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[BuckNrut]

Daniel takes Cathole 8 Pointer

Background
Knowing that we were looking at a mast crop
 failure, all the club members chipped in to
 turn several old logging decks into additional food sources to supplement the already 
20+ acres of foodplots. We were also hopeful that these smaller "hidey-hole" plots would 
encourage more daylight usage after the past two years of carnage we had unleashed 
on the female population of Cathole. I had a small area that I had until that point kept to 
myself (so I thought).

Several of us headed out in late August with chainsaw, blower and round-up in hand to prepare the canvas. We returned several weeks later to hang stands, spread seed and place trailcams. Things did not get off on the right foot with record droughts and camera malfuntions, bow season was quickly approaching and all we had was stand overlooking a dirt patch.  Once rain was forecasted I was able to convince my wife that an afternoon riding the 4-wheeler was a good idea, but little did she know she had just been drafted into forced labor.  We beat the rain and a few weeks later we had a nice little food source just waiting for the right conditions. (Side note: Kim still asks how "her" foodplot is doing, which makes this all the more special) Bow season 
came and went without an opportunity to stand post. Unfortunately I had forgotten to leave 
the pad for my lock-on and the other Cathole members were not able to fill in for me either. 


The hunt
Opening morning of muzzleloader was upon us and conditions were going to be near perfect. I got settled in and besides a pack of coyotes sending chills up my spine with their cackles less than 70 yards away things were very quite most of the morning. At 8:00 I hear what at first was just another tree rat on the far side of the food plot. I look over to see the body of a deer walking slowly thru the woods. I pickup my binos and take a closer look.
 
Antlers, Check.
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 points, Check.
At least 2.5, Check.

Pick-up my Leupold topped - T/C Encore, shooting 150 grains of Pyrodex pushing a 300 grain T/C Shockwave Sabot  and put one thru the boiler room dropping him in his tracks at 65 yards.

167 lbs, 105" and 3.5 years old

The best part is I was able to share it with a group of guys that all had a part in my success. My first year on Cathole I couldn't buy a deer but everyone gave their input and really wanted me to succeed. Now three years later with 2 great bucks soon to be on my wall, alot of does and 10 new friends, I couldn't ask for more. 

Thanks guys!!
DP

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[BuckNrut]

THE BUCK STORY

After last year clipping a huge buck I had set my mind to go after a buck this year.
 For the most part I am a doe hunter and enjoy killing does. My son Tyler and I try
 to put several does in the freezer because our family eats a lot of venison.

With Tyler hunting every other weekend or so, the weekends that I was hunting with out him I would try to be a little more aggressive while hunting, didn't want to make it miserable for him.

Over the summer I had given lots of thought on where the bucks in our area would reside. I had set up two main trail cameras that I felt like would let me know what bucks where in the area. This would also let me know (so I thought) what ridges and core area they were using. On the cameras I did get bucks that were considered "shooters" on our hunt club. The last buck that I got on camera was the one that I wanted. The buck from the prior year that I had clipped had shown itself on BSK's property and was a brute but I doubted ever to have an encounter with him again. I put my eyes on the last buck on my camera.

Of course to say that's the one I want to kill is like Christmas you just dream and hope it comes true. Oh well, I guess it doesn't hurt to dream.

I had made a point over the summer to shoot my gun and muzzle loader as much as possible. With multiple trips to the range I finally had my gun (that was the easy part) and my muzzle loader(that took a lot of time) shooting very good. I had figured I would need all weapon types this year to accomplish the deed.

Fast forward to opening weekend of muzzle loader. I had hung a stand that I thought would be great for the morning. I had bumped a big deer walking in and just knew he was the buck bedding on that point. While in stand I hear a shot. I thought "UPSMAN" killed him another buck, that peckerneck.

A few seconds later my phone rings "Daniel"(stick-n-string). Hey he says, I got one. I knew it was a buck because everyone was talking about shooting bucks and not does. Nice 8 pointer. After asking if he needed help and he said he had it I fidgeted in the stand and decided to get down shortly after.

