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A Trip to the Bone Yard
By Krissy Jean Zimmer
You never forget your first archery buck, even if it happens after you’re a veteran hunter. There aren't a lot of “firsts” when you get to be my age and have been hunting for years, so harvesting my first buck with a bow this past season was extra special. I've been shooting bows for more than 20 years, and during that time I have... READ MORE
Muzzleloader Miracle
By Mimi Miracle
During the spring of 2013, I fell in love with my very first bow purchase, a Mathews Passion. I spent the rest of that spring, summer and fall practicing with it. Because I’d been out of town, I had to miss the first few days of the season, but when I got home my first priority was to get in the stand. I put in hours and hours, and then more ... READ MORE
Whose Best Day?
By Marti Young
The only division in this family is when debating who had the best time. While every day spent hunting is a good day, some are better than others. For James Whetzel Sr. and 11-year-old Starr Young, their best day ever started at 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 30, 2017. The adventure started with a softly whispered “Wake up, Starr. It’s almost time ... READ MORE
Blustery Day Buck
By Krissy Jean Zimmer
The day ended up awesomely, but it didn’t start out that way. On Friday, while at work in the dental office, I checked my weather channel app. It said, “30 mph winds — stay in bed today.” I laughed when I read that. Even my boss Dr. Rahn said, “I bet you won’t get up and go tomorrow.” I considered staying i... READ MORE
Opening Day Duck
By Roper Wilkes
Big South Carolina buck instead turns out to be a huge doe. Hi, Smalltown Bucks fans! My wife Joan and I run 707 Deer Processing in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and we thought you might be interested in seeing this deer. Our friend, 18-year-old Bryan Williamson, harvested this massive 204-pound antlered doe on Sept. 2. Bryan comes from a die-hard ... READ MORE
Never Give Up
By Ray Thiel
It only takes a second for an entire season of frustration to turn amazing. The 2018 deer season in eastern Connecticut was slower than normal. After two years where gypsy moth caterpillars ate nearly all the leaves off the oak trees, they just didn’t produce acorns. Unfortunately, on property I have permission to hunt on in Griswold, acorns... READ MORE
Study, Hunt, Repeat
By Ben Englert
College student’s first archery harvest gets a 4.0 in Bowhunting 101. It was Nov. 15, and the 2018 Indiana shotgun season would begin two days later. I was logging as many hours as I could with my bow, hoping to tag out before the gun-toting army arrived on opening morning. I had put in countless hunts since bow season started on Oct. 1, but ... READ MORE
The 165-Inch Spike
By Tony Crowder
Every time my daughter Alexis and I had been out hunting, she was determined that would be the time she would get a deer. She’d put in the work, helped build a box blind, and she’d been out there every chance she had regardless of weather. She was ready and hungry for her first deer.
We’d planned to go hunting early Monday, Nov. ... READ MORE
Half a Buck Is Better Than None
By Michael Krause
Even deer hunters get by with a little help from their friends.
For the past 30 years, I’ve been venturing back to my old stomping grounds in Deposit, N.Y., to hunt with my friends from high school. This past season resulted in a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
It happened at about 3 p.m. on the second day of the New York season. It was cold... READ MORE
The Journey
By Richard Benton
My quest to shoot a big buck began when I first hunted in Kansas in 2001. I harvested an 8-pointer that scored 148 inches, and I was hooked.
I like hunting in my home state of Virginia, but it’s nothing like the Midwest. I have always had a passion for hunting whitetails. I have been so drawn to and obsessed with it that I pursued an educati... READ MORE