What is a trophy to you?
Contributors to this thread:Wisconsin
From: Crusader dad
03-Oct-15
With so much being said about population and herd structure it got me thinking about the real definition of a throphy deer. For me, any deer with a recurve is a trophy for sure. Whith a compound, it would be an old dry doe who has been around the block a long time, the kind of doe that seems to not only have a sixth sense, but a 7th or 8th. She seems to know every inch of her domain and knows the moment something is askew. A trophy buck to me is 3 1/2 yrs old with a rack of eight points or better and a spread outside the ears, any buck five yrs or older is a try trophy no matter the rack size. Any deer shot with bow during gun season would also qualify in my book. And any deer shot by a youth, no Matt the size. The buck in the pic does not qualify to be shot by me anymore but he was my first bow buck and I am as proud of him as any deer I will ever shoot. This is a debate free thread so say what you feel is a trophy and don't bash others for their opinion.
From: Pete-pec
03-Oct-15
A trophy to me, is the moment of truth. When I decide to kill at that very moment. I want the shot to be quick and lethal, offering that animal the least amount of time to feel that sacrifice it made for me and my family. Each and every time, I give thanks. As I get older, I really appreciate each and every kill, and consider all of them important, and find the word trophy something that is deep within our animal roots. Whether it is the horns or the photo, or the flesh it provides, we certainly share it with others. I'm lucky to hunt good quality private land, and each season pass up many opportunities to kill deer. I look for does without fawns, often passing every doe I see. I don't think I'm wrapped up into harvesting big racked bucks, as much as I'm intrigued by the idea of mature deer. I will always shoot an injured deer no matter it's age, and eat everything I kill provided the animal is healthy.
From: rick allison
03-Oct-15
In the eye of the beholder. ?.
From: sawtooth
03-Oct-15
Three great posts.
From: Monarch
03-Oct-15
I am proud of every deer I shoot with my bow. Having all my practice, and learning of the area I hunt come together with a downed whitetail is what makes it tough to wait for fall all year. With that being said, I dropped my first book buck last year, and am particularly proud of that.
From: Zinger
03-Oct-15
A trophy is in the eye of the BOWholder.
From: Pooch
03-Oct-15
the little white packages in my freezer.
From: happygolucky
03-Oct-15
I have no trophies when it comes to hunting. Every deer to me is a memory regardless of the size or gender of the deer. I am after memories, not trophies. I don't base my memories on rack size. Any successful kill leads to positive memories. No matter what I choose to shoot, I just want a successful outcome and take pride in those.
From: RutNut_@work
03-Oct-15
For me the hunt dictates the trophy. I always start out saying nothing but a mature 4.5 year old or better buck. But a lot of the time those 120-130 2.5 and 3.5 year old bucks do something that makes a hunt super exciting and fun and I shoot one. This year is the year I hope to hold out for nothing less than a 4.5 year old buck. I want my daughter and my handicapped buddy to each shoot any buck they want. If that happens my season will be a huge success.
From: Naz
03-Oct-15
Good posts all, Zinger, great post!
From: Nocturnal8
03-Oct-15
A trophy is any deer taken by choice. We are all happy to be successful. its about the memories made with friends and family. Whether it's killing a deer or not. I know I took up a lot of thread space. Over the last couple days. Maybe irritated some. But this trophy size means nothing. We all have our goals we want to reach. I prefer to do my way. But always congratulate everyone for being successful. I am proud of every deer I've shot, young or old. Every deer holds a unique story. So never be afraid to share it. Good luck guys.
From: bobbinhood
03-Oct-15
ANYTHING I SHOOT I SHOOT WITH MY RECURVE!!!!!!!!!!!
From: wibuckwatch
03-Oct-15
If you hesitate to tell the story of the deer you shoot, you shouldn't have shot it. You don't have to explain why you shot the deer because when you tell the story with pride people will know why you shot it. Don't make excused for the deer you shoot. That's a trophy to me
From: Drop Tine
03-Oct-15
My wife, everything else is meat in the freezer. Shoot whatever makes you happy and don't worry about what others think.
