RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Yeah but his spots are closer to us. It's a no brainer here. duke and I are young, the rest of you guys are old. Do the math.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

My area is very similar to yours Greg. I have seen 2 bucks in the 180's that were killed by neighbors. I have killed 2 that gross in the 160's. There has been 237+ and 266+ nontypicals killed within a few miles of where I hunt. Every year there are a couple if notmore 170+ typicals killed. 130-140's are common but not everyone kills one.

My taxidermist friend has 17 bucks scoring over 170" in his shop this year. The most ever.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

The past26 years I have been lucky enough to take several 130 to 140 class deer fairly regularly with a rare 150 class or bigger buck. Not sure if its because the amount of quality deer in that particular area or because we let 120"deer walk. I have seen some 170" deer every few years and have seen and heard of several in the 180s being taken.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

The average big bucks in this area run from the mid 120's up to the 150's. A really big buck will goin the 160-170" range, and there are a few that go over 180" around this are every year.

Some of you may remember the pics that I posted earlier this year of a big 10 point my buddy and I were getting on camera, well, I found out a few weeks ago that the buck was shot by a rifle hunter on his land which borders the property that we had permission to hunt. I saw pictures but the story I go doesn't seem to add up. My buddy talk to the guy thats wife shot it, and from what my buddy said, the husband told him that the buck had a 27-1/4" outside spread, and grossed score at 167" with probablly 2-3" of broken tines.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I spotlighted 115 deer last night. The biggest buck would have barely pushed 100".I go out and run the lightsfairly often,1-5x per month between Mid-June through January. I see between 50 and 400 deer per night, depending on the weather, where I go, and how much time I have. If you add it all up, we're talking 2-4 thousand deer per year that go through my bino's.

So far this season, here's a look at the biggestbuck that I really got a good, long look at- he even posed nice for the video camera.

I dunno, maybe 135-140? 4x5. There are bigger deer than this one - but it's a needle-in-a-haystack scenario.You'llburn up a lot of gas and wear out a lot of tires finding a bigger deer than this one in my neck of the woods.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Top end bucks here--180 plus.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

The land I used to hunt, I could count on seeing 3-4 150's a season. Now I am reduced to perhaps one a season and thats not a regularity. By that I mean I cannot pattern a buck like I used too because a nice buck I see may cross the road and be on property I cannot hunt. Plus I now have to put up with a few others who also have permission to hunt the same land. There are some bruisers around, mostly in the river bottoms and I lost my river land to a paper co.[:@] who says keep out.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Like most all of you I hunt a lot in the area's surrounding my town/community.I have seen a grand total of two deer that would top 120 inches in 20 plus years of deer hunting and an average of 25 hunts a year.A 31/2 year old buck represents less then 10 % of our buck population a 41/2 or older is a real old timer.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Duke,
Don't insult my intelligence, I'm not as dumb as you look. I don't like being accused of lying. Everything I have said is true. I don't know or care what "book" you own but I do know where most of the P&Y and B&C bucks come from in Wis. and Ill. I've been reading and studying this stuff forover 30years and hunting for longer than you've been alive.

I never said there was land left, whatever that means, you did. All I said was that Me and a couple of others gain permission or access to hunt land in these two counties every year. That is fact. You may wish to rethink whatever you've been doing for the last 3 years and try something else, you've got nothing to lose.

Tip: My friends and I are in the trades. We've been known to rewire, paint and add concrete to an entire barn for one season of hunting. Sometimes it leads to something more permanent.

This thread is about the top end bucks in YOUR area, not whereGregH hunts or how he gets permission.

PS. Don't hold your breath for that PM.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

A top end buck for me where I hunt would have to be in that 160" class. I've seen 4 booners in the 21 years I've bow hunted. They ranged from 170" to 180" I'm guessing. The average big buck I see every year is in that 135" class, usually about 40 yards out. I see allot of 115" to 120" bucks, they get the pass every time. I know we have 190+ plus bucks around! I've seen the pics of a few from a friend of mines Cudde, he live's 10 minutes from me. This same friend of mine use to have the Minnesota State Record for Non-Typical Archery back in the late 80's, gotten beat since. His buck scored 204" non typical. Another guy about 5 minutes from where I also hunt shot another big non typical, he scored in that 230" range. There around here, just damn hard to actually get to see.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

This is the point of my thread, what is the top end buck of your hunting area.

