Freak Nasty - Public

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Buckfever
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Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Buckfever » Fri Dec 06, 2019 6:14 pm

First of all I want to thank Joe Muetzel goes by JRM6868 here for sharing the journey on this hunt, he had a hand in it.

I only hunt public, I only archery hunt.

I have not hunted much in the past many years due to family related issues, illnesses that required my attention, but I kept my hand in it by running cameras and scouting when I had the chance I didn't want to lose those skills.

This is him in 2015:
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He disappeared in 2016 and 2017.

But we saw him again in 2018, I was running more cameras covering more of the property:


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And this is the primary reason I want to talk about this kill. I want to talk a little about how we use cameras. Sure we use them for inventory otherwise I'm not on the property. And we will use them to help perfect a set. But the primary use that I have for the cameras is to identify the buck's core area. Firstly, I don't check cameras. I set them when I make the sets late September and I pull them after thanksgiving. I use a stick and set them 12 feet off the ground. What the cameras tell me is where the buck's core area is and where it is not. How I know which areas are not his core is by observing "the loop". During the rut the mature buck will stick to his core mostly but will make a loop through his range maybe a time or 2 but that will be it. You will catch him looping around on the cams looking and then he'll return to his core. Last year at the end of the rut I caught him 4 times in one day leaving his core looping all around the property looking and then at the end of the day returning to the thicket from which he emerged.

So I knew that the loop that he made was not his core so I could eliminate literally most of the property for this guy, so now it was time to put boots on the ground. I had pictures of him coming out all around this thicket. But nothing predictable so I thought lets go on the other side of the thicket and see what's there. maybe he's bedding further south and I'm only seeing the spokes not the hub.

There was a little opening there swampy area. And immediately I found rubs and rubs and rubs like maybe 300. And a big scrape and then three scrapes and then an area with 9 scrapes. So I knew this was his staging area and I suspected that he principally bedded further south and was coming out there and staging before entering the other thicket and spoking out. Then it was just about the tree. I think that took me an hour. I decided I didn't want to be in the thickest part of the staging where the 9 scrapes were but on the edge of it and I needed to have a tree with good cover 25 feet up. Where I would be invisible from all angles. And I had to have the right route in to get there undetected. I made the set end of September and placed 8 cameras.

First hunt was November 1st, an hour and 40 minutes in a doe comes by, I look back and he's coming. I didn't know it was him it, I glanced at the rack and it was an immediate for sure decision and didn't look at the rack again.

She had stopped and turned facing him and he was tired of chasing, he was behind a tree I didn't have a lane, he went to sit but he didn't like the water so he stood. I thought if she goes south she'll pull him and I'll lose the opportunity. I have to find a hole, he was in a better position now i drew, crouched down found a triangle of a hole to the vitals, saw the nokturnal enter right at the pin, heard the pop, pop, "he's done". Blows and he bounds off, 1,2,3,4,5, slows to a trot and just he's about to stop, turns and his right front leg folds and he goes down. I keep my eye on the spot to be sure. I text Joe, thought to wait a bit but look up at the trail he took and see the spray both sides in the snow. There was no point to wait. When I got to him I texted Joe, I think it's Freak Nasty.

I have a lot of pictures of this animal staging in there. He felt safe there. I don't want to go crazy here with pictures. This was the second best buck on the property in terms of antlers, I have been trying on the other one since I came close 2 years ago but have been unsuccessful. He does the same thing with the loop. just has a different core area.

I am not as sharp a hunter on the kill side as I used to be. I have work to do there.

We believe Freak Nasty to be 6.5. He was heavy. To give a reference, right g2 is 13.5".

Hope you liked the story.

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Dewey
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Dewey » Fri Dec 06, 2019 8:06 pm

Cool looking buck. Congrats. 8-)
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby matt1336 » Fri Dec 06, 2019 11:31 pm

Freak nasty is right!!! Awesome buck. Congratulations and I wish the you the best on the family side of things.
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby ChasingFLATS86 » Fri Dec 06, 2019 11:48 pm

Super cool buck and good story. Congrats!
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Seeker529 » Fri Dec 06, 2019 11:51 pm

This is awesome I love the character of him!! Congrats on a beautiful one of a kind buck!
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby muddy » Sat Dec 07, 2019 12:23 am

Congrats. Hope things turn around for you. Any better pics?
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby MrT » Sat Dec 07, 2019 12:23 am

That is an awesome, cool looking buck. Congratulations, and well deserved.
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headgear
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby headgear » Sat Dec 07, 2019 12:49 am

Congrats!
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Huntress13 » Sat Dec 07, 2019 12:54 am

What a cool looking rack, nice deer! And thanks for sharing how you located him.
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Edcyclopedia » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:03 am

Spectacular! :clap:
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Jackson Marsh
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Jackson Marsh » Sat Dec 07, 2019 1:10 am

He looks HEAVY.

Congrats on a heavy horned public land buck!! :clap: :clap: :clap:
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby moog5050 » Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:00 am

Awesome buck. Congrats!
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby Wlog » Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:24 am

Congrats! Loved the story!
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby mheichelbech » Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:43 am

Beautiful buck and great shot! I’m curious to know how or when did you check the 8 cameras wo getting detected before you hunted and how did you determine that the day you hunted was the right day to hunt?

Also, he was making all those scrapes in September? That’s interesting as well. I’ve seen a lot of early scrapes but not as beat up as the area you had sounds. I’ve only found something like that once in many years.
Last edited by mheichelbech on Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:45 am, edited 1 time in total.
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UntouchableNess
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Re: Freak Nasty - Public

Unread postby UntouchableNess » Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:44 am

Like the uniqueness of that rack! Congrats!


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