whitetail

“ Well, although it was overcast, something was shining on me and a PT food plot this day, and the CHeif is dead.
 
I have been watching this guy for two years now. I spotted him first on July 2009 trail cam pics. He was a 13 pointer, with a mainframe 6( plus a tine off the base) on one side, 5 on the other.  I named him Cheif 12tine.  In 2009, I captured several pictures and video of him, but never saw him while on stand. 
 
After a brutal winter, and worrying about his (and others) survival post rut, we found his left shed antler on our place. It was a 72 inch antler, so figured he was right at 160″ last year. I knew this year he was hit list material. No doubt 4 1/2 and maybe 5 1/2, I could not wait to see what he had grown to. 
 
 Well, a little disappointing, he really did not grow, he lost the base extra point, the 6 moved from left side to right, and although mass went up, tine length did not. I had to rename him Cheif 12 now 11( haha)…he did not put any total inches on…..  not sure if it was the hard winter,age, or just his genes.  I got my first 2010 pics in July and many more pics and videos through the summer….up until the last picture, 3 seconds before I killed him.  
 
On sept. 4th after planting the main BF oats plot, i decided to take out the back of this bean field that was eaten down by the deer, it was only about 15 yd by 15 yds, and I planted oats.  This night I had the right wind, all the weather factors were right, so I went to that mini plot, and the Cheif decided to beat the “after dark” dinner rush for some fresh greens….bad idea.
 
He is a moose of a deer, broad shoulders, huge neck for September, big toes. He seems to be 5 yr old, 160″ green, he field dressed at 220, so over 300 on hoof !  … which is pretty good for a buck who lives in Neckville, where the motto is ” if it’s brown its down”.  Fortunately, at our place, we have had success keeping good bucks home with the 3 keys….food(crops and foodplots), cover(timber cuts), security(sanctuaries)
 
I was kind of obsessed( if you can’t tell) with this deer.  It took the 5 P’s.  Planting, planning, prepping, patterning, and praying to get it done, but that is what it is all about for me….enjoying the experience UP to the moment.
So, this next weekend, I do my part to give back to the herd and give thanks to the Lord, I go doe killing saturday and church on sunday. 
 AMEN.
 
 Brian, thanks for being there, good pictures!
 
Good luck to you all this season, please keep in touch with your outdoor experiences.”
 
CT