Great Story-book buck!

[lichen fox]

Here's a story from the GF Hearld by brad dokken...

If the green score is "typical" it beats the Hanson Buck by 4 4/8" "before shrinkage"....but it doesn't say if the score is non-typical or typical...the photo's at the end of the story...what do you think?

Joel Deere (left) and Aaron Younggren of Hallock, Minn., shared in the taking of this massive whitetail buck Nov. 15 while hunting near their deer camp northeast of Lancaster, Minn., in Kittson County. The buck weighed 240 pounds field-dressed, Deere said, and had 18-point nontypical rack. Deere tagged the buck but said he and Younggren both get credit for the deer and are having replicas made of the rack to share the memory.

Partners in northwest Minnesota hunting camp team up to take trophy buck of a lifetime

By Brad Dokken on Nov 23, 2014 at 3:15 a.m.

LANCASTER, Minn. -- Joel Deere had all but given up on seeing the big whitetail buck this hunting season.

Last Saturday, with one day left in the firearms deer season in northwest Minnesota, the odds of seeing the buck weren’t in Deere’s favor — or any of his partners in the St. Joseph Hunting Lodge northeast of Lancaster.

Things have a funny way of working out sometimes, though.

Deere, 29, who farms between Lancaster and Hallock, Minn., says he’d first seen the big buck on his trail camera last year. But then the buck did a disappearing act until this past September, when it began showing up on camera at night.

He spent hours in the stand hoping to get a glimpse of the big buck, but the monster remained elusive.

“Toward the end of season, I thought there’s no chance I will see this buck in daylight,” Deere said. “I thought maybe later in the season I’d try bow hunting.”

Last Saturday, Deere and about 10 others in the hunting camp decided to make an organized “drive” of a thicket they’d gotten permission to hunt near the cabin. They’d spent the morning inside drinking coffee and staying warm, and with noon approaching, decided to try to roust a buck or two out of the brush and into shooting range.

Deere was among the hunters walking through the brush on that first push. Aaron Younggren and two others stood post at the edge of a field on the opposite end of the woods in case any deer worth shooting came running out.

Fortunate turn

Before the drive, Deere had planned to walk to the far side of the woods in the line pushing toward the hunters on post. For some reason, a hunting partner suggested Deere take the near end of the woods.

He couldn’t have known it at the time, but that turn of events would make his hunting season.

Deere said the drive had been mostly uneventful when he walked out of the woods near the spot where Younggren was standing post.

They were sitting on a fencepost waiting for the other hunters, Deere recalls. They passed the time talking about how cold it was and how they weren’t dressed warm enough.

While they waited, three does came running out of the woods, and Deere made a joke that an amorous buck shouldn’t be far behind.

The words were barely out of his mouth.

“I looked back, and here he comes out of the willows,” Deere said. “I instantly thought, ‘oh my God.’ ”

They had to wait for the hunters walking out of the woods to clear the line of fire, but Deere and Younggren both started shooting as soon as it was safe.

The running buck was about 80 yards away.

“He went down, and we both took off running as fast as we could,” Deere said.

Close-up trophy

Reaching the buck, they realized it was the elusive trophy Deere had seen on the trail camera.

“I was screaming,” Deere said. “I probably sounded like a school girl. It was hugging and high-fives, and it was just unbelievable. Everybody with us was just pumped; there was so much adrenaline.”

Both hunters had hit the buck, but Younggren, who works as an electrician in the North Dakota oilfields, said there never was any question about Deere tagging it.

“I was pretty sure he got the first round into it,” Younggren, 24, said. “I just kind of said, ‘I think you hit him first.’ There wasn’t a dispute.

“I’ve seen those situations go south, but we’re close buddies. It’s just kind of dumb luck how stuff works out. We were just talking, and he came running out of the woods so fast there was no time to get buck fever. There was a lot of hooting and hollering and fist pumps.”

The big buck had 18 points and weighed 240 pounds, field-dressed. Randy Dufault of East Grand Forks, a certified measurer for Boone and Crockett, measured the rack and tallied a green score of 221 7/8 inches gross and 218 1/8 inches net.

The main beams on the antlers were more than 28 inches long, Dufault said, and the inside spread was just shy of 22 inches.

“Huge body, which should take away from the rack but it doesn’t,” Dufault said in an email. “Very nice buck.”

Time to celebrate

Rather than hunt any more, the crew decided to call it a day and share in the trophy buck celebration.

“We were saying how it would be fun to even see the deer,” Younggren said. “I’ve seen pictures of deer that big but never in person.”

Ironically, the buck was shot within 400 yards of the stand where Deere had logged countless hours hoping for a glimpse.

To call it a buck of a lifetime would be an understatement, he said; most hunters never encounter a trophy of that caliber.

“Guys like me just don’t shoot deer like this,” Deere said. “You see deer like this on TV. It’s unbelievable.”

