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"I killed him at five paces," he said, from a portable stand about 25 feet high in a tree. That was four years ago. How Many Whitetail Bucks Do Hunters Kill Across America. Reed has owned the farm he hunts for eight years and has spent a lot of time developing it into what it is. Story is that someone cut it;s head off and left before the F&W guys arrived. Its a moment that will be very hard to top and a memory that will last a lifetime. It all happened within three minutes. You know, I was getting excited. By Chris Lawrence. I took my backpack off, got a drink of Coke, and just settled in. 4 pointer killed in butler co while hunting with pappy Posted: 11/26/2022. Taylor knew it to be a great staging area before deer head out to feed in the soybeans. By last summer the giant buck had grown an even more impressive rack. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Whitt. "He never knew I was anywhere around. Josh Honeycutt Keith Srakocic AP. 5 Common Deer Abnormalities Caught on Camera, Oklahoma Hunter Shoots Target Buck That's Locked Up with Another Giant, Potential Kentucky State Record Crossbow Typical Shot in Hemp Field, A Look Back at No. It was on Sept. 4 when Jamison Standard and Casey Reed tagged two of the biggest deer from opening day. | Subscribe to OL+ for our best feature stories and photography. Most of those acres are open hardwoods, with many hills, hollows and some crop fields scattered around. It stretched the tape to 179 inches. His elusiveness led to us joking about him even being real, which is where he got the name Sasquatch. ELD-X Precision Hunter). He climbed down to look for blood and his arrow but couldnt find any sign that the buck had been hit. 8,446. Settle, 41, grew up in the Bluegrass State and is a long-time local of Henderson County. Whitetail hunting strategies for the next generation. The afternoon started off slow, with very little deer movement. Mike Clerkin heads to the legendary Buffalo County, Wisconsin, in search of early season whitetail action. Subscribe to OL+ for our best feature stories and photography. According to Justin Spring, director of big game records for Boone and Crockett, the answer is simple. He saw only two deer that evening: A 3-year-old buck traveling with the big 4.5-year-old he was hoping to see. Then, they spotted a trace of blood on the top of a beanstalk. Nathan Taylor started getting trail camera photos of a nice typical in 2019. What is the Most Important Factor in Whitetail Nutrition? But he never got the chance. Give a Gift
They waited a few hours before blood trailing and didn't find any blood or the arrow within the first 15 minutes of the search. If we dont hear about it from the public, then we dont know that theres a case to be made, Gray explained. "As soon as I made the shot, we heard the thud and the deer took off into the beans," he said. So, just from knowing the property, I thought that there would be one particular place where a big deer might go to die. A creek rippled along behind the blind. Stan Potts heads to Montana with his rifle in search of a Big Sky buck. I looked up at Dad and with tears in our eyes we went crazy, and we said a prayer thanking God for this opportunity. "I've got close to an hour and a half before dark," Kirkpatrick said to Moore. Why don't you come out and sit the rest of the hunt with me?". This year he decided to Sign in to access your profile, save content and more. All thanks to the good Lord above.". Settles biological father, Terry, passed away earlier this year. Jacob Carnine, along with his family, hunted this 193-inch giant for five years on public land in Kentucky. About 300 yards away, in the corner of a soybean field south of me, the light shined on his rack right when I was looking that way. He was a disabled veteran who served the country in the Army and was commended by Kentucky Senator Robert Mills for making many lasting contributions to his friends, family, community, and nation before his passing on March 25, 2021. Terry was never able to join Settle in the field when he was alive because of his disability. One of the things Kentucky deer hunters look forward to is hunting velvet bucks. Buy License; Hunt; Wildlife; Fish; Boat; Education; Law . Harvest Comparison by Year. For Release: Friday, April 23, 2021. Browning's Rafę Nielsen shares details on the new X-Bolt Pro LR McMillan hunting rifle with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. But once in the area, he found the buck within minutes. Officers say a deer this big sends red flags flying. I looked up at Dad to see what direction he was pointing, but I couldnt see anything with my eyes or with the scope. Making the legal and ethical choice, he let the buck walk out of sight. Full story on this beast coming soon from Dean Weimer, more I look at that rack, what a buck. A photo of a dead deer prompted an . Big, heavy, long-beamed bucks are the stuff of dreams, but Logan Beach experienced the real thing on opening day this year. Last week, when Field & Stream published a story about a huge 280-plus-inch whitetail buck that Derek Settle said he shot in Henderson County, Kentucky, on September 11, 2021, we expected the. Knowing that Kline had actively hunted this deer for years, the landowner was nice enough to let him keep the rack. I debated. They loaded it up on a small ATV and brought it home. Obviously, he wouldnt be drawing a compound bow for a few months. It is my girlfriend's family's farm, and her uncle hunted occasionally, but, sadly, he passed away five years ago. Jason Kline has spent much of his life chasing whitetail deer. Ruger's popular American bolt-action rifle has been a hit with hunters for years. Dad tried grunting to stop him, but he was not stopping. Key features include muzzle velocities of 2,215-2,400 fps. What is the biggest deer killed in Kentucky? More than 300,000 Hoosiers are sitting in their deer stands, looking for their dream buck this hunting season. We continued to run cameras to prepare for the quota hunt. He hoped the buck might return in camera photos, but he knew in his gut that wasnt likely to happen. He suspected the deer was dead somewhere on the sanctuary property. The carcass was picked over by scavengers so there was no way to tell what had actually killed the buck. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. I was going really slowly. June 28th, 2013 | Big Deer Stories, BigDeer | 2 Comments Dustin Finley tells me his dad, Larry, killed this deer in Pendleton Co, KY on 11-11-12; they measured him at 226 7/8. I owe a lot of this to him., Read Next: Utah Hunter Arrows Insane Opening Day Mule Deer. Standard exercised patience, though, and waited for the giant to appear. LBL is also home to a wide variety of recreational activities. Then, the buck started to turn. "I could tell he would not get as close as the other buck, but would be crossing my shooting area, so I referenced my orange survey tape.". He even had surgery on his wrist. Hornady's Seth Swerczek goes in depth about the new cartridge with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. CX Outfitter, 180 gr. He especially didnt expect it to happen during his first year on a new farm. I made a little compilation of some big Ohio brutes. ( Photo: Fort Campbell Fish and Wildlife) Nathan Simmons of Browning and Game & Fish's John Taranto take a closer look at both cartridges at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. His story started several years ago, when a big 9-pointer graced his trail cameras. Giant bucks on opening day were taken by Kentucky bowhunters Jamison Standard and Casey Reed. Spot and range targets without wasting valuable seconds switching between gear with Luepold's new rangefinder binocular, the BX-4 Range HD. "This deer has shown me that all the time and dedication that I put into preparing for this hunt was beyond worth it in the end. It was Dads biggest LBL deer ever, a 170-inch buck that we had two years of sheds from, but it wasnt the deer he was after. We would share trail camera pictures with each other and talk about the deer, Kline says. It got real intense from 50 to 12 yards, he says. On September 15, Blake Keating killed a Kansas buck that would likely dethrone Luke Brewsters whitetail as the biggest in North American history. Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives for 2023the purpose-built Alpha and PakLite series. It was cloudy and cool on Sept. 5. Hes killed his fair share of good ones, but theres only ever been one Herman, which is the monster buck he focused on for the past five seasons. I didnt even know how to act. The sighting wasnt far from where we had some trail camera pictures of the giant, so we decided this was where we would go for the quota hunt. Then, after a while, he saw the giant. Give a Gift
The timber dropped off into a drainage about 60 yards away. The NWTF is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. 02:00. It truly felt like I was supposed to be in that stand.". But to put something like that in our record books would skew the data.. "I was very excited about opening day," Standard said. Land Between the Lakes (LBL) is a 170,000-acre peninsula between Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, with 110,000 of those acres being in Kentucky. He was a pretty regular deer coming in the evenings ever since, Keating said. In rare cases, wild whitetails can live for 20 years or more. Deer hunting in Tennessee started strong during the summer and finished strong in January with the harvest almost 20% larger than the previous season. That summer, Dad ordered a topo map of Sasquatchs core area, which was about 3,000 acres. I got a phone call that evening from Dad telling me he had just shot Sasquatch! That was, until the 2021 Kentucky deer quota hunt at LBL. That started the process, and they followed the trail for about 150 yards before recovering the buck. Score: 155 inches. While in the hospital, he learned about the temporary crossbow permit for injured and disabled hunters. Land Between the Lakes National Recreation area is about 20 minutes from our hometown of Benton, Kentucky. Its unclear when the buck escaped, but Keating started getting pictures of it on September 11. I figured he took off. He was now a 200- plus-inch 17-point giant. (Photo courtesy of Jacob Carnine) I looked up at Dad and with tears in our eyes we went