Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

I was just wondering what is everybody's favorite place to hunt record class bucks.Mine personally is Southern IL. Thanks

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

ILLINOIS!!!!![8D] all parts of illinois has trophy deer. if i had to choose a county it would be fulton. only 20 minutes away. :D peoria would be second, that's where i live

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Shotem up....I live clost to the town of Salem. U know here that is. It's north of Mt .vernon

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

your probably about 3 hours south of me mabye 4


i probably drive by close to you when we go to table rock lake in MO

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

from what ive heard buffalo county is awesome (u all know which buffalo county im talkin about) but i think we have good country right here in my county. the question was "best REGION" so ill say midwest all the way i think Wisconsin Illinois and Michigan may be the best whitetail states there is. just my opinion (if you dont like it, u got a right to ur own opinion too bad its wrong;))

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

I would have to choose central saskatchewan.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Either Sask. or Alberta...easy for me to say:DJDinAB

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I'd have to agree with the top 2 gentleman;)

If your talking the USA only I'd say Kansas should be considered as a front runner.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

For Mulies- The Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming areas

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

SAME HERE! Cant think of to many places as good;)

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Wisconsin
Iowa
Kansas
Illinois
Are the best for TOP end bucks, but as far as Pope and young bucks you can find them just about anywhere and its more about hunting the right property than region. Every year huge bucks come from unexpected places, so you never really know.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Sorry folks, but the best region to bag a trophy whitetail is both sides of the border Texas-Mexico. Lampazos, Anahuac and Nuevo Laredo have the largest bucks I´ve ever seen.

A common deer there will be around 150-160, and the really big ones in Angadi´s Tournament this year were about 197. You have to consider that a minority of the bucks harvested there get into the Angadi tournament.

I have been hunting northern Mexico for 10 years and the smallest deer I ever took there is a 154 3/8 Boone & Crokett.

Take a look at Angadi´s Home Page at www.angadi.com.mx

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

the only big deer in Texas are shot behind a high fence. Illinois has some great bucks, but they have nothing on Wisconsin. Hell, no state or province has nothing on Iowa. They got the #1 non typical and i predict us shotgunners or maybe a guy shooting stick n string will probably make a run for the #1 typical. we got sheds offa buck from last year.. he was around 205 last year....he was 4 1/2, maybe 5 1/2.....go figure:D

slayer

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

WA7MM. You are in a good region, no dought. Especially for the south.
.....But.... Every year several 200+ inch bucks get shot near my home in Southern Wisconsin, every year I see bucks that go over 200 inchs gross, I filmed one last year. the year before I filmed a 216 inch buck a freind ended up shooting later, both those bucks where on public land. The farm I lease in Buffalo county WI, a guy shot a 197 inch buck. The Midwest is the spot. We might not get along with your Rattle snakes, but you would probably freeze up here. Ha Ha, I would like to experience that kinda hunt at least once though.

Georgia
 

There have been more B&C deer killed in Georgia than in every state around us combined (Alabama, Tennessee, South Caroilna, North Carolina, and Florida). Most of those have been taken in a rather small area in South Georgia near the Flint river. The area is a perfect mix of abundant food, flourishing agriculture, long growing seasons, lots of timber, quality deer manangement, and modest hunting pressure. Deer season last for 4 months. When combined with great duck hunting, the country's best quail hunting, the country's best turkey hunting, excellent dove hunting, and great fishing (world record bass is from GA), it makes for a very nice spot for any avid sportsman.

RE: Georgia
 

Iowa has got to be near the top or at the top of anyone's list:D

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

[8D] id say green county ohio we have had 2 world class bucks killed here in the last 3 or 4 years ever heard of the beaty buck it was taken just up the road from me in south eastern ohio we have a lot of 160 plus bucks killed every year there are so many there givin out 3 tags this year tryin to get rid of some of the does

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

texas has nothing on illinois, wisconsin, and iowa

heres a link to the 4th biggest deer in the world [killed in fulton county illinois]

illinois big deer

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Sorry got to disagree, Texas is the BEST. Its the only place that I will ever hunt for whitetail deer, I aint going nowhere else, why would I?



"the only big deer in Texas are shot behind a high fence."



Please, dont take any cheap shots, you know that statement is 100% false. If your going to say something, atleast make it intellegent.



There are TONS of 160"+ bucks killed in this area each year. The king ranch for example, kills more p&y bucks each year then most counties in other states do. This past season we had 7 bucks taken off the ranch, all of them scored 155" or better, 3 of the bucks scored 170" or better. The "golden triangle" of south Texas is awsome, very few places compare to that area, its kinda like the "arizona strip" of Texas. The famous Los Cazadores deer contest in Cotulla Texas had 263 bucks that scored 160"+ brought in this year(almost all from s. Tx). Now this contest is completly optional and people do it just for fun, they are hoping that there buck is big enough to place and win a prize. Now there is no telling how many more 160" bucks were taken from south texas but not report or entered in any deer contest.

check out these sites, if you want to look at HUGE bucks...

www.colablanca.com

www.freerdeercamp.com

www.loscazadores.com

There are several more, but I cant think/spell there names.


