Heavily-populated area gave up 145-inch trophy buck
Jonathon Anderson killed a rare Iredell County trophy buck during an archery hunt on Nov. 4, 2020. The 5×5 mainframe buck sported a 145-inch rack. The county, which is thickly populated by humans, isn’t known for big whitetails.
But Anderson found the home range of this big buck with the help of trail cameras.
“I’d put up a trail camera across a creek on 10 acres, but got only one picture of the deer in velvet. Then the camera died,” he said.
This area, south of Statesville, is marked mostly by small suburban lots and single-family homes because massive Lake Norman to the west has lured so many residents. Plus, those who work in Charlotte would rather live in the country.
Like-minded hunters in the area have agreed to let young male deer survive.
“Our family has a little property, and we’ve got good neighbors trying to manage deer for size,” Anderson said.
Anderson diligently practiced shooting his bow
Even then, he was surprised his trail-camera snapped a photo of a larger-than-usual buck for this area.
“Nobody around here had seen anything like him,” Anderson said.
To find an ambush point, the hunter scouted heavily during August and September, trying to find the deer’s home range. He finally discovered an extended rub line of trees at a ridge top near a well-used trail.
“It’s so thick on the ridge, I couldn’t hunt from a tree because you couldn’t see the ground,” he said. “I had to use a pop-up ground blind.”
He’d practiced diligently shooting at targets with his PSE bow set at 70-pounds draw because he believed the only shot he might get would be through a small opening.
“I felt pretty comfortable from 40 yards and closer,” Anderson said.
A couple of days before he got his chance, his trail-cam snapped photos of a doe and a seven-point buck.
“I went back on the 4th about 2:30 p.m. and sat down after I scattered a bag of corn,” he said. “I’d pulled the camera’s memory card. It showed the buck was coming to the corn. I got all pumped up.”
He shot the trophy buck at 15 yards
It was a hot day, and Anderson wore a thin, long-sleeve shirt.
“I was sweating,” he said. “The mosquitos were bad. So I had a Thermacell going.
He had also sprayed down his clothing and gear with Dead End Odor Zone and Earth Scent spray.
“If I hadn’t sprayed my stuff, I don’t think I would have had a chance. When he first came up, he stopped 10 yards behind me to my left.
“He spooked me because I was looking at a four- and six-pointer at a bean field to my right. I wasn’t aware of him until he was right on top of me. Then he walked straight to the bait pile. And I couldn’t move,” he said.
Finally, the trophy buck turned. It quartered toward the hunter at 15 yards, and Anderson’s Swhacker broadhead cut diagonally through the deer, but didn’t exit.
He couldn’t find a blood trail, so he left and returned with his black-and-tan/Labrador-mix tracking dog “Nos.” Nos tracked the buck’s semi-circular path around the hill where he found the expired buck.
Anderson’s friend, Billy Parker taped the buck’s rack at 145 inches, aided by its 9-inch G2s and 10 1/2-inch G3s, along with its 20-inch-long main beams.
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Bag-A-Buck
Congratulations to Anderson, who is now entered in our Bag-A-Buck contest. This makes him eligible for a number of great prizes. That includes the grand prize, a two-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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