Thirty minutes later two big does--one dark gray, the other light brown--came from the gorge. The gray doe went wide and started feeding on acorns. The lighter doe browsed right over and offered me a clear, 15 yard, broadside shot . I drew, aimed, and touched my release trigger. POW, there was a loud noise and my arrow lobbed weakly into the air and wobbled to the ground, half way to the deer. Both does came to my arrow and checked it out. Something went wrong when I shot, my bow had cracked or something, so I didn't risk a shot. The deer went back to feeding and two more groups of does and a young 8-pointer came by. 

At 10:30 I heard the faint chug of Rob McNeff's pickup. I climbed down and collected my arrow. My nock had broken. I shrugged and walked uphill toward the edge of the nearby cornfield where Rob would pick me up. On top, the hill was flat and filled with Goldenrods and trees. I noted a Ladder Stand in the Goldenrods, 30 yards from the cornfield. 

Rob had a 3-D deer target range at his hunt headquarters. So, once there, I got out my brand new--never out of the box--PSE XLR900 and tuned it up and sighted it in. I had never before had a bow with the tunable handle grip that the 900 has. It significantly improved my grouping and accuracy. I was pleased. The 900 shot so fast that my 2116’s flew so flat I could hit the kill area of Rob's 35 yard deer target with my top pin. I was anxious to break this speedy new bow in. 

The other bowhunters on this hunt were Don Beckwith, photographer for the Sticks N’ Limbs field testing team camouflage, and two friends from Big Buck Treestands in Quincy Michigan: Bill Goodwin and Ron Van Aken (who goes by JR). We were bowhunting Wells Creek Whitetails in Clayton, Illinois. 

The afternoon activity at the Corn Crib stand was 80 yards away, uphill on the flat. A buck walked by from the direction of corn field. A doe came from the gorge. Then I saw an enormous set of antlers moving through the Goldenrods. They were light in color with heavy beams and lots of points. I decided I'd change to the Ladder Stand up on the flat in the morning. 

Meanwhile, JR (Ron Van Akin) was watched a 6-point follow a doe into the Soy Bean field. Soon three fawns entered the field and browsed thirty yards in front of JR. An 8-point buck approached the fawns and sniffed them. Then the buck walked seven yards closer to JR and turned broadside. JR drew and shot him in the vitals. The buck ran past JR and expired 40 yards from his parked pickup. It was J.R's first deer with a bow. 

The next morning I sat the Ladder Stand. I saw several deer, including a doe that, when I grunted at it, came over and bedded down 25 yards away and stayed for an hour. That afternoon I set up three deer decoys in the Goldenrods and made a little scene with them. (I call this a Deer Sting.) I hunted the Ladder Stand two days. I saw several bucks, but my decoys were not working because the Goldenrods were too high and they weren't visible from a distance. Not a single deer saw them. I asked Rob for an area that was more open and, if possible, on the side of a hill. 

Rob took me to the Hog Lot Stand. It was perfect¾a treestand on a hill with gradual slope. My decoy setup would be visible there. That evening a young 8-pt investigated them. I could have arrowed him, but I wanted a mature buck. 

The next morning I saw two does, way uphill. I grunted and they came closer, but I lost sight of them. Another doe appeared. I grunted and it came toward me. She saw the decoys when she was 35 yards from them and instantly spooked. She raced back uphill, stopped, and snorted at least 25 times. (Which incidentally is not an uncommon reaction. Does don't usually like deer decoys.) 

Later, I saw the sun shining on a bulky deer colored object 200 yards downhill. Soon the big shape shook its skin and took a few steps. This was a large buck. It had a big body and a very thick chest. When it was 100 yards away its head snapped to alert and it studied the decoys. Then, casually, it walked closer. 

This buck was big bodied and the closer he got the bigger he looked. I grew up bowhunting in Florida and later moved to Texas. Bucks in the 200 pound class are non existent where I've hunted. The buck's body looked nearly double the largest buck I have ever seen. I would have liked for him to have had huge horns, too, but his rack was a thin, regular looking 8-point looking rack. This was day four of a five day hunt, so if I decided if I got a chance, I was shooting. 

