A Buck of a Lifetime: The Western New York Giant

Written by: Ryan Reading, Fall Obsession Pro Staff

It all started long before the shot. Last season, I first learned about a buck that would come to dominate my thoughts and efforts for the better part of a year. He was a ghost, appearing only occasionally on trail camera, mostly late in the season. But even in those few glimpses, I knew he was something special.

Coming into this season, I made up my mind: I was going to focus entirely on that deer. Once you have a target buck, you learn to hone in, study him like a true target. Early in the summer, I set multiple stands, added food plots, and began tracking him in an area we call the Corral, an old cow pasture overgrown crop grass and timber. I thought it would be like shooting fish in a barre as he mainly stuff to that areal, but he had other plans.

On September 24th, he vanished. I was a bit worried but I knew they shift from summer to fall bedding and hoped he stayed nearby. My Tactacam cell cameras went quiet, and I couldn’t locate him anywhere. I was still seeing good bucks but not the big 12.

 Then, in late September and early October, he started showing up again but this time in daylight and on the opposite side of the farm. That told me everything I needed to know. He had shifted his bedding area but stayed loyal to the farm.

I adjusted quickly, moving five cameras to monitor a scrape line and a series of fresh rubs along a ten-acre CRP section that bordered the timber and a ditch. It was the only area on the farm that had been unpressured all year and camera-free, exactly the kind of sanctuary a mature buck would claim. Once I confirmed that was his core area, I relocated two stand setups to get within range plus checked another stand I had set about 150 yards down wind but that had been there for some time. Now, it was just a matter of waiting for the right wind and weather for the opportunity.

Then, everything changed.

The Fall Obsession team arrived for our annual New York hunt, and that same week, the farmer decided to cut the corn, three weeks earlier than usual. Forty acres of standing corn disappeared overnight. In eight years of hunting there, the farmer had never harvested before November 10th. The sudden change threw every deer into chaos, and my carefully built intel went out the window. I had no idea how the early harvest would affect bedding and movement including the added hunting pressure.

By October 29th, I hadn’t had a recent picture of the big buck, but there were still a few decent deer showing up. That morning, the team went out as we had already planned our sits. Unfortunately, I woke up late, 6:00 a.m. and they were already headed to the farm. I told them to go on without me; I wouldn’t be there until 6:45. My plan was to hunt a small, thick five-acre parcel we call The Five, adjacent to the 150-acre farm. It’s just a thick bramble bush area that I’ve seen large bucks in before and thought it would be the best place to sit .

Halfway there, my longtime hunting buddy Steve called. His alarm hadn’t gone off, He said I just woke up I’m going to be late and he didn’t want to disturb anyone, so he said he’d just head to The Five. Me being me, I told him, “You got it.” I’m always the one to say go for it I’ll give anyone the benefit and change my plans.

But right after hanging up, I had what I can only describe as a premonition. My late father’s voice came through clear as day: Go there. As he said it, I saw a vision of that exact stand location. It was strange, almost spiritual. I hadn’t gotten a single good photo over there in awhile and the big buck had only appeared there once, weeks prior. But something told me to go. So I did.

I went to the stand and I settled in as the sun started to rise. Steve texted me, frustrated, saying he couldn’t find the stand I had relocated a few weeks prior and ended up blowing some deer out of the area. He decided to leave he was upset. That rattled me a bit as I wanted to hunt there and now, no one was but I stayed put. I jad messaging back and forth with the team about what they were seeing. Most were seeing deer but we were all waiting on a good one .

Around 8:00 a.m., a few small deer, a couple of does, a spike, and a four-point moved in and milled around. They acted calm and content, which was odd, as there isn’t any good browse in the area. So I watched them and texted with the team.

 Then, at 8:30, I saw a larger doe running up the trail toward me. I knew, if I see a doe running like that something must be behind her. I flipped my seat up, grabbed my bow, and got ready. As she closed the distance to twenty yards, I caught sight of him. The giant.

