I like to hunt with a bow. I started in 1961 with a fiberglass Bear recurve and wooden shaft arrows. It took me 9 years to shoot my first deer with it; a small 7 pointer, but boy was I proud. I never took another deer with that bow, though I hunted with it for another 10 or 12 years. Once I started hunting with a compound bow, success came immediately. Adding to my upgraded archery equipment were the years I had spent getting to know my quarry and the fact that I had stopped hunting on the ground and moved up into elevated tree stands. Every deer that I've ever had an opportunity on, has given me a tremedous adrenaline rush, I love that feeling to this day.

Anyway, in 1986, I was in a permanent stand that I had built and had been using for a couple of years. It was November 4th, 1986 and I was in my stand for the afternoon hunt. I had drug a rag soaked in 200 Proof Doe-in-heat lure behind me on my way in to my stand. It's amazing how one critical detail can mean the difference between success and failure, as you shall hear. I had also put a canister of doe-in-heat out in front of my stand as well. As the afternoon progessed I had seen a couple of squirrels and a red shouldered hawk, but nothing else, then I saw movement in the sticker bushes in front of me and out strolled a pretty nice 7 pointer. He smelled the doe-in-heat canister and came walking stright in to it, as if on a string.

As I watched this nice buck he actually put his nose in the canister and was smelling it deeply. I went to full draw, but the buck was straight on and I didn't have a shot. I held at full draw waiting for a shot opportunity until my arm started to waiver a bit and I knew I wouldn't be able to hold the draw much longer, fortunately the buck started to turn away and I let loose my arrow. In realiity, he had just turned his head and not yet his body, my arrow just grazed his side. Jumping back the startled 7-pointer ran about 30 yards and stopped, he stood looking back towards the canister not knowing what had just happened.

As I tried to nock another arrow I heard someone shuffilling in the leaves behind me. I gave him a shush motion with my hand as I continued to watch the 7 pointer, without breaking stride the guy behind continued walking towards me. He was going to scare off the 7 pointer any minute so I turned towards him to shush him and, "OH MY GOD", it was a huge buck; the biggest I've ever seen in the woods. This trophy buck started to trot past my stand, so I quickly turned and let an arrow go--- about 5 yards behind him.  I watched hopelessly as he trotted away, but then a strange thing happened; the big buck crossed the drag line I had made coming in, stopped in his tracks, put his nose down and then started coming back to me. 

At about 25 yards he spotted the 7-pointer which was still standing right where he had been, watching all this unfold. When they were about 15 yards apart, with the big one being 27 yards away from my stand, I let loose another arrow.... and NOTHING!  My trophy stood for another second or two staring at the 7 pointer, then all of a sudden he took off after him spoiling for a fight. I was crestfallen. Oh well, it was almost dark at this point so I got out of my stand to retrieve my 3 arrows.

When I picked up the last arrow that I had shot I found that it was COVERED IN BLOOD!! There were buckets of blood all over the ground and as I walked to where the buck had disappeared into the sticker bushes, I saw where he had fallen just out of sight of my stand. I had done it. I had taken a buck of my dreams. I thanked God and since it was getting dark fast, went quickly about field dressing him and getting him out of the woods.

I couldn't get over how big he looked so I took him up to the old Butts and Bows in Belleville to have him weighed on certified scales; 209 dressed weight!l Later I had him scored and he netted 129 and change. WOW. I still look at that mount every day in my living room. I've taken bigger deer since then, but none more meaningful. I'll always treasure that day in 1986, when I took a Pope and Young buck right here in New Jersey. I can only hope you all have that same feeling some day.

All good things. Barry