Back at camp Daniel had shot one of the prettiest bucks I had seen. Rack was very symmetrical and a huge neck and shoulders, great deer.

That evening myself, Upsman, K-man, and MikeB was going to hunt the north side of our property.

Upsman was hunting south of me and the other guys were on the east and west side just north of me.

While in my stand I had decided to shoot a doe early if given the chance and after that wait for a buck.

I had seen some does early in the field but they were a distance away. Something was weird when in a little swag that I couldn't see anything two does came running out like they were spooked. At first I thought it was a coyote but then they started feeding again. My immediate thought was a buck is in the swag and I can't see him. A few minutes later more does came piling out of the field and as luck would have it I needed to pee.

I stood up slowly so I wouldn't spook anything and began peeing. During my moment with pee willie wick in hand I looked toward the does. All of a sudden I see horns. Holy crap! I "thought" the deer I just seen was about 150-160". I was of course looking through branches and stuff so to save the suspense he was not 150-160" deer. I about squeezed my you know what off when I seen the buck. I hurried up and sat back down. My thought were on how to close the distance and not get busted. I could stalk within range if EVERYTHING worked in my favor. The wind is good, the does have their head down, I think I can do it. After realizing that I had a chance of making a stalk I decided to go for it. 
Once again checking my wind, I was o.k. I had two does that could easily see me and they were slowly moving into the swag that I could not see them or them see me. Time to move.

The plan was to quickly move, lowered down as far as I could before getting "sky lined" and then I would have to belly crawl the rest of the way.

Out of my stand and on the move I was closing the distance quietly and quickly. In a few more yards I would begin seeing the deer that was lost in the swag prior to my stalk.

Time to lower my body as much as possible and finish the stalk. moving closer I needed now to get on my hands and knees because of the terrain change. While on my hands and knees I see a large bodied deer that must be the buck. To get a idea of what deer are where, I needed to look through my binoculars. The does were feeding away and the buck was feeding from right to left, that is good.

While moving closer on my hands and knees the buck snaps his head up. Oh crap I'm busted. Hunkering down as low as possible he doesn't see me, that was close. I know now I need to be on my belly. Belly crawling closer I had to move to the right to keep up with the deer and keep small trees in between us. Rocks the size of softballs were not feeling as good on my rib cage as one would think. Ouch!!!!

Moving back to the left I see a break in the tree line that I can shoot through and the buck is headed that way now. Now I can move forward and close the distance. With a clump of grass ahead I know I can use that to hide me and that is where I need to take the shot. Once there, I need the buck to move a few more yards to be completely broadside.

He is there and now I need to finish the hunt. Nerves are wracked but at the same time I am feeling like this is going to happen. Shake the nerves, doubts and any other thoughts and get in the zone to kill this buck. I am feeling it, The buck stops in the gap I need him to, he puts his head down to feed. One more look in the binoculars to make sure he is the buck, sure enough he is.

I slowly pull my muzzle loader up and he snaps his head up. He stares my way but I know that he can't make me out. I take the safety off, line the cross hairs on his lungs and talk myself into slowly squeezing and following through. Boom!!!!!!!!!

Tails flying every where. At that time I lost count of over 13-15 plus deer. The smoke cleared and deer running everywhere. I see NO buck. I jump up and look but see no buck. I look on the ground in hopes that I dropped him, nope. I immediately ask myself on why not take his shoulders out. I will argue with myself later I need to find that deer.

I run to the spot that I thought the deer was standing, I look across the field and see UPSMAN standing and then slowly walking my way. When I get close he says something like "was she the only doe standing in the field"? Huh! I thought. I ask him if he seen any of the deer, he had seen one and he then proceeds to tell me that in about 10 seconds he would have shot that doe. He had a doe farther back and couldn't see the buck or all the other deer. I then tell him I shot a buck, a good buck. He said, "oh deer it wouldn't have been good if I would have shot".(his shot would have not been in my line it would have been to the east of me).

He asked how big he was, of course I am still visualizing a buck that is in Ohio not TN.

I need to find blood is all I knew. I had to go get the other two guys to help and Chris was the cooler head at the moment so him looking for blood was the right choice. I was beginning to get a little tore up.....o.k. A LOT.

