Krystin Naron of Plain Dealing tragically lost her son, Treyson, in 2021 as the result of an ATV accident. The 12-year-old left behind his favorite gun, a CVA Hunter 44 magnum.
“When I went to our deer stand located near Benton in Bossier Parish with my husband, Trey, on the afternoon of Oct. 24, I had planned to hunt with my 35 Whelan but I had loaned it to a friend,” Naron said. “Instead, I decided to take along my late son’s gun, knowing if I got a buck with that gun it would make it all the more special.”
She and Trey hunt a 15 acre block of land that is part of the hunting club her family has been associated with for over 20 years.
“My father-in-law was president of the club until he passed away 2 years ago when my husband became club president,” she said. “The stand we were hunting was actually my late father-in-law’s stand.
“I was interested in taking one that had been showing up on camera, one that really got my attention. This year, I only had a few pictures of this new buck a few times. The last time being on Oct. 17, a week before I was able to get him.”
A big set of antlers
On the afternoon of Oct. 24, Naron and her husband got into the box stand, which had a clearing out front where they had scattered corn. Around 5:15, a yearling doe and a spike came to the corn and began feeding.
“I noticed that they became nervous and were looking down toward the bottom that connects to the clearing,” she said. “Then both deer suddenly took off and I felt like something bigger was about to step out, and it did.
“The first thing I saw was a big set of antlers as the buck walked out and came to the corn and started eating. We had to sit and watch him for several minutes as he was facing me, not giving me an area for a good shot.”
When the buck made a turn quartering away, Naron put the scope on his shoulder and hit the trigger. The buck kicked and took off.
“My husband and I walked down there to where he was standing when I shot,” she said. “There was no blood visible but we noticed some freshly broken twigs and his tracks where he took off. We followed the tracks and found him piled up; he had only run about 15 yards.”
A special buck
The buck carried a rack consisting of 11 points, a main frame 10-point with a kicker just over an inch. The buck was determined to be 4 ½ years old, weighed 227 pounds, had an inside spread of 18 ½ inches and had 4-inch bases. Taking the buck to Simmons Sporting Goods in Bastrop to enter in that store’s big buck contest, the rack was measured at 142 1/8 inches.
“There is no way I can describe my feelings of being able to sit in my late father-in-law’s stand and shoot this big buck with my late son’s gun,” she said. “I feel so blessed and felt that that both of them were looking down on me.”
