Biggest whitetail you ever seen and didn’t get a shot at.

[longshotsavage]

I had had pictures of what looked to be an ok 10 point on my camera, along with some other decent bucks. I wasn't sure about the 10, but looked to be a 3.5-year-old, so there was definitely room for a boom if I let him go another season, but I also am surrounded by other hunting properties, so I knew that if I didn't take a shot if I had a chance, then someone else would. Of note, I'm up in the air on some of the hunters around. For example, I definitely try to stay within the property, but one of the neighbors setup a stand maybe 10 yards into their property but facing the CRP field on the property that I hunt, which is way on the back of the property where no one would really notice.

During bow season, I'm in the stand and I happen to see some antlers coming through the woods, which ended up being a little 6 pointer that I had on camera. He ended up being the first of about 5 in that bachelor group, which included the 10 that was on my list. After about 5 or so minutes of them coming in, one of the deer ahead and the 10 do a little sparring. So I had pretty much my number one deer on my list and another perfectly broadside about 15 yards from my stand, in a clearing. Didn't get the shot because I was seated and the deer came in from the exact opposite direction of where deer usually come in, so my draw arm would only go back maybe 6" before hitting the tree. So, I had to just sit there and watch while hoping that my GoPro was atleast catching the sparring action. After a bit of spar time, they moved on. I figured that if the 10 hit the next little cleared spot, I'd be able to draw and put one in there. So, I watch him as he gets about 3 yards from that spot and then does a 45 degree turn and heads to the back field (aforementioned CRP). I don't recall if I saw him again on camera during the season, so I can only assume that someone got him or he just moved on.

He actually looked better in person than he does on camera. I'd still say he's the one that got away. So, to date, this is still my best one, which I got this past season:

Usually we have some sleds that my dad had from mine rescue, but they were both out on loan (which is a thing...) so dad thought the ladder would probably get the job done when I called him for some help. He was mistaken. We didn't weigh this guy, but undoubtedly the heaviest deer I've ever collected on, which is all of 4....

 

[freddiej]

I have two actually. one out of Chico, CA and one out of Applegate, CA
My father told me about this one. there was a huge monster buck that alluded everyone, all the hunters in the 1960's up in Chico, CA. everyone would get to see this one once maybe twice but never for long enough to shoot him. My father was sitting down resting and having lunch when the buck in question ran passed him in a dead sprint. about 20-30 minutes later a hunter with dogs came passed and my father just laughed. the dogs were making so much noise the buck probably was still running.

In the late 1980's and throughout the 1990's every deer season this one buck would just vaporize into the brush around Boole Road in Applegate, CA. in the mid-1980's I got my first hunting license and drew a deer tag in my home district. I had seen this monster everywhere during off seasons. He never feared anyone in the off season and was seen eating in pastures with the cows, or pigs, or horses, or with the sheep. about 2 weeks before deer season he would simply disappear into the night and was not seen for 3 months. I should say he was never seen for those 3 months in the daylight or not seen for more than 2 seconds in the daylight during hunting season. in 1989 I became an outdoor guide with the Flying "Y" ranch and guide service. This is where I finally got a good close up look at this monster. he would be out among the horses when I fed them in the mornings. his rack could be seen over the backs of the horses. once he got sight of a human he went the opposite direction like a pin ball. his rack was the worst pile of trash I had ever seen, points going off in every direction, thick bases, most years he was a chocolate brown, once in a while you saw the ivory tips and a tannish brown rack. My last hunting season with the flying Y I had a seriously close encounter after a long trip into the back country of Ca. I was tired, my horse was tired, I looked up to see this beast in the middle of the trail lying down. I just froze as he got up, and walked off down the draw to the canyon. he was only 20 feet from me. it was like he knew I was just too tired to shoot him. a month or two later I stumbled upon his sheds of that year. those sheds are up on the wall at Chris' house right now. they have a deer tag hanging off of them, mine, from 1986, the first time I saw him with my first hunting license. To this day; no one has admitted to shooting this monster deer, he is most likely dead from old age. all I have is memories of him.
as they say, without pics it did not happen.. I have pics, in my head.. no proof except the sheds hanging on a wall in Chris W's house.

