Author: Josh Honeycutt

Hunting down a mature deer is no easy feat. Here are some key points to remember Hunting a mature deer isn’t easy. In fact, as a deer hunter, it might be the most difficult thing you accomplish. Fortunately, there are a lot of intelligent deer hunters out there who’ve been there and done that. Here, we gain some knowledge from excellent big buck killers from across the country. 1. Scout Digitally It takes a lot of scouting to kill mature bucks. But you must scout in the right manner. Scouting from the computer is the first step. Phillip Vanderpool of…

Photos by Kelsie Berg Chase Grubbs Got It Done After Knocking On a Door Buck Score: 205 inches (gross) Date of Harvest: October 19, 2021 Location of Harvest: Iowa Weapon of Harvest: Compound bow Chase Grubbs is like many deer hunters who came before him…with a dream to hunt monster Whitetails and the willingness to move to Iowa to follow it. During the 2021 season, that pursuit resulted in his tagging a 6½-year-old deer with a massive rack. But before that, Grubbs moved there for an internship with Bill Winke and Midwest Whitetail. He learned a lot and even bagged…

Photos Courtesy of Kelly Ware Kelly Ware hunted this deer for two seasons and finally ended the story with a well-placed shot. Buck: 199⅝ inches (gross) /194 inches (net) Date of Harvest: October 4, 2020 Location of Harvest: Iowa County, Wisconsin Weapon of Harvest: Bow Kelly Ware had three encounters with a phenomenal buck during the 2019 rut and hoped for better the next year. At that time, the deer was running with a large 10-pointer that Ware was following. Fast forward about a year. During the 2020 deer season, Ware was fortunate enough to catch up to the 7½-year-old…

Orlando Vivone’s Iowa whitetail exhibits incredible character Hunter: Orlando M. Vivone IV Buck Score: 195 1/8 inches Date of Harvest: October 17, 2022 Location of Harvest: Madison County, Iowa Weapon of Harvest: Mission Crossbow Dagger Orlando Vivone loves deer hunting as much or more as the next guy, and last season, he had the chance to hunt a buck he aged to be 5 ½ to 6 ½ years old. Even better, it sported a huge, unique rack. His journey didn’t start there, though. He started out hunting waterfowl and upland birds. Then, in 2017, deer hunting called his name.…

Riley Post filled his deer tag on a magnificent, heavy-antlered midwestern whitetail Hunter: Riley Post Buck Score: 180 3/8 inches Date of Harvest: November 6, 2022 Location of Harvest: Randolph County, Indiana Weapon of Harvest: Crossbow Riley Post is a serious Indiana deer hunter. And last season, he connected on a monster 4 ½-year-old buck out of Randolph County. But even before this big deer, he’s always loved deer hunting. “Deer hunting has always had a place in my heart,” Post said. “I shot my first deer in 3rd grade and have been hooked ever sense. From getting to bring my…

Check out these 2022-23 season kills from across the country, with words from the hunters themselves The 2023 deer season will be here soon. But the 2022 season is still fresh on our minds. Here are short tales of whitetails bagged last season, in each hunter’s own words. Read the encounters, check out the pics, and get fired up for fall. Hunter: Matt Antle Buck: 172 inches Date of Harvest: September 4, 2022 Location of Harvest: Adair County, Kentucky Weapon of Harvest: Compound bow September 4 was an overcast day with off-and-on rain, steady 5-mph winds, and 75- to 80-degree…

A Look at 30 Famous Whitetail Counties and Their Claims to Fame Deer hunters have heard legendary stories about the likes of high-profile Whitetail counties for decades. Places like Buffalo County, Wisconsin; Pike County, Illinois; and Warren County, Iowa (among others) are big-buck destinations that many hunters have hunted or have dreamed of hunting. Some counties are incredibly famous for Whitetails. Whether that’s for putting a lot of big bucks in the books or by recording some especially famous bucks in the books, some county names are familiar to a lot of outdoorsmen. We call these the “kingmaker counties.” Obtaining…

Darin Hess shot the deer of 10,000 lifetimes on a permission property Buck Score: 250 inches (gross) / 237 5/8 inches (net) Date of Harvest: November 15, 2021 Location of Harvest: Riley County, Kansas Weapon of Harvest: Mathews bow Kansas deer hunter Darin Hess knows Whitetails, and his quest for a huge deer ended during the 2021-22 season. But it started the year before, albeit briefly. “I first saw this deer in the fall of 2020,” Hess said. “One time and that was it. I started getting trail cam pics of him around the first of October in 2021.” By…

Buck Score: 240 inches Date of Harvest: September 7, 2021 Location of Harvest: Muskowekwan First Nation (Saskatchewan) Weapon of Harvest: Ruger American .30-06 Jason Vickert hunts the Muskowekwan First Nation area quite a bit, but he had no idea this massive Whitetail called this area home. He’s lived there for quite a few years and even has a meat shop business close by. But on September 7, 2021, he had an experience he’ll never forget. After a day’s work, Vickert headed afield with his son and nephew. It was warm, about 15 degrees Celsius, with an overcast sky. The area…

A look at interesting points around all things antlers Deer antlers are some of the most interesting aspects of the animal kingdom. These fast-growing tissues are shrouded in neat facts and talking points. While there is much we still don’t know about antlers, we know a lot. Here are 20 facts about Whitetail deer antlers. Fact No. 1: Whitetails have antlers that are cast and regrown each year. These differ from horns that aren’t cast and that gradually grow over time. Fact No. 2: Antlers are derived from calcium deposits. Horns are crafted with keratin, which is a different tissue.…