Yesterday was a day I will remember for the rest of my life. I stumbled into this buck by accident in may of 22 when I randomly set a camera in a spot that I thought looked good for elk. I go back and check and this whopper popped up. I put countless hours into finding his pattern, where he was bedded and it was completely sporadic. Finally a month out I thought I had him pegged, but he disappeared three days before the archery opener and popped up for a week in October and then disappeared again. A true ghost of the woods.
After drawing my multi season tag I vowed that it was this buck or no buck. His pattern was more predictable this year and by fate or divine intervention this past weeks rain made him comfortable enough to show himself in the daylight. I climb into my stand the morning of the opener and he didn’t show…here we go again I thought. As the day wore on and the temperatures cooled a smaller buck walked by with about 30 mins of shooting light left. He feeds along the trail for 5 mins or so and picks his head up, staring off to my right. That has to be him coming in I thought to myself trying to gain my composure. He’s staring in the direction that buck always comes from…10 mins left of light I see “the buck” emerge from the shadows at 15 yards right under my stand. Draw anchor breath fire, I watched the arrow pass through the cavity with a large pop as he crashes down the hill. I gave him 30 mins and let the nerves settle, climbed down from my stand, picked up his blood trail and found him 80 yards away. Shock and awe and more shock..grateful for this amazing animal but filled with remorse as it seems like a chapter in my hunting career came to a close. I’ll most likely never see a buck like this again let alone get an opportunity with my bow.
Im not a score guy and never have been but my taxidermist taped him out and gave me a firm smack on the back. I can follow up to this post for those who are interested in what it was.
Good luck to those chasing these ghosts this year! Enjoy every second of these amazing animals - they sure are special