 

[WYO300RUM]

It was opening day of my very first whitetail deer season in 2011 about an hour before sundown. My brother and I were perched on top of a hill in a ground blind on some public land that runs adjacent to some prime private land on our right side. We had been sitting there for about 2 hours and were seeing nothing until we saw a huge buck step out of the shelter belt on the private land about 300 yards to our right. As we sat there, slack-jawed, at the size of this deer (it was both our first times ever hunting deer) we noticed the buck was making a slow beeline straight towards us. We watched for about 20 minutes as this deer walked closer and closer to public land for us to shoot it and my brother and I had already flipped a coin and I was the lucky one who got the first poke at this monster buck.

I started getting my rifle (R700 VTR in 308) ready to take a shot, any second and the deer would be off public land. The deer was no more than 5 to 10 yards from the boundary when we heard a noise, it was a truck coming up the road that separated the public and private land. Next thing we know a red Jeep Grand Cherokee comes busting down the gravel road. The buck turns tail and takes off into the field. The Jeep slams the brakes and tears off into the field after the buck chasing it all the while the passenger is blasting away at it out the window. They pursued the deer for about 500 yards and let loose about a box of ammunition before they finally killed it.

About this point in time my brother and I are mad enough that we decide to pack up before we decide to confront a couple of idiots with guns and questionable decision making. As we finished stowing our gear and started driving off. We decided to turn into the farm on the other side of the shelter belt to see if anyone was home, we had a feeling that anyone who hunted like that probably didn't have permission. We were correct. The farmer confirmed that he doesn't allow anyone to hunt his property and he was all riled up that someone had. To make an already long story short. We called the wildlife officer who was in the area and only a couple miles away. All four of us confronted the "hunters" in the Jeep. We pulled up on them as they were trying to leave the field. It was a group of three teenager from the city about 2 hours south. Turns out they didn't even take the meat. After shooting the deer, all three kids posed with the deer for multiple pictures before the used a battery powered sawsall to cut the head off for the antlers before trying to bolt. The GFP officer ended up confiscating the guns and truck as none of them had and tags to speak of and parents were called. The GFP officer did a rough green score and said it was about 180 - 185 point buck.

It's a sad story that at least has some justice. My brother volunteered his tag and harvested the meat from the deer so it didn't go to waste. The skull hangs in his den with a sign under it reading "Poachers, ye be warned" (an homage to the opening scene of a pirate movie) . I went on to harvest a large deer the next morning on the same public land with one of the gnarliest looking racks I've ever seen (super thick base with spikes all over and a weird backwards curl with a high narrow 5x5 rack up higher). It was a wild first season for my brother and me and one we won't forget.

Great story with a great ending.

 

[WYO300RUM]

I spent a couple seasons hunting a ga bruiser back when i was young . I guess i was around 20 . Most people around my home had seen the big 10pt at night . I had laid eyes on him in broad daylight cutting across a huge hay field with his nose to the ground. Unfortunately, i was driving by the field and not hunting that time.
I had seen enough to know he was a super deer for the area and commenced to making hom my hunting obsession for 2 years till his terrible ending . The only time saw him with rifle in hand I had finally found his main rutting area and , because there was no suitable tree to climb, i had set up on the ground . To mask my scent, i dumped a whole bottle of tinks skunk essence around me . About an hour into my set , i heard the unmistakable sound of hooves in the heavy leaf litter . Whatever it was headed straight towards the scrape line i was hunting. I got in position with my old rem 788 carbine in 308 , and tried to focus through the blurry eyes and pounding headache from the overwhelming stinch of skunk . All of a sudden, the woods exploded with crashing limbs and horns battering twiggs as the monster buck shot out of the draw just beyond the rubline in the old road bed. He cut an angle to the huge field just 50 yards to my left. I got a great look as he hit the open, but had no chance for a shot as he cut the corner and dove into the thick green briar on the field edge and was gone. I immediately heard more crashing in the direction the buck had come from. An overweight hunter with orange " everything " popped out in the field and casually walked around the edge. I dont guess he ever knew how close he was to a true trophy ga buck that day, or that a young obsessed 20 yr old with a loaded gun with more anger than i care to admit was watching him do his impression of a deer hunter.
At the end of my second year hunting that deer, word got back to me that a logging truck had hit him not 200 yards from where i hunted him. I had hope for a little while that the buck had survived the hit, because the logget said he was only going 25-30mph when he hit him and the deer got up and ran off. The owner of the land the buck ran onto after the semi hit him, found him , dead. He was an avid hunter and scored the near perfect 10 pt in the high 160s.

