Hunter: Harvey Pate Jr.
Points: 10 (5L, 5R)
County: Terrell
Season: 2016-2017
Hunt Story
I watched this buck for three years on trail camera and live. He was a 10-pointer two years ago. Last year he was a 9-point but he damaged a beam in velvet and broke a G4. I decided not to shoot him. This year he was a 10-point again, but he broke a G3 off that was about 10 inches long about 4 inches up. It turned out that the point was weak due to a possible insect bite during velvet. I debated about waiting until next year, but because of intense hunting pressure on adjacent property I decided it was time to take him. He had not shown up on trail camera until Dec. 10. The wind blew predominantly from the east which made it impossible to bow hunt because my scent was blowing into the swamp from which he came. I hunted on six different occasions and saw him four of those days. Once he was a hundred yards away. Another time the wind shifted and he smelled me. He came back out later during that hunt but it was too late to shoot. The third time there were 13 more deer around, and another buck saw me as I moved my bow. As I waited for that deer to settle down, my big buck walked away not allowing a shot. On the fourth occasion that I saw him he came out early. In spite of having six other deer nearby, I was able to draw and shoot him behind the shoulder. He ran into the swamp. I heard him crash and waited about 15 minutes before I trailed him approximately 125 yards. I found him before dark, drug him out, and loaded him on the truck. I called my son as soon as possible and shared my story with him. My daughter and wife heard the story soon after. All were pleased that I had finally taken another good buck after 25 years.
