Nacho

This past Saturday the National Deer Hunters Association held an event at the local fairgrounds. It was a fun time where lots of local hunters gathered and shared stories. There was an archery contest along with a gun bash going on throughout the day. In the evening there was a dinner where the sponsors of the event each had a table. My cousin Brian was gracious in inviting the boys and I to share at his table. Nate and his mushroom buck were there as well. (you can read more about him and the story about how he found his buck in my journal entry for June 20)

There were also several official Boone and Crockett scorers there, measuring deer. They are kind of like the judges at the county fair. These are the guys that go around and measure bucks and give an official measurement on game animals. The bigger bucks of the season are brought in and measured with the hopes of getting into the next edition of Maryland's record book, Bears, Bucks and Stags.

 With all of the county fairs going on across the country, I can't help but relate a little and compare last weekend's hunting event to the fair. 

Around here, the county fair is a big deal. If you are any kind of a farmer, and you have a school age kid, then they probably raised a pig or a steer, maybe a rabbit or two or a chicken just for the fair. And at the fair when your kids showed that pig, they were happy and made good memories even if they didn't get a ribbon. And if they did get a ribbon that was just icing on the cake. 

At the end of the week, there's a big auction. In some ways it's a sad day. The kids make good money but they have to say goodbye to their animals. The animals are mostly bought for a steep price by local businesses. After that, like it or not, the animal goes to the slaughter shop.

We live on a small homestead type of place. Just a house, a garden, a little barn and a bunch of woods. Our domesticated animals are few with just a dog and a couple of chickens. And it's been a battle to keep our chickens as we've lost some over the years to the wild critters of the forest. I can think of specific times when we've lost chickens to coons, bears, and once even to a bobcat.  Several times there's been a trail of feathers from the yard down through the woods which makes me think it was probably a fox or coyote. Since we don't raise many animals, we don't really get too involved in showing animals at the Fair. 

But we like our steak! Since we don't farm, most of our protein comes from the surrounding forest. And so we hunt and fish and eat mushrooms. And like a farmer raising pigs, hunting is a pretty normal part of our life. In my humble opinion, you can't beat a grilled venison steak that's been done just right!

For the most part we hunt for food. The Department of Natural Resources sets up laws and regulations that keep the deer herd at a healthy balance and so we hunt within those regulations, trying to help maintain a healthy herd. 

Just like the farmer that ends up with a prize steer, we get really excited about getting that big buck!

And last year my son Blake did just that. And so at the fairgrounds this past weekend, a lot of hunters gathered together, talked about hunting, bought and sold deer related things, and brought in their big bucks from the past year, where they were measured to see just how big they were in the big scheme of things. And so we took Blake's buck. We knew it was a good buck when he shot it. We live here in the mountains and our bucks aren't nearly as big as the corn and bean fed bucks from the Midwest. Around here, getting a 130 inch deer is akin to getting a 170 inch deer in Iowa. We thought that Blake's deer was pushing 140 inches and we wanted to get an official score. And so it was an exciting day for us. A little bit like taking that prize steer to the fair and hoping it had all of the right lines and looks.

The story started back in 2018. It was youth day. We had been sitting in the morning and hadn't gotten anything. We started to head back to the truck when we saw a big buck chasing a doe about 150 yds away. My oldest son Caleb got up his gun but didn't have a very good rest and had a clean miss. Even though it was a miss, it created lots of excitement. Caleb dubbed the buck "Nacho", after the great and funny movie, Nacho Libre. Over the next several years, Caleb's friend Jon and his family had pictures of what we believe was Nacho, because of a characteristic whoop de doo at the end of his main beam. If our thoughts are correct, then Nacho was around five and a half or six and a half years old last year.

Fast forward to 2021. My younger son Blake had taken a small deer on youth day. He really wanted to get a buck and so I said that I would take him the first morning of the regular firearms buck season. 

Now the first morning of the regular season is one of the best times to get a big buck. And being the normal overzealous dad, I was tempted to say, no you've had your chance, today it's my turn. But I didn't. It was fun to look over the maps with Blake and though I already knew where I wanted to be, we looked and tried to figure out where the deer would be, where other hunters might park their cars and basically push the deer towards us. We talked about edges and how animals like to use edges of different types of forests to travel.

Before daylight the next morning, we found ourselves in that predetermined spot. It was cold with a little bit of snow on the ground and so I had packed a small ground blind, a little stove and some hot chocolate and sandwiches along. And since we had so much gear and a long walk, I didn't take a gun. Blake doesn't like the kick of the bigger guns and so he took the 22/250 which is a legal and great deer rifle if you are sure of your shooting ability, and Blake is a pretty good shot.

We saw some does but not a whole lot seemed to be moving. I was looking out the little window to the right when I saw him walking along the edge of the creek and rhododendron. I could mainly just see his neck and antlers. One step and he could be gone. This would be a tough shot! My overzealous big buck hunter dad's attitude whispered in my ear, "take the gun and make the shot, this is a bigger buck than you've ever killed!"

The joy of being a dad overruled. I whispered, "Blake, buck, it's going to be a tough shot but you'll need to take a neck shot, but you can do it." I wanted to shout "and hurry" but I didn't. Blake got into position and luckily the buck didn't move. Blake squeezed the trigger and the buck totally disappeared. Not a kick or a crash or anything that would indicate what we like to say in the deer woods, Big Buck Down.

 "Did I get him"? Blake said. Kids always ask it.

 "I don't know. I didn't see where he went. He just totally disappeared. Slip out of the blind and stand up and see if you can see anything while I watch with binoculars." 

Blake got out as I watched but didn't see the slightest movement anywhere. Blake didn't see anything either. I got out of the blind and we eased towards where the buck had been, taking the time to look and watch for any movement.  Then through my binoculars I saw it. An antler sticking up over a rock.

 "I see him Blake!" We eased closer and saw the buck was down. Blake counted the points and we took some time to enjoy the moment and drink some hot chocolate. The mile and a quarter drag was a long one. But between the slick snow and the joys of being a dad, it was a good one!

We thought it would measure around 140 inches. I've been dabbling in the taxidermy trade and so I mounted the deer and we took it to the NDA event. 

The official score was 136 Net and 140&⅞ Gross.

For some you that probably sounds like Greek, but it was a high enough score to be entered into the next edition of Bucks, Bears and Stags. 

And hopefully, after the steaks are long gone, we'll still be able to look back at that exciting season of the hunt, the NDA event, and realize that maybe the biggest prize wasn't the score, or the entry into the record book, but the fact that lasting memories were made with family and friends!