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Bucks are starting to visit the scrapes with real interest in the last week and a half.
Here are a few I hope to see from the stand this year
[IMG]https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1906/...815af7c2_k.jpgPICT0115 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1907/...7362e2be_k.jpgPICT0014 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1958/...fcb21285_k.jpgPICT0177 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
Good luck ...
That second one is really cool. That third one is just incredible.
Nice deer, Hope you connect
The second deer is an old mature buck for sure. The first one would get a pass from me, but I am pretty old and have shot many good bucks. So to each their own. The third one is borderline. Not very wide and it looks like he only has three points on the one side, but the tines are tall and the kicker is neat. Without any additional tags in our WMU, we are pretty picky. Despite the old adage not to pass a buck on the first day that you would shoot on the last, I think the timing of each deer's appearance would be a factor for us too. But again, we have all harvested some big deer over the many years we have been hunting and I recognize that a trophy is in the eye of the beholder. Further, if there is heavy hunting pressure and you do not think that letting that first deer walk will lead to it being around next year, that would definitely figure in as well. Quality deer management only works if everyone is on the same page and that is hard to coordinate in Southern Ontario. Good luck regardless and thanks for sharing the pics. You have a good property for sure.
I have pics of al of these deer for a few years now, more of #2 and 3 as they are older. The first buck is a young up and comer. He is a 10 pt this year, but the G4s are small, and it will be cool to see what he looks like next year. He is still growing for sure, as you can see from his body as well as the rack. Don't know why, but we weem to get more big old 8's than 10's in this area. No. 2 is old, and on his way down. He has always been low and wide, with a sag/sway in his mainbeams. I like the novelty of his rack, combined with the years of pics, and the gnarly knobby bases. No 3 is in fact a full 8, you just can't see the G3 in front of the G2 on his left side. He is fairly heavy, long and tall, not super wide, but nice. You have to look at his body to see the maturity. The kicker/drop point on the left side is new this year. I will try to put together a timeline of pics over a few years to show how they have aged and changed.
A timeline would be neat. Your avatar pic shows you have seen some mature deer up close as well :) . I did note the maturity in #3's body, but could not see the G3. Nice beams though. With a neat kicker like that I would likely take him. I just thought that it would be nice to see him in a year when his rack is clearly outside the width of his ears. Mind you, there is no guarantee that will happen as not all bucks get great width like #2. If only you could combine #2 and #3...but maybe their genetics are out there already. And I also have a 14 year old son who I try to let fill my tag in the controlled hunt around his school and sport activities. So that is another reason I hold onto it so tightly. Again, you would not be embarrassed with any of those deer on your meat pole, but I would love to see how #1 looks if he makes it to next year.
Well the timeline took alot longer than I thought. Here is the first one, for a wide 8 we call Handlebars. He made it through the controlled hunt, but doesn't show up during daylight very often other than the rut.[IMG]
He is wider than ever this year, and a bit heavier, but shorter. I missed him entirely in 2016. I think he is 8.5 years old, would you agree?https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4826/...78345682_b.jpgHandlebars -6 years by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
Great Bucks. I would be happy with anyone of them. Good luck
The "Borderline" 8 with the drop tine survived the controlled hunt, and is still haunting me in bow season, with daytime weekend appearances when I am somewhere else of course........[IMG]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4875/...7219e8ad_k.jpgPICT0279 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4873/...2ab3d4e7_k.jpgPICT0282 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4896/...40c437b3_k.jpgPICT0283 by Scott Lenhardt, on Flickr[/IMG]
That is a nice looking deer,
best of luck