Big Buck 411 Blog

Entries for October 2018

One Less Legend

One Less Legend

By Mike Handley

The move from Delaware, Ohio, to Mansfield in 2013 put Dan Aquino 50 miles and two counties north of his usual hunting ground. With nowhere to go close to his new home, Dan began knocking on doors, which gained him access to two tracts. His first order of business was to erect a two-person ladder stand, lay down a mock scrape and hang a trail camer... READ MORE

Ohio Buck’s Luck Runs Out

Ohio Buck’s Luck Runs Out

By Mike Handley

Justin Bates took two shots, two months apart, at the massive mainframe 8-pointer he tagged in 2017. He was bowhunting from a blind the first time his and the deer’s paths crossed. The bow’s limbs must have smacked the interior wall, because the arrow flew well over the buck’s back before sticking in the ground 8 feet beyond it. T... READ MORE

There’s No Place Like Home. Wait …

There’s No Place Like Home. Wait …

By Mike Handley

John Hatt always thought the grass was greener in Kansas. Not only is the Sunflower State one of the top yielders of monstrous whitetails, but the archery licenses and tags also are virtually guaranteed (for those who apply in April). The bowhunter came close to tying his non-resident tag on his career-best deer in 2017, but the estimated 170-inche... READ MORE

Destination: Deer

Destination: Deer

By Mike Handley

Contrary to popular belief, people who book hunts with outfitters rarely take home 200-inch bucks. Not wild ones anyway. Lodge owners can manage only for mature bucks, whether their holdings are large or small, in Alabama or Ohio. Yet the older these deer become, the less likely they’ll abide the stepped-up pressure of a string of pay-to-play... READ MORE

When a Tree isn’t a Tree

When a Tree isn’t a Tree

By Mike Handley

Darrin Dawes’s back yard in Arnaudville, Louisiana, is 2 miles long and 60 yards wide. Deer cross through those 25 acres all the time, but he almost never sees high-caliber bucks. In December 2016, however, a trail camera photographed a 150-incher, which is like finding a 10-pound bass in your bathtub. Darrin pegged the deer as a 4 ½-y... READ MORE

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