It started in 2011. The first shed trip of the year, I had woke up at 3 am and started my drive to my SW Iowa farms. As the sun was cresting, I was just pulling into the field drive on the first farm. It seemed like the perfect morning, and I had high hopes and just needed the venture in the woods.
As I was walking the field edge, I noticed deer ahead messing around in the field. I hit my knees and pulled up my binoculars, and to my surprise all I saw was an antler. Needless to say, I was a bit shocked and extremely excited that in less than 5 minutes out of my truck, there was the first antler. As I scooped it up, I noticed an extremely impressive brow tine. It was nothing special for an antler, but still it was good to have it in my hand. I kept thinking about the brow tine while I was shed hunting and hoped that I would find the match. After another thirty one sheds I hadn’t found the match and went home bummed. This deer never showed its self until one fall day in 2011. I had no trail cam pictures of this deer, no video, and no sightings until that day. He came out with a smaller buck and I noticed the brow tines on the second buck. It was him! I went to roll footage and of course, my camera was dead. The only time I saw this deer that year was either from the seat of my truck or the day my video camera was dead. He was beginning to get to me.
In 2012 he turned into a complete ghost, I found no sheds in the spring, and no sightings in the fall. I feared the worst that he had been killed. In the spring of 2013, after a fresh dusting of snow, I found myself pulling into the same farm “Righty” lived hoping to find a few antlers. The first walk through the farm produced nothing, and the next walk produced gold! There laying in the snow was the right side of him. He by all accounts had “blew up”, the shed looked amazing! I have high hopes to check cameras this year now, and hope to find Righty. If I can get on this buck’s pattern, and it seems that his time just might be up this fall. Stay tuned to find out!