Great story with not a great ending

 

[WYO300RUM]

I have two actually. one out of Chico, CA and one out of Applegate, CA
My father told me about this one. there was a huge monster buck that alluded everyone, all the hunters in the 1960's up in Chico, CA. everyone would get to see this one once maybe twice but never for long enough to shoot him. My father was sitting down resting and having lunch when the buck in question ran passed him in a dead sprint. about 20-30 minutes later a hunter with dogs came passed and my father just laughed. the dogs were making so much noise the buck probably was still running.

In the late 1980's and throughout the 1990's every deer season this one buck would just vaporize into the brush around Boole Road in Applegate, CA. in the mid-1980's I got my first hunting license and drew a deer tag in my home district. I had seen this monster everywhere during off seasons. He never feared anyone in the off season and was seen eating in pastures with the cows, or pigs, or horses, or with the sheep. about 2 weeks before deer season he would simply disappear into the night and was not seen for 3 months. I should say he was never seen for those 3 months in the daylight or not seen for more than 2 seconds in the daylight during hunting season. in 1989 I became an outdoor guide with the Flying "Y" ranch and guide service. This is where I finally got a good close up look at this monster. he would be out among the horses when I fed them in the mornings. his rack could be seen over the backs of the horses. once he got sight of a human he went the opposite direction like a pin ball. his rack was the worst pile of trash I had ever seen, points going off in every direction, thick bases, most years he was a chocolate brown, once in a while you saw the ivory tips and a tannish brown rack. My last hunting season with the flying Y I had a seriously close encounter after a long trip into the back country of Ca. I was tired, my horse was tired, I looked up to see this beast in the middle of the trail lying down. I just froze as he got up, and walked off down the draw to the canyon. he was only 20 feet from me. it was like he knew I was just too tired to shoot him. a month or two later I stumbled upon his sheds of that year. those sheds are up on the wall at Chris' house right now. they have a deer tag hanging off of them, mine, from 1986, the first time I saw him with my first hunting license. To this day; no one has admitted to shooting this monster deer, he is most likely dead from old age. all I have is memories of him.
as they say, without pics it did not happen.. I have pics, in my head.. no proof except the sheds hanging on a wall in Chris W's house.

I know those weren't whitetails

 

[sp6x6]

Iwas doing some work for a friend with a nice piece of farm land and saw a nice frame buck.Asked if I could bow hunt,this 20 years ago.I set up where I saw buck,the buck comes by,but behind my tree,and I not limbed enough for shot that way.Season spent moving to try get shot.One day hes coming he ran with a 140 four pnt.Ilet 4 pt buy,and start to settle on buck,but for some Dumb reason I shoot with wrong pin.He was 160+.Next year Im trying again,many moves ,not finding him.Well into rifle a buck walks in,I shoot him straight under my tree.170 non,10 pts per with a scoop thing.Next season I shoot the other buck.Fast forward a few years.Im about 35 miles up the Bob elk hunting,road up box canyon,then climbed alders to reach a high basin. Elk rubs and sign everywhere.I se 5 bucks at tree line.The HOG, has on of those perfect big U racks,never seen anything like it.This long ago,have my 340 and think hes 500,before lazer.They grazing but he seemed lik looking down,but not alarmed.If I go threw this finger of timber Ill be 300+.I pop out edge,4 bucks there.I look for a hour.Later when I meet friend back at horses,he was hunting other side.Says you see that rag horn go out the top.I saw ya that was the biggest muley I have ever seen.My son and I have both shot 200 type,and this still holds true.

 

[Pharmsales]

I am 50 years old now (and a hunting advocate!~), but this was when I was in high school in San Angelo, Texas. Core of Engineers had taken several thousand acres from my great-grandfather when they built that 100 year flood plain ****. We still have a good bit of property that butts up to what as taken and big deer used to step onto our property from time to time (as no one hunted the Core of Engineers side). Missed a shot on a double drop tine buck that I would put a stack of 100's on went over 200" - looked like a horse with a rack. I have seen nothing even close since then. My uncle who was with Texas Parks and Wildlife was hunting with me that day and saw the buck....he still talks about that buck every hunting season.

I live in Austin now and my back yard backs up to a 600 Acre city of Austin bike riding park. I have seen a 170" white tail hanging around and started throwing out corn just to get a picture of him. This 170" deer is the biggest I have seen since that unbelievable deer that I missed in High School.

