Deer scores 167 inches Boone & Crockett.
When a trophy buck crossed Jerry Hester’s lane within minutes of the same time two days in a row, Hester had one eye on his watch and another on his shooting lane on the third day.
Incredibly, the 160-class buck punched the clock again Saturday (Dec. 3) – and paid the price for such predictability.
“The buck showed up at 8:31 (a.m.) on Thursday (Dec. 1), at 8:39 on Friday and I killed him when he walked the same trail Saturday at 8:44,” Hester, owner of Quality Ford in Coushatta recalled.
Hester didn’t take a shot either of the first two days because he couldn’t get a good view of the rack either time.
Hester took the whole week off work to hunt, and he did it for one reason – the bucks were on the move and he used his trail cameras to let him know that the rut was on.
“I have about 10 trail cameras that I keep out on the property I hunt, and I check them daily,” he explained. “When I start seeing bucks on the move, that’s when I take off work and go get in my deer stands.”
Over the past several seasons, this modus operandi has paid off in spades for Hester, as he has taken several really nice bucks scoring from the 130s to the 150s anchored by a buck scoring 176 in 2001. All of Hester’s trophies were taken less than a mile from his home in the village of Martin in Red River Parish.
“I lease several tracts from Martin Timber Company and Weyerhaeuser Company, and I live sort of in the middle of the land I hunt,” he added.
The stand where trail cameras revealed most of the action was taking place is located on a utility line that stretches some 300 yards to Liberty Creek. Although he can see the lane across the creek, he is unable to mow past the creek.
“On Saturday, it was windy and fairly warm, and actually the wind was wrong blowing from me toward the creek where I’d seen the deer two previous days,” Hester said. “I put out plenty of Code Blue Doe in Estrous scent with a dual purpose: to attract a buck and hopefully to mask my scent.”
Right on schedule, the buck came out of the woods, crossed the creek and, when he stepped out into some tall weeds on the other side, Hester shot.
“I shot him at 332 yards,” Hester said. “I use a Burris Eliminator on my rifle, (a .308 Savage Tactical), which is a range finding device that allows you to compensate for distance. I squeezed the trigger and heard the ‘whump,’ letting me know I’d hit the deer.
“I walked down to where I thought he’d be, and I spotted him at 40 yards when he jumped up and ran.”
He called his son to bring a tracking dog, the dog picked up the trail and within minutes Hester was putting his tag on yet another Red River Parish trophy buck.
The buck, a mainframe 10-point with two stickers for good measure, carried an impressive set of head gear featuring seven points on one side and five on the other. The rack carried heavy mass, 8-inch brow tines (one of which was split) and an inside spread of 18 ½ inches.
Hester green scored the buck at 167 1/8 Boone & Crockett. The buck, which weighed only 160 pounds, was estimated to be 3 ½ years old.
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