crazy, and we said a prayer thanking God for this opportunity. All the while, a 162-inch deer showed up on a different farm. Both bucks were 100% free-range, but the answer is a bit more complicated for this next whitetail. The broadhead struck true, and the giant bolted for cover. We spent a lot of time out in the woods together growing up. Around 5:30 p.m., he decided to call his friend, Kyle Moore, to see if he wanted to come sit the remainder of the evening with him. 2:33. That afternoon, he used HuntStand to check the wind and went back to the same stand, feeling optimistic since the buck had walked through there the previous afternoon. With lessons learned from past seasons, Beach was excited when a familiar buck started showing up on his trail camera this summer. Kline hoped for the best, but expected the worst. Several oaks were already dropping acorns, and there was heavy deer sign. When hunting season came around, we never got another picture of him. At least 74 people in Kentucky have died after a weekend tornado outbreak across eight states flattened homes and businesses in the Midwest and South. I think Herman was already dead by the time I killed mine.. Story is that someone cut it;s head off and left before the F&W guys arrived. It had a 20-inch inside spread with 24-inch main beams and gross-scored 170. While Deckard had hoped his father would be the one to kill the big velvet buck, they were both just glad a Deckard had tagged him. Lance Hill's South Carolina Stud. I was hoping Id maybe see him again. Settle was able to get an official SCI Green Score on the incredible buck, which came in at a whopping 311 2/8 inches. Oklahoma's bow hunters have killed some big bucks already this young archery season, but perhaps the most impressive so far has been Johnny Maxwell's 28-point whitetail from Stephens County. All Game & Fish subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. I had an incredible year in 2021, from my dad and I taking trophy-class mule deer on a DIY public land hunt in Wyoming, to killing a buck of a lifetime near home. Brian Tate Camplin's first deer Dec 11, 2021 Updated Dec 12, 2021. Personal defense in the hunting woods could involve taking down a charging bear. The rifle has five caliber offerings, two barrel choices and three different riser stocks. The arrow struck true, and the deer ran for cover. Learn more in the video above, with Remington's Joel Hodgdon and Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. He knew it was a big buck, but he wasnt certain that it was Sasquatch. Subscriber Services. Your honesty about the situation is more impressive than this genetic freak's antlers. The new Frontier, available in 8x42 and 10x42, has all the range-finding capabilities a hunter needs. Sasquatch continued to pass by our trail cameras until he lost his velvet, and then he disappeared. When I saw him on the ground, Ive never really acted like that in my adult life, says Settle. Opening day of deer season 2021 didn't disappoint with reports of Bluegrass State bucks taken by bowhunters measuring 170-plus inches. Hunting season started and we still received random pictures of him, but we never had an actual sighting. I've seen some biggins in the middle of Frankfort. I just couldnt get a good shot at him, and to be perfectly honest, he was standing right on the property line. Ed Arkenau, his son, and their friend Cole had hundreds of trail camera photos of a particular buck in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The sun came up and we finally saw a deer around 7:00 a.m. Three does passed through, and then I heard Dad say, Big buck, big buck.. Miss a Deer? This means you have the option to read your magazine on most popular phones and tablets. From seeing him to when I shot him it was a three-minute thrill ride, Huff told MeatEater. I used that to stay in the bucks blind spot. So, we hunt it hard. This year, the rifle will be chambered in 7mm PRC, the hot new load that was a hit at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. Everything in my body at that moment wanted to give up, he says. We thank God for giving us the perseverance and dedication to always press on no matter how frustrating it got. It isnt every day you tag a giant 179-inch deer, and its even rarer to do so with traditional archery equipment. Although the story didnt end the way Kline had hoped, at least he found closure, and the 233 7/8-inch rack to remember the buck and all the seasons spent chasing it. On our way back to the truck one day, we came across a scrape at the bottom of a really steep drainage. The area where his stand was hung served as a great staging area as deer moved out to feed. I knew this would mean a lot to him. - Big Deer Previous Next Kentucky Giant Buck, 226 Inches! I got a little concerned, Kline says. Gordon Whittington heads north to his personal Missouri farm for some crossbow action. In the video above, Matt Willson of Ruger highlights the features with Game & Fish's John Taranto. The raw score of the behemoth buck is 212 inches. I had no shot whatsoever.. Then when a game farm reached out and said the antlers looked familiar, Keating knew the whitetail was an escapee. Gentry Roof