It's just about what I figured, even in big buck areas like the midwest, a 160 is where the air starts getting thin. I think that the results of our hunting contests are in line with this also. I realize that there are some places where a 130 is a top end buck also.

In 17 years of trophy hunting I have seen only 6 that are 170+. Glad I'm not holding out for a B&C. [:-] It shows just how special these bucks are.

In North American Whitetail magazine it shows a chart for top 10 states and provinces for B&C and P&Y entries. Ill is #1 for B&C at 873 entries and Wis is #2 with 853. For P&Y Wis is #1 with 6348 and Ill is #2 with 4892. Even in the top two states there are 5-7 times as many P&Ys as there are B&Cs (granted that some P&Ys are B&Cs). Again, a 170+ buck is something to behold. Not many people will even see one much less kill one.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Now you know (already did I'm sure) why your buddies don't post here.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I wish I would of kept my last buck more of a secret.[:@]

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Um I am closer.:)

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

You just had PLENTY of guys tell you that a 100" deer was a top end buck for their respective region.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I would say that a 125 - 135 inch buck would be a common size with 160 - 170 being a top end buck, but there are bigger out there. I just haven't seen alot. Our property producedone 140two 160'sand a 209 inch gross buck last year. I've seen alot of 140-160's bucksshot byfriends this year than I have for a long time....

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I would agree with many in the midwest, stating a 170 class would be a top end buck. I see a few in that range shot every year, plus usually 1-2 in the county over 200" In the past 5 years or so, there has been 3 freaks over the 220" range, but those bucks are very very special!

A 130-140 class buck is an average 'Nice' buck.

This year, the biggest buck I saw would have been in the 170 gross range(on public land)along with probably a dozen in the 140-150 range. But it isn't uncommon to "see" them bigger... Seeing them is the easiest part:D

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I am sorry to apparently insult your intelligence but the stats of Lake county you were refering to are from 1980-2001. Over the past 5 years Lake has taken a dive and many counties have surpassed it since. I am sorry to break the news to you.. but this conversation is getting old.

And I am well aware that Ill. and Wisc. have more entries than any other state in both B&C and P&Y.. but that was NOT what you so clearly stated earlier about Lake county.. which is the ENTIRE subject of what we have been posting about.

Furthermore.. within a few more years Illinois and Wisconsin will eventually fall to the likes of Iowa and maybe Kansas.. These, and a few other states, have been kicking our arse for several years now in entries for both clubs. It's in the same 'book'.

You know what a book is.. don't you Greg? It's a little thing they conceal information in.[8D]

And who ever accused you of lying? I sure did not.. and our entire discussion was on Lake county, Illinois. Which is not to be confused with the entire state.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Just basket racks where I hunt in Licking County Ohio ;)


Actually I say on average 120-150 class for a hunter patient and dilligent enough to hunt for a more mature buck. I have seen what I feel were 3 booners on the hoof 170-180 range (of course never got a shot opportunity). Almost all of the deer that I have seen have been typicals so I would say 170 to 190 would be the high end.

Spots in this county are getting tougher to to come by thanks to outfitters and guides and the wonderful stories in magazines and tv shows that have been promoting east central Ohio. Two landowners that I know gave exclusive rights to an outfitter this past season. It has me worried.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I have seen 2 that push 170. One of them got shot a day after I saw him and he measured 168. I don't think I have anything over 200" in my woods but you never know.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

One only has to look at the record books to see that this is not always true. Unless you're only talking about walking out your back door to hunt.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Dear Duke,
You must be smarter than that, the above in bold type is what the entire thread is about.

You can comprehend can't you?

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

I really hate to break it to all of you, but at the HNI meet I took some gregh's hair. I have cloned him and he is now scouting OH, MI and IN for me. I will soon have the best spots in all the land!!!!!!!!!!

I will sell a Gregh clone for 1,000,000,000 dollars, yes he's worth it.

BTW if you go to my hunting club there is not one picture of deer I shot. I tell you guys a lot more:D

I am sending Gregh3 to KY this week;)

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

If I moved to hunt other areas Greg.....wouldn't that mean I changed location? Now why would I do that? You mean.....go where the big bucks ARE? You mean.........(and where are most of the big bucks?)........like the midwest (speaking generally.....in regards to the US)?

