that evening.”

Later that night, with a few minutes of legal shooting light left, Morse put his grandpa’s gun to the test. He lined up on a mature doe for what seemed like a “gimme” shot. When the gun didn’t fire, Morse worked the action again but had the same result. As shooting light dwindled, he left frustrated. When he got home, Morse learned that he was being a bit too gentle with the old gun, and wasn’t seating the bullet properly in the chamber. With a new found hope, he set out the next night looking for redemption.

After a bit of debate, Morse elected to hunt his dad’s favorite hot spot, where there was a Big Game ladder stand. After a short wait, a few button bucks appeared and ate for awhile in the rye plot Morse’s dad planted in the summer. Shortly after the button bucks wandered off, Morse heard the familiar breaking of twigs and knew it wasn’t a small deer or turkeys. When the beast showed himself, Morse was amazed.

“My first thought was, “This is a big bodied deer.” He then took a couple more steps and revealed himself to me by picking up his head. I then saw the largest set of antlers I’ve ever seen.”

The giant whitetail slowly made his way to the small rye plot. Morse mentally coached himself to wait and be patient, and then finally had his chance at an 120-yard shot. The gun fired as he squeezed the trigger, drilling the buck right behind its shoulder. After a series of trembling text exchanges, Morse’s dad arrived and they tracked the buck together. An easy 75-yard blood trail led them to the biggest buck either hunter had ever seen.

“I’m 99 percent sure this deer is going to be a new record for Oceana County. It has won the Ludington Daily News Big Buck Contest and will now be mounted by Legends Taxidermy. This has truly been an incredible experience that has changed me for the rest of my life.”

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Every whitetail hunter I have ever met has had a dream in which they are about to arrow a truly giant buck. Often, the buck has just entered a shooting lane and the hunter has come to full draw. The unassuming monarch stands broadside at 10 yards. Nearly every time, just as the hunter is about to take the shot of a lifetime, they wake up.

Have you ever had that dream? Something tells me that if you are reading this story and you are anything like me, then you have had this dream more than once.

Dale Gertz, of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, has had this dream too. Dale is a 50-year-old homebuilder who is passionate about a few things — his friends, his children and hunting trophy whitetails. I was fortunate to meet Dale at a banquette to support the Maryland chapter of the Quality Deer Management Association. Dale and I spent nearly 40 minutes that night talking about not only his buck, but our mutual passion for Quality Deer Management and hunting mature whitetails. Dale shared with me his story and the story of “Kicks,” his new Maryland non-typical archery record. To share Dale’s story with you, I will start from the most logical place, the beginning.

The first thing I noticed about Dale was that he was just cool. In fact, Dale is the type of guy whom everyone would like to hang out with. More than anything, I noticed that, despite owning the Maryland archery record, Dale is simply a normal, down-to-earth guy. His hunting career was about the same too — normal. At the age of 50, Dale had been hunting hard for most of his life, and prior to that fateful day in 2011, he had managed to harvest just one Pope and Young trophy out of countless hours on stand.

During the summer of 2009, Dale had only just begun to seriously manage his 150-acre family farm for quality whitetail hunting. For years, he tried to focus only on harvesting what he called “ bigger” bucks. Dale and his friends abided by a very standard rule of only harvesting bucks that were at least eight points and outside the ears. Dale admitted that while he and his buddies were trying to do a better job managing the farm, they still hadn’t come close to the full potential of the property. He knew that the area held a few large, mature bucks. In fact, the farm is bordered by nearly 500 acres of state-owned land that is not hunted at all. Talk about a sanctuary!

On another border of Dale’s property lies a 200-acre farm that for years has been hunted hard, really hard. Dale told me he never really considered how he might be able to make his property more productive and attractive to more, bigger bucks. That is, not until a hunting trip to Wisconsin changed his perspective.

Dale told me about how he traveled to Wisconsin and hunted with an outfitter whose land had been managed under a strict program since 1978. This property was being operated at an entirely different level, and the results spoke for themselves. Dale spoke about a 300-acre piece of property that held hundreds of deer and as many as 30 Pope and Young bucks at any given time.

On two trips to Wisconsin, Dale learned about strict scent control, land use tactics, how to create an effective sanctuary and the importance of stand positioning, as well as the best way to enter and exit those stands. In addition to a wealth of knowledge, Dale also acquired his first ever Pope and Young buck, a 161-inch mature whitetail. Perhaps most importantly, Dale acquired a vision for what could be.

Upon returning from Wisconsin, Dale got to work on his own farm and management program. “The first thing I did was begin to limit the amount of human activity on the property,” he said. “No more dirt bikes, no more four-wheelers, limited paintball to one small area for the kids.”

Dale realized that while he was working hard to manage his farm, he was also shooting himself in the foot so to speak as he and his friends were running all of the deer off while using the property for a recreational hang out. After getting the land use issues under control, Dale began to design his property to grow and hold mature whitetails. He planted five acres of food plots for the deer, along with 30 pear trees, 10 Chinese chestnut trees and 10 persimmon trees. Once Dale had the groceries in order, he started to formulate a plan to provide his deer with the feeling of safety they would need to stay on his property. Part of Dale’s plan was to build a sanctuary and included the future planting of 800 pine trees.

In the summer of 2010, Dale’s deer management program began to bear fruit. Dale was seeing more and more deer. Not just bucks, but does and fawns as well. Several bucks really caught Dale’s eye, but none like one buck in particular. This buck was different.

From the day in mid-June when Dale first captured him in a trail camera photo, he knew this buck was going to be special. The buck was estimated to be three years old and had amazing potential. When most other bucks were still growing their antlers, this buck was putting on some serious inches. Dale took note of the amazing brow tine length and how long the buck’s main beams looked even covered in velvet. Not to mention, the buck grew several kicker points and several drop tines throughout the summer. Dale’s daughter Rachelle named him Kicks.

This buck was truly something else. Dale estimated that Kicks would score somewhere around 170 Pope and Young inches. It wasn’t until the final chapter of the story had been written and Dale’s friend and official Boone and Crockett scorer, Robert Newton, found Kicks’ 2010 shed, that he was able to estimate the buck at 190 inches as a 3 1/2-year-old.

In late summer, Kicks was showing up on the cameras on a regular basis. Dale’s anticipation was growing by the day as the September 15 archery opener approached, but with one week to go before the season, Dale’s anticipation turned to despair. Day after day, the trail cameras failed to produce proof that Kicks was still in the area. The giant buck had gone nocturnal. Almost as if a switch had been flipped, the buck moved on and vacated the property all together. Dale hunted hard during the 2010 season but never laid eyes on Kicks. The deer simply disappeared.

Kicks had disappeared with the exception of one brief sighting and a handful of trail camera pictures. While Dale was happy to know that Kicks was still alive, his heart sank when he heard that the giant buck had been hit by a car. A good friend of Dale’s witnessed the buck walking on three legs and bedding in the middle of an open field on Dale’s farm. The buck was clearly injured when he showed up on the trail cameras briefly in November. One last nocturnal photo of Kicks in early December proved that the buck had already shed his rack due to his injuries from the run in with the car.

In the late spring of 2011, Dale had come to terms with 2010’s disappointing season, until a morning walk in May gave him something to smile about. As Dale walked his property and approached one of his timed deer feeders, he noticed a large bodied deer standing under the feeder. “When the deer lifted his head, there was no question.” “ It was him; it was Kicks.” The monster buck was back and even though it was only June, Dale could tell it was him by the characteristics of his giant, growing rack.

Immediately upon encountering Kicks on that hot summer day, Dale began devising his plan. “I was thinking, what can I do?” he recalled. “What can I do to keep this buck from leaving my farm again this year? How can I spare myself that disappointment?”

The one issue that Dale previously had little control over was pressure put on Kicks by other hunters in the area. Dale knew that his best bet for keeping Kicks in the area was to create a bigger area. Right away, Dale approached his next-door neighbor and did everything in his power to be the highest bidder on the adjacent farm’s lease. By solidifying the sole lease on the additional 200 acres, Dale had nearly doubled his huntable acreage and reduced hunting pressure by limiting the number of hunters to three. Now both pieces of land shared borders with the 500-acre unhunted and state-owned tract.

Right away, Dale began to limit all activity on his property, only stepping foot into the buck’s core area to check trail camera photos or to fill a deer feeder or two. Immediately, Kicks began showing up on the trail cameras on a regular basis. Like clockwork, the giant buck was making daytime appearances and seemed to be comfortable and stress-free.

Dale quickly noticed that Kicks had grown. He had grown a great deal. It wasn’t until later in the story that Dale figured out the huge buck had put on nearly 40 inches of antler in just one year.

In the state of Maryland, the use of timed feeders and baiting is legal. With several stand locations to choose from on the 350-acre hunting tract, Dale decided to put his focus on just one stand location. This was the one area where Kicks was almost sure to show up on camera during the entire summer. Every morning from mid-June on, Dale rose before the sun and road into the darkness on his ATV.

“Each day, I would leave my house at 5 a.m. and head to that spot,” he explained. “Every day, I would put out 15 pounds of shelled corn and sprinkle it with “Deer’Licious” apple powder.”

