Rockingham County buck presented 19-yard shot
Dustin Jackson of Stokesdale, NC killed a Rockingham County buck in full velvet on Sept. 12, 2024. He shot the deer with his Hoyt bow from 19 yards away. Jackson was hunting 25 feet high in a Big Game lock-on stand. The buck ran about 65 yards before dropping.
“There was an east wind, and I’d been looking forward to the end of the week, as the storm brought the right wind in,” he said. “Acorns were raining. Was having trouble seeing deer and decided to move the stand 100 yards back up the ridge from its original spot. I felt like I was going too far down the ridge and was bumping the deer on the way in. The day after I moved it I got daylight pictures of the buck still in full velvet at 7:40 pm. The same night the bigger 8 point who had already shed was in there at 9:30 pm so I know I made the right move. I knew I had to be in the next afternoon to have a shot at either deer. I got in the stand on September 12 at around 4:15 to ensure I was early enough. Around 6pm a spike come behind me and walked under mind stand and right to my corn 20 yards away. Then that’s when the wind swirled. It start blowing west towards the corn. The spike got a little worried and ate for about 15 minutes and worked down the ridge. I thought for sure the wind would mess up the evening. About 7 I look to my right and I see a buck walking up the old tobacco bed field which is now used as a bedding field. I grabbed my Hoyt bow and got set. He came right in at 19 yards. But was facing me. I didn’t want to stretch a shot and not recover him so I waited for him to turn, after 10 minutes which felt like an hour he turned and stepped right into the perfect hole. I pulled back and shot him. I saw the deer run into the creek bottom and after a few seconds I heard him crashing around, I knew he was down!. Got down the stand and saw bright red blood with bubbles. I knew I hit the boiler room. After waiting 45 minutes to an hour, my tracking crew got there and we recovered the deer at 65 yards down in the creek bottom. It was elated to kill my first full velvet. I knew the season starting about 5-6 days earlier would offer a better chance at one this year!”
Bag A Buck Contest
Congratulations to Jackson, who is now in the running for our monthly prize of a free 1-year subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine, a Sportsman hat, a two-pack of Lowcountry Seasonings, as well as our Grand Prize, which includes a 1-year-subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine, a Sportsman hat, and a 2-day, two-person hunt at Cherokee Run Hunting Lodge in Chesterfield, SC.
See all the bucks entered so far, and upload yours at www.carolinasportsman.com/bag-a-buck-2024
