The big buck that got away
Wisconsin
Hey all, with hunting season upon us I'd like to hear some stories about that big buck that got away only to be remembered by your dreams and what ifs. Here's one of my favorites.
While walking to my stand around 1:00pm about 6 years ago in early November I was at the top of a hill looking down to scan for any movement before I proceeded. This area was all pine trees and you could see very well. At the bottom of the hill which was about 90 yards away I saw a doe being followed and dogged by the absolute biggest buck I've ever seen. I know when I see a big buck cause I get the shakes real bad, and this one had me about to have a heart attack. I immediately crouched down, took off my climber and day pack and got an arrow on the string and ready. The doe is zig zagging back and forth and doing circles,and he was lip curling and following very close. I pulled out my grunt tube and gave him a a couple hellos. I got his attention but you could tell he did not want to leave her side. After about 1 minute of a staring competition I see some movement to my right. Here is another dandy buck walking about 30 yards away from me coming right at me. He musta heard me grunt and came to check me out.
As soon as the monster seen the other buck he ran up towards both of us like right now. I would've normally taken the smaller buck as he was at least a nice 10ptr, but with both of them now less than 40 yards I wanted the giant. Both bucks had a stare down and I had no shot on the big guy. After 30 seconds the wind swirled and they were gone. Never heard of anyone getting him and never saw him again. I did find 1 tree that he literally shredded and it is the biggest tree I've ever seen a whitetail rub. Never seen tine marks go so far up on a tree either. He was the king. This is why I bow hunt and chase the almighty elusive whitetail!
Toooo many to sit and type, toooo many bad but exciting memories that make hunting what it is.
Here's a little story about the BIG buck that got away...and damn am I glad he did!
Back in 1990 or 1991 I was a student at a college near Ey (well, actually I was enrolled, but really spent my time fishing, hunting, and drinking!). One evening I was out driving just before dusk when I looked over and saw this massive giant of a buck like I'd never laid eyes on before, standing in the ditch. I had my bow in the truck so I pulled over and got ready to take a shot. 90% of the land in this area is public, and being young and dumb I didn't think to care if this particular land was any different...I just wanted to kill that monster! Just about the time I was ready to draw on him I hear a vehicle coming down the road behind me. Knowing I couldn't get caught shooting from the right of way I tossed the bow back in the truck and decided to drive away, turn around, and come back and try again from the right side of the road. When I got back the buck was gone! Flash forward a few weeks and I see this article in the paper featuring this same buck...apparently he liked to hang out near a place where a local resident fed him and many other deer. The buck was on this guy's land, but I didn't realize that when I saw him. Anyway, the buck was a local legend and some years later was featured in numerous hunting rags...now known as the "Minnesota Monarch"! Like I said, young and dumb, but damn am I glad I didn't shoot that buck and that fate was on my side! I can't imagine the heartache, shame, and embarrassment of unknowingly killing what happened to be one of Minnesota's biggest and most famous deer. Thank Lord that one got away!!!!!!!!!!!!
South farm. Looked it up and all I can say is WOW!! I've seen deer almost as big as that before in person. Matter of fact I got to pet the damn thing!!
First day of my one and only elk hunt. I had walked past a tent camp earlier and made a circle around and decided to just sit for a while in a good looking spot. Heard an elk bugle right where that camp was and figured it was just the people camping there goofing off. Then it bugled again, closer to me. Then again and even closer. Before I knew it he was standing broadside at what I thought was 40 yards and I was ready to shoot when I had second thoughts on the range and decide to range find him first to be sure. He was at 40 but by the time I got the bow back up he was gone and never bugled again. He wasn't a monster but was legal and plenty big enough for a first elk.
I actually have three wall hangers that got away. 1-- opening day of gun season about ten years ago. It was my first time hunting since I turned 12. I borrowed my father in laws 7mm and decided I wouldn't need more than 3 bullets. About 7:30 am a group of doe cam out about 300 Yds away. On the third and final shot I got the lead doe, only to look down and see the biggest 8 point buck I've still to this day ever seen at about 40 yds. And there I am out of bullets.
2--- bow hunting, my first night in my "one night stand", I'm in an area of oaks between a swamp and cornfield. I can hear a buck thrashing some bushes next to a creek that runs through the cornfield. I get ready and just like I'd planned, out walks a big burly ten pointer, he comes to ten yds, quartering away and at a dead stop. I draw, tp sets in and as soon as I see brown through my peep I release. The arrow entered below the spine but above anything vital. I saw old "backscar" two other times that week running around like nothing even happened. He never got close enough for another shot and a neighbor shot over the fence on opening day of gun season and took him. 3----2 yrs ago, early season, first night back in my "one night stand". I catch movement next to the swamp and there he is, a double main beam ten point. The extra beam made him 11. He gets as close as 20 yds but is quartering too me, I wait and he turns to head away. I draw, wait for my 30 yd shot, he stops right where I want, I release and watch my arrow go right under his chest. He ran away never to be seen again.
There is nothing better than getting back to the cabin at dark and sharing a story about what happened on stand with a hunting buddy. I also have had a number of encounters with what are in my book, nice bucks. Most of us have had these experiences throughout the years and I often relive them as I'm sitting on stand during slow periods. The ONES that got away memories will stay with me forever and be told year to year at the cabin. Lately however the guy that I normally hunt with has gotten caught up in the what will it SCORE syndrome, which has led to most of the stories that we use to share with each other are now boring to him and I'm getting the "that's nothing" responses from him. I did a lot of cabin time alone last year because of it and with his new guidelines on what is a "SHOOTER" I will likely be doing the same this year... Enjoy your stand time!
