I think it was 1997. I drew a coveted buck tag for the most popular place in Idaho. That summer I saw a buck that I definitely wanted. I practiced with my 54 caL bk92 and was good with it.
On opening day I dropped my buddy off on one side of the ridge 5 miles away. Then I headed up after my buck I saw three months before. I aw the buck at daylight and made my way to get a shot. It was about 11:00 am when I got to a spot 150 yards and could not get any closer. The buck was backed into a crevasse in the rock ledge. All of a sudden a bovine cow smelled me and busted out and ran to the buck. I panicked and got a good rest. The buck got up and I took a neck shot. The buck went down but got back up. I reloaded and he ran right at me. Mule deer Stot. It means to bounce up and down. At the shot at 40 yards the buck was coming down as I was going up. I missed with the bullet and hit him with the sabot. I reloaded and got a rest as he ran down the ravine and back up the other side. Now he was at 200 yards and I knew where it would hit. He stopped and looked back in the tall brush. Boom down he went. I knew at the shot that the buck of a lifetime just hit the dirt. I was so nervous I reloaded and got ready to shoot again. When I found him I marked the area with orange tape to make sure I didn't lose him. I brought my dog back to give him experience in tracking a deer (that came in handy over the years) and a friend to help me pack it out. The most amazing thing about the shot was after I saw his antlers I was able to even shoot.