I KNOW NC has a good deer.....big bucks. But....on average....how many P&Y's/sq. mi.? How many in your state? Ya think ya "might" live in a more target-rich environment?

Don't answer that. You don't need to. It's obvious.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Around where I hunt the bucks seem to top out between 140-160 but not to far away from where I hunt was a buck killed that scored 198". It was in Parke county Indiana.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Dude,
Are you too challenged to figure out that you may possibly find better bucks within your own state!!??:eek:

I've moved around several times to find better bucks both in and out of state. Don't be afraid to do some research, put in a little effort and see what you can find. It's called hunting.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Is moving around to find a good “location” part of being a good hunter?

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

It's called changing location.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

If a mountain man goes out to get some game to feed his family and finds no game on his mountain then goes to the next mountain, is he still hunting, changing location or both?

Get as semantical as you want! :eek:

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

That depends on what you consider being a good hunter. If you consider a good hunter one who always takes 145"+ bucks then yes finding good location is necessary. All of the hunters that you read about that consistently take bucks of this caliber have moved around until they have found these locations.

Others will contend that a good hunter is one that consistently takes the biggest bucks in their area. That may be 120" deer. Either way you need to know what you are doing once you've got boots in the woods regardless of location if you want to take the biggest bucks in the area whether it be 120" or 180".

Around here there are plenty of pictures of 140" deer taken. They are pretty rare on the properties I have access to, but I'm working on moving on to get some access to better properties. There are some 160"+ deer around, but they are extremely rare. As Greg said earlier, the air is pretty thin at that level.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Greg:

Go read Antler Eater's post (on the other thread). He's a heckuva hunter. Maybe it'll mean something coming from someone you might view as being on your same level. Obviosuly you and I don't speak the same language. Go read it. It's very well written.

Or....you could just PM Atlas and ask him his thoughts on "location".;)

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

A good Buck around here is 100", a great buck might crack the 120" gross mark, and a dog gone monster is a 130", few and far inbetween. I have seen 2 in the last 10 seasons thatmight crack 140" gross. I have ate 7 tags in 10 seasons hunting for 130 class bucks. However if I was to travel an hour to the south, west or north to get out of the jack pines, acidic soil and sand, I would greatly increase my odds of tagging 130 class deer. Its all about how much time and how much of that time you are willing to sacrifice to meet your goals.
As for me and the wife, we will be back to packing Kansas resident tags next season!

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Guys

All Gregh is saying is this, and it basic to all things.

If you want a better Job, go find one
If you want to have better education, go get it

If you want to shoot bigger bucks, go find them
That is it, key wordsare if you want

Example I will be spending time in Ohio most of Jan and Feb;)

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Guys

All Gregh is saying is this, and it basic to all things.

If you want a better Job, go find one (change your location)
If you want to have better education, go get it (if you can't get that where you are....Change your location)

If you want to shoot bigger bucks, go find them (i.e. Change your location)
That is it, key words is if you want

Example I will be spending time in Ohio most of Jan and Feb;) (changing locations?)

For the record....I don't disgree with anything you said.;)

I'm done.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Finding better hunting spots;)= changing location[8D]

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Saginaw county, Michigan in the area I hunt...we usually see a 110-130 incher once every 3 seasons. There are usually some 100 inchers running around and if we ever see 'em, we do our best to get 'em!

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

For my area of Medina county...the Average buck is around 120", but there are 3 or 4 over 160" that were seen this year

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Man this thread jumped the shark.[&:]

Top end bucks in my area have been over 180, I know of 2 killed with 3 miles of my house during our 7 day shotgun season. With that said, I rarely see a deer over 150" while hunting. I would post a pic of one of the 180's....but someone would have kittens over a gun kill in the archery forums.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

Did you ever wonder how many book bucks are out there hanging on peoples walls that aren't in the record books. SE Ohio my area 130-150". A farm I hunt in NE Ohio has some bucks, saw a booner there about 3 years ago.

RE: Top end bucks in your area
 

All semantics. By walking out of your house for a morning hunt you've changed locations, so what??

Just because I hunt accross the border from my house or drive up north to hunt deer, I consider it to be "my area". For me to drive to Kansas or Wyoming I would consider it to be changing locations.

Anyway, lets keep on topic with what are the top end bucks in your area.