There is nothing better than getting back to the cabin at dark and sharing a story about what happened on stand with a hunting buddy. I also have had a number of encounters with what are in my book, nice bucks. Most of us have had these experiences throughout the years and I often relive them as I'm sitting on stand during slow periods. The ONES that got away memories will stay with me forever and be told year to year at the cabin. Lately however the guy that I normally hunt with has gotten caught up in the what will it SCORE syndrome, which has led to most of the stories that we use to share with each other are now boring to him and I'm getting the "that's nothing" responses from him. I did a lot of cabin time alone last year because of it and with his new guidelines on what is a "SHOOTER" I will likely be doing the same this year... Enjoy your stand time!
There is nothing better than getting back to the cabin at dark and sharing a story about what happened on stand with a hunting buddy. I also have had a number of encounters with what are in my book, nice bucks. Most of us have had these experiences throughout the years and I often relive them as I'm sitting on stand during slow periods. The ONES that got away memories will stay with me forever and be told year to year at the cabin. Lately however the guy that I normally hunt with has gotten caught up in the what will it SCORE syndrome, which has led to most of the stories that we use to share with each other are now boring to him and I'm getting the "that's nothing" responses from him. I did a lot of cabin time alone last year because of it and with his new guidelines on what is a "SHOOTER" I will likely be doing the same this year... Enjoy your stand time!
DON'T KNOW HOW THAT HAPPENED...
I hung a stand for an afternoon hunt about 100 yards from the edge of an old overgrown cow pasture, which was the edge of the property that I hunted at the time. Well I was only in my stand for about an hour when I heard someone on the other side of the pasture rattling. I thought man it's pretty early for that, I think it was around October 12th. I also remember thinking that whoever was doing the rattling was making a heck of a lot of noise. I was convinced that my hunt was going to suck because of it. About an hour before dark, I caught movement in my peripheral behind me at about 100 yards. I saw antlers gleaming in the late afternoon sunlight. I stood up and grabbed my bow. The buck was running, and he was running right towards me! The deer ran right under my stand, quartering away, I grunted, he didn't stop, I whistled, he kept on going. Well, I blew it! I thought. Until I caught the glint of antler in the sunlight again, in the same spot I had seen the first buck, about 100 yards behind me and closing in quick! I realized that the overly loud hunter using rattling horns, turned out to actually be two bucks fighting. This time I knew exactly where this buck was going to be. I waited until the deer was under my stand, I drew my bow. He trotted, quartering away at 10 yards. I made one of those "berrrp!" sounds, you know, the ones those guys on the hunting channels make to stop deer. It worked! I shot, the deer went less than 20 yards before he piled up. I was excited to say the least! To go from a missed opportunity, to a filled tag in about a minute was a flood of emotions. It was probably my most memorable hunt so far, and to think, it wasn't even mid October yet! The deer weighed about 220 dressed. I never got him scored but I think he'd be about 140 class, not that it matters too much to me.
I'd been sitting in my stand since an hour before daylight on November 9th. It was cold enough that I'd already been shivering for about 3 or four hours. The wind was perfect though, so I was determined to sit until dark, which was still over 3 hours out. I had seen zero deer in 3 consecutive all day sits, so far.
All of a sudden, a big doe comes screaming out of a clump of balsams headed right at me with a beautiful 8 pointer glued to her tail. She ran right under me and stopped about 15 yards to my left. The buck stopped right under me....almost straight down. I drew and started to settle into the shot when that doe took off again at top speed. The buck instantly tore off after her. I was crushed beyond belief. That would have been my first mature buck.
Not 90 seconds later, the biggest buck I've ever seen lit me up with a tending grunt from 15 yards to my right. I turned, Drew and shot in about 1/2 second and shot right under him. He tore off in the direction the other 2 ran. As he ran away, I grabbed my grunt call and hit him with the loudest grunt I could muster....but he disappeared into the brush. Now I'm seriously considering ending it all. Right here, right now! Self loathing would be the understatement of the decade!,
What I didn't realize until about 60 seconds later, was that the monster had begun a circle back to where I shot at him. I think he lost track of the chase and my grunt made him think they had gotten behind them. He walked out at 17 yards and began making a scrape.......and I made a perfect heart shot:)). He ran 30 yards and tipped over. I'm looking at him right now on my wall.
Tracker that was a great story! I was literally picturing myself out there with you as the story went on. What a day that must have been. You should show us a pic of that dandy!
lets see a pic of him Tracker
That was the new live2hunt that wrote the last one. That is going to drive me loony. Now I thought I forgot about a hunt that I wrote a thread about 2 days ago.
About 10 years ago I was going to Bayfield county for a weekend hunting trip. I was in a mad dash to get out of town and at the last minute ran into the local bow shop to grab some broadheads and hit the road. That night I set camp and put the new broadheads on my arrows in the dark and the next morning headed out to my stand. I am hunting an esker bordering a field with dog hair aspen that had grown up from a clear cut. About 9:00 out steps what to this day is the largest racked buck I have seen and starts walking parallel to me about 75 years out along the esker. I'll be darned if it doesn't stop and turn toward me to feed in the oaks I was sitting in. At 20 yards I put the pin on him and let my arrow go. I hear the pumpkin sound and he take 3 bounds and stops and looks back toward me and then slowly walks off. I get down and go to my arrow which is covered in tallow only. What the heck?? I search for the rest of the day and can't find a drop of blood. Go back to camp and shoot my bow at a target and I am high by about 8". What??? I had been shooting perfect. I looked at my broadheads and see they are 75 grain and I had been sighted in for 125. I swapped them out for some old 125's and was spot on again. Still makes me tear up thinking about it.
Thanks. I hope I have another day like that someday, but if I don't, I'm thankful for the one I've had.
I don't really like to post pics on the Internet, but he is a perfect, very heavy 10 pointer. Real tall but not very wide. He tipped the scales at 221 dressed.
