Christmas Comes Early: Kansas Bowhunter Finds Late-Season Success

In late fall of 2020, my family moved from northwest Kansas to the east-central part of the state. Fortunately, I tagged out on a great western Kansas whitetail days before I started my new job that year. In hindsight, I should have scoured my new area that winter in search of hunting permission and to learn the lay of the land. However, life was busy, and I focused on getting our family settled.

As the 2021 archery season approached, I found myself in unfamiliar territory. Luckily, I had obtained permission that summer to hunt on a couple farms, but my scouting results were less than stellar. In the eastern half of Kansas everything looks like excellent deer habitat compared to the western half, where the terrain is open. Out West, if there is a creek bottom you can bet on seeing deer, and more than likely locate a good buck to focus upon.

The rut that year finally produced evidence of several nice bucks; however, after a two- or three-week period, the activity diminished greatly. I had several good encounters but was never in the right place at the right time, and the flourish of activity from the rut seemed to vanish in the blink of an eye.

Even though hunting over bait is legal in Kansas, it was rarely a tactic I utilized in the western part of the state. However, the gloves came off as rifle season dwindled and I went on a full-force baiting attack in hopes of locating a mature antlered deer for my lone buck tag.

To my dismay, I experienced results similar to early season on the farms I was hunting. Time was running out on the 2021 season, but I never hang it up until dark on Dec. 31, the last day of bow season. My buddy Ben generously offered to let me hunt his farm the last 10 days of the season after hearing of my struggles. I was apprehensive at first, because he enjoyed hunting as well, but he assured me he wasn’t hunting much and was excited for someone to enjoy his land.

It didn’t take much to convince me to move a trail camera and boy, was I glad I did. Pictures of deer started rolling in, including a very nice 8-pointer I decided I would focus on until the end of season. The tall-racked buck consistently hit the food, essentially reading the script. It should have been a slam-dunk, but if it weren’t for bad luck, I would have had no luck at all, and I ended the season with my tag still in my pocket.

A New Target

During the 2022 off-season, Ben and I discussed the big 8-pointer. Throughout our discussions we relived past hunts he had, and I became more familiar with the terrain. We walked the farm in the spring and moved several stands to new locations, and anticipation was high in July as antlers growth took off. I was hoping to see the tall-tined eight again to see how he had grown.

It didn’t take long for several nice bucks to show up, and one of them really grabbed my attention! The long-tined 5x6 was a showstopper. Although the 8-pointer never surfaced, it was easy to focus all my efforts on this new buck. We decided to call him LT in honor of the great New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who wore number 56.

If you are a diehard whitetail hunter, you understand the obsession. It is safe to say that is where I was when it came to LT. He walked by the camera soon after I put it out and he would hit the mineral lick occasionally. I wanted more pictures, so I started using corn as an attractant. I also felt there was a chance he could slip up on an early-season cold front and provide an opportunity to tag out early. Unfortunately, LT didn’t care much about a free meal and photos were scarce.

Part of me thought the buck moved to a new property as summer dwindled. However, I decided to go back to my western Kansas tactics, and I glassed a soybean field in close proximity to the trail camera in hopes of catching a glimpse of the deer. Shortly after getting the spotter set up, I glassed several nice bucks. To my delight, LT was one of them and he entered the soybeans within a few hundred yards of the corn pile. He fed towards me as darkness neared, emerging from the bean field 100 yards away, headed toward a milo field. I snapped several pictures as the light faded, fueling the obsession further!

I needed to be aggressive and kill LT on his feed pattern, but I was scared to blow him out of the area. So, my approach was passive-aggressive. The wind wouldn’t allow me to dive into the area where I watched him enter the field, so I hung a stand in the hedgerow between the two crop fields, hoping to ambush him crossing into the milo at a low spot in the fence. I also tried sitting on the ground in the corner of the bean field, where I felt I had a slight advantage with a crossing wind. The ground set worked, as I had deer in range every time I tried it, but I never saw LT.

On my first hunt in the fence line stand, LT pulled a fast one on me and traveled opposite of his previous pattern. He entered the bean field from the milo, crossing the fence line west of me. I am unsure how close he was when he crossed through the hedgerow I was in, because I didn’t see him until he was a good distance into the soybeans. So close yet so far!

