A Single Person Blind Doesn't Exactly Say There's Room For Two. But When You Let A Little Love In One of Those Blinds, Togetherness Brings The Whole Hunt Together.
My legs were starting to cramp from a half-hour of careful, minimal movement, but the musty odor of hunting gear lingered to remind me of why I was there and heighten my anticipation of the big bucks I hoped would soon show up. I looked through the binocular into a low-lying blanket of fog, finding another silhouette moving about. Up until that moment, previous movements had turned out to be nothing more than the facades of blowing limbs and hungry javelinas, but this time there was no mistaking the certain outline of a deer.
Big Buck Waiting
For me, the worst part of hunting is getting up early in the mornings. I have always had a hard time getting out of bed, and this morning had been no different. I’d reluctantly rolled out of bed and made my way to the main house to join the rest of my family, who were also preparing to head out on the first day of the hunt. It took a while, but once awake, my excitement began to grow. You see, this wasn’t just your average, everyday hunt. It would be filmed and aired on the new television series, The Bucks of Tecomate, co-hosted by my dad, David Morris, and comedian Jeff Foxworthy.
My dad had planned for us to hunt a blind we called the “Boone & Crocket Stand,” fittingly named because that area had already produced two record-book bucks. Dad now knew of two more monster bucks living there. One was a 170-plus 11-pointer he had seen on a helicopter survey, and the other was a giant, basic 10-pointer with a drop tine. This second buck he’d encountered just a few days earlier while on a management buck hunt with Christopher Merritt, the head of Beretta U.S.A. Dad and Christopher had rattled in the huge buck, which they thought would score well up in the 180s, to within 15 yards. It was this big drop-tine buck that I had in mind, as I gathered my gear, layered on the camo, grabbed my Sako A7, and headed out.
A Family Affair
I have always enjoyed hunting. My dad is an avid hunter who has been fortunate enough to turn his passion into a career. As a founder and partner of Game and Fish Publications, which publishes 33 state and regional outdoor magazines plus North American Whitetail magazine, he’s been able to pursue his love for hunting and the outdoors, while expanding his enterprises. Dad also founded Burnt Pine Plantation near Madison, Georgia, and during the 20 years he owned and operated the plantation, it became one of the most renowned hunting lodges in the South. Because of this, my sisters and I grew up in the woods, with hunting and wildlife playing important roles in our family life.
I began participating in the hunt at an early age, mostly as a way for me to spend time with my dad, but as I got older, I became more and more appreciative of hunting and its part in land and wildlife conservation and management. Now, after nine years of our family owning and managing our 3,000-acre El Cazador Ranch in Jim Hogg County, I continue to enjoy hunting and the opportunities it provides to be a part of God’s magnificent creation.
Not Enough Room
For the first time this season, my dad and I were headed out in hopes of finding a world-class buck. It was only when we arrived at the hunting blind that Dad remembered he had not thought through the fact there were only two tripods at the Boone & Crockett Stand. One would have to be taken by the cameraman, Ron Bigbee, leaving Dad and me to share the other—with me sitting in Dad’s lap!
Perched on Dad’s lap, I couldn’t help but be reminded of my first buck. I was eight years old, then, hunting with my dad on Burnt Pine, and, for the first time, I was able to go hunting with a gun and not just my binocular. Late that memorable afternoon, a small buck joined several does in the food plot in front of us. When I tried to settle my sights on the deer, though, I became so nervous that my entire body started shaking uncontrollably. I had to sit on my dad’s lap so he could help me steady the gun. To this day, I still consider that “one-point” buck (actually a one-antlered spike) to be a trophy.
That was then, but this was now, and a spike was definitely not what I was after. Once the thick morning fog began to lift, the South Texas brush slowly emerged from the gray background, revealing a lovely panorama of mesquite trees, thorny desert brush, and cactus. Our stand sat at the intersection of a dirt road running east to west and a long north-to-south sendero. There were also a couple additional strips Dad had sliced toward the southeast, a move that provided better visibility into a thick area of brush. From my position facing south, I had a comfortable 180-degree view. To my left, I could see anything that crossed the east-running road out to about 275 yards. To the southeast, the grassy strips started about 75 yards away and gave good visibility for another 125 yards. Directly in front, the south leg of the sendero gave me 250 yards of open shooting, while the right view down the road to the west was the most limited, perhaps only 100 yards. And with a little team effort between my dad and me, we could make a slow turn to see the north sendero behind us.
It was on the grassy strip to the southeast that I spotted the first deer movement, which turned out to be a doe followed by her two fawns. Yet I just knew it would be only a matter of time before we saw a big buck, because El Cazador is home to many giant whitetails.
Feeding For Growth
We began managing the ranch for big whitetails, when my dad first bought the place back in March 1998. He immediately implemented the Tecomate Management System, an intensive, year-round food plot program developed by South Texas wildlife management pioneer and now my dad’s partner in Tecomate Wildlife Systems, Dr. Gary Schwarz. The results have been nothing short of amazing. Since the plan’s inception, the average live weight of mature (41⁄2 years old and older) pre-rut bucks (those taken prior to December 15) has increased from 176 pounds to an amazing 229 pounds. Even more important, the average rack size has increased from 121 gross Boone and Crockett (B&C) points to a whopping 152 points. We’ve managed this under a harvest strategy selectively weighted towards shooting the less mature bucks in each age class and letting the better bucks reach at least 61⁄2 years of age before they become fair game—and in the last eight years, we have taken 16 bucks grossing over 170!
