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Entries for 'Gray Loon'
Don’t Beg This Guy to Play Poker with You
By Mike Handley
Three days before Oklahoma's 2014 bow season opened, Joel Clark called his friend, Eric Rosser, to see if he wanted to join a hunting lease. Eric declined, at first, because he'd just chipped in on another lease in the western part of the state. But Joel was persistent. Having a place to hunt in Lincoln County, within an hour of his home, was what ... READ MORE
The Last Tag-Holder
By Mike Handley
Pennsylvania hunter Jason Kornbau's first impression of a buck his trail camera photographed in the summer of 2014 was that its rack was goofy. The deer was thusly named. "It was early. We couldn't tell what it was (point-wise), but there were massive main beams and many places where points could develop," he told Lisa Price, who wrote the story fo... READ MORE
Debbie’s Temporary Undoing
By Mike Handley
When Madison and Debbie Edwards of Stanford, Kentucky, headed to his deer lease in Owen County last year, they planned to bowhunt the entire week leading up to the firearms opener. They also took their rifles, just in case the bowhunting was a bust. Good move. Mike filled his tag on opening morning of rifle season. Debbie got her turn that afternoo... READ MORE
New No. 1 for Penn’s Woods
By Mike Handley
Matt Wentz had intended to spend the afternoon of Nov. 13, 2014, in a ladder stand, but he stopped 15 yards short and cleared a spot to hunt from the ground - a tactic he'd never tried.
While walking into the property with a buddy, the hunter from Lehighton, Pennsylvania, marveled over the number of scrapes. They were so fresh, he could smell them... READ MORE
Marrying for Muy?
By Mike Handley
Todd Gast married for love, but the dowry was also pretty sweet. "My wife likes to say that the first words out of my mouth when we met were ‘How many acres does your dad have?'" Todd smiles. "I guess I did say that. But she already had her hunter safety card at that point." That's another way of saying deer hunters think alike. Or maybe it's... READ MORE
I, Frankenstein
By Mike Handley
The moment the bowstring whacked his forearm, Brad Mills knew he was not going to recover the buck. That the arrow even hit the deer was a fluke. The hunter from Bonner Springs, Kan., has no idea why he torqued his bow that day in 2011. He remembers only that it was a cold 12 degrees, he was aiming at the 3 1/2-year-old deer's left side, and he did... READ MORE
Never Leave Before the Curtain Falls
By Mike Handley
As soon as Joe Daubner heard the ka-thump of a deer landing on his side of the fence, he instantly regretted having lowered his bow to the ground. The Iowa bowhunter had concluded he wasn't going to get an opportunity at the non-typical whitetail he'd watched chasing a doe the length of a nearby CRP field. Rather than wait those last few minutes, h... READ MORE
Hearting Kansas
By Mike Handley
If someone ever designs an I-heart-Kansas tee shirt, Carlo Longobardo will buy one in every color. The New York City firefighter became infatuated with the Sunflower State after first going there with his cousin, Tommy Inzalaco, in 2012. They hunted deer with Dave Chism of Pocket Holler Haven Outfitters. "I was blown away by how many bucks I saw in... READ MORE
Never Sing the Blues Until the Sun Goes Down
By Mike Handley
Bob Dieball had already drawn and let down his bow once, when the Kansas buck he so desperately wanted veered sharply toward the doe it desperately wanted. That he got a second chance blows his mind. A few minutes after the first close call, the buck returned and stopped at 16 yards, facing - but not seeing - Bob. Head down, it was still staring at... READ MORE
Big 10: Take Two
By Mike Handley
"Daddy, are you going to shoot?" the boy asked.
John Trammell had told 5-year-old Cooper to be still, to be quiet and to put his fingers in his ears. They were sitting in a tripod stand overlooking a vast wheat field, father in the only seat and son on the platform at his feet.
"I'm going to shoot that deer," he'd warned.
The more John thought a... READ MORE
When Antlers are Lagniappe
By Mike Handley
Had a Zachary, Louisiana, woman not mentioned her unsuccessful deer season and yearning for venison to Donald Forbes, he probably would've remained indoors during the drizzling rain of Jan. 15, 2015.
The 68-year-old cattleman had shot a deer for himself earlier in the season, and he didn't need the meat.
"The only reason I went hunting that day w... READ MORE
Worth an ‘I Told You So’
By Mike Handley
When Teri Brown phoned her husband, Dick, to tell him she'd shot the buck over which she'd been obsessing for three months, it was not to ask for help.
Dick offered, of course, but she declined.
"I told him no, to just please leave me alone; that I was too nervous," she said. "I needed some time, so I told him I was going to shoot a doe, and then... READ MORE
‘Strange Day’
By Mike Handley
Michael Montgomery was at wit's end by the time his bowstring hummed in 2014.
After nearly an hour of watching and waiting for the buck of his dreams to stroll within range, the hunter from Hoosick Falls, New York, could only gawk, aghast, as another man began stalking the regal animal.
It and two other bucks were vying for a hot doe in the middl... READ MORE
Why You Should Hunt Turkeys
By Mike Handley
Star-spangling a longbeard's head might have been the reason Mike Barnes went to Labette County, Kansas, in May 2014. But he also took the opportunity to hang a new deer stand before returning home to Mississippi. Eager to christen his new setup, he arranged to take a week's vacation beginning Nov. 11. Before noon on his first day in the stand over... READ MORE
Second Chance
By Mike Handley
Few crossbow hunters possess the chutzpah to pass up an unobstructed, 46-yard shot at an unsuspecting buck, especially if the animal is wearing between 200 and 300 inches of antler.
Count Joe Franz among those few.
On Oct. 4, 2014, after weeks of planning and obsessing over the giant whitetail, Joe found himself gawking at the deer and hearing hi... READ MORE