first deer ever. The number of times I thought Dad was going crazy over this deer was countless. LaRue's Ethan Alexander talks about the Siete's features with Game & Fish's Adam Heggenstaller at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. Marlin is back in the game with the re-introduction of the classic 336 and 1894 lever-action hunting rifles. Fortunately, Kline has permission to hunt a 7-acre parcel that borders the sanctuary. Dad told me to climb down and make sure he was dead. 2019-2020 Total Harvest Summary 148,395 deer were harvested during the 2019-20 deer season, which is the second highest harvest on record. The fence is broken down right there, and I couldnt see it from where I was.. After several tense minutes, he finally offered a broadside, 30-yard shot opportunity. He would make a great first buck with my bow.". The buck ran about 50 yards and died in the brush. James Kroll and Haynes Shelton talk about being realistic when it comes to managing a smaller deer property in this edition of Dr. Winchester's new Big Bore ammo, available in 10 mm, .44 Mag., .357 Mag., and .45 Colt, is specifically designed for big bears in bear country. We had one camera left, so we decided to put it up by the scrape. He decided to come back the next morning. Hope everyone gets to. 3,757 likes. Of course, since the deer was so visible, everyone in the area knew of him and wanted a crack at the giant. Imagine hunting a buck for four years without ever seeing him in person. Available in 180- and 200-grain sizes. I kind of got out of it for a while because I went to college and lived in the city, but I made it back out into the country and got back into it. That isnt the area of Ohio thats best known for big deerthe southern third of the state is more often recognized as monster buck countrybut dont tell that to Kline who recently picked up Hermans 233 7/8-inch rack. Location: Calhoun County, S.C. Eventually, the buck he was hoping to see walked into the clearing, and Beach took the shot. "It came out into the soybeans broadside at 20 yards right in front of me," Standard said. Biggest bucks Ive ever seen were in the middle of Louisville. My dad had been marking every scrape, rub, trail, shed and trail camera picture using the Hunt Stand app, so he transferred all that info to the topo map to hopefully figure this deer out. What Causes Bucks to Have Weak Brow Tines or No Brows? Then, on August 28, 2020, weeks before the archery season opened, the buck visited Settles property for the last time in a long while. But nothing prepared Settle for the buck he started getting trail cam pictures of in July 2020 at one of his mineral plots. Browning Ammunition has two big-game hunting loads new for 2023 that are effective on a wide range of species: the Max Point and Silver Series. Among the accomplishments includes the recently concluded Save the Habitat, Save the Hunt initiative, which in 10 years conserved or enhanced 5.3 million acres of critical wildlife habitat, recruited 1.5 million new or lapsed hunters, and opened new access to 750,000 acres for hunting and recreation. Enter the 2019 season. We even had a friend drive three hours to come see Sasquatch in person. It takes an equal mixture of intelligence and luck for a buck to reach that age, especially on public land. Hiking, biking, fishing and small game hunting are all very popular. Records of North American Whitetail Deer is available for $60 on the Boone and Crockett Club's website; B&C Associates receive a 20% discount. Two of the biggest deer recorded in Walton County were killed over the last two years - a 178 non typical killed in 2014 and a 163 killed in 2013. I couldn't control myself.". I waited until I found a small opening and squeezed the trigger. Thinking his hunt was over, he started to climb down, then decided against it. "My heart started pounding," Reed said. None of them fully spooked, but they didnt like what they saw, either. The morning started out peacefully, with a small buck feeding around. I was telling myself, Its OK. Nobody would blame you to give up right now and not try to shoot because of how crazy this deer is. Updated: 8:51 PM EST November 17, 2021 DECATUR COUNTY, Ind. It had run about 70 yards from where it was shot before it hit the dirt. Huff made a 40-yard shot with a Stryker crossbow in an area hes hunted since he was 12 years old. DEC Announces 2020-21 Deer Harvest Estimates Hunters in New York Harvested More than 253,000 Deer in 2020-21 . Eric Lundgren of Ruger, which now owns Marlin, highlights the features of both rifles with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. Before we interviewed Settle, we confirmed with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife that the buck had been checked in as being killed and tagged in Kentucky on telecheck. Kentucky Big Bucks. Then he retrieved his gear from the blind returned home to pick up his 16- and 18-year-old boys, who Settle calls his little tracking dogs. They went back to look for the buck. When a deer of this magnitude is killed, especially when I immediately have calls coming to be conflict, the red flags do go up and we do investigate when big deer are killed, senior conservation law