Some say patience is a virtue, I think it is a blessing. Though I have been hunting since I was legal age to do so, I never have gotten that “trophy buck”. Don’t get me wrong, I have placed my tag on a few nice (and tasty) whitetails and I even won the “Big (little) Buck” contest in eighth grade but I had never experienced that rollercoaster of emotion that hits you square in the forehead when your arrow finds its mark. That is until now – let me tell you how family, management practices and too much patience finally paid off.

This year marked my fourth year bow hunting and I hoped that this season I would finally arrow my first buck with the bow.  I need to explain that my “buck-less-ness” was not for lack of trying as my fiancé Randy has been managing our leases for the last several years and has always put me in the best stands depending on wind, scouting and such. No, my “buck-less-ness” was all of my own making - you see I am too patient and have been ribbed for it many of times over the years. I was teased earlier in the season for passing on a small basket 6 pointer as I needed to just get one under my belt. I admit that I felt a bit of regret after letting him pass by, but I think I would have felt more regret for taking him before he had a chance to grow into the trophy we’ve been managing for. Now, if we were in desperate need of venison for the freezer my internal debate would have had a different outcome. This has been the same story for the three previous seasons. My patience didn’t have anything to do with waiting for Bullwinkle; nope I was just waiting for the opportunity when I felt it was right. In the meantime, I have been entertained by countless squirrels, fox, and coyotes and of course a few dandy whitetails that never came within range.

Prior to the opening of the WI 2009 Archery Season, my fiancé Randy decided that a new food plot was needed on a 50 acre piece we lease. Before we got to work we did a soil test and then contacted Whitetail Institute as we have been utilizing their Imperial Clover in our management practices for years and wanted some professional feedback on what seed would be the best choice for this location. Due to the other food sources available on the property, we determined that Whitetail Institute Wintergreens would be the ideal food source to hold the deer on the property once the corn was harvested.

Now it was time to get a little dirty and get to work! Because of the size of the plot and access, we used our Honda Rancher ATV and Kolpin Dirtworks system to work up the virgin soil and prep it for planting. For both Randy and I this part is almost as fun as the actual hunting – who wouldn’t enjoy hopping on an ATV and tearing up some dirt?

Finally the 2009 Wisconsin archery season was upon us … countless hours of practice with my Mathews bow over the summer and I was definitely ready to go! The first month of the season brought one passed opportunity on the 1 ½ yr old 6 pointer that I mentioned before and only a handful of does even close to being within range. It was starting out as a strange season for Randy, I and the rest of our hunting party as we just weren’t encountering any of the deer we had been patterning in the late summer and early fall, actually we weren’t encountering ANY deer. Blame it on the crazy, wet weather or all the standing corn – either way it was rather discouraging. 

As our season continued into late October, I tried to remain hopeful that the upcoming rut would expose the deer herd I knew existed and the wintergreens we planted would help hold them to our property. Randy continuously set me up in the best stands throughout our property in hopes that I’d finally be in the right place at the right time. The time finally came, but my patience and inexperience were a handicap. I was set up in a pine tree overlooking an opening in the woods about 100 yards from our wintergreen food plot. I had never sat in this stand before and was unsure of which direction the deer tended to travel through the opening, well I learned quickly when a very large heavy buck surprised me over my left shoulder. He slowly walked a trail right to me but I swear he was staring into the bottom of my soul with every step he took! I was able to get my release on my string but not able to pull up my bow to draw as he continued to glare right at me (or so I thought). I let him pass in hopes that he would continue on the trail right underneath me and I would have an opportunity to draw and get a shot off when he reached my right side. Needless to say that was not what he had in mind and he disappeared underneath me at a split in the trail that I did not know was there.

After close that evening I told my tale to Randy and realized I had probably missed out on my chance of having a trophy buck within range because I was once again too patient.

A few nights later I was finally able to get into the stand again. Randy was determined that I get another opportunity to close the deal and set me up in the oak stand that overlooked our new wintergreen food plot. As I settled into the stand I was doubtful that I would see anything with all the noise coming from the lake houses that sat back only 70 yards from the food plot. But once again Randy knew what I didn’t, he had noticed with the cold weather that the deer had begun to feed heavily on this plot and that the neighborhood noise would not be a factor as the deer were accustomed to it.