From: RJN
03-Oct-15
Every buck I've shot is on the wall in my basement. If I shoot it it's going to be displayed with a story to go with it. Any deer that I might regret shooting gets a pass. If you'll be proud of it, shoot it!
From: smokey
03-Oct-15
In the freezer, in the mind and sometimes on the wall. In the end it is memories.
From: Mike F
03-Oct-15
To me a trophy is any animal that I am blessed to harvest. Be it a fish, fowl, deer, bear or any other animal that I may hunt. All harvested with in a swift and humane way, regardless of the tool used.
Sometimes a trophy is a memory of a past hunt where no animals were harvested. A full moon rising over the swamp. The sight of the first migrating songbirds making their way to a winter home after spending a few months in Northern Canada. The smile on the face of a first time hunter harvesting their first animal.
From: Crusader dad
04-Oct-15
When I started this thread it was supposed to be about the size/age of the type of deer you would consider a trophy animal. It's turned into something far better than that. You are all right. It's the memories that are the best type of trophy to take out of the woods. Sometimes we get caught up on the size or number of deer we are seeing and forget to take in the beauty of bow hunting. The silence, the sunrise/sunset, the near misses and the goofy things animals do. I for one have a whole lot more memories than I do deer on the wall and I think it's safe to say you guys do too. My harvest goals will remain the same but thanks for the reminder of what our great sport is really about. Great posts everyone.
From: Drop Tine
04-Oct-15
You don't see this from many offices.
From: Naz
04-Oct-15
Gorgeous DT, recent? Seems fall colors are way behind in my area, up north too?
From: CaptMike
04-Oct-15
A trophy really should be any animal we choose to kill. Personally, I want an older animal that has been able to spread its' genes over more than a couple years. I do use horn size as a means of measurement for deer, but I've taken numerous animals in other countries that were not of huge horn or antler size. I really don't want to kill an animal in the prime of its life, I'd rather kill an older animal that has spread its genes and know needs to make way for the up and coming.
From: Zinger
04-Oct-15
Most of my trophies are memories in my mind. Those mean more than mounts to me.
From: Drop Tine
04-Oct-15
About two weeks ago while bear hunting Naz.
From: 1acrewhitetails
04-Oct-15
She cooks, she cleans, good looking, raises the youngins...oh you were talking about deer.
From: 1acrewhitetails
04-Oct-15
But the question is kinda the same. Whatever gets you excited, whatever you'll settle for, whatever looks good as long as no one else sees it, etc.
From: Dampland
05-Oct-15
Any deer that I have killed, that when I see the rack again hanging on the wall, or someone asks me about a particular hunt; and my heart immediately skips a beat, and mind goes back to that specific hunt in full detail.
So for me, I have about 35 "trophies", even though the biggest one is only near 140 inches.
I also try to make sure any of the young hunters in my group are proud of their "trophies", no matter how big/small. I don't want them to start off worrying about not shooting one like on the hunting shows.
From: happygolucky
05-Oct-15
+1 on all accounts there Dampland.
From: razorhead
06-Oct-15
I hunt public land, big woods, mostly on the ground, and love every minute of it...... my trophy is what I can get a ethical shot at, and know that I hunt FAIR CHASE......
From: TRACKER66
06-Oct-15
Last night a trophy was the first deer that got into rang on my first sit of the season. Tonight my trophy is a huge plate full of chicken-fried tenderloin?? and a heavier freezer.
