He killed the 10-pointer on Sept. 15
Shane Atkins of Raleigh, N.C., arrowed his biggest bow buck ever on a small-acreage property just south of Raleigh. He killed the Wake County 10-pointer after working the property for over three years. He had two more years invested in requesting permission. It was the first buck he killed on this small property after passing up several good bucks over the last two seasons. But the wait was completely worth it when he arrowed a 143 1/8-inch, 10-point buck just before sundown on Sept. 15.
Beginning in 2016, Atkins eyed this small acreage near his uncle’s house just south of Raleigh. He felt it was situated in a perfect location for harboring some good bucks. But, the landowners were less than excited about anybody hunting their property. And they turned Atkins down for two years.
“After two years of begging an animal advocate and her husband for permission to hunt, I finally got their blessing,” Atkins said. “Immediately, I sprung into action by putting out corn and running cameras.”
As the 2018 season arrived, Atkins got a few decent bucks on camera, but nothing that he had hoped for. But Atkins was patient. He was in it for the long haul.
“I had a few decent bucks show up and I thought, man if they make it to next year, they will be giants,” he said.
Two bucks reach trophy status for 2020
Atkins hunted all season in 2019. He came up empty with no trophy bucks. But this year, he had two good bucks he watched in 2019 make it to trophy status. He named them “Brisket” and “Pee Wee.” Brisket was a rather tall-horned buck with a white chest. And Pee Wee was a very wide buck that piqued Atkins’ interest to the highest degree. Both bucks were shooters. But Pee Wee was the top buck and he hoped to get this deer in his sights.
On opening day of the 2020 deer season, the wind was unfavorable. So Atkins decided to stay at home.
“I sat at home watching people punch tags and celebrate. And all I wanted to do was be in the woods. My deer were coming into my corn like clockwork, showing up every day at 5:30 p.m.,” he said.
Atkins knew he would get a good opportunity to take one of these mature deer if he got the right wind and was patient. And finally on Sept. 15, the wind was perfect.
“I was like a kid in a candy store. I had everything ready and planned to a T,” he said.
He got in the stand at 3 p.m. and was excited for 5:30 to roll around. But at 5:30, nothing! Atkins was down. He assumed the deer had broken up and split from their bachelor group. But he saw otherwise when 6:45 p.m. rolled around.
Atkins finally gets a shot at the 10-pointer
“I looked up and a small buck was in my lane. I didn’t even know where he came from. He just appeared. I grabbed my bow and hit record on my video camera,” he said.
Atkins perked up in hopes his target buck would make an appearance. A few minutes later, “Brisket” and “Pee Wee” showed up. Atkins was nervous but extremely excited. And after the deer shifted around some, “Pee Wee” gave Atkins a shot opportunity.
“I felt like I had a broadside shot. I pulled back, backed off the shoulder a smidge, and let the arrow fly,” he said.
The 10-pointer ran off and Atkins was super excited. He made calls to his buddies and was happy with his shot and with the entire experience. At least until he reviewed his footage while he was still in the stand. The shot was a little farther back than he had thought. But he still felt like it was a lethal shot and decided to wait until the next day to track the deer with his friend Michael Moore. And after a few hours tracking, Moore saw something in the thick brush by the creek.
“Here’s your deer, no wait, here’s a deer,” Moore said jokingly. “Nah, here’s your deer!”
“When I finally put hands on him, I realized he was a lot bigger than I had expected. It was the biggest deer ever for me and what makes it better is that I killed him with my bow. I couldn’t be happier,” Atkins said.
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Bag-A-Buck Contest
Congratulations to Atkins, who is now entered in our Bag-A-Buck contest, making him eligible for a number of great prizes, including the grand prize which includes a 2-day, two-man hunt at Cherokee Run Hunting Lodge. Click here to view the Bag-A-Buck gallery or to enter the contest yourself.
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