All antlers and mass, charging in behind her. My heart nearly stopped. I was tucked 18 feet up in a four-trunk tree, trying not to breathe as the doe locked eyes on me. She froze, and it felt like time stood still. More deer started crashing in, bucks and does from every direction. There must have been fifteen in total. I couldn’t move an inch. I wasn’t b sure how I was going to beat all these eyes. I knew he felt safe with that many deer around.

Finally, the doe turned her attention to a large eight point that had come in from the left crashing through the brush. I exhaled quietly, and when she moved again, the big buck followed. I drew my bow, crouched, and leaned out around my bow hanger. I released.

The arrow hit with a loud slap, too far back. My first thought was liver. He bolted, crashing away through the brush. With all the chaos of other deer running around, I stayed still and waited. I think the deer didn’t understand what happened as they all kept chasing. One by one of about ten minutes they exited the brushy area chasing that Doe. Every deer had exited except the giant. In my mind, I thought, I hit him in the liver, he’s injured and laying in his first bed in there. I told myself, When in doubt, back out. That’s what I did, I didn’t even go check the arrow. On a buck like this, there is no protocol. Most of the time you would get down after about 30 minutes and check your arrow. But I couldn’t even do that. I just wanted to get out of there and give him time as quickly and quietly as possible.

I met up with the team at the trucks, replaying it all in my head. Then I remembered my Tactacam was still running on the tree. Sure enough, it caught the entire shot. The footage confirmed what I thought, back but lethal, with a huge amount of blood on the exit. I hadn’t even checked my arrow, but that gave me hope.

I waited six hours before going back in with the crew after many of them were pressing me to go check. Like I said, there’s no protocol when shooting a giant whitetail you have to wing it using your best judgment . So we gathered our things and put a plan on place.

We arrived back at the farm and headed to the stand. When we found the arrow, it was coated just about tip to tip, bright, dark red blood, unlike anything I’d seen before. Usually, it’s bright or dark or pink. This was a mixed color. I slowly quivered the arrow and we slowly began to track, referencing the video for direction. At first, there was no visible blood trail. We spread out, combing the area.

Then Mike, who was out ahead, about twenty yards almost stepped on him and didn’t even notice as he was intently scanning for blood. 

“Right there,” I said! I could see antlers sticking up from the leaves just twenty feet in front of him. The giant 12-point was down. Inlet out a sigh of relief.

The emotions hit me hard. I was overwhelmed, grateful, humbled, and honestly, speechless. After everything, the premonition, the wait, the pressure and the team. Even the people rooting for me from different states, I didn’t even know, to hopefully get the buck. It all came together. I thanked the Lord and my old man over and over. It wouldn't happen without them.

When I finally walked up on him, there was no ground shrinkage. If anything, he was bigger than I imagined. The Fall Obsession team had captured it all on film, and together, we celebrated one of the greatest hunts of my life. 

We got the buck out, took photos, and brought him to Lighthouse Processing in Mayville, New York, the best around. That night, we green scored the rack live on our facebook stream: 188 7/8 inches. My biggest buck to date, easily making New York Pope & Young and potentially Boone & Crockett once officially scored. We’ll have to wait for that official score about another month as the rule books call for it but either way it’s my trophy. 

It wasn’t so much about the harvest, it was everything else, including the chase that meant so much to me. I set out on my target and that feeling of closure and success at that level on a free range buck of that caliber makes you respect hunting, animals and the land even more.

The giant 12, now at West Wind Taxidermy in Fredonia, New York where Brian, one of the best in the region, will be doing the mount. (If you need taxidermy work, tell him I sent you.) You won’t be disappointed.

This season’s been a grind, ticks, long sits, plenty of failures, missing my old man and lessons learned. But was it worth it? Absolutely. After 34 years of bow hunting, this hunt reminded me why we endure the highs and lows.

And with gun season opening November 15th… maybe, just maybe, there’s a double in the making.

Special Thanks to Lighthouse Processing , West Wind Taxidermy, and the Fall Obsession Team and everyone that made this hunt come together. Especially the Lord above. Shoot straight ,stay humble and hunt giants.