re: My first deer kill story..... Let's hear yours

First time deer hunting. 11 years old and was with my dad. It was about 1600 early December and warm enough for me to be in short sleeves.

We were on someone’s property as a guest. We were too poor to afford hunting anywhere and didn’t know about public land. My dad bought me a Remington model 7 in .243. I remember there being a big discussion about it because the single shot was only $90 but my dad insisted I learn how to shoot on a bolt action so he convinced my mother to allow the $400 purchase. He was not a hunter but a former marine and that was important to him. It just had some shitty $60 glass on it.

Button buck walked out about 100 yards out (walked off with hand gps) and I took aim. I refused to shoot without my earmuffs and made my dad put them on.

I squeezed the trigger and can remember seeing the deer fall as my recoil knocked the deer out of sight. I thought it ran away but upon review, it simply dropped where it stood.

Probably one of my best memories.

I was 13 years old and had mowed lawns that summer to buy a 12ga single barrel shot gun. I had also swapped out work for an aluminum lean up. I put the lean up on a ridge with a lot of white oak trees on it. About 30 minutes after day light I heard a deer walking towards me and crunching on the acorns. I could see horns and barely could stay in the stand from shaking so much. The buck finally hit an opening about 30yds from my stand and I let him have it with a load of 3" magnum 00 buck. It dropped him in his tracks. I removed my lean up from the tree and loaded the deer on it and drug it for about 200yds to a bushhog trail so we could reach it with the tractor. I ran the 1/2 mile back the house to get my dad to get the deer. It was only a basket rack 5pt but it was a trophy to me, not only was it my first "legal" deer but I did it all by myself. I was hooked and have been for 30 yrs now.

I was 8 or 9 hunting with my dad as a guest at his friend’s club in St Francisville. He gave us a doe tag to use. Late in the evening 3 came out at the end of the lane. My dad told me to pick one and shoot. I put his old 30/06 with a fixed 3x scope out the window and shot. I dropped it on the spot. We got down to retrieve it and find out it was a button buck. The club had a 6pt or better rule and $100/point fine under that. To this day he won’t tell me if he payed $400 for that deer

I was 32 and it was a doe.

1986, I was 16. We always went up to Winn Parish the week before Christmas to hunt with my Dads uncles and cousins. They ran dogs. My Great Uncle was the most spry 80 year old you ever met. He'd tell everyone which "stand" to get by, then mount up on his horse and make thr drive. It was a COLD December morning and my Walmart rubber boots didn't have a hint of insulation. I couldn't feel my feet after an hour or so but when thr dogs struck and the barking got louder, I warmed up quick. A pretty 8 point buck busted out of the brush about 25 steps of me. I swung and fired my Grandpas old Model 12 loaded with 00 buck just as the buck tried to turn. Spined him and he dropped like a rock. Had to drag him about 150 yards down a logging trail. You couldn't of wiped the smile off of me or Uncle Wiston for days. They are all gone now. What I wouldn't give to be able to do that 1 more time.

My first deer was a fat nanny and pretty uneventful. Came prancing out with her 3 girlfriends at about 50 yards and drilled her. However, Then I started firing 30-06 bullets at everything moving for the next 5 minutes. Not surprisingly, I hit none of them..

Still not sure why I did that, but after hunting for 4-5 years without killing my first, I guess I was scared to let any of them live.

Not my first deer as I had previously bagged a doe, but my first buck story is pretty cool. Was out at a family friend’s ranch somewhere around San Angelo, Texas. I was probably 13 or 14 at the time. Late afternoon/evening hunt looking out over a bunch of mesquite dirt and rocks. Group of does walk by followed by a young six point. I watched them for fifteen or twenty minutes and decide nothing better is going to come out so I take aim, a deep breath or two and shoot. Drop the six point. Dude didn’t take a step, just crumbled. Does scatter.

So I’m pumped, but remembering what my dad told me I stayed put and didn’t get down out of the stand. Once the shaking subsided and I calmed down a bit I decide to kick back and take a little nap while I wait for my dad and his buddy to come pick me up after sundown. I nod off for what couldn’t have been twenty minutes when I am awoken by the unmistakeable sound of antlers hitting. Confused, I sit up and put up my scope to see wtf is going on. There I see another, slightly bigger six point RAMMING MY DEAD DEER. He’d whack the poor thing, back up a few steps, lower his head and charge and whack the dead six point. Again and again. Whack... whack... whack. I’m thinking ‘what the hell?? Dude, you win! He’s dead! Leave my frickin deer alone!” But nope, he’s not having it. Whack.. whack.. so I say you know what MFer? Chambered another round and BAM. Dropped him on top of the first six point

What feels like hours later my dad and his buddy finally pull up to see me standing there with my foot on top of not one, but two six points literally stacked on top of one another

I kept the two skulls and after spending a few months on an ant pile they ended up coming out pretty cool. One six and another six with the blood of the first one on the tips of it’s antlers.



Found a picture. Can kinda see the blood on the one on the right

Was 14 and squirrel hunting with my .22 semi, saw a big fox squirrel way off and I stopped and leaned against a great big pin oak waiting on the squirrel as he was headed my way. A little spike buck stepped out of a thicket not 20 yards away. I threw up and shot him right behind the shoulder and he ran about 20 yards and fell. Bullet clipped the top of his heart and almost went completely through. Bullet was lodged between his shoulder and hide. I still have that bullet to this day. Good times although slightly illegal

I never do take the safety off until I’m absolutely certain I’m going to shoot

1979 on the old McLemore's property in Madison Parish. Saw probably 50 deer that morning including one nice buck that I totally boogered before I could get a shot. Was 11 years old hunting by myself in the woods. Sat on a large home made wooden leaning stand. Was shooting a 12 Gauge Browning.

Button Buck took a ride home in the back of our 74 Bronco.

Will never forget that hunt.