Over the course of the day, Chris watched countless deer walk through the cattails in front of his blind near Lake McConaughy, but he wasn't able to get his gun up for a shot at any of them… until this rutted-up buck trudged by. Outdoor Life Online EditorFifteen-year-old Brandon's first deer came in the first hour of the first day of his first hunting season. Brandon shot this public-land buck in Ashland County. "Ol' Striper," named for his striped hooves, showed up on the scene just five minutes after Brandon's dad started rattling. Outdoor Life Online EditorApparently good things really do come to those who wait. Tony shot this high-racked 14-point whitetail in his wooded backyard on January 31""the last day of the season. The deer fell to his .243. Outdoor Life Online EditorKen's guide spotted this Wyoming muley feeding on a ridge more than a half mile away. After sneaking through a wash, they got within 350 yards when the buck spotted them. Ken steadied himself and made a perfect shot. Outdoor Life Online EditorMegan, 13, and her family were hunting together when Megan killed her first buck. Her brother and mother were the first to congratulate her. When her father arrived, "he gave me a big hug," she says. "He had tears in his eyes." Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter passing on a six-point, waiting in vain for a nine-point to come within range and watching the light quickly fade, Mark was about to call it a dayÂ…until this monster in velvet presented him with a perfect broadside shot. Outdoor Life Online EditorChris took his 12-year-old son Max deer hunting for the first time last season. As the sun set one day in November, they sat silently together in a ground blind and shot these two bucks within 20 minutes of one another. Outdoor Life Online EditorThough he missed a shot at this velvet buck on the second day of Utah's archery season, Robert dedicated himself to tracking it. Finally, nine days and several 4×4 muleys later, he caught up to the deer and ended the hunt. Outdoor Life Online EditorJake shot this 4½-year-old buck at 65 yards during Ohio's youth shotgun season when his father's friend pushed the deer out of a wood duck marsh. This was only the second-largest deer Jake saw that day. Outdoor Life Online EditorChancy shot this massive whitetail on his second Canada hunt when the brute showed up with a date for a midday snack. One shot from Chancy's muzzleloader downed the 250-pounder. Outdoor Life Online EditorKen had never hunted deer before, but his friend Larry, an avid hunter, offered to guide him on a hunt in southern Arizona. They glassed this buck on the third and final morning of their hunt. Ken dropped the deer at 200 yards. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter Greg's father spotted this buck during pre-season scouting, father and son decided to hold off on shooting any smaller deer. Greg shot the buck on the last morning of his hunt. Outdoor Life Online EditorGordy shot this super-wide 10-point buck in Linn County, Kan., with his Ruger 7mm. The deer's almost perfectly symmetrical rack has an inside spread of 25½ inches and less than 1 inch of abnormal deductions. Outdoor Life Online EditorHeather and her husband, Josh, crawled within 50 yards of this deer bedded in a field in front of their house. When the buck stood up, Heather placed a shot in its neck. It was just her second day hunting Outdoor Life Online EditorChris and his father, Gary, were on a combination Sitka blacktail and brown bear hunt on Kodiak Island when Chris took this fine buck. Gary shot an eight-point blacktail as well. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter crossing paths with this deer on two separate occasions, Karen shot him on their third encounter. With a little help from her dad, Jim, she cleaned, skinned and packed out the deer herself. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter stalking this monster muley for more than an hour and passing on a 180-yard shot she was uncertain about, 12-year-old Stephanie made a perfect 155-yard shot on her first-ever deer. Outdoor Life Online EditorDawn shot this buck of a lifetime with a bow set at 41 pounds. Dawn hopes women who may be unsure about bowhunting see that practice and a well-placed shot can replace heavy draw weights. Outdoor Life Online EditorWith much anticipation, thirteen-year-old Nick's first deer finally stepped into the opening, where his father had expected. Under the guidance of his father, Nick shot it twice before bringing his reward back to the check station. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter the buck escaped from the hands of fifteen-year-old Bryan with one wound in the morning, the buck once again crossed the path of Bryan. Only this time, "the comeback buck" was less fortunate Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter being on stand for half an hour on a cold Thanksgiving night hunting with his brother, Josh, 17, shot his second deer with a Remington 11-87. This deer being much larger than his first "gave me buck fever to the tenth degree." Outdoor Life Online EditorJack claimed that mixing pheasant hunting and bow hunting led him to harvest this magnificent buck, which snuck in on him. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter Joseph, 15, pulled the trigger, he watched his first buck run down the ridge and crash into some brush. Skipping that day's swimming practice was "well worth it." Outdoor Life Online EditorWith a little encouragement from her dad, twelve-year-old Jessica shot her first buck. Outdoor Life Online EditorAfter an hour into a favorable north wind stand, Barry sighted a wide framed buck following the trail of a doe. The buck traveled sixty yards before dropping to the ground. Outdoor Life Online EditorSpending the summer at his father's house in Idaho, where bucks and deer could be easily sighted, Matt caught on to the hunting fever. He has had tree stands set up since they bought the house four years ago. Matt had let a few bucks slid by, until one evening he spotted a monster buck. The next day the buck reappeared within yards from his stand. Matt pulled his bow back, and the buck's fate was then determined. Outdoor Life Online EditorJust days before the hunting season ended, Lisa, 15, and her father spotted a buck behind a heard of deer. Even though the wind was blowing close to 80 mph, Lisa wasted no time when the buck stood up. She shot it down. Outdoor Life Online EditorIt was the first day of Pennsylvania's Deer Hunting season when Ethan, 12, met his monster buck. The buck following a doe passing by Ethan's stand twice before the buck became Ethan's prize for the season. Outdoor Life Online Editor