 

[Jpron]

I was bow hunting, sitting in a tree stand on the edge of a standing corn field. 3 rows into the corn, literally 15 feet away comes walking one of the bigger deer I've seen. He was walking, I'm at full draw,so like on tv I tried to grunt at him to stop him like on tv. He bolted out of there so fast, he basically disappeared. Well the neighbor kid shot him a few weeks later. 187 pope and young. That one hurt! I could have zapped him but tried to stop him. And for The biggest whitetail deer I ever seen, well you wouldn't even believe.

 

[eyeballjr]

Was coming out of the woods after bow hunting. Got out to open the gate, and there he stood at 25 yards. I don't know how big he was, but my biggest, a 145" 10 point looked like a baby compared to him. He was standing with a doe and didn't pay me any mind. The doe slowly led him away. He gets bigger and bigger every time I tell the story.

 

[WYO300RUM]

Ok. Here's my story from last Oct./Nov. here in Wy.. I drew a limited 165:tag. Good for whitetail or muley from Oct. 15th to 31st. Short season.The year before a lot of deer in the unit. Last year not so many. Heard blue tongue on whitetail . I was hunting BLM for mulies and some on a ranch that had both whitetail and mulies . A ranch hand buddy that worked on ranch told me there was a very tall 8 pt. That he saw year before.and 2 short tined 10 pts hanging around and a short tined but wide 4x4 muley. I set up in certain spot but got busted by does before bucks came out. I hunted around different areas different days. Saw 10 pointers a couple times. Saw 4x4 muley and a 3x3 muley multiple times and could of shot any of them. I never saw the tall 8 pt whitetail. I wanted to leave by Oct. 31st for a deer hunt in New Mex. that opened on 11/2 with my good buddy Rhett on this site. Well, Oct. 31st last day of season I finally caved and shot a decent 3x3 on BLM. Next day I left for N.M.. On Nov. 6th the last evening of N.M. hunt I shot a decent buck with about an hour of legal shooting light left. Next day back to Wy.. I still had a doe whitetail tag good to 11/30 left and a doe lope tag good till 11/30 left. Filled other 2 for lope tags in Oct. . I shot doe lope on 13th. On 15th was going to meet ranch hand buddy to try to shoot a doe whitetail. I'm about 400 yds from his house and I see a bunch of muley does and whitetails near river on the correct ranch land. I get out of truck and looking with binos and there is the big tall 8 pt. Whitetail with all the does... Figures. They start heading for the trees by river and I picked a doe whitetail at about 120 yds and popped her. That lucky 8 pt. Lives another year. I could of had him broadside at 125 yds.. I won't ever have that tag again so this year somebody may get him. That's my story. Not exciting but frustrating

 

[matt_3479]

I'd say there is 3 deer that just haunt me a little. The first was a buck my hunting party kept claiming they saw on a small small property we all hunted. Over the 6 years 3 different people got shooting at it but never seemed to connect. On the last day of my shotgun hunt I was started to head out of my stand and when I crested the top of the hill here came 2 does and a small 4 point. Last day of season for me I pulled up to shoot the 4 point for freezer meat when all of a sudden the massive 12 came out. Perfectly uniform, fairly wide but incredible height and mass!! He chased the back doe for 10 mins before taking her to bed never presenting me with a clean shot. Never seen him again.

this season is shot a real huge bodied 140" 8 point, and a big mature doe. With both tags filled and weather changing I switched to coyote hunting. While out on one of my usual property's I had a heard of deer come out to feed in a cutcorn field. While scanning the field i see this beautiful 10 maybe 11 point with his kicker. Had nice mass, nice height, wicked curved brow tines and good size kicker off his g2, while watching this 150-160" beautiful whitetail i saw a flash of movement and here came a massive super wide with heavy heavy mass uniform 10 point! Mucholder deer! I rarely see deer on This property and here are 2 giants at the same time 3 days after my tags are filled!

a buddy just sent me a video of the biggest deer I've probably ever seen in our area. I didn't see him personally, and he's in a no hunting area that's why he doesn't make the list. But this is a true 180-190+ deer!

 

[Bravo 4]

What if you did shoot the deer of a lifetime and your best friend helped someone load it up in their truck and steel it, not knowing it was your deer...

 

[Groot]

No proof or anything but when I was 17 I was putting on a mini drive for my mom and dad when I stumbled onto a real nice 10 point didn't get much time to look at him because I was more or less stampeding him down the valley rather than gently driving him lol... the day before (opening morning) I shot a 3 point

 

[vicroll91]

Just the way it goes sometimes! But you're right, that's what keeps you going back.