2004 Hoosierbuck-Archery whitetail

H

Hoosierbuck

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Just thought I would try the new upload option. If the pic comes up and there is interest, I'll tell the tale. Not the best pic, but it's the right size file...

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Talk to us man....There is always interest in the hunt.
Nice whitie.

"Save a mulie, kill a whitie"
 
Great looking whitey, congrats! Whats the story?

AntlerQuest Hunt Consulting
 
This is long-sorry.
Father's day the family loads into the minivan to indulge dad in a deer spotting trip. In one of my spots, we saw three or four bucks in velvet feeeding in the soybeans. One of them was looking like he had real good potential.
Fast forward to the opener of archery season, Oct. 1. I had hung three stands at various points around the soybean field, and after work I hurried out and picked the one nearest to the area where I had seen the bucks on Father's day, but not since, despite many other scouting trips. Just before sundown, a doe and two fawns made their way across the soybeans, 75 yards distant. About 15 minutes later, a buck emerged from the treeline, and followed the route of the doe and fawns. I got a good look at him, tall and wide, a definite mature buck (a 5x5 for you western boys). He didn't come any closer and I watched him walk away as light faded. My wife correctly said, "That's as good as hunting gets without bringing something home."
I bowhunted like it was my job, and didn't see the buck again all through October and into the second week of November. Saturday November 13 was the opener for firearms, and I had yet to bring home a deer. My wife decided to take Friday off and take the kids and go visit her folks for the weekend so I could hunt without constraint. I kissed them all good bye on Thursday night and loaded them into the van. I didn't have to be at work Friday morning early, so I would bowhunt one last morning before gun season. I chose a stand based on the wind and watied for dawn.
I saw five bucks and one doe in the half hour after sunrise, but none were shooters, which was moot because none were in range. Then I saw a buck cruising the treeline about 150 yards away. I immediately knew he was a shooter, and had mixed feelings of excitement, and dread which arise when you see a great buck but know the odds of getting a shot are slim. I just naturally figured he would follow the route the other deer had taken that morning, never within range. I whispered a prayer, "God, please let this one come within range." He trotted three more stpes, then changed his bearing and headed straight for the 15 yard gap in the trees that was my shooting lane. I kind of came unglued, but kept making my plan, "If he goes behind the tree in front of me, draw and wait until he clears the branches, then pick a pin and pick a spot and release."
On he came, and I was half surprised that when he went behind the tree I came to full draw undetected by the buck that was less than 10 yards away. I followed my plan and focused on the sight pin, then touched the release. Right away I saw the fletching further back than I had intended, and realized that when I focused on the pin, I had stopped moving my bow, and the buck had kept walking. Regardless of that, the buck kicked and tore off into the harvested beanfield that was now planted in winter wheat. As he ran into the sunrise, I could see his hot breath billowing out in the cold morning air. The buck disappeared over a rise in the field, but I could still see the diffuse clouds of his breath. I was worried about wounding and losing the buck to a poor shot, so I watched intently, and noticed that the diffuse clouds of breath had ceased, and small jets were shooting straight up into the air from the middle of the field, without moving. Soon the jets stopped, too. It was too much to hope for, but he was down for good. (Liver hit with a 125 grain Spitfire broadhead, from a Mathews LX.)
My first P&Y eligible whitetail grosses close to 160 and nets closer to 150. One of the neatest things is the matching 8" browtines. He had an antler puncture wound in his jaw that was healing, and dressed at 214#.
Thanks for reading,
HB
 
Congrats on a great whitetail! Especially with a bow! You know much whiteys are always appreciated by everyone on here! :rolleyes:
... I hope you weren't too affected by the apparent nuclear blast that occured while the photo was being taken! :)
 
Chris, fantastic buck, great story and details. I bet you cant wait to get him back from the Taxidermist. Congrats on a fine trophy............. Allen Taylor......
 
Thanks for the kind words. The nuclear blast is merely an Indiana sunrise through a low-res digital camera imbedded in a palm organizer. (Or I'm in the Federal Witness Protection Program.)
HB
 

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