Trophy or meat hunter???

[p-ohana]

First legal animal hits the ground. I will pass on does until the late season, but first day of the late season they better watch out.

[MtnMuley]

First and always, I enjoy the meat that a animal provides to my family. That being said I am more of a trophy hunter for deer then a meat hunter. I would rather let a smaller less mature buck walk away to live another day, then fill my freezer that has plenty of meat in it.

   I adhere to the saying, you'll never kill that really big one if you don't keep passing on smaller ones.  Besides....you get many more memorable hunts that way.

With that said, back in 93', I had the opportunity to kill the biggest whitetail I have ever had in my sights....and for over an hour at 80-100 yards on the first morning of my modern permit hunt.  I passed as it was the first day and I had planned to spend almost two weeks in my favorite part of the world chasing whitetails.

That buck was an honest 190-200 class whitetail.  Looked like a small rocking chair on top of his head.  Very symmetrical 6x5 typical with a split G2.  All the tines on the main beam were evenly long (in excess of 10-11 inches) with great eye guards.  The G2 split halfway up and both split tines were approximately 6-7 inches above that split.  He was tending a doe and had no clue I was even around. 


I named him the "*censored* Buck", in honor of what my son referred to me as, for passing on him, for the next 8 days of that hunting trip.

The other old saying that is very true is...."If they look big, they are big!"  Don't be a *censored*....

However on that trip I had four memorable hunts on bucks that were above 150 class, that I also passed on.  Ended up shooting a typical 4x4 125-130 class buck on the last day to appease my son, who by then was thinking I was ready for the funny farm.  Whenever I look at that typical 4x4 on the wall that I had mounted, I see the others including the "*censored* Buck".. Great memories for sure.  Just doesn't get any better.

I would have to agree with your son on that one. 190-200"?

[jaymark6655]

Always meat, first legal animal I see.  If it is a trophy, than that is just a little bonus on top of it all.

[Pathfinder101]

Agreeing with your son too...  pass on a 190" WT?  How do you even do that?

Steel cajones, man...

[Wacenturion]

First and always, I enjoy the meat that a animal provides to my family. That being said I am more of a trophy hunter for deer then a meat hunter. I would rather let a smaller less mature buck walk away to live another day, then fill my freezer that has plenty of meat in it.

   I adhere to the saying, you'll never kill that really big one if you don't keep passing on smaller ones.  Besides....you get many more memorable hunts that way.

With that said, back in 93', I had the opportunity to kill the biggest whitetail I have ever had in my sights....and for over an hour at 80-100 yards on the first morning of my modern permit hunt.  I passed as it was the first day and I had planned to spend almost two weeks in my favorite part of the world chasing whitetails.

That buck was an honest 190-200 class whitetail.  Looked like a small rocking chair on top of his head.  Very symmetrical 6x7 typical with a split G2.  All the tines on the main beam were evenly long (in excess of 10-11 inches) with great eye guards.  The G2 split halfway up and both split tines were approximately 6-7 inches above that split.  He was tending a doe and had no clue I was even around. 


I named him the "*censored* Buck", in honor of what my son referred to me as, for passing on him, for the next 8 days of that hunting trip.

The other old saying that is very true is...."If they look big, they are big!"  Don't be a *censored*....

However on that trip I had four memorable hunts on bucks that were above 150 class, that I also passed on.  Ended up shooting a typical 4x4 125-130 class buck on the last day to appease my son, who by then was thinking I was ready for the funny farm.  Whenever I look at that typical 4x4 on the wall that I had mounted, I see the others including the "*censored* Buck".. Great memories for sure.  Just doesn't get any better.

I would have to agree with your son on that one. 190-200"?

I figured someone would agree.   Believe me, the deer and turkey camp stories since then made it all good.  Just think of all the laughs over the years I would have missed out on. 

[Wacenturion]

Agreeing with your son too...  pass on a 190" WT?  How do you even do that?

Steel cajones, man...

Yeah you might say, I have gone where no man has ever gone.  At least no intelligent man that is..lol.

[Pathfinder101]

 

[seth30]

Always meat, first legal animal I see.  If it is a trophy, than that is just a little bonus on top of it all.

