bolton22

Well in the last two days I logged 19 hours in the tree and in the week I've logged 30+ in the tree...Pulled an all day sit Wed. from 6a-dark(520p)...Yesterday I sat from 7a-3p when I shot my BIG BOY....in those 19 hours I saw only 3 deer including this one...2 small six pointers and this....I was hunting public ground in Brown County known as Buckhorn Ranch. I lost my private ground this year after 9 years to a lease so this makes this deer BITTER SWEET!...No real story...Got in my tree at 7am and sat till 11a when I saw a little 6 pt...come in at the bottom of a ridge stopping at each ridge bottom scent checking...Then at 12p I had two hunters come in...one went to the bottom of the ridge where the six pt was and the other hunter tried to put his stand up 40 yards behind me...I whistled and waved and he moved on.......at 3pm the guy below me was rattling and grunting so I started grunting with him...then I heard the footsteps coming on the top of the ridge across from me....I looked over and it looked like a monster walking thru the woods...he stopped at the bottom of the ravine that seperates the two ridge lines and looked around so I gave two soft grunts...He came right to my stand and stopped at 10 yards and looked up at me in full draw...he was slightly quartering in and almost head on....I knew he made me and all I could do was let him go or take a chance...I took what most will think and I know is probably an unethical shot but I shot for a spot between his neck and shoulder plate...I shot and he ran 100yds...crashed....got up ran another 100yds..crashed....got up and ran into a creek and stopped...never to move again!!!! when he crashed the first time he broke what was left of the arrow off..4" that didn't penetrate...When I field dressed him I found the rest of the arrow up in him(appx 23" of arrow)and a big hole in the middle of his heart....Muzzy 3 blade did it again for me...I haven't scored him or anything but have really showed him off to friends and everybody thinks he will go 160 or better....about 19-20" inside and g2 and 3's 12" or better...Now if I can just figure out how to upload the picture...

bolton22

Picture 2

Parrot Head

So what did the other hunter say that was right below you? I am sure he got down after all of that

uncle matt

Further evidence that IL has some darn fine public land! Even though we have our own lands to hunt in S. IL next week, there is an area (public) that some of our guys, good chance even me, will hit. It's a good maze of little gravel back roads to get there and almost impossible to tell someone how to get there. W/o GPS it's hard for even me to find it in the dark. And I've never seen any hunters there - ever. Only some old guy in his 60's w/ a much, much younger girl probobly hiding from his wife. Man when we pulled in there he kinda skidaddled.

Congrats are certainly due on that one bolton!

(And welcome to the site)

bolton22

I think the other hunter was a little salty...He says the deer passed behind him at 40yds but he couldn't get him to stop...He was really wishing it was him...I'm glad it wasn't him...Of course I would have let him drag it out...Up hill 300 yards or better...Not to mention out of the creek that had alomost vertical banks...all in total probably a 1/2 mile from the truck..

cowboy4513

Great buck congrats

Uncle Bob

Great buck and good story. I just got back from so Il and the big bucks are starting to chase.IL public ground is great!

-DeerSlayer-

Is that public ground by the river in Brown? Thats where alot of my family lives.

Buck Terminator

Nice Buck. You deserve to be the one holding that deer you put the time in for him, those other two guys probably were on their first trip off the couch.