sureshot
The Hunt Never Ends....
Trail cameras have been an obsession of mine since their earliest days. I remember when the very first trail cameras hit the market, and I was lucky enough to have my dad buy me a ‘Trail Timer’ (I was in middle school) , which took 35mm film. I ran that thing all year long for years on end, and learned a lot back then from trial and error. There really weren’t many educational outlets back then to learn about properly running trail cams, so it was up to me to figure out how to use them in the best way possible. I still remember the first time that I put one on a scrape and checked it 4 days later……36pictures! Wow, I couldn’t believe it (that was a big deal back then for me). I felt like a kid at Christmas each time I took the film roll into Wal-Mart to get developed. I loved 1hour photo, and it wasn’t long before the staff knew me by name.
A few years later digital trail cameras hit the market, and I no longer had to go to the store to get film developed. I had also learned a lot about how and when to run the cameras to not only get a high amount of pictures, but to also get high quality pictures of big bucks. Speaking of big bucks, I think I’ll take a step back in time, and share with you the biggest deer that crossed in front of my cameras on a year by year basis. We’ll start with 2007, as pictures from prior years are not on this computer.
2007- The Year of Holyfield
Holyfield got his name from his left ear being mangled and tore up. Those of you who remember the Holyfield vs. Tyson boxing match will understand. Anyways, Holyfield was the biggest buck on the farm in 2007. He not only had character, but also maturity. His left side was full of character; the drop-tine and flyer kept me up at night, and hoping that he would walk by my stand.
That never happened, but he did show back up in 2008 (although he was no longer the biggest buck in the area). Bow season went by without a sighting of Holyfield, but word quickly spread that the beast had been shot during 1st season shotgun. After some quick investigating, I found that a local shotgun group had pushed a draw on the neighboring property. They were almost done with the push, when one of the standers yelled out, ‘Big Buck Behind You!’ Holyfield had sat tight while the pushers walked by, then when he felt the coast was clear decided it was time to jet. A lucky 200yard running shot from a local high school kid dropped Holyfield in his tracks. His story was over.
2008- The Year of Splits
Splits. Oh, the beast of a lifetime. There isn’t much to say about this buck other than one thing; world class. He had blown up from 2007, and was a buck that all of us only hope to have the chance to chase. I figured he would’ve grossed around 210inches. I have no idea what happened to him, other than the fact that disappeared to never show up again. Hopefully he spread his genetics before disappearing.
2009- The Year of Black Jack
I had been granted permission to hunt a new farm in an area that I was unsure of. It wasn’t known as a ‘highly managed’ area, but I knew there had to be big bucks around. On October 28th, 2009, I made a trip down to the new farm to check a trail camera that I had hung a few weeks prior. While driving in the long field driveway, movement caught my eye to the east. Out from the tall cattails and into the CRP stepped one of the largest whitetails that I had ever seen. At 250yards, I could see his rack so I knew he was big. I pulled up my binoculars to get a better look, and watched as he stared my direction. Suddenly, a bedded doe jumped up and the chase was on. I waited for him to leave the field and quickly checked the camera. Sure enough, Black Jack was on there. I could now see the detail in his rack; double flyers and bases that appeared to be so massive that they touched….this deer was a pig! He showed up on the cameras randomly the rest of the season, but never again in 2010.
*On a side note, although not scoring as high, a buck that I called Bud was living on a different farm. Bud had been a regular to my cameras for the previous 2 years, and had one of the most impressive frames that I’ve ever seen on a whitetail. He was shot on November 11th, 2010 by a friend of mine. He scored just shy of 170 as a 9pt.
2011- The Year of Full House
So, you’re probably thinking to yourself……’Why hasn’t Chris killed any of these big bucks that have lived on the farms he hunts?’ Well, finally, I got lucky. Full House was an average 3yr old that would’ve scored in the 130s in 2010. In 2011, he showed up…..and showed up BIG! Some daytime trial camera pictures in late October proved to me he was killable. My vacation rolled around, the wind was right, and I knew it was time. On November 4th I made my move. Did the plan work? It did, and although it rarely works like that, the stars aligned for me and I had my #1 hitlist buck on the ground.