Wouldn’t you know, every morning during the summer, Dale would head out early and put out his corn mixture and shortly after, Kicks would show for breakfast. Rain or shine, Dale kept up this ritual, even during a rare Maryland hurricane. By the end of the summer, Dale and Kicks were both used to the routine. Dale says he believes that the buck became used to the sound of the ATV and was bedding close by the stand where the corn and apple powder could be found.

On the morning of September 15, cool weather had settled in over the state of Maryland and provided perfect conditions for Dale to go after the buck on the season archery opener. Dale rose early just like always and had his friend, Crusher, meet him at the house. They loaded up the ATV and Crusher drove Dale to his stand. Well before first light, Dale settled into his perch while Crusher poured out the customary 15 pounds of shelled corn and sprinkled it with apple powder. Crusher then hopped on the ATV and drove off. You see, this was all part of Dale’s plan. The plan worked.

Feeling perfectly comfortable that feeding time had come, four deer made their way into the stand site. The fourth deer in the group was Kicks. The deer made his way into the set and Dale readied his Hoyt bow. As the buck stepped into the clearing, Dale came to full draw and found his anchor. In the low morning light, Dale watched his illuminated sight pin as it seemed to float in mid-air. As the pin settled in behind the buck’s shoulder, Dale easily and steadily pulled the trigger on his release.

Almost immediately, Dale knew that his Muzzy broadhead had founds its mark. The buck turned and bolted from the site, crashing through the thick early-season underbrush. After taking a few minutes to compose himself, Dale climbed down to trail his trophy. After recovering the blood-soaked arrow, Dale made quick work of the 90-yard tracking job.

When he walked up on the buck, Dale could hardly believe his eyes. Even though he knew the buck so well, Dale couldn’t believe what he had done. The deer was huge. Sporting impressively long main beams, brow tines measuring nearly 10 inches and a drop tine over 11 inches, this deer, as Dale had predicted, was truly special.

Unfortunately, as Dale’s trail cameras had shown on July 25, the buck had broken off a considerable amount of his main beam, a drop tine and a point off the beam. All together, the buck lost nearly 13 inches of antler. Even with this loss, Kicks still grossed 219 6/8 Pope and Young inches. After the mandatory drying period, the buck was officially scored at 208 7/8 net Pope and Young inches. If the buck had not broken his rack prior to the season, he would have likely grossed over 230 inches.

In the state of Maryland, the words “200 inches” and “whitetail buck” are not often uttered in the same sentence. With that said, I believe Maryland is a sleeper state. Each year, a handful of “Booners” are taken from this small East Coast state. Every now and then, a special buck comes along and a special hunter is lucky enough to engage him in a battle of wits. Every now and then, a Maryland buck breaks the mystical 200-inch mark, and it is proven that dreams can come true.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

The story of my experience with a buck named Mufasa began unfolding three years ago, when I was searching for a ranch to buy in south-central Kansas. In the spring of 2009, I started my quest for the perfect place to develop into a top whitetail hunting farm. I contacted land specialist Tom McFarlane from Whitetail Properties, and he showed me numerous ranches. My only problem at the end of a hot, dry weekend was trying to narrow it down between two places I knew had the potential to become something special.

We ended up breaking our piggy banks and buying both ranches, one being 1,050 acres and the other 1,040 acres. One of the biggest decisions involved in the decision to purchase the 1,050-acre tract that we called “Red Rock” was the information I’d gathered about the adjoining property. I’d heard rumors of the adjacent property’s tenants having some unreal trail camera photos of a giant buck over the previous two years.

As our first year managing the two ranches passed, I actually hunted the other property and harvested a great buck in the 160s, but throughout the season, I continued to wonder if anyone had gotten a chance at the big deer rumored to be living near Red Rock. After the season, I had a chance to meet the man who had been leasing the property next to Red Rock, and he informed me that they had, in fact, captured a bunch of trail camera pictures of the giant for the second straight year but were unsuccessful in harvesting him. As 2010 rolled around, he offered me a chance to acquire the additional acreage to tie into our ongoing management of Red Rock. The day we closed the deal, I instantly went out and put trail cameras where I believed the big buck was living.

Now, my attention span is about as long as a tick’s, so when the deadline for the Kansas muzzleloader application was due, I naturally forgot to put in for my general tag. As the owner and operator of Red Rock, I qualified for a landowner tag, but here’s where it gets scary. I pulled the cards on the cameras two or three days after the leftover tags became available and there he was—right where the previous tenant had pictures of him. I immediately called to apply for a leftover tag, but had missed one by a day. I don’t know if I actually cried, but I know I yelled out every possible combination of words and phrases you wouldn’t normally say in front of your mother.

At that time, I had two choices: sit and cry about it or let someone else try to hunt him. My good friend Dan Perez, who is one of the owners of Whitetail Properties, is someone I’d always looked up to, so I decided there was no better way to pay him back for the knowledge I’d gathered about killing mature bucks than to invite him to try to harvest the buck I’d named “Mufasa.”

As fall approached, Mufasa was a regular on the cameras, and I thought it literally was going to be a slam dunk. Dan hunted him hard and was unsuccessful, but that fall we learned an important thing—Mufasa was living way up in a cedar-choked canyon surrounded by big rock formations that actually made a giant bowl. Basically, if you were anywhere below a certain elevation, the wind would always swirl in his face. In the winter of 2010, Tom Mcfarlane and I went out to try to find his antlers.

As we were walking around, we were discussing different options for hunting him in 2011. On the opposite side of the canyon, there were rock formations that overlooked the whole river bottom and were 200 feet off the canyon floor. We climbed them and decided right then that we had found our spot. Based on the way the river wound around the rock formations through the canyon floor, we knew we could hunt the location with multiple wind directions.

In 2011, the waiting game started. To my knowledge, Mufasa had to be at least 6 years old at this time, and with the harsh winters, severe droughts and predators in south-central Kansas, I knew it was possible that Mufasa could have died during the off season.

I was always a little nervous going into Mufasa’s home range. I’d named it Mufasa’s Hole, because to get there requires a scary traverse down a rock bluff with a truck or ATV. During my first trip down into Mufasa’s Hole, I’d managed to bury my truck up to the frame in sand a few feet away from my Reconyx cameras—not the best thing to do when hunting a mature buck and being less than 250 yards from his bedroom.

Two days later, I had to travel to Minnesota, but I had Tom pull the cards for me. I’ll never forget answering my phone a few days later and hearing Tom yell, “We got him!”

Mufasa became a regular on my trail cameras, showing up basically everyday at some point on the camera by the river. After two years of my own scouting and the previous tenant’s scouting, I had him pinned down to his bedroom, and from my rock outcropping view, I felt like I finally had a chance to harvest him. Many sleepless nights and countless scenarios played out in my mind until I finally found myself sitting on top of that rock formation overlooking Mufasa’s bedroom with my Thompson/Center muzzleloader in hand.

The first few days of the season were totally uneventful to say the least. I was seeing just about every buck I’d gotten pictures of throughout the summer—except Mufasa. During mid-morning on the third day, I decided the curiosity was too much and I had to go pull the card from the Reconyx camera. As it turned out, he’d been coming by the camera alright, but it was always 15 minutes after legal shooting light or just at the crack at first light.

On the fourth evening, deer were up on their feet 30-45 minutes earlier than usual, and my hope was rising. As minutes ticked by, I started counting the deer and noticing certain bucks that I recognized. My theory was right; they were definitely moving early.

The whole year I’d been getting pictures of a yearling with tall spikes I’d named El Diablo. Mufasa would always follow or use him as his scout. I was burning my eyes looking through my Brunton optics when I spotted a flash of antler about 200 yards away through a cedar. Immediately, I knew it was El Diablo. Could Mufasa be following him?

Seconds later, Mufasa emerged from behind the cedar. I’ve harvested a lot of great bucks, but to see a 200-inch buck that had become a legend to so many people walking my way was a moment and feeling that words can’t describe. The only problem I was facing was that he was walking in hard off my right shoulder, putting me in an awkward spot since I was up to the edge of the cliff already. I turned my entire body and hung my left leg off the cliff, leaning on my left elbow for support. The scenario was unfolding rapidly, and I rushed to get into position, steady my breathing and ready my muzzleloader for the shot.

Mufasa slowed his walk and turned broadside, offering me a 160-yard shot. As I slowly started to squeeze the trigger, Mufasa raised his head up, but this time it was to late. My 250-grain Shockwave flew true through the hot Kansas air and found its mark. The shot was about 4 inches high, but Mufasa fell in his tracks. The bullet had struck him high in the shoulder just below the base of the neck. I sat looking through my Brunton scope in disbelief of what I was looking at. I couldn’t help but expect him to stand up and walk away. After about two minutes of looking at him, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was dead, and my emotions flooded out. My two-year quest was over.

Numerous times people had tried to harvest and hunt this buck, and he’d never even been seen with a human eye before this night. This buck lived his whole life in the canyon and truly lived by his nose. His unofficial score is 215 5/8 inches, and the hunt will be featured on Whitetail Properties Television.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

The story of this buck starts back in 2007 on an early October morning. I was bowhunting with my brother-in-law, who was filming my hunt on a small, 50-acre tract of private property in Scioto County, Ohio. On our way back to the truck that morning we spotted a big 10-pointer walking a fence line beside an overgrown pasture toward a known bedding area, but we were unable to get the camera out and on him in time to get any footage. While driving home, my brother-in-law and I discussed what we both thought the buck would score, and we both figured he’d go close to 150 inches.

