Hello. I'm a 40-year hunter with scores of harvests, but I only picked up a bow prior to the '14 season, so this site has been a fine resource for me and I appreciate all the expertise here. I wanted to share the story of my buck of Oct. 15, 2015, because I know this is a forum that understands the challenges of harvesting a mature buck with a bow. I bought some property in Sumner County, Tenn., and moved here back in April, and immediately got to work. This guy started showing up on the cams in July (about the time I started some mock scrapes), and I patterned him on a ridge in the afternoon that required a South wind. So last week, we had a strong South wind with a front coming in so I ditched work and got in the stand about 4. About an hour later, a solid 8-point showed up, but I know big daddy usually follows, so I sat tight and here he came. They were right in front of me about 35 yards out across a clearing/trail, browsing a bit. They kept staring right at me; they knew I'd BEEN there, they just didn't think I was there then. It's a fairly open tri-pod stand, and not too high at about six or seven feet up, so it was pretty nerve-wracking trying to keep my composure and not get busted. I guess it's a testament to camo, stillness and scent control that I didn't. I finally had an opportunity when both were looking away and raised up, then had to hold it for what seemed like forever. He was looking right at me when I let fly. I was off a bit, it was a shoulder shot. The 8-point took off and the Schwacker put the target buck down, it was a heart shot and he expired soon thereafter. I had named this buck Lucky 13 because I thought he had 13 points, but turns out he was Unlucky 14, with 14 scoreable points and a few stickers. The taxidermist estimated he was six years old and would score 165-170, which is rare for Tennessee. All I know was it's the buck of a lifetime. All the preparation, the sweat equity in this place (and the decades of work it took to get it), paid off. I'm pretty stoked about this deer. thanks for all the great tips on this site RidgeRunner
Great buck! Congrats on all your hard work and devising a successful plan. Blessings.........Pastorjim
