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High Pressured Bucks

- By Ken Beasley -

After years of letting young bucks walk we were starting to see the benefits. Dad had done his research and knew this mature whitetail was in the area. After catching up to him again in early November he devised a plan that worked to perfection.

  The 2006 season arrived following an abnormally wet spring and fall. I really felt this was going to be a great year! The bow season provided lots of time in the field but with surprisingly few sightings of mature bucks!

  The gun season started two days after the full moon and it was warm and wet! It was obvious that the rut was on as we were seeing bucks chasing does from day one. We saw some shooters the first three days with no high percentage opportunities. Saturday of the first week was warm and wet as it rained steadily so I spent the late morning and early afternoon traveling to different properties glassing the fields.

  This story started after I traveled to a property we share with a neighbour. Because we share it during bow season, we had not spent a lot of time there hoping to avoid pressuring the deer while the daylight activity was low. There are two other groups that hunt heavily on two sides of our property and are often positioned on our fence lines. With those three other groups all hunting near this 100 acre farm, we knew we needed to do our homework. We put in our time watching from a distance trying to pattern the deer and the other hunters. I decided to do some long distance glassing and at 1:30 pm I saw a doe some 400 yards off doing that sultry trot that drives the boys crazy but ensures that she leaves her scent for any possible suitors. The trot was unmistakable, so I was confidant that she had a buck on her tail. I was glassing behind her with hopes of seeing him long before he hit the opening, but he made his appearance where I first saw her and he was about 1 solid minute behind. Even from a distance his most distinguishing feature was the rack. He was following her trail precisely with his nose to the ground at a stalking pace. He was traveling away from me and I was immediately drawn to the width and height of his antlers!

This is a well deserved trophy. Dad not only put in the time but meticulously planned a strategy that allowed him to get where he needed to be with out this buck knowing he was there. Identifying where this heavily pressured buck felt comfortable was the key to this hunt.

  I gave a couple of loud grunts hoping to stop him long enough to get a real lasting image of this rack. He stopped and turned to face me. I was concealed well so I knew he wouldn't see me and with little time to stare, he quickly turned in pursuit of duty. I called again with the bleat box and grunt tube and once again he stopped to have a look. Again, he stopped for only a second or two - but long enough to know that he was indeed a shooter! I couldn't count the tines and I was unable to differentiate between the left and right sides as they appeared in symmetry when he turned. I knew he had good height and looked to be 10 to 12 points. As he sauntered off I sat in awe of this beautiful animal that was truly a sight to behold! His width looked to be out of proportion to his body. The height of his tines through my binocs at 400 plus yards had me thinking Boone and Crockett. How good was this buck? I didn't know but I was sure he was special! We hunted the property very carefully and deliberately the next few days with no sightings. A buck of similar description had been sighted with a doe the week before on a neighbouring farm to the north and at this stage of the rut I knew he could be anywhere. I knew where I wanted to be and plotted a strategy to ensure I could be in before daybreak without leaving my scent and minimizing any noise or disruption. Wednesday morning had me up early and in position 15 minutes before daybreak. The temperature was about 5 Celsius and the breeze was light and in my face. Conditions were perfect as I stood waiting. Just about daybreak I saw a large bodied deer at 70 yards in the next field moving north (left to right). It was on the wrong side of the fence and thus there were only three small shooting lanes from my location. Each lane provided an eight to ten yard window but between each window was about ten yards of brush. I knew time was not on my side and I wasn't sure this was him so I raised my binoculars to get a better look. By this time he was in the first blind spot and about to enter the second window or opportunity.

"My window was narrowing and I had to fire quickly...He gave the tell-tale "donkey-kick" and ran north out of sight..."

  I felt comfortable that this was my buck and as I moved my hands from the glasses to my gun he was now behind the second set of brush. I stood poised for the shot, waiting for him to come through but he didn't! I waited for what seemed like a minute and should have only taken two seconds. I lowered my Winchester 1200 to get a bigger picture of what was happening when suddenly, he re- appeared; but he was now moving north west. My window was narrowing and I had to fire quickly. I raised the gun and when the crosshairs found the sweet spot I squeezed. He gave the tell-tale "donkey-kick" and ran north out of sight. Then seconds later a buck ran south to where he had come from but I didn't fire again for fear of taking a second one. I sat for 10 minutes or so and then phoned my son Kevin who was getting ready for work. He told me he'd come down and suggested I wait for him before getting on the track. I had not worn my glasses that morning so I was pleased to have his sharp eye and keen ability to track. We have seen situations where he demonstrates a sixth sense in reading tracks and blood trails. When I got up and started to move I put up a doe where I had last seen the buck. I figured my buck had either gotten wind of the doe or was following her tracks when he stopped for so long before entering the last window. Kevin and I searched for 40 minutes with no luck. He had to go to work and told me that Paul and Keith were down from their morning stands and on their way over to help. We spent a long time looking and finally, found blood and tracks. It was closer than I had thought and his trail was quite clear. He had traveled only 10 yards after the shot and turned and headed south to his bedding area. We found good blood and followed him into swamp grass. We found two places that he had bedded and a trail into the swamp which we knew was very wet with almost knee-high water. He was obviously hurt - but, how bad? We decided to give him some time, go back and get some food and dry out. I was confidant that we would find him, for we knew that he was hurt and had returned to the swamp for safety.

  We waited for an hour or so before returning and placed shooters on the opposite end in case he's still mobile and needed to be finished off. He had again bedded just inside the swamp and they were almost on top of him before he jumped. Another shot was required to bring him down and then the celebration began.

  Our low pressure tactics really helped us tag out on this buck. Being so heavily pressured by other hunters we were forced to hunt smart to be in the right spot.

  I am grateful that Keith and Paul believed in me when I told them he was hit. Many would not have searched over two hours on hands and knees for a blood trail. I am also grateful for Kevin's efforts as well as my brother Doug, Cory and Chris Johnston and Kevin Collins for all their help!

Catching up to this monster in full rut, he had a beautiful big swollen neck. He grossed 155 inches and had an above average 22 inch inside spread. It is an Ontario Monster Whitetail that we will hang proudly on our wall.

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