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Let them go.or you'll never know!

- By Keith Beasley -

Strategic hunting and a lot of patience were required in the harvest of this 160 inch gross 10 point. Keith grunted him out of the doe bedding area during the second week of the shotgun hunt. Estimated to be 4.5 years of age, Kevin and Paul both saw him in 2005 as a 135 class 10 point. In one year this buck put on about 25 inches!

  I have a confession to make; on more than one occasion I have pictured the next World record buck hanging on my wall. This vision often occurs after many hours in a tree and often leaves me chuckling. Why does it leave me chuckling? Well, you and I both know that it is probably never going to happen but, it sure does help pass the time while the hunt is on. Have you ever thought the next world record or Ontario record might live on your property? What about this thought: what if the next record had already been shot off your property? Well you'd say that you'd certainly have known about it right? Surely a deer of that magnitude wouldn't go unnoticed. Well, the reality is, you just may have had what could have been the new record wandering around your property but he was harvested as a spike horn, or a basket-racked 8 and was never allowed to reach his potential. This concept gives me some food for thought.   As many of you know, I hunt with my dad and two brothers. We love to hunt and are very grateful for the landowners who have allowed us to pursue this passion. Our hunting methods five years ago are very different than they are today. When we started hunting these farms we scouted and put a tree stand up anywhere that had deer sign. Some stands were located in prime deer territory, deep in a swamp with beds and tracks all around. We would all walk in before daylight, split off and go to our various stand locations. We would then sit for a few hours and repeat the process for the evening hunt. There were years when we even pushed bush between hunts. We shot some deer, never a lot, but always harvested some does, fawns and even the odd spike or fork horn buck. Back then, those big boys just seemed to elude us year after year. It was very frustrating and always left us wondering what we were doing wrong. We felt we hunted just as hard as the next guy but without the results we wanted. We began blaming it on the quality of the property thinking that the big one's must all be at the neighbour's. Sometimes we were even foolish enough to think that Ontario didn't have big bucks.

  After a few years of this hunting method the wheels of change began to turn. We started to crave knowledge and found everything we could get our hands on regarding deer. We read, we studied, and we asked A LOT of questions. We started to work as a team rather than individuals; flipping coins to see who got what stand and always getting together after each hunt to discuss what we saw and what we could learn from that hunt. We find deer hunting to be a lot like a puzzle-it often requires more than one mind to finish it. The process continues to evolve but the last five years started a hunting journey that we hope never ends.

  After realizing some changes needed to be made we seriously went about finding them. We asked opinions and advice from everyone we could think of and made it our goal to learn more. To our surprise we found people very willing to share their secrets to success. The common factor seemed to come down to two things. Let the small bucks walk and keep low to minimum pressure on your deer. These were concepts we had never practiced or given any thought to before. We made plans, strategies, and the commitment to each other that we would stick by them.

  The next season brought changes; no longer would any of us harvest young bucks but all agreed it was mature bucks only. We also began to selectively harvest does in areas where we felt the buck to doe ratio was not at the optimal level. The first few years were the hardest; letting those young bucks pass took it's toll on each of us and truly tested our commitment.

  The next most important change we made was backing off the pressure. We allowed a 15 acre piece of woods (the largest on the property) to become a deer sanctuary; a place we never entered. We hunted funnels or fence lines near this bush but never entered it. We wanted to have a place that the deer from all around could come to and feel safe. Let's jump ahead a few years to this season's buck. Throughout October 2006 we bow hunted very strategically. We used that time to see how the deer were moving and tried to do it from a distance. We had a group of 5 does and fawns living in our sanctuary and began to discover their pattern. Paul and Kevin kept a close eye on them and watched numerous young bucks work in and out of the woods. Paul even passed on a beautiful 115-120 class 8 pointer with the bow coming out of the sanctuary to feed.

This young 115-120 class 8 point came out of the sanctuary in early October. Despite offering a lot of shot opportunities, he's simply not mature yet and we know what another couple years could do for him.

  As the shotgun season came we checked on the does and fawns regularly to see when the rut would start to heat up. We knew it was a matter of time before the dominate buck slipped up and came out with those does.

  Late in the first week of the shotgun hunt Paul finally saw him one evening just before dark. He was trotting in from a neighbouring farm and heading into our little piece of Heaven. Paul was on the wrong fence line and was helpless as he watched this monster trot by out of range. I remember him coming home excited that we had finally seen a mature buck there and even commented on how big he was. We were excited that he was out moving and very optimistic that he was moving in day light; this showed that things were starting to pick up. Early in the second week I caught a glimpse of him at 1:15 in the afternoon heading into our property again. We knew that he was continuously checking this group of does and fawns and when one of them finally came into heat he would stay for a day or two giving us a better chance. We knew it was just a matter of time but still hunted cautiously keeping the pressure low.

