The lights of the day were on at 6:45.  The first deer to respond to my series of grunts and can rolls was a year old buck with about 12” spikes.  After a brief visit, the young buck was here and gone.  Something told me that this was going to be a good day.  Shortly after the young spike made his way through, a new guy on the block showed up.  It was this year’s button buck.  Some time elapsed and numerous can rolls and grunts, another small four point showed up looking for the sound of a doe in heat.  Soon after this buck browsed out of sight, I peered at my watched and it was only 8:00 and the day was still young.  After I checked the time, I saw some movement in the crab apples directly in front of my position, so with just a few tilts of the can out comes number four another young buck.  This small six point walked right to me and directly under my stand.  I was pumped.  Not even two hours on stand and a steady flow of bucks, none of them shooters, but still it was action.  As I reflect on this stand, I have taken several deer from this position in the past several years.  After reflecting on past hunts, I pulled out my tools and went back to work grunting and bleating.  I looked to my right in the direction of deer flow and noticed a flicker of white so I strained my eyes to see a set of horns in a tree branch.  He was making a scrape and working his licking branch.  At this point, I knew he had horns but how good I couldn’t tell until three rolls of the can caught his ear.  Just then, his head came to attention looking for his dream date.  I rolled the can again and the high racked buck came marching my way.  I had no idea that this brute was a ten point until he was in bow range.  With my heart pounding I thought for sure he would hear the blood flowing through.  I came to full draw as the ten pointer locked up on my scent line behind some twigs.  I realized this was not my best shot opportunity so I let down out of full draw to wait for the perfect shot.  Then he made his move on my scent line and I came back to full draw.  At this point, my nerves were solid and I kept telling myself three more steps. It was as if the deer heard my wish and that’s when all the practice, tuning and endless hours of shooting paid off.  My mind kept saying pick your spot, hold and squeeze, and then the arrow was gone.  The arrow passed through his ribs and in the ground then the big ten pointer was gone back the direction he came. 

I watched him vanish in crab apples and that’s when I heard him crash - a sound every bow hunter wants to hear.  After a few deep breaths and numerous arm pumps I maneuvered my way down out of my stand.  I then gathered up my gear found my arrow and started on the instant blood trail, with a few misdirection on the trail I found my awesome ten pointer piled up in grape vines.  After sometime reliving the moment with my beautiful whitetail, I called for one of my other hunting partners, my mother to bring her camera to take some pictures and enjoy this moment with me.