My Buck

Here is a few pictures of the Buck I killed monday afternoon. The pictures were taken tuesday morning.

Ill give a short story about this place first.

3 Years ago I got permission to hunt a prime piece of land. Scouted it briefly, hung a few stands and hopped in. Long story short the first evening I hunted it I shot a real big nice 8pt and lost it down the river (kaskaskia was flooded this fall). Buddies and I searched all over and walked 3 hours the next morning just to make sure but to no avail. I was sick. That night I decided to get back on the saddle and hunt again. Same stand. As luck would have it, a absolute giant 12 pointer comes down same trail at 15 yards just before I was out of shooting light. I drill it. Get down, find arrow which is caked in blood and begin following a huge blood trail. Decided to stop and call some buddies to help me again. We tracked it all the way to, well, you guessed it...the river again. Left, came back next morning and repeaded process of walking all over the place. Tracked blood right into river, we crossed the river and never found prints coming out of river nor blood anywhere on other side. Needless to say I was sick. This was middle of november and those were the last days I hunted that year. Just couldnt take how I felt.

Didnt ask permission to hunt this land the next 2 years. Finally, last week I decided to ask to hunt it again. The landowner said yes, but he wanted to gun hunt it first. I said ok thats fine. Monday mid-day dad and I go hang a stand in the all so familiar area. Trimmed a few lanes and were out of there at 130. I came back and climbed in the stand at 245. At 3 o clock I saw this guy cross the river about 150 yards away and start coming down the exact same trail the bucks did 3 years ago. I thought no way. This cant be happening!! Needless to say at 315 I bleeted at him at 15 yards, same trail, and drilled him. He ran exactly towards where the others did 3 years ago, only I watched this one fall over a short 60 yards away. Talk about an adrenaline rush!! This is my biggest buck to date in 4 years of hunting, but far smaller than the ones I shot but didnt recover 3 years ago out there.