I’ve been hunting this 50-acre property for 10 years now, and it is a favorite spot of mine because I’ve taken a couple of good bucks over the years of hunting there and always see numerous bucks on it year after year. I figured I’d have a good chance of seeing the buck again.

The acreage has a pinch point or bottleneck of oaks that sits right in the middle of property. There are soybean and corn fields 400-500 yards away on one side and a thick bedding area of blown down timber and overgrown brush on the other. The deer feed in the agricultural fields at night and then make their way back through the pinch point feeding on acorns on their way back to the bedding area. The pattern is the opposite in the evenings.

About a week later, my brother-in-law and I were again hunting in this pinch point, and at about 9:20 a.m. I spotted two bucks feeding on acorns and heading our way. As I looked through my binoculars I could tell one of the bucks was a small 8-point and the other was the big 10-point we had seen last week. I told my brother-in-law to get the camera ready.

After about 10 minutes, the 8-point worked his way right by our stand at 20 yards and down into the thick bedding area, but the big 10-point was still about 75 yards away feeding on acorns. He continued to work our way, but I could tell he wasn’t going to come on the same trail that the 8-point had taken. He was on a trail about 35 yards out from the stand.

After a few minutes, the buck worked into my shooting lane and I released an arrow and shot over his back, hitting a tree behind him. I was disgusted with myself and didn’t know what to say to my brother-in-law but, “I’m sorry. That was the one we wanted and I just blew it.”

After going home and watching the video of the hunt, we figured without a doubt the buck would score in the 150s. I knew this was the buck that I was going to try to harvest that season.

Over the next few weeks I saw some smaller bucks and no sign of the big 10-point. Around the second week of November in 2007, I broke a bone in my left shoulder at work, and it kept me from hunting the rest of that season.

In late February and early March of 2008, I began looking for the sheds off the big 10-pointer I had missed back in October, but I was unable to find them. I was just hoping that he had made it through the hunting season. After missing half of the 2007 archery season, I could hardly wait to get out in a tree stand in 2008.

As usual, I continued to hunt the pinch point where I had missed the big 10-point at least once a week in the 2008 season, but I only saw some smaller bucks. I ended up harvesting a 163-inch 10-point on November 9 on a different piece of property that year.

Again, in February and March of 2009, I continued to hunt for the sheds off the 10-point from the year before, hoping he was still alive, but I was still unable to find them.

As in years past, I continued to stick with my usual routine and hunted the pinch point at least once a week in the 2009 season. I saw a couple of decent bucks in there that would have scored in the 130s or 140s. By this time, I figured the big 10-point from 2007 had been killed by another hunter on neighboring property or he had been hit by an automobile.

I thought I knew the 50-acre piece of property like the back of my hand since I had been hunting it for so long now, but there was one small area that I had overlooked. After scouting and hunting for sheds in February and March 2010, about 200 yards from the pinch point I found an area of huge rubs along some thick cover about 100 yards from a known bedding area. Just outside the thick cover was a small patch of white oaks that I never paid much attention to in the past because they were so close to the bedding area. But after seeing all of the big rubs and scrapes from the fall I marked a tree that I thought would be good for this coming fall.

The area was fairly easy for me to access and the only problem would be making sure I only hunted it on a southwest wind; any other wind direction would blow straight into where the deer were bedding or the direction they were coming from.

I continued on with my scouting and later I came across a big shed antler with a sticker point coming off of its base on a hill that was in between the thick bedding area and the pinch point I usually hunt. After looking it over, I guessed that if the other side would match up close to it, it would be a buck that would score in the 160s or better. I spent a couple more hours looking for the other side, but only found a couple other small sheds.

While looking for the other side, I found a crossing going through a small creek below the pinch point that I had never noticed before. It had some big tracks in it that went toward the thick bedding area with all the big rubs. I told myself that this would be a good place to set up a trail camera this summer to see if I could get picture of the buck whose shed I had just found. After I got home, I continued to look over the shed, and after a few minutes, I noticed that it resembled the big 10-point I’d missed back in 2007. I quickly went to my computer and pulled up the video of the hunt. After watching the video a couple of times, it was clear that this was indeed the same buck. He had the exact same frame with only more mass and a big sticker point off of his base.

I kept watching the video over and over, asking myself where in the world this buck could have hidden out for the past two and a half years now.

In late June I placed a trail camera just back off of the crossing in the creek I’d found with all the big tracks in it, and as I was riding out on my four-wheeler, I noticed an antler hanging in a fork of a tree about 4 feet off of the ground. To my surprise, when I removed it from the tree, it was a match to the big shed I found back in late winter.

On my way back to my truck I stopped and asked the landowner if he had placed the shed in the tree, and he stated that while he was cutting up fire wood he had found the antler. He placed it in the tree and was going to tell me about it the next time he saw me but had forgotten about it.

With both sheds in hand, there was no doubt that this was definitely the buck I’d missed in 2007, and he had put on more than 25 inches since then. He had big, bladed brow tines, one of which was split, so I decided I’d name him “Blade.” I couldn’t wait to see how big he was this year.

I began to check the trail camera on the creek crossing every three weeks in the middle of the day and was getting several pictures of different bucks. A couple of bucks would score in the 130s, and one buck was a big 14-pointer with split brow tines. He would probably score in the 160s or better.

However, over the next couple of months, I never did get a picture of the buck I named Blade. Since it seemed like every buck on the property was using this creek crossing, I believed that he wasn’t living there. I figured he was staying in a small thicket not too far from the agricultural fields.

The month of September was dry and the soybeans were already turning yellow and starting to dry up. The oaks were starting to drop acorns and I was getting trail camera pictures of different bucks that I hadn’t seen before. I continued to get pictures of the big 14-point, but still none of Blade. All of the trail camera pictures I was getting of the 14-point had him coming from the area where I found all the big rubs in the evenings just after dark and in the mornings just before daybreak. It was going to be hard to convince myself not to hunt that area, but I knew I had to be patient and wait until the conditions were perfect.

I’ve learned from past experience that the worst thing you can do is rush in and take a chance on a mature buck busting you because you couldn’t hold back and wait on the right wind direction. I believe without a doubt that the very first time you hunt a stand is the best time and after that he’ll know you’ve been there and your chances of harvesting that buck decrease tremendously.

The first evening of the 2011 season I hunted the usual pinch point and had a 130-inch 10-pointer that I had several trail camera pictures of come by my stand at less than 20 yards, along with a couple other smaller bucks. I hunted it again on Thursday morning, September 30, and had the same 130-inch 10-point and a small 8-point come in right under my stand just after day break and feed on acorns for 45 minutes.

At about 11 a.m. that morning it began to rain and the wind was beginning to blow 20-30 mph out of the southwest, so I decided to climb down out of my stand and slip up into the area where I found the big rubs back in late winter for a little scouting. After spraying down again with Scent Killer, I began to slowly slip up toward the small patch of white oaks where I had marked a tree back in the winter, glancing ahead with my binoculars to see if I could spot any deer feeding on the abundance of acorns on the ground.

As I approached the area, I quickly noticed that it was torn up again with fresh scrapes and some really big, fresh rubs. Some of small trees were broken completely in half, and acorns were everywhere on the ground. It was, without a doubt, the perfect staging area for bucks, and I knew the big 14-pointer was using this area based on the trail cam pictures that I had. With so much fresh sign, I was convinced that I needed to be in there the first chance that I got when the wind was right.

The following Tuesday, October 5, it was pouring down rain in the afternoon and I decided that with the rain masking my scent this would be a good time for me to slip into the staging area and hang a lock-on stand on the tree I had marked instead of trying to hunt it out of my climbing stand.

After hanging the stand, I noticed while slipping out that there were several more big, fresh rubs that hadn’t been there the previous Thursday. I paid close attention to the weather forecast over the next couple of days, and it looked like Saturday morning, October 9, was going to be in the low 40s with the wind out of the southwest. I happened to have that day off from work. With all the big fresh rubs, scrapes and feeding sign I’d seen in there, I couldn’t wait until Saturday morning.

The weather was just as predicted that Saturday morning—clear skies, 41 degrees, with a light wind out of the southwest—and I arrived at my stand about 45 minutes before day break and got settled in. About 15-20 minutes after daybreak, I noticed a doe behind me feeding at about 50 yards. She fed slowly down a trail that went right beside my tree and eventually up the hill toward the thick bedding area.

As I watched her go up the hill I caught some movement toward the thick cover to my right that had all the big rubs around it, and I noticed a small 6-pointer walking just outside the thicket. He was acting a little nervous and kept looking back into the thick cover. At this time, I spotted another buck walking through the thicket. When he came into the oaks, I recognized him as a 9-point, 130-class buck that I had pictures of.

The two bucks began to feed on acorns about 50 yards from my stand. After about five minutes or so, both bucks became very alert and began staring into the thick cover, and then the small buck ran and stopped just behind my tree, continuing to stare towards the ticket. I noticed another deer was coming through the thick cover, but it was coming in on a different trail than the other two bucks used. The deer had stopped right behind a big shag bark hickory tree that was about 60 yards away, right on the edge of the thicket.

