It began as heavy footsteps on the thick, frost-covered layer of late October leaves. The steps were unlike those of a prancing lady. They were steady and purposeful. I wondered if it could possibly be him. This was the third day I had hunted this particular stand. The past two mornings a couple of immature bucks visited me. Maybe the footsteps were from one of these youngsters, or so I hoped, because it was still too early to loose an arrow. As the footsteps approached, I began to make out a large dark body moving toward the thick cover just north of my stand. His course would put him in this thicket 40 yards away.

Tennessee hunter Bobby Worthington studies a rub he guessed the enormous buck he was trying to pattern had made.

With nothing to compare to the deer's size, I remained uncertain how large the form might be. It was too early to see a rack at this distance--if there was one to be seen. Everything indicated he was a buck thus far, but I could not be sure.

Then came the confirmation I needed. I heard what I believed to be horns hitting the limbs of a tree, or perhaps a sapling. The noise confused me. These woods were fairly open and I assumed a buck could pass through without catching his headgear on vegetation.

Maybe his rack was too tall, too wide or both to clear the brush. That turned out to be the understatement (or thought) of the year! I had decided on this game plan. I would wait until the buck entered his bedding cover, and after I gained the few minutes of light I desperately needed, I would attempt to call him within bow range. While the plan was not foolproof, I was confident in my calling ability. All in all, this seemed the only game in town.

Something else was happening. From about the time I first heard the heavy footsteps, I also heard a second deer coming in from farther out. This deer seemed to be on a course that would put him under my stand. However, from about the time I first saw the large, dark shape, I had heard nothing of this second deer. My attention was totally focused on the dark image moving toward the cover in front of me. Just as he was reaching the thick cover, the footsteps from the second deer again began to approach. I thought to myself, maybe this will help the situation. The buck in front of me also heard the second deer and stopped to wait on the approaching steps. When the second deer stepped within 30 yards, the first deer turned toward him and did a snorting wheeze. I knew at that moment I was dealing with two bucks. I also felt strongly that the dark image in front of me was the more dominant and possibly the older buck; the one I was hunting. After completing his warning, the buck began to make his way toward the second deer, moving past my location at 30 yards.

By now it was legal shooting light, but still somewhat dark in the cover. There were two reasons I did not take the 30-yard shot. First, I had a fear that in the low light my broadhead might touch an unseen limb. Second, while I could now make out a rack towering high over his head, I still wasn't sure if this was the buck I hoped to see. As a result, I held up on the shot. After all, the situation was beginning to get interesting. I believed I would have a better opportunity as things unfolded.

The two bucks met about 30 yards west of my stand. Although relatively thick cover separated us, I could make out the two bodies fairly well. This was the last confirmation I needed. The large, darker buck was every bit as big as I had thought! As the second buck shied away and cowered from the larger buck, he looked as small as a fawn running around the big fellow's feet. After a few minutes of standing still, the big buck started moving off in the opposite direction from his secure bedding thicket. He was paralleling my stand about 30 yards out in the cover. I did not really know why he decided it was now not important to be in his sanctuary before good light. Maybe the young buck's actions got him worked up. Whatever the reason, it was apparent he was heading out to look for does.

The situation was perfect. The big fellow had traveled in a half-circle around my stand without being alerted and there was another buck in the immediate area. I knew I could call him in.

I did not call right away; I feared at 30 yards he could tell the sound came from above. If he looked up I might be caught because the tree I was in had little cover.

I waited until the monster was about 40 yards away and walking. I then gave a doe bleat on a mouth call. He stopped at once. I waited. After 10 to 15 seconds he started to move off again. As soon as he did, I baited him again with the doe bleat. He stopped again. This time he remained still for 25 or 30 seconds. As soon as he started to move again I repeated the doe bleat then followed quickly with two-buck grunts. That did it. He came running straight toward me! He approached to within 21 yards before stopping. He was now facing head on to my location, looking all around the area of the tree I was perched in. This was the first time I got a good look at his rack. It was hard for me to believe my eyes. His beams swept upward high over his head then turned outward, making his spread incredibly wide for a Virginia whitetail, or any subspecies of whitetail for that matter. I would have been amazed to see this class of buck in the Midwest where I do my serious trophy hunting. So you can imagine how unbelievable it was for me to be face to face with this huge-racked buck less than seven miles from my Tennessee home.