What had been a slow morning picked up quick when big buck appeared at 80 yards
It’s been said that patience is a virtue.
In Colton Rogers’ case, it was the key to taking down a big 13-point buck Sunday morning in Sabine Parish.
Rogers, 21, had gotten into his box blind at 5:30 a.m. on a power line right-of-way in Negreet, about 10 miles southwest of Many, and had zero action all morning.
“I hadn’t seen anything,” said Rogers, who lives in Florien. “I was about ready to get out of the stand.”
That all changed about 8:50 when things happened fast and furious as a big buck trotted out about 80 yards away.
“I looked up and I looked to my right and I saw him out of my right window,” Rogers said. “I about had a heart attack.
“It all happened so quick. I looked up and all I saw was horns. I threw my gun up, shot him and the next thing I knew I was standing over him.”
The big buck, which Rogers estimates at about 200 pounds, dropped on the spot.
“He was over the top of a little hill from me. Whenever I dropped him, I couldn’t see any of his body, but I could see horns sticking up over the top of that hill,” he said. “He wasn’t chasing a doe or anything. I guess he was running his scrapes because he had a lot of leaves and stuff still in his horns, and some bark on the base of his horns.”
After the kill shot, Rogers decided to have a little fun with his dad, who was hunting further down the right-of-way. His dad texted him to see if he had hit his target, and Rogers told him that he had.
“I said I shot a doe because my Pappaw wanted some meat,” Rogers said with a smile. “So whenever he got there, he got out cussing me. But he was excited, and we both had a good laugh.”
Rogers had seen the deer in trail cam pics just before the opening weekend of rifle season, and both he and his father were eager to see who would get the first shot at the big buck.
“He wanted that deer so bad,” Rogers said. “He told me, ‘If you shoot that deer, you’re going to be walking home.’ “
He hasn’t gotten the deer green-scored yet, but the atypical rack features six points on the left main beam and a right beam that sprouted seven points in all directions.
“He’s got some pretty crazy horns,” said Rogers, who shot his first deer in Pre-K. “I’m still in shock over it.”
And the good news is that father and son left the woods together Sunday morning.
“Oh yeah, he still gave me a ride,” Rogers said with a laugh.