As you can see, trail cameras have been a part of my arsenal for many years. Although I rarely kill the biggest bucks that walk in front of my cameras, I still have one hell of a good time trying. Who will be the biggest this year? I’m not sure, but I’ve got a few good ones in mind. Let’s just hope that they show up, and when they do….they always do….., November will roll around, and it will once again be time to ‘go to battle,’ and try to outwit North Americas’ ultimate survival species. It will be here before you know it. :way:
A few years later digital trail cameras hit the market, and I no longer had to go to the store to get film developed. I had also learned a lot about how and when to run the cameras to not only get a high amount of pictures, but to also get high quality pictures of big bucks. Speaking of big bucks, I think I’ll take a step back in time, and share with you the biggest deer that crossed in front of my cameras on a year by year basis. We’ll start with 2007, as pictures from prior years are not on this computer.
2007- The Year of Holyfield
Holyfield got his name from his left ear being mangled and tore up. Those of you who remember the Holyfield vs. Tyson boxing match will understand. Anyways, Holyfield was the biggest buck on the farm in 2007. He not only had character, but also maturity. His left side was full of character; the drop-tine and flyer kept me up at night, and hoping that he would walk by my stand.
That never happened, but he did show back up in 2008 (although he was no longer the biggest buck in the area). Bow season went by without a sighting of Holyfield, but word quickly spread that the beast had been shot during 1st season shotgun. After some quick investigating, I found that a local shotgun group had pushed a draw on the neighboring property. They were almost done with the push, when one of the standers yelled out, ‘Big Buck Behind You!’ Holyfield had sat tight while the pushers walked by, then when he felt the coast was clear decided it was time to jet. A lucky 200yard running shot from a local high school kid dropped Holyfield in his tracks. His story was over.
2008- The Year of Splits
Splits. Oh, the beast of a lifetime. There isn’t much to say about this buck other than one thing; world class. He had blown up from 2007, and was a buck that all of us only hope to have the chance to chase. I figured he would’ve grossed around 210inches. I have no idea what happened to him, other than the fact that disappeared to never show up again. Hopefully he spread his genetics before disappearing.
2009- The Year of Black Jack
I had been granted permission to hunt a new farm in an area that I was unsure of. It wasn’t known as a ‘highly managed’ area, but I knew there had to be big bucks around. On October 28th, 2009, I made a trip down to the new farm to check a trail camera that I had hung a few weeks prior. While driving in the long field driveway, movement caught my eye to the east. Out from the tall cattails and into the CRP stepped one of the largest whitetails that I had ever seen. At 250yards, I could see his rack so I knew he was big. I pulled up my binoculars to get a better look, and watched as he stared my direction. Suddenly, a bedded doe jumped up and the chase was on. I waited for him to leave the field and quickly checked the camera. Sure enough, Black Jack was on there. I could now see the detail in his rack; double flyers and bases that appeared to be so massive that they touched….this deer was a pig! He showed up on the cameras randomly the rest of the season, but never again in 2010.
2010- The Year of High Roller
High Roller originally showed up in 2009. I named him High Roller because his rack sat high upon his head, and his tines ‘rolled’ forward. He was a beautiful deer that I knew had the potential to turn into a giant. Sure enough, in August of 2010 he showed up on the cameras and had bloomed into a monster. I hunted him hard during the 2010 season, and was hoping to put an arrow through him. On October 30th, a tight racked 160inch 10 walked by at 10 yards…..I couldn’t resist. My tag was filled, and I had to wait until late muzzleloader to try for High Roller again. He never showed up and is currently still MIA. My fingers are still crossed that he will return.
*On a side note, although not scoring as high, a buck that I called Bud was living on a different farm. Bud had been a regular to my cameras for the previous 2 years, and had one of the most impressive frames that I’ve ever seen on a whitetail. He was shot on November 11th, 2010 by a friend of mine. He scored just shy of 170 as a 9pt.
2011- The Year of Full House
So, you’re probably thinking to yourself……’Why hasn’t Chris killed any of these big bucks that have lived on the farms he hunts?’ Well, finally, I got lucky. Full House was an average 3yr old that would’ve scored in the 130s in 2010. In 2011, he showed up…..and showed up BIG! Some daytime trial camera pictures in late October proved to me he was killable. My vacation rolled around, the wind was right, and I knew it was time. On November 4th I made my move. Did the plan work? It did, and although it rarely works like that, the stars aligned for me and I had my #1 hitlist buck on the ground.
As you can see, trail cameras have been a part of my arsenal for many years. Although I rarely kill the biggest bucks that walk in front of my cameras, I still have one hell of a good time trying. Who will be the biggest this year? I’m not sure, but I’ve got a few good ones in mind. Let’s just hope that they show up, and when they do….they always do….., November will roll around, and it will once again be time to ‘go to battle,’ and try to outwit North Americas’ ultimate survival species. It will be here before you know it. :way:
