Big Buck Tales

Wayne Leazier Jr. Buck

Wayne Leazier Jr. Buck

By Mike Handley

Few deer hunters would trade big woods serenity and fresh air for the ambient noise of a nearby highway and a breeze tainted by diesel fumes. But one bowhunter from Fort Wayne, Ind., has learned that aesthetics have little to do with one’s chances of taking home a buck. Wayne Leazier Jr. logs a lot of miles each fall in his quest for whitetai... READ MORE

Jerry Bryant Buck

Jerry Bryant Buck

By Mike Handley

Strangely, the buck didn't react to the loud pop of the crossbow's string. The deer didn't charge off toward parts unknown. It merely stood there, sort of bobbing its head and pawing the ground. "I thought he was just peeved," remembers Jerry Bryant. There was no way that the hunter from Peoria, Ill., could shoot again. He can only cock his 10-year... READ MORE

Richard Gates Buck

Richard Gates Buck

By Peter Schoonmaker (2008)

The existence of a trophy whitetail is no accident. They possess superior genes. They are surrounded by bountiful nutrition. And their realm possesses several varieties of protective cover. Limited access or private agricultural lands will allow a buck to achieve full body growth and possess a true trophy rack of antlers. And some of these whitetai... READ MORE

Charles Falkenheiner Buck

Charles Falkenheiner Buck

By Charles Falkenheiner

My buddies and I first became aware of this deer in August 2012, but nobody saw it during daylight hours until the hunting season was almost at an end. On that day, the bowhunter who saw it said the buck’s rack looked pretty busted up, so we all decided to hold off in hopes it would survive another year. During the summer of 2013, one of sev... 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

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

Ricky Caldwell Buck

Ricky Caldwell Buck

By Greg Hicks

“There’s no place like home.” Dorothy said it in “The Wizard of Oz” in 1939. Louisiana’s Ricky Caldwell spoke those same words on the Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge in 2012. Ricky was born and raised not far from what would eventually become one of the best public hunting tracts in North America. Under his... READ MORE

Dann Hughes Buck

Dann Hughes Buck

By Savannah Hughes

For my dad, getting up early on a cold morning, layering himself in camouflage and then sitting in a deer stand or duck blind rates right up there with breathing. He lives for (and because of) it! Half his wardrobe is camo, and I guarantee that he gets his money's worth out of it all. It does not make sense to some people why Dad and other hunters... READ MORE

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