I lifted up my binoculars slowly, not wanting to spook the small 6-point, which was right at the base of my tree feeding now. Looking through my binoculars I could tell that it was a good buck with long tines. I then slowly reached for my bow and positioned myself for a shot. After about a minute or so, the buck walked out from behind the hickory tree and was coming straight toward me. I knew without a doubt he was a shooter.

He walked about 30 yards, then stopped and began feeding on acorns. He only had to walk about another 5 yards for me to be able to take a shot at him. After what seemed like forever, he began to slowly walk into my shooting lane. I was trying not to look at his rack. He gave me just a slight quartering to shot at 25 yards, and I released my arrow. I knew that I had made good shot on him as I saw the arrow bury right behind his shoulder. As he turned to run off, I saw big sticker points coming up off the bases of his antlers.

I listened for him to crash in the thick brush but didn’t hear anything. I sat down in my stand and began to replay everything in my mind. I knew I had made a good shot, but I should have heard the buck go down. I sat there and gathered my composure and looked at my watch. It was 7:56 a.m.

I told myself I was going to wait about 45 minutes before I got down, retrieved my arrow and started looking for blood. As I sat there, I began to think about the buck’s rack as he ran off and told myself there isn’t another buck that I know of on this property with those sticker points other than Blade.

I just laughed to myself and said, “How in the world didn’t I get a trail camera picture of him?” As I sat there and waited in my stand, the first person I called was my wife, Alisha, and I told her I had just shot my best buck and that I thought it was the big shed buck I call Blade. She gets a lot of credit for putting up with my whitetail addiction, and she knows I have a great passion for bowhunting.

After calling my wife, I called my parents, Debbie and Larry. They have always supported my passion of hunting, and I wouldn’t be the bowhunter I am today if it wasn’t for my Dad. He was the one who got me started hunting at around the age of 10, and although he doesn’t bowhunt, I’ve watched him my whole life have a passion for rabbit hunting and running his beagles that is second to none. He always told me that part of hunting is just putting your time in and enjoying every minute of it. I can’t thank him enough for all of his encouragement over the years.

At around 8:45 a.m., I slowly climbed down my tree and walked over to where the buck was standing when I shot him and spotted my arrow. It was soaked with blood and I began slowly tracking the blood in the direction I saw the buck run off. After walking only about 20 yards or so, the blood trail was sparse with only a few small drops here and there.

I thought to myself, This buck should be pouring blood with the shot I put on him with a two-blade Rage broadhead. I stood there a few minutes to gather my thoughts and told myself to only go about another 40 yards to where I had last seen the buck in the thicket and if the blood trail doesn’t pick up by then, back out and come back later with some help. I started quietly walking in the direction I had last seen the buck and the blood trail was getting better.

As I approached the spot where I had last seen him, I noticed a white belly laying just up the hill about 30 yards. He had gone a little less than 100 yards. As I approached him, I knew this was the buck of a lifetime, and as I knelt down in front of the buck, lifting his rack, I began to thank God for such an opportunity. It was a feeling that I had never had before in all of my years of hunting. It was almost unreal.

It was indeed the buck I had named Blade and I began asking myself again how he managed to get by me unseen for over two and a half years. Apparently he knew a little more about this piece of property than I did, and as I was trying to pattern him, he had patterned me and he was more than likely there the whole time. He had learned from my mistake back on that early October morning in 2007, when I missed him.

Blade’s rack is a mainframe 12-point with 19 scoreable points and 16 6/8 inches of abnormal growth. After the mandatory 60-day drying period, Boone & Crockett and Buckeye Big Buck Club official scorer Dave Haynes of Jackson, Ohio, scored Blade at 198 6/8 gross non-typical inches with a final net score of 192 4/8 non-typical.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Like those in many Midwest states in 2011, Illinois hunters dealt with warm temperatures and a lack of rain right from the get-go, and it lasted most of the season. On the bright side, the conditions were ideal for producing the mother lode of acorns. If you were one of the fortunate who had a couple of hardwood ridges and plenty of water, then you were likely better off than most.

Frank Nation was one of those lucky guys. A small satellite block of timber on his hunting property had everything a deer needed, and the lack of hunting pressure made it the likely spot to harbor a big buck. Nation’s persistence paid off in October when he arrowed a big non-typical. Not only was it Nation’s biggest buck ever, the giant ranks among the top five taken with a bow in Illinois during the 2011 season. Nation tells his story of the events leading up to that memorable day.

Layout
“The piece of ground is about 320 acres, and the terrain is typical to this part of Illinois,” Nation explained. “There might be 75 acres of timber, comprised of rolling hills, ravines, hardwood ridges and creek bottoms. The two main ridges are dominated by mature oaks and are good places to be when the acorns start dropping. The remaining acres are planted in corn and soybeans. With the exception of a CRP field, the property to the east and north is more or less big timber. To the South is pasture ground.”

Scouting
“Unlike some who believe in constant scouting, I try to keep a safe distance and avoid educating the deer,” Nation said. “I typically begin setting out cameras in late summer and continue running them throughout the season. In doing so, I get a good idea of the bucks on the property and where they feed. I like glassing when the crops are still green, especially the soybean and alfalfa fields. The property lays out in such a way that it allows glassing from over a quarter mile away. From that distance, there’s little chance of disturbing deer travel and feeding patterns.

“Aerial photos also play a big role. Based on what’s learned from cameras and glassing, I map out where the deer feed and their travel routes on the aerial photo. From that I determine where to hang stands and the best wind condition for each. I’ve been hunting the property long enough to know where all the natural and manmade funnels are, but aerial photos help me visualize the best stand options for a given day.

“Paying close attention to the acorn crop is also important. In years of plenty, the deer seem to spend more time in the timber and less in the crop fields. And that’s exactly what happened last year.”

The Beginning
“I didn’t know this particular deer existed until October of 2010,” Nation recalled. “That’s when a hunter told me about a big buck he had seen and had a close encounter with on the neighboring ground. I hunted hard that season but didn’t see the deer.

“This past fall, I heard a rumor that the same guy had seen the deer again. And this time he had pictures to prove it. Knowing the deer was in the area, I was more determined than ever and spent considerable time glassing and running cameras. I had been monitoring the pattern of several bucks but hadn’t seen hide or hair of the big one. The buck was obviously smart and laying low. Given the facts, I’m guessing he was simply nocturnal.”

Season Opens
“I took the day off from work for the season opener,” Nation said. “It was warm that day, somewhere around 70 degrees. I didn’t see much until just before sunset. That’s when a half-dozen young bucks and does wandered into the field but none of them were shooters. Rumors were going around again about a giant seen on the ground north of me. Whether it was the same deer or not is anyone’s best guess. Knowing the buck was in the general area, I started hunting every chance I got.”

The Lost 40
“We had mostly north winds, and it was killing me for stand options,” Nation explained. “I spent most of my time rotating between stands to avoid burning any single one out. I had been hunting the creek bottom, not far from a small timber we call ‘The Lost 40,’ mainly because it’s rarely hunted. Parts of the timber are thick and gnarly, and the deer use it a lot. The ridge top consists of mostly oak trees and Multiflora Rose briars. The ridge drops off on one end, and below that is a primary bedding area. During the rut, a lot of bucks travel through the area looking for does, so I generally keep a safe distance until then. Before that, I hunt the periphery in the creek bottom.

“Over the next two weeks I saw a ton of deer, including several young bucks. My biggest deer to date was a 140-class 11-point, and I was holding out for something bigger. In the back of my mind, I was hoping the big non-typical would find his way onto our place.”

Pattern Develops
“It was really dry in Illinois and many of the water sources had dried up,” Nation said. “In some cases that meant the deer had to travel farther for water. In my area, a pattern started to develop early on. There was a large pasture on the neighboring ground to the south with three ponds. The majority of the deer were going to those ponds in the morning and then heading toward the bedding area on the Lost 40. In the afternoon they left the bedding area and went straight for the acorn ridge.

“By the third week of October, I started seeing a few young bucks chasing does, mostly on the ridge top. That clearly indicated that the rut wasn’t far off and the bigger bucks would soon start moving. My plan was to stick with the does, because it was just a matter of time before a mature buck came cruising to claim one.”

Decision Time
“I hunted Saturday morning (October 23) until about 10 a.m. and climbed down,” Nation said. “It was time to scout for a new stand location, a little closer to the action. A setup between the bedding area and the ridge top would be ideal.

“Trying to cause the least amount of disturbance, I slipped back in at midday to find a tree that would work for a north wind. There wasn’t any, so I ended up hanging the stand on the ridge top, anticipating the wind would soon change to some southerly direction.

“On Saturday afternoon the wind blew steady from the north, so I hunted the same stand in the bottom. I saw a ton of deer but not any shooters. Sunday morning the winds were basically a repeat of Saturday. However, the weatherman was predicting the wind would shift from north to south that afternoon. It was shortly after lunch that the wind began shifting directions.