Still, Deere said, his longtime friend and hunting partner deserves just as much credit for the trophy buck. He and Younggren plan to share the experience by having replica mounts made of the trophy, one of which possibly will hang in the cabin.

“There’s no way I was going to say it was my deer,” Deere said. “We both shot it. I want to make sure one guy doesn’t get more credit. We’re all really good friends.”

Blake Younggren, Aaron’s brother, said it was fun just to be part of the experience. He said the rest of the day was a “constant rush” of people coming to the cabin to see the trophy.

“I didn’t shoot the deer, but it has to be the highlight of my hunting career,” Blake Younggren said. “Just to be part of seeing an animal of that caliber get shot right near where we hunt and on an organized drive we had planned out. It was just fun to see everything fall into place the way it was supposed to.

“We’ll never see one like that again at our deer camp.”

[PropsterII]

Non typical. Not close to any record unfortunately. And there's a lot more than 3 6/8" of deducts, so not sure which of the reported scores is accurate, if either. My guess is the 221 is gross everything and the 218 might be after subtracting symmetry differences only. Which is incomplete/unofficial of course. That's what it appears to me anyway. Dandy buck.

[leechlake]

oh boy...killed it on a deer drive. Let the hacking on them begin.

Nice to see that neither is taking full credit for it. Probably the way most would be since they are friends but nice to see nonetheless. Reporter hyped it up a bit with the Hanson buck suggestion not the hunters themselves.

I'd like to know the feeling of knowing that buck was around and now he's dead. Is it a bittersweet feeling once the jubilation is over?

[bustumup]

Word I got from buddy, whose friend scored it, 213". Awesome deer no matter what the tally.

[BartmanMN]

Wow, that is a big ol' boy for sure.

[lichen fox]

Reporter hyped it up a bit with the Hanson buck suggestion not the hunters themselves.

It was I that added the Hanson Buck reference, not Dokken...and after reading a little closer...it did say it was non-typical, early in the story but it wasn't made clear when they put the scores in....

[leechlake]

my bad, I jumped the gun. Apologize

[eyeguy 54]

dandy!

[jbell1981]

oh boy...killed it on a deer drive. Let the hacking on them begin.

And it was running!

I wonder how they manage to kill it and not just wound it?

[paceman]

Awesome Buck!

[BearA]

IMO, double teaming a once in a lifetime deer on drive would sour the sweet taste of success, but it's still a monster and once in a lifetime opportunity that created unforgettable moments that will be talked about in that deer camp for many years to come.

[leechlake]

I respect that opinion. Frankly I think it's kind of cool that they shared the opportunity. I respect game of all types but it is a deer and was taken legally and in my thoughts ethically although admittedly unusually. I've killed pretty nice bucks with others with me and vice versa. Made it even more special sharing those moments with them.

[minky]

What a buck!

Who says it can't happen to the average hunter?

[certified jumbo]

Absolute mega giant! ! Congrats to the hunters. Very cool story!!

Drives can be very successful.

[nonteepical]

Randy Dufault measured the rack then it's scored correctly, this angle appears pretty symetrical.

worldclass deer for sure.

[smsmith]

Fantastic buck, but am I reading right that it's being scored non-typical? I don't see that as a non-typical and would be surprised if B&C would either?

[Wanderer]

Any buck like that is non typical in MY world!

Two good friends doubled on a monarch and for all practical purposes they both get to display him and tell the story. Lucky guys!

[i'majigger]

Beautiful Buck, He may be gone but his genes are there for the future!

[Mr Special]

Holy Hanna wat a deer. I think it's very cool they got to share the moment. The last few yrs I usually hunt wit my lil cousin tryin to help him get a buck and share the experience. Quite often I don't even have a weapon in hand. Those memories will last a lifetime. Being good buds as they are I cn see them tellin their grand kids about it.

Super cool kudos to them

[InTheNorthwoods]

Fantastic buck, but am I reading right that it's being scored non-typical? I don't see that as a non-typical and would be surprised if B&C would either?

B&C allows you to chose whether you want it scored as a typical or a non-typical. That deer would get nit-picked by deductions on the typical score due to all the "junk", but it will not see many deductions as a non-typical due to the symmetry of the typical frame. Either way, I'm guessing the score is being stated as a non-typical simply because the number is higher than the net typical score, and not as a representation of the percentage of non-typical points or where it ranks in the non-typical record books v. typical record books. Any way you slice it, its a great buck!

[Archerysniper]

Wow great buck

[NWKR]

Nets are for fishing, and record books I guess. Awesome buck!

[InTheNorthwoods]

Nets are for fishing, and record books I guess. Awesome buck!

And pay checks. That one always hurts.

[NWKR]

Ha! Very true!

[FISHINGURU]

Nice buck there.

Deductions shmeductions!!

My biggest buck has a bunch of deductions because of forked brows, inside/outside kickers, and a few tines being different lengths, all the coolest parts and character of the buck.