My First Buck

Author: Zach Harmon

To start things off, on Friday I got picked up from school early and had already packed all of my hunting things to go hunting this weekend. I live in Columbus and was traveling to Muskingum County, OH for my Rut Hunt this weekend. When I first arrived it was about 2 o'clock in the afternoon and I was ready to hastily get my Summit Viper SS and take my Drenalin off into the woods that I have NEVER before been in. I looked around for about 30 minutes, found a nice spot along a scrape line where the deer seemed to be traveling in the evening to go across the street to the soy bean and corn fields to feed at night.

I was in my stand and got settled in at about 3 in the afternoon, set out some doe estrous and then began rattling. After about 20 minutes I see about 60 yards out a decent 6 point grunting very loudly after a doe. I decided I was going to pass on that after it walked underneath me, it was about 100". Being the first evening I felt since I had until Sunday evening to bag one, I was going to wait. I see little buck after little buck chasing does back and forth a lot of action it really was a great time. I sat in my stand until about 5:40, starting to get very hard to see, then the big boy comes, to dark to shoot I shine my light on him and he was about 160". I made the right choice and let him walk away un-alarmed hoping to get a shot at him later on during legal shooting hours.

I go back to my step grandmothers home and find a deer roast in the crock pot with fried potatoes and home made noodles! What a great dinner...

Saturday morning go back to the same spot, and saw a 200 + " about 100 yards away, hot on does, decided not to come my way. I was very bummed, but kept my hopes high. I sat in my stand until about noon and continued to see little bucks after little bucks, so I decided that I was not in a good place for the big boys later that evening. I relocate to where I saw the huge buck and there were trees that were 8" in diameter rubbed to shreds! I was most definitely in big buck country now, so i skipped lunch and got in this stand at 1:00 oclock in the afternoon.

I hopped back on the grunt tube and rattling antlers, and never saw one deer until about an hour and a half before dark the same decent 6 comes my way and starts munching. I watch him for about 45 minutes, and then i felt that i was not going to get an opportunity at a buck this evening, but still tried to remain positive. I close my eyes for a second because of the fierce winds and pouring down rain, and then i hear a twig snap.

My eyes sprung open and immediately saw the rack on a decent buck at about 45 yards. I decided I was going to shoot this buck, even though it was nothing close to what I had been seeing. It looked mature enough to harvest, so I stop staring at the stellar rack and decide to think to myself when am I going to have an opportunity to take the shot, which shooting lane, when will I stand, when will I draw...

All these questions starting pouring through my mind as my body pumped with adrenalin. I struggled to keep my cool, but still kept it enough to not let any animal know I was there. Once he got to about 35 yards he turned his head and looked away, I stand up, he looks towards my stand so I do not move a muscle, then he turns his head the other way again, which was a big mistake! I draw back my Mathews Drenalin and steadily hold my pin an inch behind his shoulder. At this point he was a little over 30 yards, I hold it steady, take a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.

I hear a loud THUD as if it were a shoulder shot, I began to worry right when I shot until he gets about 30 yards and stops running, circles twice then flops over and is dead within 10 seconds or less. I was filled with excitement as I have practiced hours and hours with my compound, as this is my first year ever hunting with one. I was thinking to my self, I can not believe I pulled it off! I decided that since I knew he was dead, and the sun was hastily fading, I should get out of stand and begin gutting!