The food plot system not only improves the size and health of our deer, it greatly increases the carrying capacity of the property, meaning we can support not only bigger deer, but more deer. Too, the recruitment rate of our fawns has increased from about 30 percent to an average of 90 percent. These results are due in no small part to our food plot program that provides year-round, high-quality nutrition, with its centerpiece being high-protein, warm-season forage, in our case, drought-resistant Tecomate lablab and ebony peas.
Looking For A 10 With A Drop
With the fog lifted, deer began to emerge from the brush. Before long we had several bucks in front of us. With the rut going strong, we knew it would be just a matter of time before a big buck showed. The rut on our ranch really is an amazing thing. We know there are countless big bucks on El Cazador, but until the breeding season, we just don’t see them. Now was their time to show up, and we were anxious to see what might step out of that thick brush next.
Only a few minutes into the morning’s festivities, a 150-class buck walked into the sendero to the south. Immediately behind him, a much larger buck followed. I glassed with my binocular and said, “Dad, there’s a huge buck!”
Because Dad’s binocular was fixed on the 150-class buck, he said, “That’s a good one, but not what we’re after.”
In the back of my mind, I was thinking, He looks pretty big to me!
Just then, my dad saw the second buck and said, “That’s your buck, Kid! That’s the big, drop-tine 10!”
Hearing those words sent my heart racing and jarred me to action. Because I was sitting on my dad’s lap, we had to adjust our seating arrangements so I could get a shot. Very quietly, I stood up, while Dad squeezed himself into the small space beside the seat and knelt down. I then sat back down in the seat and set up so I could get a good shooting position. I remember my dad kept asking me, “Are you steady, are you steady?” I think he was nearly as nervous as I was.
Since we were hunting the middle of the rut, the bucks were not interested in eating and didn’t tend to hang around long. Complicating the situation was the attitude of the 10-point buck. I watched nervously as he threatened another buck that stood just off the sendero in a road parallel to it.
Finally the deer turned broadside and Ron confirmed he had a clear camera angle, so I squeezed the trigger. The deer went straight down, kicked a couple of times, and then lay still. I let out a huge sigh of relief, and all three of us began to celebrate—until the deer suddenly jumped up and ran into the brush. My heart sank and a pit deepened in my stomach. I remembered something being not quite right when I’d shot, but I could not pinpoint what it was. (Later, after watching the video, I would learn that, in the instant I’d pulled the trigger, the buck had taken a sideways step, which changed the entry angle of the bullet.) My dad and I sat dumbfounded, then roused ourselves to devise a plan to go after him.
We knew the buck was hit hard and didn’t think he’d go very far. We decided to creep down the strip in hopes of finding him lying just off the sendero. But that wasn’t the case. We reached the spot where he’d entered the brush and heard commotion farther in. To my dismay, my deer had made it to his legs and was crashing away. We were still sure he’d been hit hard, though, and hoped it would be just a matter of time before he was down for good. Not wanting to push him, we decided to back off and call our ranch foreman, George Villarreal, and his father, Felipe, to help us track him. George and Felipe are extremely good trackers and know their way around the brush, having cared for this land for more than 25 years.
The plan was for Dad to circle around in front of the deer to cut him off in case he ran, and then George, Felipe, and I would follow the buck’s trail. George and Felipe quickly picked up the deer’s running tracks and blood trail. With every step I prayed we weren’t pushing the buck farther and farther into the brush.
Just 50 yards into the thick brush, the stress quickly turned into excitement, when I heard George and Felipe shout, “He’s over here!” I hurried over to where they were and saw the tips of antlers peeking through the top of the brush.
When I knelt down to raise the huge buck’s head, I could not believe my eyes. He was even bigger than I’d thought. My mind tried unsuccessfully to grasp his incredible size. He was immense in every way! The basic 10-point frame carried a forked brow tine and also a beautiful, pearl-tipped drop tine on the left side. I could not believe it! I was looking at my biggest buck ever, one grossing 190 B&C points!
My dad, from his position ahead of us, heard the excitement and quickly joined the celebration. Together, we marveled at the buck’s tremendous 27-inch main beams and his enormously wide spread. Taped, he measured 242⁄8 inches inside and an even 26 inches outside. It truly was a buck of a lifetime and a hunt I will never forget.
Even with this thrilling culmination of events, one where I’d literally sat in the lap, my dad’s lap, of a great hunt, hunting for me means so much more than just shooting a big trophy buck—the opportunities to be together that hunting has provided for my entire family have been so much more valuable. Whether we’re out sitting on a deer blind early in the morning or taking an afternoon ride around the ranch in the high rack, it’s the family time that I enjoy most. My parents, grandparents, boyfriend, sisters, their husbands, and now even my little nieces, all gather regularly to enjoy the occasions our family ranch and hunting provides. I feel very fortunate to have such a place to hunt, and even more blessed to have such a beautiful family gathering place.