Submitted by Matt Harper, Contributing Editor

I went out last weekend to do a little scouting in some stands that I have not been to for a while.  The weekend was fairly warm, but Saturday morning the temperature was cool early at around 45 degrees. I had seen some turkeys, 'coons etc., and a young 6 pointer -- and was just about ready to get out of the stand to make a mock scrape when I heard a large animal coming toward me at a run.  I was surprised to see that it was a big-bodied buck.  I didn’t have much time but I knew he was a big, mature deer with good head gear.  I bleated stopping him at 25 yards quartering away.  He has great brows, a split G2 and a 3 inch kicker on the left main-beam.  He gross scores 153 and weighed approximately 285 lbs. on the hoof.  I took a quick look at the teeth and I think he is about 5-1/2 years old or older.  Definitely the earliest P&Y kill I have ever had.  By the way, really no reason to make a mock scrape considering there where 4 scrapes where I shot the buck within a 20 yard circumference.