Sometimes you curse the weather. Sometimes you thank it.
Gunnar Petry of Macksburg spent much of Ohio’s 2013 deer season hoping for a shot at a big nocturnal whitetail photographed by a trail camera. He wound up settling for a really nice 10-pointer in the 140s.
During the late muzzleloader season that year, he took his younger brother hunting.
“We were set up along the edge of a large field,” Gunnar said. “Suddenly, this big buck comes out into the field. First time we ever laid eyes on it (in the flesh). It was bitter cold, and my brother was dressed for the weather, not for hunting.
“He was so bulked up that he couldn’t get his eye to the scope properly, so all he was seeing was black,” Gunnar continued. “The buck stood there broadside at 75 yards. He couldn’t get a shot lined up, and the buck eventually took off running across the field.”
Gunnar retrieved tons of nighttime pictures of the same buck — larger — the following season. The deer was still a mainframe 4x4 with a kicker on the right side.
“The only time we saw it in 2014 was when we were doing a man-drive. My cousin got a chance at it, but missed,” he said.
Just prior to the 2015 archery season, Gunnar started putting out corn near the top of a holler historically frequented by deer. He retrieved only photos of does, so he didn’t put much faith in the spot.
When he checked his camera later in the week, after he’d refreshed the corn pile, there was a daytime photograph of the giant buck, which had grown considerably in both body and antlers. The rack, still a mainframe 8, had gained at least seven more points.
That was the first photo taken while the sun was overhead.
“My work keeps me too busy to hunt during the week,” Gunnar said. “It’s even tough to check the trail cameras, so I usually do that on the weekend.
“On Saturday, Oct. 24, I checked the cameras and found one photo of the buck about 5:55 p.m. — almost an hour before dark — the previous Tuesday.
“I hunted that weekend as much as I could, but the buck never showed. I was back at work on Monday, putting in long hours that kept me out of the woods,” he continued.
“I pour concrete foundations, and we were very busy. On Wednesday, we were working a job when it started raining. I was hoping we would get off work early, but the boss sent me to another job to strip off the sides. My buddy and I worked like crazy to get the job done in the pouring rain, and then I headed home.
“I knew I was going hunting, rain or not. I had been working in it all day, so why not hunt?” he added.
After changing clothes and retrieving his gear from home, Gunnar was in the woods by 3:00. Eight days had passed since the buck last stepped in front of the camera there.
“I had a little fold-out chair that was very low to the ground,” he said. “It was behind a fallen log at the edge of the woods and close to the corn pile. I kept an arrow nocked and leaned it against the log so it stood straight up.”
Gunnar was drenched long before the rain began slacking off at 5:30, about the time he spotted a doe emerging from a nearby holler.
“As soon as I saw her, I grabbed my bow and attached my release to the loop,” he said, adding that he also slid off his chair to crouch behind the log.
“When I settled on the ground, I found myself seriously contorted in that position, but I really couldn’t make any large movements. Within 10 seconds, I saw antlers coming out of the holler. There was no mistaking that rack. It was the big one, for sure.”
The doe headed straight for the corn pile, the buck only a dozen feet behind her.
“I was sure she would stop at the corn, but she walked on past it, turning to the right. The buck, however, stopped near the corn and sniffed it.”
The doe circled behind the buck while its head was down. When she closed to within 5 yards, it jerked up its head and snorted loudly, which scared the doe and sent her fleeing down the hill.
“By that time, my heart was beating out of control. I thought the buck would also run, but it didn’t. It returned to the corn and resumed eating. The deer probably stood there for at least seven minutes, just 25 yards away,” Gunnar said.
“The wind was perfect for me, but there was no shot,” he added. “Fortunately for me, I hadn’t drawn my bow, so I wasn’t under that strain.”
At one point, the buck jerked upright and stared in Gunnar’s direction. It did this twice.
“It knew something was not right,” he said.
But Gunnar didn’t move, and the wind was in his favor. Wary or not, the buck was apparently hungry, too. When it lowered its head the second time, Gunner began drawing his bow.
“I soon realized my stabilizer was hitting the log, and I couldn’t come down any farther,” he said. “I kept leaning back, leaning back, trying to get the stabilizer to clear the log so I could get on the deer’s shoulder. The chair was hindering my movement, though, and I was trying to get it to slide away from my butt!
“I was determined to make that shot,” he continued. “I pushed back one last time, and the deer’s shoulder came up to my sight pin. I was shaking so bad, I don’t know how I made the shot.
“I saw the arrow hit really high, I mean tenderloin high. The buck spun and ran helter-skelter back down into the holler. It seemed like he stopped running after only about 50 yards, and then the woods got very quiet.
“I immediately nocked another arrow, leaned the bow against the log, and pulled out my cell phone. It read 6:14.
“After I’d calmed down a few minutes later, I called my Uncle Tony, my mentor. He peppered me with questions about every part of the hunt until he was satisfied I’d done what I should’ve done.
“I told him the buck was way bigger in person than on the trail camera. I also told him I hit it really far back and pretty high.
“I had been talking to Tony for about five minutes when I heard what sounded like a crash in the direction the buck had gone,” he added.
Because his uncle, who had battled brain cancer for about 12 years, was unable to hit deer trails anymore, Gunnar then called his dad and a couple of buddies to ask for help.
“When I walked back to my truck, it was about 6:40. There was still a good 10 minutes of shooting light,” Gunnar said. “I drove home to meet my helpers. We gathered flashlights, rope and anything we could think of before returning the woods.
“The blood trail was solid right up to the fallen buck. I was elated, and we all celebrated,” Gunnar said. “Turns out, I managed to clip the liver, and the arrow deflected into the hind leg, possibly severing the artery. The crash I heard well after the shot was my buck falling.”
Hunter: Gunnar Petry
BTR Score: 204 7/8
View BTR Scoresheet
This article was published in the June 2016 edition of Rack Magazine. Subscribe today to have Rack Magazine delivered to your home.
Read Recent RACK Articles: • Kismet for Kimmi: Borrowed stand and grounded son combine to pit Kansas rifleman against the buck of his dreams.
• Fish Hook: A buck with a name pays the ultimate price for feeling a little too cozy.
• Poster Buck: Kentucky outfitter hopes velvet giant will help put his new operation on the map.