Getting back to the truck I told them we needed help and I was headed back over to help find blood. I drove a little fast down our logging road to the field edge and got out. I heard Chris whistle and seen a flash light. He said "over here, I have blood. It is really dark and it looks like liver blood. We need to be careful". I was thinking by the tone of his voice he was on something and just wanted me to hurry up there. I hustled through the woods and began to quiz him, out of just being nervous.

I got closer and could tell he had something. He shut his light off and walked towards me. He said before you say anything give me a hug. He had him. He said he is a good buck, let's go see.

Once we got closer Chris had his blaze orange over his head. I didn't want to see him before the other guys got to see it with me. Chris thought I was crazy...maybe I am.

Over the last few years being on the Cathole hunt club I have had the oppurtunity to really enjoy deer hunting. We have become great friends and at times extended family. My son Tyler shot his very first deer there and in fact has shot all of his deer there. I can't explain to everyone how blessed and how special that place is and how lucky we are. I really appreciate and love those guys and am honored to share this part of my life with them.

Once we were there they pulled the vest off and I seen the buck. After sitting for a second I realized he was the buck that I really wanted to kill. Wow! He was bueatiful. After exchanging hugs, high fives and congrats we left the woods. I promise I will never leave the memories. 

Richard

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[BuckNrut]

HillBilly Smackdown Story:

Chris, Mike Boles and myself saw the buck while pre-season scouting and hanging stands in August 2005. We were riding our ATVs back to the cabin and there he stood at the edge of the food plot behind the cabin. I could tell he had a tall, compact rack and he looked to be a good deer. I had no idea we would cross paths again but luck smiled on me the day after Christmas.
My plan was to work all day then make the four and one half hour drive to Cathole, settle in and be ready to hunt the next morning. Well, work was slow that day and I decided to head for Cathole around noon. I figured if traffic didn’t slow me down I might make it in time for a short evening hunt just before dark.
It was windy and raining very hard on the drive west so my hopes for the evening hunt weren’t very high. When I arrived at the cabin the rain had cleared but the wind was howling. I figured I might as well go sit behind the cabin for the last couple of hours before dark. Who knows I might get a shot at a doe.
I had been in the ladder stand about thirty minutes when I spotted three deer about 150 yards away. They were feeding in the food plot, a nanny doe and two fawns. Before I could get into position to make a shot the doe had worked her way to the edge of the food plot nearest my stand. Several tree limbs prevented me from making a clean shot so I waited. All the while the wind was literally rocking the ladder stand back and forth.
One of the fawns had worked her way out to the middle of the field. While I was looking at her through my scope I noticed movement behind the fawn. “Maybe that’s the big doe I thought”. I moved my rifle to get a better look at the deer behind the fawn. It wasn’t the big doe but it was a good  buck. I couldn’t get a shot off immediately due to the wind moving the stand so much. While I waited for the wind to fade I watched the deer through the scope. I could tell he had long beams and he carried good mass all the way out to his beam tips. “That’s a shooter for sure in my book” I thought. 
I had to wait about five minutes or so for the wind to break. When it finally died down I carefully placed the crosshairs on the point of his shoulder and gently squeezed the trigger. He dropped in his tracks.
I don’t normally get too excited before I make a shot at a deer but after words is a different story. The wind had picked back up by now and coupled with my level of excitement, I wasn’t sure I could get down the ladder without breaking my neck.
As it turns out Richard had a similar encounter with this buck a few days earlier but he was much farther away and never presented him with a good shot. Richard did the only ethical thing he could do-he had to let the deer walk. I guess that’s one of the reasons I was so glad to be there when he took his big buck this year.
I did very little to “earn” this deer. All I was thinking about was taking a doe for the freezer. You never know when the “Hunting gods” will smile on you. 

Score numbers for the kill:

8 pt

Date Killed                               12/28/05
dressed weight                       134Lbs
gross score                             119"
age                                           4.5 years
 inside spread                         12.25"
bases were                             4.13" and 4.25"

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