  Wednesday, November 15 seemed to have magic written all over it. We were after 3 different bucks on 3 different farms by this time and were all spread out accordingly on the various properties. The rewards to another year's efforts seemed to be right around the corner. Dad's hunch came true that morning and he anchored his monster. It died deep in a swamp and took of us well into the afternoon to find it. During our search we received a phone call from a buddy that he had seen a buck near our property early that morning. After a brief description we knew it was our boy. We finished up pictures with dad's buck and Paul and I headed out for the evening sit.

  We were a little late getting to our spots but took our time and crept in quietly. We were a long way apart but both watching exit trails of the sanctuary we hoped he was in. I set up on the ground in a golden rod field with apple trees to my back. I was exactly 100 yards from the bush line but within shooting range of 3 major trails that left this side of the woods. The edge of the tree line was at ground level but inside the tree line, was a steep ridge covered in thick pines and cedar. It was a warm afternoon with no snow which allowed me to get into my spot very quietly. I set up and used the range finder on all my shooting lanes. Confident in my spot, I then pulled out my grunt tube and made three grunts. Instantly, I heard movement 200 yards away on top of the ridge, I have been tricked by squirrels many times so I did not get excited yet. Every few seconds I would hear another crunch and each one appeared to be getting closer. At this point I knew I had a deer coming but the anticipation now was, which one? When the noises were half way down the ridge I slowly lifted the gun from my lap and got into a more ready position. Very carefully, I watched the trail he was coming on and knew that when he stepped out he would be exactly 100 yards away. I am shooting a scoped rifled barrel shotgun with Winchester Partition Gold slugs. My gun is dialed in for 1 inch high at 100 yards so I was very comfortable with where he was entering the field.

"I was in awe at how majestic he looked and could not believe I was staring eye to eye with this monster...Every few steps he would stop sniff and stare right where I was..."

  As I glared into that trail he soon appeared; very slowly and very cautiously he stuck his head out from under a low hanging pine. He looked straight at me and then from side to side. When he looked side to side I raised the gun and found him in the scope. I was in awe at how majestic he looked and could not believe I was staring eye to eye with this monster. He stood at the edge of the woods half in and half out for 60 seconds just studying the field hoping to catch a glimpse through the waist high golden rod of the other buck he was investigating. Content with what he saw, he methodically stepped into the open and began to come almost straight for me. The golden rods were very patchy and I had numerous lanes but the real problem was the straight on angle for a shot. He had that grunt call pinned and slowly closed the 100 yard gap between us. Every few steps he would stop sniff and stare right where I was. I could always see him but did not always have an unobstructed shot. My heart was pounding and my breathing was speeding up as this buck was getting closer. The closer he got the more I could not believe how incredible he was. I was loving the moment and truly wishing someone was there to experience it with me. As he continued to weave through the weeds at 60 yards I knew I had to pick a lane quickly, if he kept coming at this pace he would soon bust me. I chose a good hole at 40 yards and prayed he would step into it. As he hit the 50 yard mark, I realized he was still coming right for me and I was not going to get a broadside shot before he busted me. I did not want to take the shot face on but fortunately, I had spent the time sighting in to know that I could take it if necessary. Every few steps he continued to stop and stare right where I was. Every time he paused I would think of all the things that could go wrong. I always hunt with the wind in my favour and it really saved this hunt. When the buck slowly eased into my 40 yard hole I was ready and waiting. He was just slightly quartering towards me and I put the crosshairs on his front left shoulder just at the top of his heart. I squeezed the trigger and fired! The buck instantly collapsed to the ground with his head bouncing back up from hitting the grass so hard. I pumped my second round in and sat with the crosshairs lined up ready for any sign of him getting up. After five minutes he had not moved a muscle and I made my way over to my dream buck. As I knelt down to take hold of his antlers I was amazed at the emotions I felt. I was completely overwhelmed and incredibly grateful to have harvested such an amazing animal. I sat and soaked in the moment then went and got Paul. He was ready and waiting as he had heard the shot. He asked how big and I said "It's him". We hugged and laughed then went in and got some pictures. It was an incredible moment and one I will always cherish.

  Kevin and Paul both saw this buck last year as a 135 class 10 point. Kevin actually passed him at 15 yards with his crossbow in late December. I pulled the trigger this time but whenever one of us kills a deer we consider it a team effort. Hunting is the greatest when you have the people that mean the most to you to share it with. We continue to put the pieces together and it just keeps getting better every year.

Keith, Stephanie and future Ontario Monster Whitetail hunter Kaden Beasley

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