With plenty of time to think in the stand I was determined not to let myself be schooled by a big buck again, so I used the range finder to determine my shot range and began to wait. All of a sudden I noticed movement across the wintergreen plot in a gap of tall grass … it was antlers, very tall antlers and they were attached to a monster buck! As the adrenaline began to flow everything I had been taught kicked in – I knew the buck had no clue I was there so I steadied myself in my stand and got my bow ready, now all I had to do was wait. And wait I did … ‘his majesty’ (that is what I have nicknamed him by this point because of his regal rack) decided to just hang out at 60 yards for what seemed like an eternity but in all reality was about 15 minutes. By this time I had calmed myself down and was fully prepared if he decided to come my way, and if he didn’t, well I had just spent an evening in the stand watching a magnificent whitetail so it was a win-win situation either way. Finally, a young forker stepped out of the scrub brush about 35 yards in front of me and began to make his way along the edge of the plot right to me. This was all the incentive ‘his majesty’ needed and he finally began to make his way around the food plot on the same path as the young buck. The young buck walked right past me at 20 yards and entered the woods and trail that wrapped behind my stand … now the game was on.  I figured ‘his majesty’ would continue on the same path and that would put him right in my shooting lane. With the branches in front of me as cover I pulled back and waited for him to step out to my left. Seconds felt like hours when he finally stepped out in front of me, I softly grunted and he stopped almost broad side at 18 yards. I was ready and I felt good so I let my arrow fly and heard a smack that I swear sounded like a rifle hit. I looked up to see my arrow sticking out of him as he quartered away and began to run around the other side of the food plot and back through the gap he entered in. Through tree branches I could see him stop for a few seconds in the green field then take off again. I heard him enter the corn with a loud crash and that was it.

This is where the rollercoaster ride of emotions truly began for me. Sitting there I replayed the last minute in my head, I knew I had hit him and was confident when I let my arrow go but I kept seeing that arrow sticking out of him and then no arrow when he turned so I began to think I must of hit him square in the shoulder and the arrow just fell right out. I berated myself up and down for having the perfect opportunity and screwing it up, and then I prayed that I did not wound this beautiful animal. This was not what I expected to be experiencing after shooting at the buck of my life. I sat until a few minutes before close then got down to see if I could find my arrow – sure enough there it lay, but only about half of it! The broad head and about 7” of my arrow were missing, I had even blown my knock right of the shaft. The adrenaline started pumping again so I headed back to the truck to wait for Randy as he had been hunting another part of the same property. While I waited I called my father to explain what happened and get his advice (plus I was just itching to tell someone about ‘his majesty’). As fathers tend to do, he calmed me down and explained that the arrow was probably sheared off when the buck turned and that it sounded to him like I made a well placed, fatal shot. Now I was actually shaking - did I place a good shot or not? Did I get him or not?  I think I was beginning to talk to myself out loud because Randy approached the truck looking at me like I was crazy. I quickly explained to him what had transpired and a grin began to creep across his face. He decided we should give the buck an hour or two and go get the lanterns ready.

The next hour and half were the longest of my life as I retold the story about 5 times and prepared to track my deer. The extensive search party of Randy, myself, my father and several friends was assembled and ready to go, seems everyone was as excited as I was at the prospect of tagging my first buck with the bow. I lead the way to where I had left the half of my arrow and explained the path I watched the buck take. As we entered the green field where ‘his majesty’ had stopped we finally found a few specks of blood. This was the next crest and plummet on my rollercoaster of emotion … I figured the lack of blood meant a shoulder hit for sure and that I may have only wounded him. My father decided to cross the field to see if he could find where the buck entered the corn field and sure enough he did.  Shining in the moonlight was bright red, bubbly lung blood smeared all along the corn stalks, as you have probably figured out by now I had just rounded another corner  on my emotional rollercoaster and was flying high again.

The entire search party moved forward through the corn while I stood at last blood. While they searched to for a clue to the buck’s course, I realized that there was blood on both sides of me in the corn. I relayed the message to my friend Jack and as he lifted the lantern to peer over into the next row, there lay his majesty three feet to my right in the fence row! When I heard him hit the corn he was taking his finally steps, he had gone only 100 yards. The first words out of Jack’s mouth cannot be repeated, but let’s just say everyone was as surprised as I was at how beautiful this buck really was. 

The next hour or so was a blur as I was congratulated, pictures were taken and ‘his majesty’ was transported home. But I will not forget in those moments the pure joy and pride I saw on my father and Randy’s face when they realized that my patience and their support finally paid off – big time!

The rollercoaster ended on a high note for me - what an awesome evening and great memory. All the time spent putting in food plots, clearing stands and being patient in the stand paid off. That is what all the work is for – harvesting a healthy, mature buck – and my first buck with the bow is a something I will never forget.


Sarah "KolpinLady" Hudzinski

By Kolpin Powersports

Whether you are riding for sport, working on your “honey-do” list, or venturing deep into the woods after trophy game– Kolpin is by your side, outfitting you (and your ATV or UTV) for all your outdoor adventures. Kolpin continues to ‘lead the pack’ - manufacturing over 200 all-terrain products to not only help get ‘you there’, but to also help get ’it done.’