Me and my Dad decided to spend more time hunting the rut this year instead of waiting until rifle season to try to find our deer. Our rut starts to really get going around the third week of October so we made it a point to spend a week out there seeing what there was to choose from this year. Of course hunting in October meant we would be bow hunting so we both bought Crossbows this year. Dad has killed a 18 point 176” with a standard compound bow but I have never taken a buck with any kind of archery equipment even though I use to spend a ton of time trying. I did take a free range Sika with my dads bow a couple of years ago but never a Whitetail so I was ready to make history this year.

After checking all the cameras we pretty much decided we would be hunting deer we already had several years history with. My dad would be hunting a buck we called “Kicker 9” and I would be hunting a buck we called “Old 8”. Kicker 9 is a buck we have seen for 3 years now and we figured him at 5.5 years old. Old 8 is a buck I have 4 or 5 years worth of game cam pics of and he is at least a 7.5 year old buck.

On the afternoon of 20th the wind was right for my dad to hunt a stand that Kicker 9 was known to visit. It was the very first time he ever hunted with his new crossbow and it didn’t take long to put It to work. About 6:45pm his buck showed up checking out some Does. At a distance of 34 yards the Slick Trick 125 found its mark and the deer went about 50 yards before going down. It is his second best buck of all time.




My luck wasn’t going so well. Earlier this year I had set up a new bow set up that I thought was going to be great with a north wind. Things don’t always go as planned though and even with a north wind my scent was swirling in between the two hills I was set up between and just about every deer was picking me off. I was getting really frustrated and decided I was going to make a mock scrape up wind of the trail location in hopes that the over powering scent of a full bottle of Code Red Estrus would be more than a big old buck could stand. So in the early morning hours of the 22ed I did just that with nothing but moon light to help me see what I was doing. Once the scrape was complete I climbed up in the stand and saw some deer and for the most part I went undetected but still no shooter bucks. That afternoon when I walked in a took another full bottle of just regular Code Red Doe urine and poured it in the same spot then climbed up in the stand. About 5:30pm I had a deer coming down the trail but he/she/it didn’t like something and took off before I could tell what it was. By 6:30pm I still hadn’t had a deer come in and the wind had shifted almost 90 degrees to the south and was going right down the trail. I came within a inch of getting down knowing the odds of seeing anything at that point were next to zero. I had no place else to go that late in the day so I decided just sitting tight was my best bet. At 6:40pm I caught some movement coming down the trail and could see that the bucks main beams turned up on the end so I knew it was the buck I was after. I got my bow into position and told myself when he cleared the Mesquite tree to my right I was going to let one fly. Just as many deer before him had done to me the previous few days he caught a whiff of something and hung up at about 50 yards sniffing the air with his nose up high. I figured at this point it was either the mock scrape he was smelling or me. If it was me he would be gone…….if it was the scrape he would continue on to where I made the scrape. He eventually turned left to get farther down wind and then started to close the distance on the mock scrape to my relief. Once he cleared the Mesquite tree I figured him at 15 yards and followed him in the scope while he walked towards the scrape then sent the arrow his way. Once again the Slick Trick 125 smacked him perfectly right behind the shoulder and he took off. I knew from the sound of the impact it was a solid hit and as he ran right by my stand I could see the massive amounts of blood pouring from just behind the shoulders and knew he wouldn’t go far. I told myself that due to the location of the shot I would only give him 5 minutes before retrieving my arrow and picking up the trail so I wouldn’t have to trail him in the dark. Once I got down I could see the massive blood trail he left behind and it was bold enough a blind man could follow it. I picked up my arrow and followed the trail about 45 yards before finding him stone cold dead. To some he may be just a old 8 point but to me he is my first archery buck and also the oldest buck I have ever killed.




Thought this was a funny pic as I tried to get him out of the creek bottom.


There was also one other nice 8 taken this week out there by another hunter but I don't have the pics downloaded yet.


This is the first Horny Toad I have ever seen in my life.


First Tarantula I have ever seen on the place.

Great pics and write up as always JCB! Congrats to you and your Dad on a great week!

Great read, Great bucks and congrats on the 1st archery buck!

Sounds like a great week of hunting JCB.....congrats on both of your bucks!! I always look forward to your hunt stories!!!

Great bucks

WOW! as always great bucks and great storys..I am just about 60 miles sw of yall a couple of weeks ago..and our rut hasn't even hinted at starting yet..the buck that your dad got is awesome..and also your buck is great too..i was crazy for leaving that lease..miss hunting with you and your dad!tell larry I said congrats!!

congrats to both of you!
great bucks!

Nice bucks! Would that other lease member happen to be Dustin?

Good job on both bucks!

No he is still huntin for his.

Congrats, great deer!

Thank you sir for a great story and some awesome photos. Congrats to you and your father on two fine bucks! Well Done.

Great bucks and photos congrats

Man as always a great write up.

Great buck man, same goes for your dads. Awesome

Glad yall have a relationship like that

Just curious but where is the lease located to have brutes like that? If you said it, I missed it

Congratulations!

Congrats!

X2

Congrats to you and your Dad. Great when a plan comes together.
Very nice bucks.

About 30-40 minutes north of San Angelo.

Here's mine taken a few days B4 these were taken on the same lease. No giant but my best bow buck to date.

Great looking deer and a great story!

Congrats to all hunters involved! Great bucks! Where you guys hunting?

Congrats