Buck green-scored at 149 gross
Todd Cochrane of Cabarrus County got a rough start to his deer hunting season, but it turned around for him on Nov. 21 when he took his biggest buck ever. Cochrane had been busy with other obligations for two weeks leading up to the 21st, so he was just happy to be getting into the woods. A big 9-point buck showed up and made him even happier.
During the muzzleloader season, Cochrane had spotted a huge buck that was out of range, then he missed a nice 6-pointer, so he was itching to redeem himself. His hunting partner had been seeing an 11-pointer that he was hoping to get a look at. They both got into the woods very early on the 21st, and waited for legal shooting time.
“As time grew closer to first light, I could hear deer moving around me, and around 6:45 I saw a doe emerge from the woods about 40-yards away from me. She was alone and feeding. As I watched her, something caught my eye to the right of her. I did not realize it was a buck at first until he came closer to the doe and even after realizing it, I did not comprehend his size,” said Cochrane.
The buck got closer to the doe and stood where Cochrane had a clean shot at it. “I took my shot,” he said. The deer stumbled out of sight, and Cochrane waited, giving the deer time to expire without him spooking it.
“After a few minutes, my hunting buddy texted me to see if that was my shot he had heard. I confirmed it was, and he came over to help me locate the buck,” said Cochrane, who stayed in the stand watching for movement as his friend tracked the deer. “It didn’t take him long to come back stating that I needed to come see this deer. Once I saw the buck, I was very excited,” he said.
The buck was gross green-scored at 149-inches, and Cochrane said it’s his biggest deer by far in over 40-years of hunting. “I give all thanks to God above for blessing me with this buck of a lifetime. Maybe the 11-pointer will show up next time, but for now I am extremely grateful for this moment as a hunter,” Cochrane said.
Click here to read about other big North Carolina bucks.
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