Stephanie Ray

My archery season buzzer beater!!
I’ve been playing a game of cat & mouse with this deer nearly every hunt of my archery season, mostly watching him from afar. I couldn’t get to my 1st choice stand this morning, as deer were feeding in the field, and I knew I could not slip in undetected. I climbed into my 2nd stand option, and saw deer as soon as daylight hit. I watched young bucks spar while does fed. A 3 point came through the brush right at me, and I made the decision that if anything travelled this path, I’d have to draw before it came out of the thick stuff.

Suddenly my guy is 100+ yards away, after a doe and grunting. They head into the thick stuff the 3 point just travelled through, and I think in no way is this actually going to happen. Sticks are crunching louder and the grunting is getting closer. I draw back and hold. 6” later they pop out at 20 yards, both facing right at me. It’s that time of year, you know what the buck is doing. The doe turns and starts walking, and the buck follows. A quick “merp” stops him, and I release after a 45” hold, passing my arrow right through him, watching it stick into the mud as he kicks and runs off through the water.

The shakes immediately kicked in, and I sat teary eyed in my stand for a half hour, just enjoying the moment. 15 minutes later, I followed a 60 yard track, and I was gripping & grinning for my auto timer!!