Staff Pick

Never too much advise can be absorbed from dad!

John Gibbs 

Jason Loblein

This year's hunting season has come to a close after many hours in the woods. In past years I would almost always shoot the first adult deer I saw and tag out. This year was different as I decided from the beginning that I wanted to hold out and try to get "trophy buck". As I watched and passed on multiple spikehorns and 4-6 pointers, I started to think I wasn't going to get an opportunity at a bigger deer. No matter how little hope I had left as the season wound down my Dad kept repeating "you'll get a big one on the ground before the seasons over". 

Well, last night his prediction was came true. We sat together in the blind with a doe decoy out in the field. Not long after getting situated and calling a spike horn came out to the field and started feeding. After a while he looked towards the woods and bounded off happily. Dad told me he was going in to greet another deer and a big buck would probably be out soon (which I honestly didn't believe). When the spike returned to the field he was followed by a doe and Dad repeated what he had before - that a big buck would be along so be ready. Not 5 minutes later this guy came marching out to the field quartering toward us and locked right onto the decoy. I took my shot and when the smoke cleared we went to look for blood. Finding no blood in the field we started up the mountain where he had headed and found him about 50 yards away. We also found a tree he had been rubbing on just before he came out (pictured below). It was a great season with a lot of fun and learning and I couldnt be more happy to end it with this guy as my first mature buck. 10 pointer 161 lbs.

544 pts · Deer — Kyle Tripp

544 pts · Deer — Kyle Tripp

704 pts · Deer — Kyle Tripp