As the buck got closer it circled my tree. I drew slowly and it walked right into my shooting lane, broadside, 14 yards away. I put my pin on the vitals and touched my release's trigger. My arrow went exactly where I was aiming, to the centimeter. The buck bounded off forty yards and dropped. It was over as fast as it took to read that last sentence. I got right down and went for him. The under growth was dense but I spotted the white of its belly in some thorny briars. As I tied my tag to its antlers I saw Rob walking toward my treestand--just in time to help me drag the heavy buck out. He was a fat 200 pounder. 

That same morning Don Beckwith was miles away, at the bottom of a drop off that turned into a craggy, steep, gorge. Don's treestand was 20 feet high in a large, acorn laden, oak tree. Three does approached and started picking up acorns. Don knew what to do. He drew his new PSE Brute Force and put his top pin on the biggest doe's vitals. His arrow was true and the doe went down in 35 yards. Both Don and I bagged a deer that morning. We took some photos and transported them to the checking station. 

I had a doe tag left and Rob moved me to the junction of a soy bean and corn fields. Deer were in the bean field all afternoon. Two hours from dark I noticed a cow sized object walk out to the edge of the field. It was a good 150 yards away and I could clearly see a thick, high rack on its head. 

My backpack was tied to my stand and my binoculars were inside. I got them out and focused on the buck. His horns were “Y” shaped, very wide, very high, and very thick. He turned his head and I saw that his main beams extended out past his nose. His points were long and heavy. He was magnificent. The big buck moved in the opposite direction, thrashing the brush at the edge of the field. Then he entered the field and routed some does and went to the opposite edge field and started raking bushes. He came in my direction. I watched him until dark. 

(Where I live in Texas we have bucks with 10 to 12 inch tines. I know what that looks like. The Illinois buck had longer tines. The biggest Texas buck I ever hunted for, that was harvested, had a 157 P&Y score. Another scored 155. I know what that looks like in the wild and the Illinois buck had much bigger horns. And his body size dwarfed anything I've ever known. Seeing that buck was one of the biggest thrills I've had in forty years of hunting deer with a bow and arrow.) 

Bill Goodwin was hunting the Cemetery Stand when he spotted a wide beamed, heavy horned buck slip into the thicket behind his treestand. The buck was difficult to keep track of in the thick brush, but flashes of fur and horn allowed Bill to follow the buck. A 4-wheeler path ran through the thicket to Bill's tree. The path offered a clear shot if the buck co-operated. The buck was in no hurry and took five minutes to reach the edge of the path. It stood at the edge, nearly hidden by a limb that hung half way between Bill and the deer. The limb was a problem. He must make a perfect shot or he would hit it. Also, the Buck would only be in the clear for an instant. Bill estimated the yardage. He was confident in his ability to shoot his arrow over the limb and into the buck. 

When a section of antler moved toward the path, Bill drew. A buck stepped into the path. Bill concentrated on his pin and the bucks vital area and shot the buck. His buck tore off, but a second buck jumped into the path and ran straight toward Bill. It was the huge buck he had first seen. Bill had shot a buck all right, but it was not this buck. Bill waited two hours, hoping the big one would return, before recovering the buck he arrowed. 

Wells Creek Whitetails is a smooth running bowhunting operation. We stayed in a farm house. The accommodations were comfortable and the meals were delicious and plentiful. Everyone was friendly and helpful. Rob McNeff knows his deer and his area; and he knows what bowhunters require. His stands are top notch. He has portables, ladder stands, and climbing sticks. The stands sat comfortable and the sticks and ladders made climbing easy and quiet. 

Wells Creek has 8,000 acres of woods and farm crops. It's a big area, but Rob keeps the deer harvest small. He limits the hunting to 30 five day hunts. I asked how he got started and he said, “I wanted to do something that involved the outdoors and archery. Brown County is in the middle of the Golden Triangle area and deer hunters want to hunt there. I had a lot of deer and land there so I decided to do it.” 

The area has big, record book class, Illinois bucks. Every year several bucks from Wells Creek Whitetails qualify for the record books. The highest score for one of Ron's bowhunters to date is 183. Rob has arrowed several Wells Creek trophies himself, scoring 193, 173, 141, 138 and 170 by P&Y measurements. He began bowhunting when he was 16 and he loves it. He genuinely enjoys it when his hunters get a deer, too. 

Rob McNeff just wants to give other bowhunters a chance to take a big buck, and I want to make him happy. Next October I'm headed for the a certain bean field I know about at Wells Creek Whitetails.