“Around 2 p.m., I gathered my gear, sprayed everything down with scent eliminator and headed out. Temperatures hovered in the upper 60s, so I took my time to avoid sweating or making any noise that might alert any deer in the bedding area. It took nearly an hour to get there, but I hadn’t jumped any deer in the process. Before settling in, I took off my ScentBlocker jacket to air out, and once again sprayed down with scent eliminator.”

Moment of Truth
“The first hour was really quiet, but around 5 p.m. movement drew my attention toward something in the thick brush to the south,” Nation said. At first I couldn’t tell whether it was a deer or not, but then I saw it shake like a wet dog. It was a deer alright, but I still couldn’t tell whether it was a buck or doe. A few seconds later, it started rubbing a tree. I could see antlers at that point, but they didn’t appear to be very big. I gave a couple of soft grunts from the Buck Growler, and his head cranked around in my direction. I nearly had a heart attack.

“It was an absolute giant, with far too many points for a quick count. There was no doubt: I was looking at the biggest deer of my life. I grabbed my bow and got ready, but the buck went back to rubbing the tree. Another five minutes or so passed before he stopped to look around, apparently looking for the deer he heard grunting.

“All of the sudden he started moving down a trail that swung to the northeast. I figured he was trying to circle around and get downwind. I needed to turn the buck around, and I contemplated what to do next. He responded to the call once, so I felt he just might again. Directing the call behind me, I made one soft grunt. Much to my surprise, the buck spun completely around and started walking directly at me.

“That was great, but now I was questioning what to do next. He’s coming straight on, and I don’t want to chance a frontal or neck shot. As the buck cut the distance, he raised his head and licked his nose almost continuously. I’m guessing he was trying to catch the scent of the buck he heard grunting. The ridge dropped off behind the stand. When the buck got within 20 yards, he began to circle behind me. It was obvious he thought the intruder was down the ridge.

“Anticipating a shot, I brought the PSE X-Force to full draw and waited for an opportunity. That’s when he came to a sudden stop behind a Russian Olive bush. I’m not sure how long it was, but long enough that I couldn’t hold back any longer. As I started to ease the bow down, he made a couple of quick steps and exposed the vitals. It took everything I had to get the bow drawn again. I made a quick lip squeak to stop him, settled the pin and touched off the release. The buck ran for maybe 20 yards and stopped to look back. That’s when I saw the arrow sticking out of the shoulder. I couldn’t help but think I’d really messed up, and I prayed I hadn’t wounded the buck of a lifetime.

“The giant stood there for maybe 10 seconds, and then took off on a dead run. He hadn’t gone more than 25 yards before slamming headfirst into an oak tree. I was in total shock, and my knees and legs were shaking uncontrollably. I sat down to gather my composure.

“I wanted to give the deer plenty of time, so I started making calls. First I called my Dad to tell him that I shot a giant. Not sure why, but he didn’t believe me. Eventually I was able to convince him to come out and give me a hand. I called my fiance, Jessica, next. She didn’t seem to believe me either. I wanted her to bring out my son, Franky, who is totally into hunting. Eventually, she agreed. Next were my friends, Roy and Ryan. Like the others, they didn’t believe either. Truth is, everyone I called that night thought I was pulling their leg or joking around.

“Thirty minutes later, I climbed down for a closer look. People talk about ground shrinkage, but that wasn’t the case. The horns just kept getting bigger the closer I got. Even so, it wasn’t until I grabbed hold of the antlers that I was able to comprehend just how big the deer really was. I started counting points and came up with 23 in total.

“Dad met me at the creek crossing. He took one look and said, ‘My God, I’ve been hunting all my life and have never seen a deer that big, much less shot one.’ Judging from Dad’s initial reaction, it was apparent he was expecting to see an average deer and not a giant.

“When we got back to the truck, reality sunk in. I had taken the buck of a lifetime. People started showing up nonstop for a closer look and to take pictures. Overall, it was an amazing experience.”

Conclusions
A couple of days later, Nation went to speak with the neighbor, Rich Crawflin. He showed Crawflin pictures of his deer. There was no doubt it was the same buck his neighbor had pictures of. Ironically, the pictures came from a trail camera just east of where Nation had killed the buck. Considering the wise old warrior had only been seen once during the daylight hours, we can only assume he led a nocturnal life. Obviously there’s no way of knowing for sure, but chances are the buck found sanctuary in the Lost 40 and had been holding up there for quite some time.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

I have been gripped by a passion for hunting whitetails since 1984 when my high school band teacher invited me to hunt with him that fall. He gave me a damaged compound bow and some finger tabs. I bought some camouflage and some arrows. Our second trip out I shot a doe with the first arrow I had ever sent toward a deer.

I have been hooked ever since. I spent the next 27 years putting in some serious effort to bag a true trophy. In my mind, a buck scoring in the 170s would make a lifetime of hunting complete.

As the many seasons came and went, I began to think I was never going to bag such a trophy. I wasn’t without reward during those years; I’ve shot my share of bucks between 135 and 160 inches. However, after nearly three decades with a number of close encounters and a couple of missed shots on 170- to 180-class deer, I started to believe a deer of this class may elude me forever. That was OK, and I accepted the fact that it just doesn’t happen for everyone. But I kept trying just the same, and I began to look for other ways to make the hunts challenging, exciting and rewarding through the things I could control.

What I couldn’t do was make a big buck stand in front of me to get shot. So I looked at what I could do. There were several things I did to create that challenge and excitement. One year I practiced diligently to take a deer with my bow at 50 yards. I ended up killing a doe at 67 yards.
After reading much about it, I knew smokeless muzzleloading was for me. I bought a Savage ML11 muzzleloader. I spent a couple years tweaking it and finally took a deer at 304 yards.

After a couple of encounters with an 180-inch deer—including a clean miss with my bow—I decided to try shooting left-handed. This was for the times a buck would come to my weak side and I was unable to turn to get a right-handed shot. Since then, I’ve taken several does shooting a right-handed bow left-handed.

The next endeavor wasn’t so much a personal challenge as a new direction for me and my new hunting buddies—my children Lizzy and Devin. Youth season hunts in Iowa with my son and daughter have been the most rewarding hunts I’ve been on. My daughter got her first buck when she was 9 years old and my son when he was 5. Now they are 10 and 15 and have each taken several nice bucks. My daughter will admit she is the lucky one. She shot a 150-inch buck opening day one youth season, and last year she took a 167-inch 10-pointer that I should not have passed on.

The beginning of the story for me and this tremendous buck was when I saw him about 10 days prior. I took my son out during the second shotgun season using his youth tag. Youth tags are good for all gun seasons in Iowa. It’s a great policy so kids can keep hunting if they are unsuccessful during youth season.

Earlier in the year, I somewhat regrettably made my son pass on about a 150-inch 10-pointer because it was too young and he already has one at about the 140-class. This 10-pointer was perfect, with way more potential than 150. And I have become a stickler about not shooting young bucks with potential. That decision may have led to this giant.

So during second shotgun season, using my Remington 700ML, my son and I went out several times. One day we had a southwest wind, so I decided to hunt an area where we had seen deer feeding in the field. We needed a south wind of some sort to do it.

On our very first hunt in that field, with about 15 minutes of shooting light left, I saw a big body heading toward the rest of the deer and could see a nice rack through the timber. I told Devin to get his gun up and ready. I knew this buck was mature enough and had a good rack. When he cleared the timber and I could get my Nikon binoculars on him, I said, “Oh my gosh, a 180-inch 9-pointer!”

The buck made a path toward a few other deer and stopped broadside! I quickly grabbed my Bushnell Elite and ranged him at 112 yards. I told Devin to get the crosshairs on him!

We spent the next two minutes trying to get Devin steady. He was just a bit too short to have a solid rest. It was breezy and the does in the field were spooky. I was worried we weren’t going to have enough time to ensure Devin had good shot. Sure enough, two does flipped up their tails and headed in. The big guy picked up his head and decided to go with them. Our heads sunk. The buck never came back out during the few minutes of light we had left.

Still, we made the right decision. That was going to be a long shot for my 9-year-old, even though I know the gun can easily do it. I was very proud of Devin for not taking the shot. It was in his hands. The safety was off. He knew it wasn’t right, even at age 9. We went back two more times. This giant didn’t get the invitation, apparently.

Late muzzleloader season rolled in a few days later. This was the type of season that makes late muzzleloader fanatics stay home. It was warm and windy. No one shoots big bucks with south winds and 45-degree days right? I hit that spot two times. I didn’t see the big boy, but I was not discouraged. There had been no pressure and this buck should have no reason to leave.

The third time was a charm. I was watching a smaller buck way off with a couple of does. They were angling toward me and hit the timber. I watched the spot where I thought they would emerge back into the field and join a few does at 100 yards from me. Some time had passed so I figured they must have kept going through the timber.

At about the same time Devin and I had seen the big buck, with only 15 minutes of shooting light left, I saw some deer coming through the timber. One of them was a buck. They were heading right where I expected the earlier group to emerge. This group was different though. This group had a big buck with them. I pulled up the Nikon binoculars and started to feel the adrenaline push into my veins. It was the huge 9 pointer!

I had the same conditions, southwest wind at 18 mph, 45 degrees, and the deer were spooky again from the wind. Exactly like the last time I saw him with Devin. The giant entered the field about 200 yards away, heading right at me. He stopped at 108 yards to feed but he was facing me, and I needed to relax away the adrenaline dump. I did something that comes with maturity.

