While it’s true that I travel a little bit of everywhere chasing first time experiences, I do find it odd that I’ve hunted all these years and never put much time into whitetail outside of Texas. Part of that is because the deer hunting in Texas is really good, and part of that is because I simply don’t need more whitetail meat. I have permission all over my home state to tag a handful of deer, so going out of state to chase them wasn’t a priority. I must admit though, after my Kentucky experience, I can no longer say this. I pray I have the opportunity to go back every year!!
Other than the fact that Kentucky has a little bit of everything from hard woods, farmlands, mountains and all four seasons, the body size of these animals is what I can’t wrap my mind around. I’ve always been a sucker for big bodies, fat necks, a Roman nose, battle scars, etc. The behavior of these deer spoiled me too. I got to hear them grunt, snort-wheeze, watched them puff up and pin their ears back, beat the hell out of surrounding trees, make scrapes, and everything in between. I don’t get to witness much of that in Texas unless I’m in the deep South, but even then it was never consistent behavior. I saw more of that in Kentucky during October (when many claim you cannot kill a mature buck) than I ever have during the rut back home. It was amazing.
DAY 1
The first morning of my hunt I didn’t see a single deer, which surprised the guides at Salt River Outfitters. Honestly, it was probably a blessing because the stand was set up for a hard right-handed shot. In other words, I would’ve had to do a complete 180 to get setup, and I have a hard time believing the deer wouldn’t bust me. I failed to mention to the outfitter that I was left handed, and that’s 100% my responsibility. Most bowhunters are RH so stands are set up in a neutral position or for a convenient RH shot. They actually have LH setups, but there weren’t any mature deer coming to them yet so I didn’t sit at any of them. I went back to the cabin and shot bows with the guys for a little bit in between hunts, which always keeps my confidence up.
That evening hunt was the most incredible spot. I’m actually a little sad I didn’t get another sit there before leaving town. It was down in a bottom, surrounded by hard woods, and there was SO much activity. I was covered in deer; I even had a doe come in downwind of me. Not only that, I got to watch multiple bucks putting on a show and chasing does. One of the smaller bucks that was busted up on one side pushed every buck around like he owned the place. It’s neat to witness how much activity happens outside of your trail cam pics too. The bucks were so scattered and moving so quickly that you’d never know they were there unless you sat there because they weren’t always in front of the camera. I love that about the outdoors - every time you climb into a stand, you’re learning. I learned a lot that night! I couldn’t get out of my stand without spooking all of them, so I asked my guide Heath to drive in and pick me up.
DAY 2
It was a rough day. I had been up all night with the worst abdominal pain I’ve ever felt. I was in and out of the bathroom from 1am until 5am trying not to throw up, all while my stomach felt like it was on fire. I almost drove myself to the ER, but I was afraid to drive alone and I didn’t want to wake anybody up. I really hate feeling like a burden!! My alarm came quick and I pulled myself together because I knew I’d regret not going to the stand. You can’t tag out at the lodge, and the pain had settled enough that I could push through. Unfortunately, it was another morning of seeing zero deer, which isn’t necessarily uncommon in October. Honestly, if I would’ve had as much time as I needed, I probably wouldn’t have hunted any mornings. However, I had 5 days to get it done. I went back to the cabin and slept several hours on the couch before heading out again.
That evening I went to a gorgeous setup on the edge of a field, seeing several deer and feeling hopeful that a buck would walk out. The next thing I know, a tractor is working its way straight to me; the farmer decided to start hauling his hay bales at prime time. I knew he was pushing time because there was a storm coming, and honestly we would’ve done the same thing back home! It’s hard to find balance between the two worlds without them interfering at times. We’ve even had to cut hay in May before, when the does are hiding their babies in the fields. It sucks, but it’s necessary sometimes. I don’t think the farmer knew I was there, but at the end of the day he has to make a living and I respect that. I climbed down feeling grateful that I got to see some deer movement and a beautiful sunset, and any day in a deer stand is better than a day at the office.
DAY 3
I woke up to thunder and lightning right before my alarm went off. It stormed all night long and they were calling for really strong winds until 8am. I knew that if the wind and rain died down, the deer movement would most likely be amazing. I love getting in a stand right after they’ve been bedded all night. On top of that, it was freaking cold for this Texan. George (the owner of Salt River) was on the fence about where to put me that morning. He was deciding between two stands that were both great spots, and he decided to take me to “Chad’s” where they had two big mature deer, one of which was a nice 7. He dropped me off at the gate, directed me toward the ladder stand, and I went on my way. I think I smiled the whole way in - I just had a good feeling and I was finally feeling normal again after being sick the day before. It’s so cool to let your imagination run wild when you’re trying a new area and anxious to see what will happen.
Unfortunately I saw two deer with my headlamp as I was walking in. Although I never want to bust up deer while walking in, I was happy to know they were moving at all in the morning. After all, I hadn’t seen deer the last two morning sits. I ended up having several small bucks come in, including a young 9 at first light. I couldn’t tell much about him, but I snapped a photo through my 10x42 binos a little bit later to confirm what he was. By the way, I would’ve been MUCH better off with my Vanguard 8x32 binos for this trip (and every other whitetail hunt) because I wasn’t glassing long distances. Sometimes it’s tough to remember to switch gear out when I’ve been in elk mode for a month! The 10x42s were usually overkill when I was trying to see animals that were within 50 yards. I sat until 11-11:30 that morning but never had a shooter come in. When I saw 4 does come through without stopping to feed, I knew they were probably going to bed down. I climbed down and headed out!
