Big Buck Tales

Mike Beatty Buck

Mike Beatty Buck

By Dan Armitage

Fumbling nervously in the darkness for one of his distinctive white-fletched arrows, Mike Beatty had made one of the toughest decisions of his life: to temporarily abandon the search for the monstrous whitetail he'd shot at dusk. Still not convinced that he'd chosen correctly, the Ohio bowhunter nocked the projectile on the barbed wire fence to mar... READ MORE

Brian Stephens Buck

Brian Stephens Buck

By Tony Seals

On Nov. 30, opening day of Ohio’s 2009 firearms season, Brian Stephens harvested a brutish buck while hunting his 180-acre family farm in the southwestern portion of the state. The 40-year-old software developer has enjoyed spending quality time with friends and family while hunting for whitetails and small game on the farm since he was 12. ... READ MORE

Kyle Simmons Buck

Kyle Simmons Buck

By Mike Handley

Because he rarely asks for time off from his job, inclement weather usually dictates when Kyle Simmons can go hunting. The demand for firewood near Spragueville, Iowa, keeps him busy for 60 or more hours a week. But last October, the 24-year-old saw the stars aligning and asked his boss for an uncharacteristically long weekend. Rain had ushered in ... READ MORE

Lord of the Flies

Lord of the Flies

By Mike Handley

’Twas a tiny female fly — not a bullet, broadhead or Buick — that brought down the largest antlered (wild) whitetail in North America last year. And it might have gone undiscovered had a Kansas man not taken a stroll along a creek bank in search of the buck that had dropped off his nephew’s radar. The deer, while alive, was ... READ MORE

Bruce Lane Buck

Bruce Lane Buck

By Bruce Lane

Rather than striking out for my deer stand in the pouring rain on Oct. 31, I crawled back under the covers. The storm was supposed to move out by noon, which meant I could still spend half my Saturday in a tree. I’d hung my stand several months earlier, after spotting a huge whitetail bedded on a brushy hillside. The buck’s travel route... READ MORE

Jeff Newton Buck

Jeff Newton Buck

By Jill J. Easton

Jeff Newton’s Bunkie, La., home might still have a big bare spot on the wall if he hadn’t nurtured the 500 acres in Avoyelles Parish he and his brother bought when the Clintons left the White House. After nine years of looking for wall art during the November rut in Illinois, the Louisiana bowhunter decided to shop at home in 2008. "I s... READ MORE

Jason Woodbury Buck

Jason Woodbury Buck

By Jill J. Easton

Passing up a 9-pointer and ignoring a button buck last year enabled Jason Woodbury of Kouts, Ind., to put his tag on a buck few hunters could even imagine. Being a nice guy helped, too, because he’d never have been on that property had he not offered to take his little boy’s friend hunting. Jason’s dream season started when his 9... READ MORE

Johnny King Buck

Johnny King Buck

By Mike Handley

The two men approached the downed buck cautiously, from different sides. Johnny King’s bullets had dropped the enormous whitetail, but Brad Heisz, who’d answered his cousin’s desperate call for help, had obligingly administered the coup de grace. Brad reached it first, while Johnny was circling around in front. He knelt, grasped t... READ MORE

Copyright 2024 by Buckmasters, Ltd.

Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd