I posted in my LIVE season thread about this buck but figured I would post the story of him in a separate thread.
"SPOOKY"
2016/2017 was my first sighting of this deer. Could have pics seasons prior but not sure. I'm a fan of big 8s so I knew with age he could become something special. I hunted 120 acres to the west of where he stayed but occasionally would come over to a small 6 acre thicket I had set up for bowhunting. That season I had a buddy that hunted 88 acres east of where I hunted maybe 300 yds away. He had multiple encounters with him and watched him closely. It seemed every time he or I would see the buck he would be very skiddish/spooked. He got his name "Spooky" from that. I tagged out on a wide 8pt during bow season and my buddy ended up with tag soup. February came along and he tells me that the landowner was going to be listing the place soon. Couple quick phone calls and emails sent and the contract was set for me to buy it. I was pumped and couldn't wait to hunt where I knew these bucks called home.
Here are pics of him 2016/2017 season.
May 2017 we closed on the place and I immediately went to work setting stands and feed stations. I had cams running anxious to see velvet development. August rolled around with multiple bucks on cam but no sign of Spooky. We knew he survived the season but unsure if he made it through the winter. East Tx is different than anyplace I have hunted before and I realized a lot of deer don't care for feeders. I set cams off feed pens a good 20-30 yds and doing so I got 2 pics of "Spooky" skirting the feed stations. Those 2 pics would be all I would get until November 2017 chasing a doe down a trail. I had it set on video mode. He stopped, looked at cam and bolted quickly. My FIL started hunting the 6 acre thicket I had set up before buying my own place. Thanksgiving morning right at daylight he catches a tall buck come into a clearing and quickly gets on him. 1st shot nails him, he high kicks and runs for cover. FIL gets another round in the gun and shoots him again before disappearing into the thicket. We looked for 3 days no sign of the deer. Checked trail cam and caught Spooky running down the trail after the shot. My heart sank as I was hoping to see this deer grow another year but completely understood my FIL taking the shot. 2 wks would go by with no sign of any mature bucks on my place. I was beginning to be discouraged wanting to give the season up. Relocated 8 cameras throughout the property and started hand corning areas to see if that would change things up. Not 2 days after I had Spooky coming to a small clearing and it was Game On. Part of me wanted to get him because he was limping really bad but then again he looked healthy. I set a ground blind up for me and my kiddos to sit in to see if we could get a close up look at him. Next evening we settled at as expected he came in. As I was waiting for him to be broadside my daughter loudly told me there he is. He didn't hesitate and quickly left. I would encounter him again during muzzleloader season 50 yds broadside but didn't take the shot as I was notified shortly before of my wife's grandmother passing away. 2017/2018 season would come to an end no deer.
Season 2017/2018 pics
Between managing 2 ranches and building a house hardly any improvements were made to the property. I set a feed pen up in the thicket where Spooky liked to bed and only put hand corn in there every 3 days. I went from getting only a couple pics a year to pics of him daily 2-3 times basically living in the pen. Velvet development came along and he was easy to identify. Huge body and massive bulbs on his head. Early August came and he looked very good with what looked to be split G2s. I started to get excited but unfortunately a week later he busted off his right side G2 a good 6-7". Running with him were 2 impressive bucks. A 140s 8pt and a great up and coming 10pt. I won't say much about them other than both were killed unfortunately on the highway. 1 in August and the other 2 wks ago. Very hard to see as they were my targets for next season.
Summer 2018 pic
Bow season opened and I had Spooky patterned great so I thought. Opening day 10yds behind me never presented a shot. He would go nocturnal from this point on and disappear a couple weeks later. From seasons past we knew he would return around Thanksgiving. November came and I was anxious for a sighting of him. I passed the up and coming 10pt as well as a couple cull bucks. My freezer was still half full so I was after the big guy. Checked gate cams one morning and 2nd to last pic was him chasing a doe back in to the property. I was stoked and productivity level at work went downhill!
Living here it was hard not to hunt every day. I managed to get a few hunts in but he seemed to outsmart every hunt. His feed pattern would soon take over come December feeding regularly as he did during the summer. I set a ladder 100yds back with a small shooting lane for a shot. Christmas evening I really thought it was going to happen as conditions seemed perfect. 3 hrs no sign of a deer and come dark I was easing on out from being skunked yet again. I didn't walk 15 yds before what seemed like every deer in this county was blowing at me. Checked cams a couple days later and Spooky was in the pen not 5 minutes after I left. This season is nearing to an end and looked like I was going to be muzzleloader hunting. With almost a week left of general season I was thinking about picking the bow back up for the last few sits. Decided o would try this wknd for the last time with a gun so I did.
Season 2018
Saturday December 29th I settled in 3pm. 3:30 had a doe and nubbin come in and feed for 45 minutes. They stayed focused to the east but I never noticed anything. The next hour would go by with me thinking it wasn't going to happen. I decided to glass the cedar thicket one last time before I climbed down. I caught movement and realized Spooky was 120yds and closing. He came in quick, jumped in the pen standing broadside just as I wanted. I settled the crosshairs, squeezed the trigger and CLICK. He looked up, jumped out of the pen and stopped. I wasn't sure what happened but chambered another round and quickly got on him. He decided to jump back I'm along with another buck but this time quartering to me a little. I settled on him, squeezed and CLICK again! I couldn't believe it. Part of me started thinking this just isn't meant to happen. I chambered my last round unsure if I was even going to try again. Settled on him and squeezed BOOM! He didn't know what hit him. Quickly dropped and all I could see was white belly. I climbed down not realizing that this journey with Spooky just ended. It didn't really sink in until 10 minutes or so after the shot. The buck fever, adrenaline pumping feeling was something I'll never forget. He isn't a high scoring deer but that didn't matter to me. Mature East Tx Buck with so many stories behind him that I will always look back on.
Very special deer especially being the first off the property. I couldn't be more thankful for what God has given me. Way more than I will ever deserve.
Age 5.5 Min
Score 124 6/8" (Broke 6"-7" G2)
Savage 30-06
Thanks for reading
LDPs
"SPOOKY"
2016/2017 was my first sighting of this deer. Could have pics seasons prior but not sure. I'm a fan of big 8s so I knew with age he could become something special. I hunted 120 acres to the west of where he stayed but occasionally would come over to a small 6 acre thicket I had set up for bowhunting. That season I had a buddy that hunted 88 acres east of where I hunted maybe 300 yds away. He had multiple encounters with him and watched him closely. It seemed every time he or I would see the buck he would be very skiddish/spooked. He got his name "Spooky" from that. I tagged out on a wide 8pt during bow season and my buddy ended up with tag soup. February came along and he tells me that the landowner was going to be listing the place soon. Couple quick phone calls and emails sent and the contract was set for me to buy it. I was pumped and couldn't wait to hunt where I knew these bucks called home.
Here are pics of him 2016/2017 season.
May 2017 we closed on the place and I immediately went to work setting stands and feed stations. I had cams running anxious to see velvet development. August rolled around with multiple bucks on cam but no sign of Spooky. We knew he survived the season but unsure if he made it through the winter. East Tx is different than anyplace I have hunted before and I realized a lot of deer don't care for feeders. I set cams off feed pens a good 20-30 yds and doing so I got 2 pics of "Spooky" skirting the feed stations. Those 2 pics would be all I would get until November 2017 chasing a doe down a trail. I had it set on video mode. He stopped, looked at cam and bolted quickly. My FIL started hunting the 6 acre thicket I had set up before buying my own place. Thanksgiving morning right at daylight he catches a tall buck come into a clearing and quickly gets on him. 1st shot nails him, he high kicks and runs for cover. FIL gets another round in the gun and shoots him again before disappearing into the thicket. We looked for 3 days no sign of the deer. Checked trail cam and caught Spooky running down the trail after the shot. My heart sank as I was hoping to see this deer grow another year but completely understood my FIL taking the shot. 2 wks would go by with no sign of any mature bucks on my place. I was beginning to be discouraged wanting to give the season up. Relocated 8 cameras throughout the property and started hand corning areas to see if that would change things up. Not 2 days after I had Spooky coming to a small clearing and it was Game On. Part of me wanted to get him because he was limping really bad but then again he looked healthy. I set a ground blind up for me and my kiddos to sit in to see if we could get a close up look at him. Next evening we settled at as expected he came in. As I was waiting for him to be broadside my daughter loudly told me there he is. He didn't hesitate and quickly left. I would encounter him again during muzzleloader season 50 yds broadside but didn't take the shot as I was notified shortly before of my wife's grandmother passing away. 2017/2018 season would come to an end no deer.
Season 2017/2018 pics
Between managing 2 ranches and building a house hardly any improvements were made to the property. I set a feed pen up in the thicket where Spooky liked to bed and only put hand corn in there every 3 days. I went from getting only a couple pics a year to pics of him daily 2-3 times basically living in the pen. Velvet development came along and he was easy to identify. Huge body and massive bulbs on his head. Early August came and he looked very good with what looked to be split G2s. I started to get excited but unfortunately a week later he busted off his right side G2 a good 6-7". Running with him were 2 impressive bucks. A 140s 8pt and a great up and coming 10pt. I won't say much about them other than both were killed unfortunately on the highway. 1 in August and the other 2 wks ago. Very hard to see as they were my targets for next season.
Summer 2018 pic
Bow season opened and I had Spooky patterned great so I thought. Opening day 10yds behind me never presented a shot. He would go nocturnal from this point on and disappear a couple weeks later. From seasons past we knew he would return around Thanksgiving. November came and I was anxious for a sighting of him. I passed the up and coming 10pt as well as a couple cull bucks. My freezer was still half full so I was after the big guy. Checked gate cams one morning and 2nd to last pic was him chasing a doe back in to the property. I was stoked and productivity level at work went downhill!
Living here it was hard not to hunt every day. I managed to get a few hunts in but he seemed to outsmart every hunt. His feed pattern would soon take over come December feeding regularly as he did during the summer. I set a ladder 100yds back with a small shooting lane for a shot. Christmas evening I really thought it was going to happen as conditions seemed perfect. 3 hrs no sign of a deer and come dark I was easing on out from being skunked yet again. I didn't walk 15 yds before what seemed like every deer in this county was blowing at me. Checked cams a couple days later and Spooky was in the pen not 5 minutes after I left. This season is nearing to an end and looked like I was going to be muzzleloader hunting. With almost a week left of general season I was thinking about picking the bow back up for the last few sits. Decided o would try this wknd for the last time with a gun so I did. Season 2018
Saturday December 29th I settled in 3pm. 3:30 had a doe and nubbin come in and feed for 45 minutes. They stayed focused to the east but I never noticed anything. The next hour would go by with me thinking it wasn't going to happen. I decided to glass the cedar thicket one last time before I climbed down. I caught movement and realized Spooky was 120yds and closing. He came in quick, jumped in the pen standing broadside just as I wanted. I settled the crosshairs, squeezed the trigger and CLICK. He looked up, jumped out of the pen and stopped. I wasn't sure what happened but chambered another round and quickly got on him. He decided to jump back I'm along with another buck but this time quartering to me a little. I settled on him, squeezed and CLICK again! I couldn't believe it. Part of me started thinking this just isn't meant to happen. I chambered my last round unsure if I was even going to try again. Settled on him and squeezed BOOM! He didn't know what hit him. Quickly dropped and all I could see was white belly. I climbed down not realizing that this journey with Spooky just ended. It didn't really sink in until 10 minutes or so after the shot. The buck fever, adrenaline pumping feeling was something I'll never forget. He isn't a high scoring deer but that didn't matter to me. Mature East Tx Buck with so many stories behind him that I will always look back on.
Very special deer especially being the first off the property. I couldn't be more thankful for what God has given me. Way more than I will ever deserve.
Age 5.5 Min
Score 124 6/8" (Broke 6"-7" G2)
Savage 30-06
Thanks for reading
LDPs
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