I quit looking at the monster that stood well within my shooting range and looked down, relaxed all muscles and took five deep breaths. I was steady and pretty calm. I got him in the scope and held solid on him, waiting for him to give me a broadside shot. He wouldn’t. I did the calculations to hit the vitals at this angle and held there waiting for a broadside shot. A thought went through my head that probably sealed the deal. I said to myself, “If one white flag goes up, take him where he stands.”

Seconds later, three or four flags went up, and the does headed for the timber. I looked back in the scope and my buck’s head was still down. I was on him solid. I squeezed. After the shot, I stayed on the scope. I couldn’t find him. So I looked up, trying to see a rack running with the rest. I saw four deer but no rack. It was toward the end of shooting light, but I could see approximately where the whole group hit the timber.

Since there was still some ambient light, I got down quickly to check for blood. I went to where he stood when I shot. No blood. I checked the trails going into the timber. No blood. So, I snuck back to my stand, grabbed my stuff and took a wide route out of there. With no blood trail, experience told me to look in the morning.

You would think I was in for a sleepless night. I managed five hours. Sleep was not difficult with an 108-yard shot. The shot was solid. I took a friend to help me look for him the next morning. We spread out and went south, then swung around and worked back north. On the way back north, I replayed last night in my mind, and it seemed logical he was with the few deer that went east and north. I actually started smiling to myself as we worked our way north because it made sense to me that that was where he went. I knew we would find him.

Indeed! I spotted him about 80 yards away, and for the second time in my life I approached a downed deer and it got bigger instead of smaller. For a second time, no ground shrinkage!

When I got to him, there was no blood. Not even where he lay. The bullet went in through the left scapula and I found it just under the skin where a belly button would be. With 2,250 fps muzzle velocity using a 300-grain Barnes Original, I didn’t think any animal in Iowa could hold my bullet at 108 yards. He sure did. We looked him over pretty good and took some field photos on the spot. I knew with the kickers and splits he was easily 180 inches.

We grabbed my Land Rover and loaded him up. I took him out to another friend who has a hanging rail with a scale built in. I hadn’t field dressed him yet. He weighed 252 pounds. After we weighed him, more friends showed up. One of them who does a bit of measuring asked if I was going to score it. I said, “Someday I suppose.”

“Not right now?” he asked.

I said, “You can if you want.” So he did. The calculator was up to 188 and we hadn’t even started on the non-typical points! I was truly surprised when he came up with a gross of 204! Yet this was just a green score using a string. I knew once it could be officially scored, that number would likely change.

His overall score is no mystery when you look him over with measurements in hand. This buck lacks nothing. He has good tine length and a decent inside spread. Then when you add in the exceptional measurements of 29- and 29 2/8-inch main beams and a whopping 42 inches of mass, along with 18 7/8 of non-typical points, he nets 189 7/8 non-typical inches! A real giant!

All of the close encounters and a few missed shots finally paid off. The knowledge, experience and maturity that comes from hunting whitetails for 27 years were “dues paid.” And my fading dreams of bagging a 170-inch deer were smashed by this true buck of a lifetime.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

As I sat there reflecting on the events of this season, I was slowly starting to face the harsh reality that for the first time in 20 years, I just might not put a buck on the ground. For the past three years I had been chasing a buck that I had dubbed “the Ghost.” That old buck made a regular habit of making a fool out of me, and it was looking like this year would be no exception. While I was busy compiling a list of good excuses for not getting a buck this year, little did I know as the darkness began to fall in the quietness of the frosty, fog-filled forest, that the final chapter to my three-year quest was about to be written.

It all began four years ago, in the summer of 2008. On a routine scouting trip I spotted a tremendous young whitetail that looked to be a 140-class buck, and I guessed him to be only 3 years old. He was hanging in a bachelor group with several other nice young bucks and a couple great older ones. That winter I was able to take a 10-year-old buck that had regressed back to 130 inches. I had extremely high hopes for several of the young deer we had passed that season and especially for that 140-class youngster.

The summer of 2009 started out slow. The deer were mostly nocturnal until July, and even then the bucks were coming out pretty late in the evening and getting back into the timber before sun up. Around mid-July I spotted a big buck high on the hill at last light. I was fairly certain I knew which deer it was and was sitting in the same spot the next night waiting for him to come back out. That very next night he came out low on the hillside with seven other bucks. He was by far the largest in the group but definitely not the oldest. He was well on his way to being a 170-class buck, and with North American Whitetail Editor in Chief Gordon Whittington scheduled to hunt with me the first week of September, I planned to have that buck all but tied to a tree for him.

As the summer progressed, the bucks became more and more visible and the Ghost (a name he hadn’t yet earned!) was a regular in the summer bachelor group. Gordon and videographer Mike Clerkin arrived August 31. Unfortunately, the last sighting of the Ghost was on August 28. Gordon’s hunt passed without even a glimpse of the old buck, and in true big buck fashion, he made an appearance right under Gordon’s stand two days after they had flown out. I made several attempts to catch him coming out to eat apples but to no avail. The rest of the season passed without me, or anyone else, even catching a glimpse of him. I was wondering whether or not he had survived the season, but I had a hunch he did.

It was July 3, 2010. Although scouting had begun a long time ago, the only evidence I had that the Ghost was still around were a couple of trail camera pictures of a mature buck with a split brow tine in mid-April. By now he had definitely earned his nickname. I was having serious doubts I was going to find him until that evening, when my wife and I stopped to glass a group of deer feeding in a winter wheat field. There were at least 20 deer in the field, including 7 or more good bucks, several of which were definite shooters for the upcoming season. Then, I noticed one very large-bodied deer in a low spot in the field. I was certain it was a buck, but he had his head down grazing. When he finally lifted his head, my jaw hit the floorboard of my truck. It was the Ghost, and he made everything in the field look small.

For the remainder of the summer, I was able to spot him every other day or so, until hunting season rolled around. He dropped off the map on August 29, not to be seen again until later that year. I was never able to catch him on camera before the late archery season opened, so I pulled all of the stands and cameras except one that I had planned to have Shannon Alwine hunt for a management buck later in the season.

Then the snow hit in full force. The deep snow made accessing the area extremely difficult, so I had Shannon hunt another fairly good setup I had. Later that winter, I was able to go retrieve my camera and stands and guess what—the Ghost made an appearance. And not just one. He came into the setup in the daylight on the second day of the season and was there in the daylight for three subsequent days.

If I had hunted that spot one time during that span, I would have probably gotten him. Despite a tremendous effort on my part, as well as several of my buddies, we were never able to find any of his sheds from that year or years past. I crossed my fingers, said my prayers and hoped that he would make it through the winter in good shape.

Greenwalt captured trail cam photos of the Washington buck in the years leading up to the kill. The above photo is from December 2011.

By now, the old boy had made me look rather foolish several times and had me questioning myself about what I actually knew about him. So the next summer I expanded the search area, started up a couple new mineral licks, and put out five more trail cameras to help locate the Ghost. The extra cameras and mineral sites paid off. I began getting pictures of him in June and continued getting pictures all summer.

He was not visible in the evenings like he had been the previous summer, but, boy, was he photogenic. I was able to get hundreds of pictures of him hitting the mineral sites, water holes, and even the old apple tree Gordon had hunted in ‘09.

The pictures and the layout of my trail cameras helped me get a very clear idea of his travel patterns, and I had a hunch I might be able to catch him out in the daylight first thing opening morning. So, to make a long story short, I was able to spot him and several other bucks moving back along the fence line below me but was unable to head them off before they got into the timber. I hunted the apple tree stand a couple of times hoping the Ghost might make a mistake and show up late in the evening, but he never did.

Matt Alwine and I had spent the entire summer drooling over the many trail camera pictures I had of the Ghost. On September 9, Matt came down with Mark Luster of The Legends of the Fall television show to try to capture a hunt on film. I put them up in a stand in a staging area I knew several shooter bucks—and possibly the Ghost—were using.

The first night they were in the stand, the Ghost walked out at last light, but with does directly under the stand, Matt couldn’t move to film him and Mark couldn’t maneuver to make the long shot. So, the old boy got lucky the first time he made a mistake. The next evening, Mark was able to take a great, old 5×5 that was still in velvet.

The next client in camp was Gary Stanley of One Shot Outdoors. After a few tough days of hunting, it was looking like things might finally come together on the fourth night of the hunt. After checking trail cameras, I had a big 5×6 on a fairly steady pattern coming in earlier each evening. This was the exact same stand where Mark and Matt had their encounter with the Ghost, but he had not shown up on any of the trail cameras.

After getting Gary set up for the afternoon, I headed out for an evening elk hunt. Right about dark, Gary sent me a text message saying he thought he had arrowed the target buck. He thought he made a good shot but wasn’t 100 percent sure, so we decided to meet up and head back to the house and review the footage. After meeting up, Gary asked me if that big 5×6 had a split brow tine and I told him that the only buck over there with a split brow was the Ghost. He said that the buck he shot was not that big, maybe a 150-inch deer at best.

