# Iowa buck down



## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Well I was prepared to spend up to three weeks in Van Buren and Davis county Iowa trying to get a good buck. It lasted three days. I'm extremely happy and the best hunt I have ever been on. I seen more good bucks in three days then I have seen here in Michigan in a lifetime of hunting. Two mornings ago when I harvested my deer I seen 9 bucks by 9:30 and countless doe. Every buck was grunting and chasing doe. I even seen a couple fights in the three days. But that morning all but one of the bucks I seen was over 120/130. It was just incredible... One of those magic mornings! In three days I seen three bucks over 160" and one of them had to be over 180" because I killed one earlier this year that grossed 179" and this deer was way bigger. It was the night before my harvest on a different property and he was chasing a doe all over and I couldn't stop him. My buck stepped out of the corner of the timber to come after a doe in the cut corn at 15 yds and I thought I had missed the opportunity because he wasn't in my opening long enough for me to get ready for a shot. Luckily the doe circled back around and ran into the woods where he came out. He turned around and came right back through where he came out. I watched my lighted nock disappear through his sweet spot and he took about four steps and fell over. He is a main frame 8pt with three splits so he is an 11pt. He has lots of mass and his bases are 6" around. He gross scored 155". Between my earlier buck and this one I am having one hell of a year!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

I was on a river bottom property near Bloomfield Iowa in Davis county on the fox river. Here are some pics of the farm I was hunting.







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If you look at the pic that shows the corner he was standing in the high yellow grass right in the corner between the green grass and the cut corn.


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## Kennybks (Mar 29, 2010)

Awesome buck John! A great job with a little luck thrown in scoring early.


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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

Wow, that is really great. Is this a lease or do you own the property?


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## tom_the_chemist (Aug 24, 2008)

I love the kickers on the G2s.


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## beer and nuts (Jan 2, 2001)

Great buck. Congrats! Outfitter?


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## walleyerick (Sep 30, 2004)

Congrats, love the key hangers.


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Thanks guys! It is lease land. The guy I hunted with leases about twenty farms spread over two counties all in zone 6. I met him through a friend I made on my Missouri lease last year. He is a great guy and has awesome hunting. He is not an outfitter.


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## Jet08 (Aug 21, 2007)

If you can throw up a picture of that first buck your talking about too.


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## barnaby43 (Feb 9, 2014)

Great deer, and yes that's a great season. I hope and pray we can have a small taste of good management like a lot of the other states around us! Well worth the money in those states, again congrats!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Jet08 said:


> If you can throw up a picture of that first buck your talking about too.


Here is the other buck.


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## goodworkstractors (Aug 7, 2007)

Sweet! How many pref points did it take for that area?


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

cscott711 said:


> Sweet! How many pref points did it take for that area?


It took me four years to draw. I thought I would draw last year and didn't. When I didn't draw last year you would have thought I was a five year old that woke up on Christmas morning with no presents! I wasn't very happy about it. But Iowa is definitely worthy the wait.


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## goodworkstractors (Aug 7, 2007)

johnhunter247 said:


> It took me four years to draw. I thought I would draw last year and didn't. When I didn't draw last year you would have thought I was a five year old that woke up on Christmas morning with no presents! I wasn't very happy about it. But Iowa is definitely worthy the wait.


Cool, I've got three points now. Probably going to wait one more year. Buddy of mine has been there a couple times, leasing different tracts each time. His experience is pretty much the same as yours. The land of giants. Congrats.


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## fieldnfeathers (Oct 13, 2015)

Congrats on a great buck! Very unique rack too. Almost has whale tails like an Elk.


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## QDMAMAN (Dec 8, 2004)

Great bucks John, congrats!
What state did the first buck come from?


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

QDMAMAN said:


> Great bucks John, congrats!
> What state did the first buck come from?


The first buck I harvested earlier October in my clover plot in lenawee county


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## WMU05 (Oct 16, 2004)

Heck of a year John. Another nice buck. Congratulations!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

WMU05 said:


> Heck of a year John. Another nice buck. Congratulations!