Fast forward to the evening hunt, and George said, “I think you need to go back there.” I got excited and agreed - I couldn’t wait to go back to Chad’s. I just had such a good feeling about that spot. It was another cold sit, but I had a buck come in pretty quick which took my mind off the chill I had. At first glance, I thought it was the same 9 from that morning, but as he walked away, I could tell he was a shooter. He definitely had more mass, a funky left G4 that the other buck didn’t have, 100% bigger bodied too, and I remembered the guys saying there was a mature 9 on camera. I’m 99.9% sure that was him, and he never came back in. Soon after, the little 9 from the morning hunt came in - for real this time!! He threw his head up and locked in on a heavy game trail to his right (my left) and my heart started speeding. I had this gut feeling that the 7 was coming in, and I was right.
Man, did he put on a show too. He raked almost every tree coming in, and he’d snort wheeze every few minutes as he circled the young 9. The two deer were so focused on each other that I could easily get into position to shoot. The 7 stopped broadside with a tree limb covering his vitals, and I waited for him to take another step, but when he did he looked up and kept his eyes on something directly downwind of me. I slowly turned my head to the right to see a couple does stomping, their heads up in the air, then running. They caught my scent, and he didn’t like it. He never stopped looking at them, and eventually turned to leave too. At that point the buck fever had set in so bad that I don’t know that I’d get drawn back to begin with, but I was kicking myself for missing out on a short window to make it happen. I truly think that even though he was alert, I had roughly 30-60 seconds to draw when his head was turned at a sharp enough angle. I second guessed myself and just didn’t make it happen. Ugh, I felt so sick.
I was losing light so fast, especially under all those trees, but I stayed alert with my body turned and arrow nocked, ready for another opportunity. I couldn’t stop shaking. I was so cold because I didn’t bring my warmer gear (again, hard to transition into cold sits when I’ve been spot and stalking elk for a month in the heat), paired with the fact that the 7 point got me jacked up. The adrenaline just wouldn’t chill out. I kept praying and taking deep breaths, but I was rattling so bad up there that when two does came through, they looked right at me. Ha, I wish I was kidding. They left too, and I continued to stay patient just in case I had a last minute opportunity. That’s when I looked up and saw a massive body moving through the trees. I could barely see his rack, but I saw the biggest bodied whitetail I’d ever seen, and told myself he was the one. I looked through my binos and saw some good eyeguards, confirmed he looked like a horse, and settled my single pin on his vitals. He was slightly quartering toward me, but again, I had my elk setup (425 grain arrows, fixed broadhead, and shooting 56lbs) so I knew if I hit that front shoulder I’d still get the penetration I needed. I let the arrow fly, heard it connect, and watched him spin away from me. I called Joey and Heath, and of course they asked me how many points he had and I seriously couldn't say if he was a 8, 9, or 10…that probably sounds strange but I try not to pay too much attention to the rack. Also, I feel like my mind goes blank after I shoot. I’m trying hard to work on it, but it’s a constant struggle because I get so amped up.
I sat in Joey’s truck for 30 minutes or so warming up and trying to calm down because all I could remember was the buck spinning and I swore I saw a hint of white (fletching and/or nock) a little bit further back than I’d like. I also never heard him crash, but felt a little better when Joey told me that the hill drops off and I may not have heard him crash once he was at a lower elevation. Eventually Heath pulled up and I immediately asked to see trail cam pics to show them the one I thought I might’ve shot. I was a mess, just worried to death about every little thing. The anxiety I feel before finding an animal is slightly ridiculous, maybe because I know how awful it feels to lose them. I didn’t even look for blood before walking out because I didn’t want to be tempted to keep going without the guys there. As soon as Matt Pell (owner of AccuBow) got to us, we headed in to track.
It wasn’t pretty. I couldn’t find a drop of blood anywhere. We all started to spread out, looking for blood, an arrow, anything. I started to get a lump in my throat, then my phone rang. It was Heath. “I found him.” I squealed and rushed toward him and Peyton, who both waited back to let me see him first. I slowly walked up to my buck, jaw halfway on the ground because his body was bigger than I thought. He was perfect. Come to find out, I didn’t accurately mark the brush where the buck ran to, and had I got it right the first time I would’ve been on a great blood trail. The arrow was right next to him and got a full passthrough, even through the front shoulder. He only ran about 75 yards from the shot. I couldn’t believe it!! To see my recovery video, click here.
I can’t finish this story without bragging on the outfitter and saying my deepest thank you to AccuBow for having me out. It was a wonderful experience and one of the best deer camps I’ve ever been to. I watched the guides bust their butt every day, and they truly cared about us being successful. The owner let me tag along to help check cameras and feed after I tagged out, and I never felt out of place. It can be intimidating to walk into camp with 10+ men that I don’t know, but I had the opposite experience. I got to sit around the table sharing hunting stories and laughing until our stomachs hurt. I was respected from the moment I got there, and went home with a lot of new friendships. Also, aside from all of that, we had 100% success. EVERY hunter tagged out, and we were all archery hunters except for one muzzleloader hunter. That’s impressive and not many outfitters can say that year after year. I’d go back in a heartbeat!