[KillBilly]

All the stuff that hits the plate is a trophy to me.

[norsepeak]

I always hunt for trophy meat.

[B.G.hunter]

First and always, I enjoy the meat that a animal provides to my family. That being said I am more of a trophy hunter for deer then a meat hunter. I would rather let a smaller less mature buck walk away to live another day, then fill my freezer that has plenty of meat in it.

   I adhere to the saying, you'll never kill that really big one if you don't keep passing on smaller ones.  Besides....you get many more memorable hunts that way.

With that said, back in 93', I had the opportunity to kill the biggest whitetail I have ever had in my sights....and for over an hour at 80-100 yards on the first morning of my modern permit hunt.  I passed as it was the first day and I had planned to spend almost two weeks in my favorite part of the world chasing whitetails.

That buck was an honest 190-200 class whitetail.  Looked like a small rocking chair on top of his head.  Very symmetrical 6x7 typical with a split G2.  All the tines on the main beam were evenly long (in excess of 10-11 inches) with great eye guards.  The G2 split halfway up and both split tines were approximately 6-7 inches above that split.  He was tending a doe and had no clue I was even around. 


I named him the "*censored* Buck", in honor of what my son referred to me as, for passing on him, for the next 8 days of that hunting trip.

The other old saying that is very true is...."If they look big, they are big!"  Don't be a *censored*....

However on that trip I had four memorable hunts on bucks that were above 150 class, that I also passed on.  Ended up shooting a typical 4x4 125-130 class buck on the last day to appease my son, who by then was thinking I was ready for the funny farm.  Whenever I look at that typical 4x4 on the wall that I had mounted, I see the others including the "*censored* Buck".. Great memories for sure.  Just doesn't get any better.

WTF! how do you pass on a 190" deer? 

[deerslyr]

I shoot what I see fit for the time and the hunt. Some times there nice bucks some times there not. There all trophys to me. Just depends on what hunt im on, who im with and how I feel about that particular animal. Ill be home on monday till the end of late archery and i might shoot the first doe I get a good shot at or I might eat tag soup. Just depends what I feel at that given moment.

[Wacenturion]

B. G.   It's easy.  I'll send you an application to the "*censored*" club complete with instructions. 

Seriously, like I said earlier, I didn't want to end my two week hunt on the first day.  Actually it was an easy decision.  I was calm and collected the whole hour watching him.  My son, well that was a different story.  He could not believe what he was seeing.  He was witnessing in his mind his old man obviously losing it.  Will never forget the words he whispered to me while watching that buck.  "Kill that freaking deer...that's the biggest buck I've ever seen.....WTF, are you nuts".

After passing on the next two, both in the 150 class range, it was hard to get him to even carry on a conversation with me.  You see he didn't have a permit.  He was merely keeping me company and tagging along.  Oops..guess tagging isn't the best word...lol.

Several years later he did take a nice whitetail buck during the general season....scored mid 170's.  A bruiser with a lot of character. 

[steen]

Many things factor in but meat is first then trophy.  A special permit will be a ticket for passing smaller bucks but I will still do my best to come home with meat.  When the kids hunted they filled the freezer and I could hunt a bigger buck but they still had the opportunity to shoot or not shoot at whatever came along and I may have not filled my tag since I helped them fill it.  Their hunt was asfun as mine!!

[Pathfinder101]

B. G.   It's easy.  I'll send you an application to the "*censored*" club complete with instructions. 

Seriously, like I said earlier, I didn't want to end my two week hunt on the first day.  Actually it was an easy decision.  I was calm and collected the whole hour watching him.  My son, well that was a different story.  He could not believe what he was seeing.  He was witnessing in his mind his old man obviously losing it.  Will never forget the words he whispered to me while watching that buck.  "Kill that freaking deer...that's the biggest buck I've ever seen.....WTF, are you nuts".

After passing on the next two, both in the 150 class range, it was hard to get him to even carry on a conversation with me.  You see he didn't have a permit.  He was merely keeping me company and tagging along.  Oops..guess tagging isn't the best word...lol.

Several years later he did take a nice whitetail buck during the general season....scored mid 170's.  A bruiser with a lot of character.

You are lucky he didn't kill you in your sleep with a pillow...