Hunter: Dave Johnson
Points: 10 (5L, 5R)
County: Henry
Season: 2018-2019
Hunt Story
I got into my blind around 4:30 Friday evening. The hot fall day was beginning to cool with the help of scattered showers. This was only my fourth evening hunt this season, mostly because of the heat and humidity we've experienced lately. It was almost 7:00 and the evening light was fading fast on the hardwood ridge behind our house, so I used my binoculars to glass the bottom to my right while I had enough daylight. As soon as I looked back to my left I saw the wide 10 pointer coming straight for the feeder. I was unable to hear him approaching me since the woods were wet from the rain. He must have seen some movement because he stopped in his tracks and began to back up and turn around. I grabbed my crossbow hopeful that I might get a shot at him before he got out of range. I couldn't believe what happened next. He turned and started to circle me downwind which would give me a perfect 20-yard shot. I shouldered my crossbow and put the 20-yard dot on his chest and pulled the trigger. I saw the omni-brite nock red light hit the buck above his shoulder. I immediately had bad feelings that I would be out all night tracking this buck in the wet woods. The Spitfire broadhead must have hit the bucks spine because he was partially paralyzed giving me a chance to get a second shot. I thought I would be seeing this wide ten pointer headed toward the feeder sometime this season because he showed up regularly, but mostly at night. He claimed this feeder as his own and would chase the other deer away. This deer was with a bachelor group that included a tall tine ten pointer and several other smaller bucks. We had a lot of trail cam pictures of this group at the feeder and Trophy Rock all summer.
