Deer of the Day -- Missouri Monster, John David Berry

Firearms are often times heritage pieces that are passed down from generation to generation. Each time a gun takes a big deer or is along for an adventure, it's like a new chapter is being scribed  into the firearm's history, with each shot offering a new story.

13-year-old John David Berry's rifle belonged to his Uncle, David Shaw, who tragically lost his life in a fire in 1996. The Remington Model 700 chambered in .243 Winchester was a favorite of Shaw's and he had taken several trophy bucks with the gun while hunting in the deer woods with his father Bill.

After losing his son, Bill poured his attention towards his grandchildren, including John, who he'd pick up from school and take hunting, teaching him everything he could about outdoorsmanship and appreciating every moment in life as "you never know when your last breath will be."

Young John was planning on putting the deer wood's lessons he'd learned from his Grandfather on a middle-of-the-rut deer hunt near Harris, Missouri on his great uncle's row crop and CRP farm. It was the second week of November and family and friends surrounded John in a setting that Berry best described as a "man's territory!"

For five days, nine hunters would call a 1,600-square-foot-home their deer camp and hunt the area, looking to hang horns on the wall and fill up a deep freezer or two.

Earlier scouting trips had shown there were plenty of deer in the area and several mature bucks, including a huge main frame 10-point that had everyone salivating at the thought.

After seeing and passing on several different deer, John was in his stand the second day of hunting for an evening sit. As he was pulling up his rifle with a pulley rope, he looked out into the harvested cornfield in front of him, and there stood a buck bigger than anything he'd ever laid eyes on before.

John steadied the Remington 700 on his stand and clicked off the safety. The gun barked and the deer dropped -- John had shot his buck of a lifetime, certain that those before him were with him now.

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The incredible buck sported 31 points and scored 228-inches.

Another great buck for a great gun that without a doubt still has many more stories to tell.

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We want your Deer of the Day! Send us an image of your buck along with a brief description of your hunt and the gear you used to whitetail@imoutdoors.com