Hunter kills trophy deer that was chasing a doe.
A 500-acre chunk of pasture and woodland near Raceland in Lafourche Parish served as the final resting place for an impressive 11-point buck taken down by Des Allemands’ deer hunter Stephen “Griff” Griffin.
Griffin had gotten a sneak peek at the buck he estimated to score in the 150s just 10 days prior to bagging it on Dec. 8.
“I hunt with five other friends on private land we lease from the property owner; I was driving down a shell road when I got a glimpse of this big buck chasing two does across a pasture,” said Griffin, who goes by “BIG Griff” on the LouisianaSportsman.com forum.
Griffin’s job at Dow Chemical in Hahnville kept him busy at work for most of the time between his first sighting of the buck and the day he found it in his crosshairs.
“I was able to hunt a few days and saw a few deer, but nothing I wanted to shoot,” he said. “I occasionally hunt in Illinois and Iowa where they have really big deer, but the glimpse I got of this big boy chasing does let me know I was hunting something as impressive as those deer in states farther north.”
He was off work Dec. 7-8 and, although he hunted most of both days, the small bucks he saw during the bulk of his time on stand didn’t pique his interest.
He simply couldn’t get the image of the big buck out of his head.
“That Friday, I decided to hunt a different stand on the other side of the lease, and I was there all day, seeing some does and a couple of small bucks,” Griffin said. “As daylight started to fade in late afternoon, action began picking up.”
That’s when a doe came out into the edge of a narrow pipeline and stopped at the margin of the woods. Griffin knew if a buck was following her, he’d have to make a quick decision because they usually scoot across the narrow line quickly.
“The doe took off running quartering toward me and crossed the line,” Griffin explained. “Then, I saw him.
“My first thought was ‘Holy —- , that’s him!’”
Adrenaline surged through his veins.
“Having hunted up north and seeing big deer and having killed some fine bucks, I’ve been excited before, but I never got so worked up as I did when I saw this buck,” Griffin said.
The buck stepped out in the pipeline and followed the same angle the doe had taken. Griffin grunted, and the buck stopped.
Resolve replaced nervousness and Griffin squeezed off a shot. He knew he’d hit the buck when it took off into the woods, its left leg dangling.
“I waited awhile, called my brother and told him what I’d just shot. By then, it was almost dark, so we took flashlights and began the search,” Griffin said.
The search didn’t take long; they found the buck piled up only 20 yards into the woods.
The 175-pound buck, which has yet to be scored, sported 11 points on a massive frame. Eighteen inches of air separate the two sides of the palmated rack, which measured 11 inches around at its widest point in the curve of one antler.
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