Heck of a year and one I will probably never be able to repeat! Thanks everyone!


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## Huntmaster143 (Aug 28, 2003)

How many times have you pinched yourself?

Congrats on two great bucks!!


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## sNeAkYpEtE11 (Feb 7, 2011)

Wow john way to get it done. 2 awesome bucks. Congrats. Can't wait to hunt Iowa


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Huntmaster143 said:


> How many times have you pinched yourself?
> 
> Congrats on two great bucks!!


More than you can imagine! I'm heading to southeast Ohio for a gun hunt in a few weeks to try and keep the streak going!


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

Congratulations. keep the taxidermists busy


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Robert Holmes said:


> Congratulations. keep the taxidermists busy


Yep! My taxidermist gets plenty of work from me and he is an outstanding taxidermist. My Michigan buck is getting a full body mount copied from one of my many trail cam pics and my Iowa buck is getting a shoulder mount. Ohio deer to be determined... I have to get one first!


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

johnhunter247 said:


> Yep! My taxidermist gets plenty of work from me and he is an outstanding taxidermist. My Michigan buck is getting a full body mount copied from one of my many trail cam pics and my Iowa buck is getting a shoulder mount. Ohio deer to be determined... I have to get one first!


Have a full body mount of the Ohio buck fighting the Michigan buck (Michigan v Ohio State).


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## hawgeye (Mar 3, 2011)

Robert Holmes said:


> Have a full body mount of the Ohio buck fighting the Michigan buck (Michigan v Ohio State).


No thats a cool idea!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Robert Holmes said:


> Have a full body mount of the Ohio buck fighting the Michigan buck (Michigan v Ohio State).


Your getting ahead of me! First my luck has to continue! I have to put an ohio buck on the ground first. Then I can make a scene where a Michigan giant is crushing an Ohio buck!


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## TVCJohn (Nov 30, 2005)

Congrats on the nice bucks! 

IMO Iowa does it right....no APR's and the use of quotas on some of their deer hunts. When I hunted there I was astounded at all of the deer I seen. I was on the receiving end of a few deer drives. On one drive it became quite intense with all of the deer running towards me. You could hear them off in a distance running. I had never seen so many deer flying thru the woods.


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Live from Coshocton county Ohio. The journey for an Ohio buck to add to my lucky year starts tomorrow morning. I'm already blessed with more than I deserve in one season but I am pretty excited! Love hunting places where good opportunity for a great buck exists...


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## WMU05 (Oct 16, 2004)

Good luck tomorrow John. I hope you hang another big one!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Today was an all day sit with one doe sighting right at first light. Not how I imagined it but does it ever go how you imagine it?  Tomorrow doesn't look promising with rain forecasted all day. We will see...


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## sourdough44 (Mar 2, 2008)

Great looking deer. 'River bottoms', one of my favorites.


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## Kennybks (Mar 29, 2010)

Gettem Johnny!


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## johnhunter247 (Mar 12, 2011)

Kennybks said:


> Gettem Johnny!


No I didn't get one. I was going to post my hunt tomorrow. But the weather I'm sure played a huge roll as it was warm. Most days around 60 degrees. With that said not what I expected of my first Ohio hunt. I seen a lone doe on the opener right at first light and that was it. Four guys, zero harvested and very few sightings. You win some you lose some. Still had lots of fun and made a new friend who lives in Alabama. I'm probably going to go down in the spring and go fishing with him as he runs fishing charters. We pretty much just hit it off from the get go and just had lots of fun in the evenings. All in all I had a great season! I just don't want it to end... I was fortunate enough to hunt three states and had lots of fun! I just got an offer to come to northern Missouri along the Iowa border for ml season but I think I have pushed my limit for one season with the wife! I'm thinking I better quit while I am ahead. I wish I could have pulled off a harvest in Ohio but making a great friend may be better yet! No deer in Ohio and no complaints!


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