Well, as soon as I looked at the video I knew he had arrowed the Ghost. At first glance, the footage showed what looked like a high, forward lung hit. We gave the deer a couple hours and then headed out to take up the trail. After less than 200 yards and a very weak blood trail, I made the tough decision to pull out and go back to the house to take a closer look at the footage and give the buck longer to expire.

After taking a closer look at the footage by analyzing it frame by frame in my editing program, it was clear that the shot hit higher and more forward than we first thought. So after a very long, sleepless night we headed back out shortly after first light to resume the search. After an exhaustive search with no additional sign to go on, we made the tough, sickening decision that no hunter wants to make. We ended the search and hoped that the buck would be able to recover from the wound.

I spent the next three weeks glassing and searching every nook and cranny on the mountain for any signs of scavengers but never spotted any activity that made me think the old buck had died. Gary and I kept in contact, and I let him know that there had been no sign of the buck dying.

I am sure that it was of little comfort to Gary that I had not found the buck dead, but I knew that I needed to get some trail camera pictures or see him with my own eyes to be positive he had survived. After more than two months with no sign of the Ghost, on November 20 he finally showed up.

While going through all the SD cards I had pulled that day, I had high hopes of having captured some big bucks on camera that we had been seeing and maybe having some new ones show up. By now I had resigned myself to the fact that the Ghost—even if he was still alive—had disappeared for the remainder of the season. When that first picture of him popped up on my computer screen I am pretty sure that I about did a back flip out of my chair. It was game on.

Greenwalt captured trail cam photos of the Washington buck in the years leading up to the kill. The above photo is from August 2010.

With several days to wait until the season opened and with clients scheduled to show up, I knew I was going to have to be very smart about when I hunted that setup and how often I hunted it. I planned on waiting until he was showing up on a regular basis, which for the better part of the season he never did. Not until December 8 did I get any more pictures of him, and those were in the middle of the night. I decided to hunt another setup on December 10 for another big buck I had on camera. Big mistake.

That day, he showed up on camera in the daylight three different times. So, on December 11, after getting Gordon and videographer Ross Smilko set up for the day, I headed the stand to hunt one last time for the Ghost. This was going to be the last day I had to hunt for the season since I had to go back to work the following day. I got to my stand around 8 a.m. and busted several deer out of the area, including one buck that looked particularly big. I hoped it wasn’t the Ghost.

It was a bitter cold and very frosty day and absolutely dead calm. Early that afternoon, I had five does and a young 5×6 show up. I had a doe tag in my pocket and was seriously considering taking the one big doe that didn’t have a fawn, but every little move I made, they would all look up at me. Thankfully my camouflage did its job and they never really busted me. After about an hour they moved off to the north and the woods went quiet—too quiet.

By 4 p.m. I was frozen. Nothing else had showed up and it was looking like I was going to go without a deer for the first time in 20 years. While I was busy sulking and compiling a long list of good excuses for getting skunked, I heard a deer cross the fence to the south of my stand, and that first crossing was promptly followed by two more subtle twangs of the loose barbed wire.

A spike and nice young 4×4 showed up right below me shortly after, but the third deer seemed to be lagging behind. I had seen both of these little guys multiple times, and they were almost always with an older 5×5. I had decided that if he showed up I would take him. He was old and heavy and was a solid P&Y buck. The fog had rolled in and light was fading fast.

It was still dead calm, and both those little bucks would look up every time I made the slightest move. To make matters worse, I had set my camera up on my left side and hung my bow up on my right, opposite of what I normally do, but it was much easier to film from this particular setup that way.

Then it happened, the moment I had waited three years for, the Ghost just materialized in one of my shooting lanes at 30 yards. He walked straight through the lane and came around behind a small clump of fir trees and stepped out broadside at 25 yards. At best, I only had 15 minutes of shooting time left and I still had to figure out how to get my bow off the hanger, across my lap and into my left hand to shoot! The viewfinder on my camera was black so I just pointed it in the right general direction and hit record.

With all three deer in, I could get away with a little more movement, but not much. I slowly managed to get my bow off the hanger and into my hand to shoot, but the little bucks were starting to get a bit edgy. I had to give them a couple minutes to settle down. I finally managed to get my release hooked up and shift my legs around to prepare for the shot. As I started to draw, all three bucks pegged me. I only had my bow back a few inches, but I was stuck. I couldn’t continue to draw and I couldn’t let down. I held it there until they put their head down and continued to feed.

This happened two or three more times; each time I would manage to get my bow back just a bit further and then have to stop and wait! I was finally holding it at the break-over point and was starting to shake. I shoot 80 pounds and this had taken at least two minutes to get to this point, and I knew I couldn’t hold it much longer. They finally quit looking in my direction and I made the decision to go for it.

I hauled the string back fast and hard and anchored as quickly as I could. Both the little bucks bugged out to the north and the Ghost, who was still at 25 yards, spun around and took a few steps back down the hill from where he came and stopped. He gave me just enough time to center his vitals between my 20- and 30-yard pins.

I don’t remember thinking about touching the release; the shot just went off. It was getting dark enough that I couldn’t see the arrow but it sounded like a hit, and the buck lunged forward and went crashing straight down the hill for several seconds. After a loud crash and a snap that sounded like an antler breaking, all was quiet. Now, I am usually a pretty calm guy. I have been lucky enough to take some great bucks over the years, but I was shaking like a leaf after this. I wasn’t even positive I hit him.

I spun the camera around and talked for a minute about what just happened. I stayed in the stand for a bit to get myself calmed down and gather my gear. I put my pack on, dug out my headlamp, lowered my bow and climbed out to survey the scene. I turned on the green LED light to see if I could spot my arrow on the ground. The green light makes the fletching I shoot glow at night and makes my arrows pretty easy to spot.

I couldn’t see my arrow anywhere, so I switched over to the bright white light to look for blood. In the frost only a few yards in front of me was the confirmation I wanted. Two huge sprays of blood on the frost ground and on the brush. When I shined the light down the hill and could see the heavy blood trail, I knew then that the shot was perfect. I made a couple quick calls on my cell phone and headed back to the house to share the good news and bring Gordon and Ross back to recover the deer with me.

The blood trail was the heaviest I had ever seen, and it didn’t take long to follow the blood a short distance down the hill to where he expired. He had crashed into a small ponderosa pine and snapped about three inches off the end of his left main beam and after a few seconds of panic I found it lying right behind the tree.

A three-year quest had come to an end. It was a special evening for me. Not only was this my personal best buck to date and the end of a great story, but I also got to share the recovery of this great buck on video with Gordon Whittington. The Ghost wound up being a bit smaller than we thought he was, but who cares? He still grossed just over 172 inches and had one heck of a story behind him. There are many great bucks taken each year, but not many with a story like this.
Maybe I am getting kind of soft as I get older, but after all the congratulations, handshakes and back slaps, in the end, to see the chase for this old buck finally come to an end felt less like taking a magnificent buck and more like the loss of an old friend.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

Hunter: Kevin Merrell
State/County: Arkansas/Greene County
Score: 179 4/8, archery (typical)
Date: December 6, 2011

Kevin Merrell closed the deal on a giant typical in Greene County that broke the Arkansas typical archery record. Kevin owns three acres on the outskirts of town and he had placed a low-hanging two-man ladder stand for his brother, who is handicapped, to hunt from on the corner of the property. He had been pouring corn on the ground for some time and had some deer coming in, but he didn’t know exactly what.

Kevin lives on what the locals call “The Ridge,” or Crowley’s Ridge. Historically, this region has produced some of Arkansas’ biggest bucks. That afternoon was cloudy and cool, as a cold front had pushed through, dropping the temperature several degrees. “On my way home from work, I saw a doe feeding by the stand,” Kevin recalled. “So I decided to go sit for a while.”

It was 4 p.m. before Kevin got in the stand and within 30 minutes he heard a deer coming. As he turned to the direction of the sound, he spotted a giant white rack moving along the fence line! The hobbling buck jumped the fence within 20 yards of Kevin and turned and walked straight towards him! “My leg started to shake,” Kevin remembered, “and when I would put pressure on it, my other leg would start to shake!” Within seconds the buck was broadside at eight yards. Kevin released an arrow, hitting the buck slightly high, and the giant dropped.

Upon inspection, the buck had been shot twice in the hindquarters by what was a likely a shotgun slug several weeks before. The buck was very much alive, able to jump fences and move quickly, but Kevin doubts the buck would have made it through the winter. Kevin’s buck net-scored 179 4/8 inches, making it Arkansas’ new typical archery record. The Merrell Buck tops the former Pope and Young record of 170 1/8 inches and the overall archery record (recorded in Boone and Crockett) of 177 7/8.

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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012

As a winter front pushed through northwest Arkansas on Dec. 12, 2011, the gray and ominous clouds hung low in the winter sky, drizzling rain. Days like this are exactly what Aaron Jolliff, of Bella Vista, Arkansas, has always loved to hunt—and for good reason. The low light, consistent wind and cool temperatures were the manifestation of a cold front that he was confident would incite deer movement. It was 3:30 p.m. before he and Nick Gann, both his close friend and business partner, made it to the custom-built, elevated box blind in Benton County. With Hoyt bows in hand, they were anticipating the whisper-thwack of the string followed by the subtle sound of sharpened steel finding its target.

