Originally Posted by
sprintflyer
My best "trophy" was a doe my son killed when he was 8 years old with his bow. I built the treestand big enough for both of us and had to reach over and help him get his bow to the let off point so he could hold it at full draw. He let it fly and looked over at me and said "I HIT IT!!!" I'm a grown man but don't mind to tell you tears rolled down my face that morning. That "trophy" wasn't a 170 class buck or even a buck at all but means more to me than any deer I have or will ever take. There are several good mounts hanging in my den but I go to that photo of him holding that little doe by the ears with a huge smile whenever I forget what a trophy is to me. I guess what I'm trying to say is a trophy is differant to each person no matter where they hunt.
Completely agree. I introduced my best friend to hunting about 8 years ago and on every trip we took hunting he never got a deer. Finally four years ago he had a shot at a doe and missed. I know how bad he wanted a deer and couldn't seem to get one. He passed away in an accident early the next year and I would have given every deer I've shot for him to have gotten that doe. That doe would have been a trophy for me.
I think if you take 2 equal size deer and have one harvested on private land and one on public land, I think that the one that is taken on public land could be said to be more of a trophy. You know that many people have been after a deer like that and been trying to harvest it therefor it might be more of a trophy since you were skilled and lucky enough to take a deer that many people were trying to kill. A deer that gets that size on a big portion of private land may not have had the hunting pressure therfore not as wise as a public land buck. Bucks have to be smart to get big, but public land bucks have to be even smarter IMHO.