I know there are a ton of good hunting areas through out the country, but s. Texas is special, and I guess because I live and hunt down here I much rather hunt here then anywhere else. Good hunting all, be safe...

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

So how many of the top ten typical and non typical whitetails were taken in texas?

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

The only deer in Texas are behind high fences, Dont be so dumb in your coments, WHAT IS YOUR OPINION OF A BIG DEER SCORE WISE SLAYER? We all want to hear this answer

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Canada is about due, dont ya think?

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

I would think Kansas, Illinois,Ohio,Kentucky, Wisconsin,Georgia(restocked with Wisconsin deer at turn of century), Missouri,Iowa,Nebraska,Alberta and Saskatchewan,Manitoba are all capable of producing both big bodied deer with trophy record book antlers.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

FYI i read in i think it was DEER magazine and i think the Mathews Magazine that Wisconsin is the #1 Pope and Young state. that means its not texas. many big bucks get shot by gun hunters as well that would by far make P&Y. ok im done preaching

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

txhighrack. ill have to reply to this later on when i get my grandpa's illinois pope and young book next time i see him. someone steered you in the wrong direction.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Texas vs. Wisconsin Top 5 Non-Typical, Pope and Young

Texas Wisconsin
1. 214 4/8 231 5/8
2. 187 1/8 230 2/8
3. 178 210 3/8
4. 174 7/8 209 3/8
5. 170 7/8 205

Looks like Texas ain't even in the same ballpark. Problem is Iowa and Illinios both beat Wisconsin on average. Therefore probably your best overall region to hunt a trophy buck would have to be the four corners of Minn, Iowa, Wis, Ill.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Everybody needs to look at the thread, place to hunt record book bucks, doesnt say they have to be P@Y, just record book bucks period, all states have record book bucks, and yes some states have alot more no doubt

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

I guess my understanding is that they need to be at least Pope and Young caliber to be "record book bucks" (130 pts. minimum (correct me if I'm wrong) as Boone and Crockett needs a higher minimum score to qualify (170 pts?). Therefore by looking at the top Pope and Young scores (deer shot with a bow and arrow) you can get a pretty good idea of what kind of bucks are in what states.

Here are the top 5 typical Pope and Young for those two states:
Texas - Wisconsin

1. 172 - 186 5/8
2. 171 - 180 2/8
3. 163 1/8 - 177 1/8
4. 160 5/8 - 176 2/8
5. 158 6/8 - 175 5/8
In this example, Texas' top buck still wouldn't crack Wisconsin's top 5 (probably not top 10).
Once again though, Iowa and Illinois still top Wisconsin, with Minnesota close behind. Therefore again a top region would be somewhere in any of those states, or where those states come together, which coincidentally Pike Co. Ill, Dubuque Co. Iowa, and Buffalo Co. Wis, all famous for producing large bucks,are all in that area.

To find out this stuff all I did was Google "Pope and Young States".

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

why do you pick on texas just a thought, awesome state to hunt, yes they may not produce as many or as big of whitetails os WI ILL or Mich. put up the gun stats just curious on how they line up against texas

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Not only is the racks bigger! but how many texas deer do you going over 300lb? It really is not that uncommon in the northen states and canada! texas does have some fine animals! but it just does not compair to wisconsin or ILL. or Kansas!;)

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Trophyhuntr, the truth of the matter is it is probably more expensive to hunt a State like Texas as compared to the other trophy states mentioned.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Handles:

Actually the Tx state record nontypical P&Y grosses 250" and nets 234", it was killed by Jack Brittingham and you can see the hunt on one of his hunting videos. The previous record was killed on the Hagerman WMA and scored in the high 220". Jack Brittingham also killed the new state record P&Y typical buck this year, but before the season was over, another hunter shot a buck that was bigger then Brittinghams buck. So the new state record P&Y typical nets 182" and was also killed in s. Texas.


To tell you the truth, most hunters in Tx (myself included) would not whip are butts with the P&Y club. Most of the bucks that are shot that would make the P&Y min. are not entered, becuase most of them are considered cull bucks and are taken off the ranch for management resonses. A 125" buck (p&y min.) is not a trophy down here (s. Tx). In states like Wis. there are alot of bowhunters, that is not the case in this area of the country, most people rifle hunt.

The thing that makes this area special is the quanity of trophy bucks. Sure other states might have bigger records then Tx, but I'm sure that those states dont have the overall number of trophy bucks like Tx does. In this area, you have a really good chance at a 160"+ buck, especially in wet years like in 2003. Just because some state occasionly produce big bucks, does not mean that state is better then any other state.


