|
|
That Smell
By Dale Weddle
Walking Lynyrd Skynyrd song might never hunt again without a spray bottle. Steven Olt had thrown everything he had at the monstrous buck and come up short. Ever since the Green County, Kentucky, hunter had retrieved trail camera photographs of the giant deer, he’d focused on tagging it. “I never could pattern the buck,” he said. &... READ MORE
All in the Family
By Dale Weddle
A Butler did it. In Kentucky. With a rifle. Family members weren’t surprised when they heard about the buck Allie Butler shot last year in Breckinridge County, Kentucky. It’s a wonder the 24-year-old hadn’t bested all their bucks sooner than she did. Allie took to hunting like a duck to water. “I don’t guess she had a ... READ MORE
Just One Look
By John E. Phillips
A near hair-to-grill encounter is all it takes to awaken Kansan’s inner deer hunter. Keith Hendrix, now 77 and living in Topeka, still remembers the afternoon in 1973 when a gigantic buck crossed the country road in front of his vehicle. He was so enthralled by the sight, the 35-year-old policeman decided to go on his very first deer hunt the... READ MORE
Lone Star Doozie
By Duncan Dobie
Floodwaters pushed this buck onto higher ground. That he chose not to recede was his undoing. Lucky indeed is the person fortunate enough to hunt on his own or family land. It’s definitely more special, even if you don’t shoot a big buck. Thirty-year-old Cody Griffin of McKinney, Texas, did both last October. In most parts of Texas, dee... READ MORE
Lifetime Hunt Lasts Maybe Half an Hour
By John E. Phillips
Behold the Land of Lincoln’s No. 3 Typical (by shotgun) Before an electrical accident robbed Jason Langenhorst of 80 percent of his left hand’s grip, he drew 70 pounds and relied on a 12 gauge stoked with 3-inch magnums to get the job done during the Illinois deer seasons. Today, the hunter from Germantown turns deer into venison with a... READ MORE
Cox & Son: Deer Movers
By Rob Meade
Nobody complains about too many handles, right? Three years after helping his father, James, wrangle a beefy whitetail out of a woodlot in Highland County, Ohio, Jeremy Cox faced a similar dilemma in neighboring Clinton County. There was simply too much deer for one man to handle, even if there were lots of handles. Neither father nor son is too pr... READ MORE
Switching Targets
By Ed Waite
If you hear a tweet in the bush, don’t be in a hurry to drill the bird in hand. Amanda Davis was 10 years old when she and her grandmother took the Ohio hunter safety class. “My mom and dad were not very enthusiastic hunters,” says the now 26-year-old nursing student. “I hunted with various relatives.” For the first 10... READ MORE
Head Knobs and Boom Sticks
By Ed Waite
New ground and a triptych of day-old trail cam images convince bowhunters to don orange and take up arms. Ethan Johnson and Will Montgomery have bowhunted together for several years, mostly on land owned by Ethan’s uncle. Ohio’s 2015 archery season wasn’t kind to them. “I was talking to my girlfriend’s father one eveni... READ MORE
Minnesota Man-Drive
By Darren Warner
Group effort leads to the undoing of one of the most talked about bucks of 2014. Stan Kreidermacher heard two shots on the other side of a deep ravine from where he stood. It was Minnesota’s late muzzleloader season, so two shots meant two hunters had slung lead. Soon afterward, he heard the footfalls of several deer descending the opposite h... READ MORE
Mother-in-Law Buck
By Lisa Price
A whitetail like this would give any hunter the Elvis leg. Joe Bryan of Rayville, Louisiana, made a lasting first impression on the hunters with whom he shared an Illinois deer camp in 2014. During the initial get-acquainted lunch at Buck Creek Farms, he told them his mother-in-law had booked his hunt as a gift for his 20th wedding anniversary. "On... READ MORE
Itchy Palms
By Ed Waite
A mother’s advice is right on target. When T.J. Schulz and his wife, Mandy, moved from Michigan to Goshen, Ohio, a few years ago, they found themselves with no place to hunt deer. Knocking on doors yielded no invitations, and the nearby public lands were crowded. A buck in the back of a truck probably kept the couple from writing off their ne... READ MORE
Twice as Wary
By Dale Weddle
And you think a 4- or 5-year-old buck is a challenge! Dave Morgan of Richmond, Kentucky, played cat and mouse with an Ohio buck for four years before hearing his bowstring hum while looking at it. He collected hundreds of trail camera photographs of the brute, but the elusive deer wasn’t keen on moving during the day or taking the same trail ... READ MORE
Day No. 6
By Dale Weddle
And on the seventh day, he rested and looked at the strange deer he’d shot. Kentucky Bend lies east of the Mississippi. It also lies west of the mighty river. It’s a perfect example of the old adage, “You can’t get there from here.” Ol’ Man River twists and then turns almost back on itself, cutting off a section ... READ MORE
The 21st Sit
By Ed Waite
They say too much pressure can ruin a stand. Notice they didn’t say “always.” Ellen Turner, who is a kitchen and bathroom designer when not in the deer woods, took up hunting just eight short years ago after marrying into a hunting family. She migrated to archery straight away as that was the longest season in Ohio. She began with... READ MORE
Second Chance
By Greg Hicks
Note to Self: A stagger doesn’t always precede a blood trail. Any honest deer hunter will tell you that shooting a mature buck requires a little luck. Skills and preparedness — not to mention his choice of time and place — helped Justin Braswell of Greenwood, Mississippi, connect with a giant buck on Dec. 18, 2014. But he’s ... READ MORE