Kim's Kansas Buck - Kansas
Kim's Kansas buck.
Hunter: Kim Edwards
Cameraperson: Terry Edwards
Ah...December, what a great time of year. We usually see our first snow of the winter and the biggest holiday of the year, Christmas. Oh and our annual trip to hunt whitetail in Kansas. I first hunted Kansas in 1999 and have been lucky enough to get a tag and go back every year since. I was fortunate enough to find a landowner who loved deer and was proud of the way he had managed the deer on his farm. Both Kim and I have taken our best deer to date here as well as some other friends that I’ve taken here over the years.
Ten years after that first trip, it is almost more like a trip to visit friends than a hunting trip. Over the years we have made great friends in that little town in Kansas—they are one of the reasons we keep going back, besides the great hunting, of course!
This year we arrived just after daybreak on Saturday, December 6, 2008. We decided to ride by the farm, take a look around, get unpacked, and get some sleep because we had driven all night. That evening we saw a few doe and three small bucks, so we were excited about the movement. The next few days the weather turned bad for deer movement, it was warm with high winds; however on Tuesday, December 8, it began to rain. The temps started dropping and the rain soon turned to snow but it was still very windy. That night the wind finally stopped, the sky cleared, and the temperatures fell. Wednesday, December 9, turned out to be a beautiful day with blue sky, calm winds, and 13 degrees. We both had a good feeling as we walked to the stand. As the darkness gave away to light, we saw a few doe filter past the snow covered food plot and into the timber. As the last doe was starting into the timber we suddenly caught movement farther down in the brush. We watched as what looked to be a good buck making his way toward the field. Then he disappeared into the cedars which ran along the field edge. I’ll have to say there were a few tense movements because the buck hung up in the cedars for what seemed like an hour. Kim looked back at me and said, "Where did he go?" My reply was "I don’t know." As the moments passed we scanned both the timber and the field edge then suddenly Kim said, "I see him, he’s coming into the field." As I got the camera on the buck Kim said, "He looks good, I’m going to take him so get ready." Kim got the TC Pro hunter up and ready.
I saw her pull back the hammer and quickly shifted back to the buck, zoomed in, and prepared for the report of the 25-06. At the shot the buck bolted for a patch of cedars only 20 yards away I followed him with the camera as he disappeared behind the cedars. Her expression told the story—she knew the shot was good and the buck was down behind the cedars right in front of us. Kim was so excited she could hardly wait to get her hands on that buck. It’s the most excited I’ve seen her since her first buck several years ago. After getting out of the stand I had to tell Kim to slow down so I could keep up and film as she made her way over to the buck.
Upon reaching him, she picked up his head and started counting points and admiring the tine length and mass. Kim had just taken one of her best bucks. After an extended photo session, the landowner, Jim, who had heard the shot, came over to congratulate Kim. Jim helped me load him up as we all laughed and joked.
Even though I brought an unused Kansas tag home with me and Kim had a big buck, this trip will always be remembered as one of the best because of the great time we had with all of the friends we’ve made over the years in that small town in Kansas.
Terry Edwards