enforcement officer Joe Lindsey said. That is one of the best-looking racks Ive seen from last season,beautiful color and all those stickers! "I ventured away from deer hunting because of my passion for waterfowl hunting, but there's nothing like harvesting a buck with a bow. Reflecting back on his many years of pursuing this deer has been bittersweet. ELD-X Precision Hunter). "The farm hasn't been bowhunted for five-plus years. It was seen last year in the area as well. Access the newest seasons of MeatEater, save content, and join in discussions with the Crew and others in the MeatEater community. A couple friends helped Taylor recover the deer. It was on Sept. 4 when Jamison Standard and Casey Reed tagged two of the biggest deer from opening day. #1 - Wisconsin Wisconsin is the #1 ranked state with 1,822 total entries and six counties in the top 20 U.S. counties with the most records produced. I thank God that I got to experience the hunt with my dad and to celebrate it with my wonderful family. Later that night, Lacefield recovered the deerhis biggest ever. The buck ran a short distance and tipped over. I could tell that a lot of deer were running through here, he says, noting that the neighbors also allow him to hunt their adjoining land. in early November. There was a wild sapling pushed right up against the trees on the weed line. It had 5-inch bases and carried between 5 inches and 4. They recently built a new high fence and they think the deer had gotten out when they were moving deer into the pen.. Sasquatch officially has 15 scorable points that make his gross score 193 0/8 inches. The hunt started off slowly, and Kirkpatrick didn't see a deer for the first several hours on stand. We ended the season with very few pictures, still none in daylight, and no sight of him while hunting. The bulk of Hermans core area was located on a large tract of land owned by a farmer who doesnt allow hunting. We know he traveled further than that, but he spent most of his time in this area. We hunted the area every chance we could, trying not to bump him. Hoping to hunt the buck on the opener, he decided to set his stand on the edge of some woods that sat high on a little knob. The deer jumped, and then walked back into cover. He shared the good news with them, and then met them at his house nearby. Kline had years of trail camera photos, and a decent idea of how to kill the buck. He's killed his fair share of good ones, but there's only ever been one "Herman," which is the monster buck he focused on for the past five seasons. Kansas bowhunter Brian Butcher couldnt believe his eyes when a monster whitetail snuck into sight in the eastern part of the state on October 10, 2019. Dustin Huff found one, hitting a record-setting buck with his crossbow. His sons took some good deer as well. "I remember catching a glimpse of the top of his rack coming through the woods," Reed said. "I had never had a deer quite this size before on the farm.". 2023 Outdoor Sportsman Group. He left everything in the blind except for his crossbow, a brand-new Raven R26, and one arrow. Kline hunts Sandusky County, Ohio, which is located in the northwestern region of the state. We didnt want anyone to know about him. Though Settle didnt post the buck on social media, he immediately sent the photos of his trophy to his stepdad. This year, on opening day, Reed got the southwest wind he needed and decided to hunt a hilly ridgetop. seizing and destroying hunter-killed deer brought in . Aug 20, 2007. Congrats on the once-in-a-lifetime hunt, Blake. In the video above, Matt Willson of Ruger highlights the features with Game & Fish's John Taranto. We also figured out if he saw or smelled your trail camera, he wouldnt use that area again. This year, the rifle will be chambered in 7mm PRC, the hot new load that was a hit at SHOT Show 2023 in Las Vegas. It was hard. This page has. Gordon Whittington talks with Steven Sprout about the trophy buck he took back in 1998 while bowhunting public land in Illinois. Anything raised for the purpose of shooting is not eligible by our standards, and this buck would fall under that category. About an hour later a small buck chased a doe from the same direction Dad had seen Sasquatch. If you took you vacation every year Nov. 9-12, youre in best window for big bucks moving in day. It was amazing to have this experience with my family; it was a day I will never forget. He shot nice bucks each of the past three seasons, including a nice 13-pointer last year. He hung around on the side near camp catalpa last year. Four of the county's 11 biggest deer were shot during the past five seasons. Features quick-change barrel system. We climbed the same tree with our Summit climbers, and Dad was about six feet higher than me. It turned out the deer was on a steady evening routine.". All the congrats to the hunter on taking that buck, but from our record book standpoint, its not an eligible deer, Spring said in an interview with MeatEater. Which begs the question: Why arent more bird hunters using them? Ken Vitale with Buck Knives chats with Game & Fish Editorial Director Adam Heggenstaller about two new hunting knives for 2023the purpose-built Alpha and PakLite series.