This past deer season (2003-2004), there were 25 TYPICAL bucks registerd with TP&W that NETTED 170"+ on the B&C scale. All of these bucks except for 2, where killed in South Texas. The biggest typical this year netted 188". So there will be 25 bucks added to the B&C books after one season of hunting. I am sure that next year will be just as good if not better then last year, because we have had 2 really wet springs in a row which means BIG ANTLERS.

"Not only is the racks bigger! but how many texas deer do you going over 300lb?"


I've never heard of a Tx buck weighing over 300 LBS. But I dont think there is a single guy in Tx that cares about that. I have no problem killing bucks that weight in the 150-180 (average) range, besides I dont want to drag a 300 lb buck threw the brush and I dont want one deer to take up my entire freezer. Couldnt care less how much are bucks weight.


It really dosent matter where you hunt, as long as you enjoy it that is all that matters. But if for some reason you want a really good chance at a 160"+ buck, come to s. Texas, thats your best bet.:D

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Handles:

""Here are the top 5 typical Pope and Young for those two states:
Texas - Wisconsin

1. 172 - 186 5/8
2. 171 - 180 2/8
3. 163 1/8 - 177 1/8
4. 160 5/8 - 176 2/8
5. 158 6/8 - 175 5/8 ""



I'm just curious as to how old those records are? I cant belive that the 5th biggest p&y typical only scores 158". Just one ranch that I know of killed a handful of bucks with bows this past season that scores more then that. Bowhunting is not the "king" of Texas, rifle hunting is. I know there are 2 guys who each held the State record 2 different times through the years. Both of these guys only bow hunt, which shows that if your a serious bowhunter and hunt on good ground, then you have a good chance of placing high in the P&Y books because you dont have much competition. Bow hunting is becoming more popular in Texas, but it is still along way from rifle hunting.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Handles (and who ever else)

This is the most current info that I can find in my hunting mag. (2002). This is the total number of bowhunters in the following states.You wonder why there are more P&Y bucks killed in Wisconsin then in Texas? Well maybe this will tell you why................


Wisconsin = 258,000 bowhunters
Texas = 77,000 bowhunters
Illinios = 100,000 bowhunters
Minnesota = 325,000 bowhunters


"Looks like Texas ain't even in the same ballpark."

Yeah how can it be, when other states have 5 times the number of bowhunters. When a state has 300,000 hunters, you would expect that there would be several P&Y bucks killed each year. No wonder why Buffalo county in Wisconsin claims to be the "best county for producing P&Y bucks" when there are 260,000 people hunting there, I would expect them to kill a large number of 120"+ bucks.


Just because Texas does not have as many bucks in the P&Y books as other states, does not mean that those states are better then Texas. Last year I think there were over 500,000 hunting lic. sold in Texas, only about 80,000 of them were bowhunting lic. the other 420,000 were rifle hunters. Which goes to show that bowhunting is not as popular in Tx as rifle hunting, which is the reason why Tx does not produce many P&Y bucks.

You can not post the number of P&Y bucks killed and claim that this state is better then that state, because this state has more p&y bucks entered. You also have to compare the number of people who are out there hunting, or did you intentially leave out this information??

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

TXhighrack

as you can tell im with you on this one i love hunting south texas, around menard and sanora, i will say this i dont see how you can really bow hunt down there due to the trees, there are only a hand full,

Lets see the new #'s on B&C rifle between texas and Wis.
You are right at defending the # of bowhunters in Texas vs. Wi, good argument but for fun also

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Trophyhuntr,

Are you planning on going to Menard this season?

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dont know yet

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B&C article:

STATE # OF ENTRIES
1. IOWA 615
2. MINNESOTA 608
3. WISCONSIN 589
4. ILLINOIS 552
5. TEXAS 316
6. MISSOURI 285
7. KENTUCKY 279
8. KANSAS 255
9. OHIO 235
10. MICHIGAN 155


Check the link - a good read on whitetail distribution:http://www.boone-crockett.org/bgreco...area=bgrecords

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

My apologies to all, my records were not current, they were from 2000. I wasn't really picking on Texas, just that an earlier poster was completely bragging up the state saying something to the effect that there are more 195 class bucks than anywhere else. I just wanted to see how it stacked up vs. other states.

As for the # of hunters, that can be just as much of a downfall as it is a bonus. Wisconsin has almost 1million hunters (overall) in an area much smaller than texas, many many more small bucks get taken and therefore it is actually more difficult for a buck to reach maturity, and therefore even harder to tag one of those monsters.

RE: Best region to kill record class bucks...
 

Here is my West Texas buck from two years ago. He scored 209 3/16 B&C. So dont tell me there are no trophy bucks in Texas.