From: Knife2sharp
06-Oct-15
I have a small house. I have a dozen mounts in my living room, including a life size black buck and 3/4 bear mount. I also have 3 mounts in my bedroom. Yes, I'm single, so nobody tells me where I can or can't put something. I also have a dozen or so European and rack mounts in the basement. I hunt public land for the most part, so I pass on yearling bucks. My last few bucks have been in the 115"-125" range. Last year I was hunting from the ground on the edge of a pond and a 140" 10 pointer came out of the woods with a doe and fawn. He came between them and was drinking at 25 yards facing me. I was looking through the crack of one of the extender panels on my Ghost blind and was just waiting for him to turn broadside. I was also thinking, this one I would get mounted, regardless of wall space. Well he turned broadside and took two steps. I had misjudged his distance and he ducked the arrow, which sailed just over his back. Lesson learned, don't start picking out the taxidermy pose until the buck is at your feet.
I follow Keith Beam's motto, "bowhunting is fun, if it makes you happy, shoot tomorrow's trophies today."
The previous year I shot smaller buck in that 100" range, that I didn't recover, but he would've been my first taken using a decoy.
What annoys me is when looking through trailcam photos, people who say, that buck needs another year, then they shoot a deer of similar or smaller caliber. It's like they say that so others are tempted not to shoot it. I also hate to hear someone say, "why did you shoot that?" And these are the same people that have shot similar and smaller bucks.
This is why I don't care for going in on leases with other people. It's too stressful playing the whose hunting where Game and when a deer is shot will it be acceptable to everyone else.
If I've been hunting all year, then get a week off and a 90"-100" buck is standing broadside like some gift from the Gods and I can take the next several days of my vacation butchering him, I'm going to be very tempted to take the shot.
From: Novemberforever
07-Oct-15
I am beyond net book so any mature buck, and many doe. Trophy definition evolves for everyone.
From: Mooses_Meadows
13-Oct-15
depends on the situation and where I am hunting. On our wisconsin farms we aim to shoot deer 150+. Any deer shot gets mounted. for a 600.00 mount we make sure damn sure its a trophy. Other areas we hunt are much different. The MN farm a 135 is considered a shooter. With that being said my best memory hunting is not my biggest buck.
From: RUGER1022
13-Oct-15
I have learned that in the past 50 years that the definition of a Trophy changes as you get older.
With a mancave full of antlers and a new found way of looking at how special life is and how permanant death is sure changes my thinking when a mature Deer walks by.
I shot a Trophy 2 years ago by my new standards. A 7 1/2 year old spike. That old buck avoided 7 1/2 years of arrows, bullets, cars, and predators. But didn't outsmart me. He fell to a sharp arrow instead of watching himself being eaten by a pack of Wolves. His forks hang with th" big baucks " .
From: RUGER1022
14-Oct-15
OH, I have a 2 nd trophy standard. My best is a 155 inch. If a 160 walks by it will catch a ca:se of heartburn .
From: newby
14-Oct-15
I would consider this beast a trophy if I can manage to get an arrow through him.
From: Pete-pec
14-Oct-15
Best of luck Smoky! Sawyer county?
From: FiveRs
15-Oct-15
I can't help it but when I hear the word "trophy" I immediately think of bowling, I have a few bowling trophies from when I was a kid bowling in a youth bowling league. I do have a bunch of archery trophies too, from taking first in a few leagues that I used to shoot in.
I have a hard time associating an animal with a plastic topped trophy, the memory of the hunt ends up being my "trophy". I came away with two trophies from my first weekend in the deer woods this past weekend with my daughter for the youth hunt.
The first was the overall beauty that we were surrounded by with a clear blue sky and brightly colored trees.
From: FiveRs
15-Oct-15
The second was being with my daughter when she got her first deer. I don't ever remember being more nervous or happy at any kill in my life. She was very happy too, if you can't tell by the smile on her face. I know that there is no way that I could ever top that feeling with any animal that I shoot....no matter the size or circumstances of the hunt.
From: mnbowhunter
15-Oct-15
A trophy to me is any animal I put a arrow thru.
From: thesquid
18-Oct-15
meat in the freezer.
From: The Whip
21-Oct-15
Helping a youth who may not have had as great of father as I have.
We are pretty lucky to enjoy what we love. Sharing with someone less fortunate is my trophy