The flexibility of Aaron’s work schedule has been key to his hunting success in the past. The ability to make quick decisions on when to hunt based upon the timing of the rut and weather conditions is probably the most valuable tool that any hardcore whitetail hunter can have. The pair was just about to prove how valuable.

Jolliff had offered to take Gann to his bowhunting hotspot because the area was being hit hard by does coming to the supplemental winter feed he had put out. What you wouldn’t know is that Jolliff had been strategically hunting the small, 40-acre property since October 1, and he was beyond discouraged. His invitation for Gann to shoot a doe stemmed from his confidence that all hope had been lost at harvesting the bruiser buck that he had shot at and missed two different times in 2011.

The giant, heavy-horned 6×6 had a huge body and sky-scraping tines stacked like cordwood on long main beams. From the trail camera pictures, many had speculated that the buck would score over 180 inches and the two missed opportunities haunted Jolliff day and night.

Earlier that afternoon, Gann had helped Jolliff set up and paper-tune his new Hoyt Carbon Element. Owners of a northwest Arkansas sporting goods store that has an archery pro-shop, Jolliff and Gann made quick work of setting up the new bow, and Jolliff was shooting bullet-holes and bulls-eyes in no time. Jolliff had hunted with another Hoyt all season long, but for some reason this afternoon seemed to be the right time to the make the switch. After they set up the bow, they hit the road and headed to their hunting land some 15 miles away.

Jolliff had no intention of firing the new Hoyt, but he brought it just in case. Gann was looking for a late-season doe to fill the freezer and they were certain he would be the only one shooting. However, certainties in hunting are oxymoronic, and Jolliff was about to prove it. The pair agreed that if, by chance, the big buck showed, Jolliff would be the shooter.

The blind was strategically situated on a 40-acre tract of land on the edge of a large field surrounded by thick cedars. This is no ordinary box blind; it was designed by the late Randy Morris, a close friend of Jolliff’s, whose wife and family still own the land. From childhood on, Jolliff had hunted the property in an old ladder stand, but six years ago Morris told him, “I want to build you a better treestand.” Reluctantly, Jolliff concurred, but he had no idea what Morris had in mind.

“Randy had a heart of gold for children and people, for that matter. He was a dear and close friend,” Jolliff said. Morris wanted the best for Jolliff, but also he wanted the stand to be used for taking children hunting and even designed it so a wheelchair could be hoisted up with pulleys into the box blind for handicapped children. By the following fall, the blind had been constructed and Jolliff was in shock when he saw how Morris had gone “over the top.”

The stand is approximately 80 square feet with such luxuries as hardwood trim, carpet, a heat and air system, electricity, a ceiling fan and, at one time, two camouflage La-Z-Boys! Morris had gone all-out. A hardcore and experienced bowhunter, Jolliff was extremely grateful for the stand and utilized it when it made sense. However, he often found himself continuing to hunt the property in his lock-on stands.

Since the blind was constructed, Jolliff has hunted with several children that have harvested their first deer from within its walls—exactly what Morris wanted. Unfortunately, he never got to see the full utilization of the blind and the fruit that it would produce for Jolliff in 2011. Tragically, in 2009, Morris was killed in a motorcycle accident at the age of 59. However, three years later, Jolliff and Gann found themselves hunting in the blind because of the wet, drizzly conditions.
In the fall of 2010, Jolliff’s camera got one fleeting night of pictures of the big buck, but he never showed again. However, in September 2011, the big buck showed up on camera and stayed. This was the buck that Jolliff was certain he wouldn’t see again—and certainly not on this hunt.

First Miss
It was October 23 and Jolliff was carrying a muzzleloader to the tree. “I had actually seen the buck the weekend before while bowhunting,” Jolliff recalled. “He was across a field working a scrape. I love to bowhunt, but the Arkansas muzzleloader season was open and I didn’t want to pass on an opportunity if he was out of bow range.”
With this thought in mind, Jolliff had called a good friend that had a Thompson/Center .50-caliber muzzleloader and asked if he could borrow the gun. “I had actually sighted in the gun for my friend. He had hunted with it a couple of times and put it in the gun case. I knew that it was the one thing that you don’t do in hunting—borrow a gun and not shoot it before the hunt—but I did.”

In past years, late October has been one of the most productive times for Jolliff on this particular property. A fresh scrape and recent sighting of the buck had him anticipating putting his hands on the rack. Then, like clockwork, shortly after daylight, the big buck appeared on the edge of the field and worked his way to within 50 yards. It appeared as if the hunt for the giant was going to be easy. “There wasn’t a twig between us,” Jolliff said. “He was standing in the middle of a wide-open field. I put the cross hairs on the buck and squeezed off.”

After the shot, Jolliff watched in bewilderment as the buck bounded away unscathed. After the hunt, when he shot the muzzleloader at a target, he found that it was shooting eight inches low! He was confident the buck was spooked for good. Jolliff continued to hunt for the buck through October and on into November, but the buck disappeared. He wasn’t sure if the encounter with the buck had pressured him off the property or if the rut had taken him to faraway lands. It didn’t really matter—the buck was gone.

Second Miss
After a long November of sleepless nights because of a newborn baby and haunting thoughts of the missed shot, Jolliff’s Arkansas rifle season came and went, but the buck hadn’t shown himself. Then, unbelievably, the day after the Arkansas firearms season ended, Jolliff was shocked when he checked his trail camera and saw a nighttime picture of the giant buck. He was back.

Jolliff immediately began to make plans to start hunting the buck again. On the weekend of December 3, Jolliff’s wife and newborn son went out of town to visit family, leaving Aaron home alone. He made plans to hunt every morning and evening that they were gone. On the morning of December 3, Jolliff was late getting to the stand. As he left the truck, it was just breaking daylight.

“I was walking and when I came into sight of the stand, I saw what looked like the silhouette of a deer,” Jolliff said. “As I looked closer I could see three deer, and all of them were looking the other way. I immediately dropped to my knees and then began to belly crawl closer to the deer.” He closed the distance considerably in the high grass, and when he raised up, he recognized the big-bodied buck. It was him!

With an arrow nocked, he guessed the distance to be thirty-five yards. When he drew and shot, the arrowed sailed directly under the huge buck, missing him cleanly. The two does skipped off 30 yards away and stood at full alert, but the buck didn’t seem too concerned. “The buck kept looking at the does and then he let out a couple of big grunts and actually turned and started walking towards me.” Aaron said. He actually drew on the buck one more time as he walked behind a cedar tree, but had to let down after several minutes of holding the draw. Then the buck casually walked down a fencerow, staring at Aaron, but ended up spooking when Aaron drew for the third time!

“I’ve never been so disgusted in all my life,” Aaron said.

This was his second miss at the giant, and he was certain he wouldn’t be getting any more chances. Bucks of this caliber don’t make that many mistakes, right?

December 12
As Jolliff and Gann walked to the box blind, they had no expectation of seeing the big buck. But Jolliff was carrying the new Hoyt just in case. After climbing into the blind around 3:30 p.m., Jolliff recalls, “Within about 20 minutes of getting there, we started having some does come in to feed.” The first few where very skittish and Gann moved very cautiously to get in position for a shot at the largest doe. “The old doe that Nick wanted to shoot never would turn just right,” he said.

As Gann patiently waited for the right opportunity, more does and yearlings piled into the field. Within minutes, they had eight to 10 deer within 30 yards of the blind. As Jolliff listened, he said, “I hear a heavy-footed deer coming. Wait just a minute before you shoot.”

Jolliff leaned out to view back behind the blind and he saw two does standing at the field edge. “It’s just does,” he said. But then, “Once they came into the field I heard the heavy footsteps again.” Jolliff recalls the steps were noticeably different than all the other deer. “Nick was standing up with his release on his string about to shoot when he looked back behind the blind. I couldn’t see that direction, but I watched Nick’s eyes get big and he said, ‘It’s him, get your bow.’”

By this time, the deer were at ease and feeding heavily in front of the stand. The huge buck jumped the fence and circled downwind of the herd of does, scent-checked them and then came in to 24 yards. Jolliff grabbed his Hoyt and was ready when the buck turned broadside. At full draw with his pin on the deer, he released the arrow tipped with a Rage two-blade broadhead. At the drop of the string, the arrow struck the buck directly behind the shoulder and passed all the way through.

Jolliff and Gann listened intently and were certain they heard the giant deer fall. Shocked at the buck’s third daytime appearance, the pair climbed out of the stand to track the monarch. After a very short blood trail, the two friends found the buck lying 40 yards away. The buck was Jolliff’s, and to top it off, one of his closest friends was there with him to witness the whole event!

Jolliff’s buck was officially measured in April by Pope & Young, grossing 183 1/8 as a 6×6 mainframe typical. After deducting 7 1/8 inches of abnormal growth and 5 2/8 inches in side-to-side difference, the rack netted 170 6/8 inches, making it one of the top bow-killed typicals in Arkansas history!

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Paul Keller

Jeff Iverson

Jordan Dressler

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Jeff Danker

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Robert Gramoll

Mike Moran

Matt Ford

Dorothy Shaffer

Dylan Beach-Bittner

Lindsay Groom

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Richard Buker

Stanley Suda

Paul Keller

Jeff Iverson

Jordan Dressler