Disappearing Act

As the crops were harvested, LT became less visible and continued his disdain for the feed pile. However, with the rut coming on, does were sure to attract the bucks. I sat in my ground blind a few times when the conditions were perfect, passing several nice bucks, but there was no sign of LT. I was dead set on him or nothing at this point in the season, but he had all but vanished. I was still fairly cautious and refused to go into the area I expected the buck was bedding.

Now, with the rut upon us, it was time to throw caution to the wind. Ben and I repositioned a stand on a ridgetop in a great location to catch a cruising buck looking for a doe. We also went into the area I expected to be LT’s core and hung a stand on the edge of the core bedding area in a pinch point. I felt confident about both setups and sat all day at each location several times throughout November. Action was limited, but I caught a break and saw LT chase a doe through the creek late one evening. Even though the encounter was brief, it reinvigorated me to stay focused on LT after seeing him again.

Peak rut and the month of November came and went. I hunted hard but never had an opportunity at LT and only had the one sighting. After that, the Kansas firearms season came in. The firearms season is typically a time for me to unwind. The season is short, and even though I can still hunt with my bow, I opt to take a break and let the rifle hunters enjoy their time in the woods. It is hard to relax though, since I am always on pins and needles waiting to learn which bucks were killed.

When the sun set on the 2022 Kansas rifle season there was no word of LT meeting his demise; however, one doesn’t know that for sure without confirmation. I rebaited the area I hunt the morning after rifle season ended, and to my dismay, the first deer to come into the corn that afternoon was LT! It was also a huge relief that he was still alive. The hunt was back on. But even in the late season, the buck was never consistent on the feed, and the season was fading. So, I hunted when the wind was right. I passed several nice bucks in the process but stayed the course.

Holiday Hunt

Extreme cold was forecasted for two days before Christmas, coupled with the right wind direction for action. LT still wasn’t hitting the corn as one would expect for late in the season, but I knew I had to try. If anything was going to draw him into easy food, it would be temps that only climbed into the teens. That said, my optimism was low because of his inconsistency in showing.

I crawled in the blind early that day, with anticipation levels high despite my lack of optimism. Several hours went by and I hadn’t seen a deer. Finally, a group of does came in, helping pass the time as I waited with fingers crossed.

Later in the afternoon, an old 7-pointer came into view a mere 20 yards away. I was unable to see the approach but got ready, because he usually had another buck in tow that would be hard to pass at that point in the season. Well, I just about fell over when the next buck to step out was LT!

I slowly moved into position and prepared for a shot. I was relieved when LT walked in seemingly relaxed and stood broadside. I raised my bow as slowly as possible, doing my best to remain focused on executing the release to capitalize on my long-awaited opportunity. I felt composed as I let loose the arrow, but I nearly threw up as I watched it impact higher than planned. I was cussing myself in one breath, and saying a prayer in the next, all while hoping for the best.

I let Ben and my brother Lucas know that I had an arrow in the deer, but I was nervous and wanted to give the buck plenty of time. The plan was for them to meet me an hour later, and we would slowly ease into the woods to evaluate the blood and hopefully find my arrow.

As you’d expect with a high hit, the blood was sparse, but we were still able to follow it easily. After 50-60 yards, it became more difficult to find blood, and I was about to back out until morning. Then, Lucas started tapping my shoulder.

I started scrambling, thinking LT would need another arrow, but Lucas pointed at the dead monarch just feet away. What a relief! After months of obsessing and strategizing, it felt amazing to lay my hands on LT, and even better to have my buddy and brother by my side. Needless to say, Christmas came early for me and my family!

The author works as a Land Specialist for Whitetail Properties Real Estate. He resides in Council Grove, Kan., with his wife Jerri and daughters Ellie and Annie.

Author’s Notes

On my hunt for LT, I used a Hoyt Carbon RX-7 Ultra bow, Vapor Trail Pro-V arrow rest, Gold Tip Velocity Pro arrows, TightSpot quiver, Muzzy Trocar broadheads, Fuse multi-pin slider bowsight, Zeiss binoculars, Sitka Gear apparel and LaCrosse boots.

---