Barton notices fresh tracks, ambushes 12-pointer in Winn Parish
Billy Barton had gotten really tired of sitting in his box stand in Winn Parish without seeing any deer.
So a change of scenery, including the use of a folding lawn chair concealed under tree limbs, helped him ambush a 12-point buck last month that scored almost 180 inches Boone and Crockett.
“I hunt on family property near Atlanta in Winn Parish. My box stand has lanes extending out so I can see several directions,” said Barton, 70. “However, I hadn’t seen any deer from my stand.”
So after another disappointing session with no deer on Saturday, Nov. 9, Barton noticed fresh hoof prints from a big deer that had walked in the tracks of his UTV while he was in his box stand, and inspiration struck.
“I decided that instead of the deer hanging out on the hill where I had my box stand, the deer was spending more time along the old haul road. In addition to seeing this fresh track, there were older tracks confirming my suspicions,” he said.
The following Monday afternoon, Nov. 11, Barton parked his machine, but instead of going back to his box stand, he brought along a folding lawn chair with plans to hunt the deer along the old road.
“I set the chair back under some overhanging limbs so I’d have some concealment in the event the deer that made that big track should decide to come along. I could see the road but was pretty well hidden under the overhanging limbs,” he said.
Barton spread some corn and hunted that afternoon without seeing anything, but decided to give it another try the next morning.
“I sat down in my chair at 6:05. I looked at my watch and remember what time I sat down. Exactly two hours later, at 8:05, I looked down the road and he stepped out. All I could see was horns,” he said. “The buck was walking toward me only 40 yards away but when I shouldered my rifle, the movement caused the buck to stop and look my way. He was at such an angle that I was able to put the crosshairs on his neck.
“I squeezed the trigger on my .270 and the buck piled up right there. Less than five seconds after seeing him, I dropped him.”
The buck’s body didn’t match his antlers. Weighing only in the 170-pound range, he sported a high and wide main frame 10-point rack with two stickers. Barton took the buck to Simmons Sporting Goods in Bastrop and entered him in the store’s annual contest.
The buck measured 178 7/8 inches Boone and Crockett, with an inside spread stretching the tape to 20 ½ inches.
Currently, the buck sits in third place in the men’s category, only 4 inches shy of the current leader.
“I didn’t have time to get nervous when he stepped out. It was just a few seconds from seeing him before I dropped him,” he said. “But when I walked up on him and saw that rack, I guarantee you I got nervous then.”
Don’t forget to enter photos of your bucks in the Nikon Big Buck Photo Contest to be eligible for monthly giveaways and the random drawing for Nikon Monarch binoculars at the end of the contest.
Read other stories about big bucks killed this season by clicking here.
