Management kill turns into trophy buck

PSE Archery manager whacks 136-inch 8-point on Giles Island.

Bobby Vargas gets to hunt all over the country in his role as product line manager for PSE Archery, but he had never been to Giles Island Hunting Club in Adams County.

But he was impressed with what he saw opening morning of the deer season, and even more impressed on his second hunt because what he thought was a management buck turned into a true trophy.

Vargas hit the woods early Saturday (Oct. 1) morning, setting up over some persimmon trees on the edge of a slough.

The highlight came when a solid 130-inch 12-point moved within 50 yards of the veteran bowhunter.

“He was 47 yards out, and I actually took a shot and missed,” Vargas said.

And it was all captured on video, which was being shot for Mossy Oak’s Deer Thugs TV show.

Back at the camp, the film was run back.

“Everybody saw me take a swing and miss,” Vargas laughed.

So when Vargas headed out that afternoon – cameraman in tow – he was determined not to make the same mistake.

The effort didn’t start off very well, though.

“There were two different stands set up for different wind conditions,” Vargas said.

They had just settled into the stand when they realized the wind was wrong.

“We missed the stand we were supposed to be in,” Vargas said.

After finally getting a call through Giles Island manager Jimmy Riley, who was in a stand himself and soon would shoot a truly monstrous buck, Vargas and Mossy Oak field producer Rusty McDaniel climbed out of the tree and hiked back the way they came.

Soon they were nestled in the proper stand.

This time, the setup was along an old logging road running between a cutover and a grown-up green field.

Again, persimmons were the star attraction for the deer.

Action began immediately.

“No soon had I put my foot on the platform than I saw a doe coming in behind us,” Vargas said.

The doe went for the persimmons while Vargas continued getting ready, but the show was only starting.

“I just got my safety harness set when a 6-point came out,” he said.

Two spikes joined the deer beneath his stand, and stayed so long Vargas’ interest waned – and that turned out to be a good thing.

“I could see about 200 yards ahead of us, and in the tall grass I could see tines,” Vargas said.

He and his cameraman glassed the deer, and knew it was worth watching.

“Instantly, we could see it was a tall, heavy 8-point still in velvet,” Vargas said.

The nice deer was with another buck, but Vargas soon thought the deer had disappeared.

“I lost him and thought he was gone,” he said.

However, McDaniel was filming the buck easing through the tall grass and knew it was moving closer to their setup.

“He told me, ‘He’s getting ready to step out on the road,’” Vargas said.

The deer had a great body, and the two studied the deer to determine if it was a shooter. They soon decided it was a management buck, and all Vargas had to do was get a shot off.

But the deer had other ideas, and slipped into some cover to feed.

“He’d eat and eat and throw up his head,” Vargas said. “It seemed like longer than that.”

About 10 minutes later, the animal popped out again. Vargas prepared for his shot.

“I drew back, but he only stayed a second,” Vargas explained. “He started walking away from us.

“I said, ‘That’s it.’”

Vargas just knew the buck would continue away from the stand, but inexplicably it turned around and walked right back.

At 32 yards, the buck stopped broadside, head down. Vargas had an opening about a foot wide, and sent an arrow into the side of the deer.

“I saw the arrow go right in the crease (behind the shoulder),” Vargas said.

The deer streaked way before piling up about 50 or 60 yards away.

“That’s such a good feeling when you get to see that,” Vargas said.

Both men still thought they were going to retrieve a management buck. No slouch, certainly, but juts a management buck.

“We thought he was maybe 120 inches,” Vargas said. “We knew he was heavy, but we also knew he was in velvet, which can make them look bigger.”

When they finally climbed out of their stands and eased over to the deer, their jaws dropped.

The buck was, indeed, in velvet. But the mass they had seen came from solid bone.

“He actually got bigger when we put our hands on him,” Vargas said. “He was probably a good 20 inches bigger than we thought he was.”

The 200-pound deer green-scored at 136 inches, massive for an 8-point.

“His body made his rack look smaller,” Vargas said.

Be sure to post photos of your bucks in the Big Buck Photo Contest, which is open to all registered users of MS-Sportsman.com

Editor’s note: The kill came on the same afternoon Riley knocked down a 180-class buck.