A Huge Freshly Shed Early Season Buck

Big Game,White-Tailed Deer

Southeast

A Huge Freshly Shed Early Season Buck

Posted 2018-09-26T16:17:00Z  by  Josh Honeycutt

Have You Ever Shot a Buck with Velvet Hanging Off?

Rack Report Details
Buck:178 Inches (Gross)
Time of Year:September 15, 2018
Place:Lyon County, Kentucky
Weapon: Hoyt RX-1  Bowhunting 

All of the trash on this deer pushed the gross score all the way up into the 170s. (Mike Mayfield photo)

Early season deer hunting is a special time. Deer aren't as pressured. Bucks are still in strong summer bed-to-feed patterns. Big bachelor groups of bucks grace trail cameras. It's a wonderful time, Mike Mayfield thought.

That is, until the farmer mowed a strip through the thick cover where Mayfield had been watching a giant buck on trail camera. Needless to say, Mayfield was in the pits after it affected the buck's pattern and caused him to change his pattern mere days before he planned to hunt.

Mayfield had to figure something out. He said this deer was too big and special not to stay persistent on. He decided to give in until the weekend to see if the buck would resume its pattern.

Luckily, it did. His cellular Bushnell trail camera revealed the buck was moving again during daylight. Back on its original pattern, Mayfield decided to head northward from Georgia to Kentucky to hunt for the weekend.

Mayfield climbed into the stand on Saturday and surveyed his surroundings. The thick grass and early successional cover in front of him was where this buck had spent a lot of time in daylight throughout the summer. It was his best shot at crossing paths with the big brute. He could only hope the buck would show itself in daylight where it previously had been.

As the day wore on, Mayfield took in his surroundings. Buck or no buck, it was good to be back in a tree. Another season had arrived, and he was ready to scratch his deer-hunting itch. A big deer would be icing on the cake.

And it didn't take long to get a taste of that icing. The buck popped out fairly early and stood in the open lane the farmer had mowed a few days prior.

I didn't recognize him at first, Mayfield said. All of the velvet hanging off of him made it appear to be a different deer. But when he turned and looked at me, I knew it was him.

The buck stood there proud and tall at 70 yards as it surveyed the hillside. Eventually, the buck turned in Mayfield's direction and lumbered into range. Mike drew back his Hoyt bow, settled the pin, and made good on the shot. The buck took off running and toppled over soon after.

After recovering the deer, it quickly became apparent just how big he was.

The buck gross scored 178 inches with all of the trash and extra points he had, Mayfield said.

Needless to say, it's a deer to remember. And Mayfield won't soon forget his hunt for his giant freshly shed Kentucky buck.

Don't Miss: 5 Times Mature Bucks Are More Apt to Move in Daylight

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