"The buck kept walking directly toward me. He never gave me a chance to get a good look at his rack because he never turned his head to one side or the other. He eventually reached a point in the field where the fingers of cottonwood jutted out into the field and he stopped. At this point, he was about 100 yards away. I watched, hoping he would continue on the same path that would lead right to me. But he seemed unsure of which direction to take. He looked around from the left to the right, turning his head. This gave me a good view of his antlers. Now I could see that this monster had at least 6 long tines on each side!

"I suddenly developed a bad case of buck fever the likes of which I had never experienced before. It seemed as though there was nothing I could do to control my nerves or excitement. Worried about which direction he would take, I decided to let out a short grunt to entice him to head my way. Upon hearing the grunt, he started toward me. I felt like I was pulling him in on a string.

"As he approached, I stood in position to draw with my bow held in front of my face. I was staring at the largest whitetail I had ever seen in the woods, and he was walking straight into his date with destiny. I could actually hear the crunch of the grass beneath his hooves as he tromped closer and closer.

THE MOMENT OF TRUTH
"My heart was pounding like a drum. When the buck was 15 yards away, he looked directly up into my eyes and seemed to say, 'What are you? You're not a buck.'

"Noticing that something was amiss, he slowly turned to my left and started walking broadside away from me. As my instincts slowly took over, I was able to gather myself together enough to make the shot. I knew it was a now-or-never situation. I drew my arrow and placed the pin behind his front shoulder. I released and watched the arrow disappear through both lungs. The buck bolted, but he collapsed within 60 yards.

"The excitement for me at this point was uncontrollable. I tried to call my brother, but I could not get my fingers to stop shaking long enough to work the keys on my cell phone. After a few attempts, I got through and told him what had just happened. He decided to end his own hunt and come over right away to see my trophy.

"While waiting for him to arrive, I called everyone I knew. Then I decided it was time to take a look at my monster up close. When I saw the tall, even 14 typical points that he was wearing on his head, I almost fainted. It is hard to describe the feeling I had when I first put my hands around those antlers.

"Just then, my brother drove up the dirt road toward me. I went out to meet him. I gave Anthony the short version of the hunt, and then we literally ran out to see the unbelievable buck. When we reached him, we stopped, spellbound. Anthony looked at the buck, then at me, then back at the buck in silent awe. We were sharing my greatest moment ever in time. I will forever have that moment and that day etched in my memory!"

page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4