Every season we hear about them and see the pics; the mountain monster, the cornfield ghost, the river bottom buck, the suburban secret buck, the first buck; the stories are as diverse as the hunters, and they are all special.
Deer hunting is a special tradition in the Old Dominion and the buck tales that accompany the seasons are worth sharing here in hopes of inspiring and entertaining you. Our annual Woods & Waters Big Buck Contest ran through January 12 and all one had to do to enter was submit your photo to us either via our Facebook page or emailing at woodsandwatersmagazine@gmail.com. First prize is a $50 gift card from our friends at Green Top Sporting Goods, plus a W2 cap and sticker.
Now, let’s get on with this year’s Buck Tales.
Barden’s Bow Season Best
Tommy Barden’s deer season success story started on September 20 when he took his crossbow to Green Top Sporting Goods for inspection. Unfortunately, the Parker Galeforce had two cracked limbs! He found the limbs online and had the archery department at Green Top install them and replace all cables. He wanted to thank all the guys in the GT archery department who provided awesome service to get Barden going by October 2 and get sighted in.
On opening day, October 4, which is also Barden’s birthday, he headed to his stand in Charles City County with his green cap light on in the dark. Barden said he reached his Big Game ladder stand and lifted his head slightly and noticed two eyes looking at him! The deer then blows at Barden in total darkness and disappears. Not the best start!
Barden then headed up the ladder and commenced to waiting on daylight. Sunrise arrives 10 minutes later, and the buck appears and walks straight at Barden’s stand, so no shot at it. The buck then turns and walks into the thick stuff. About 10 minutes later something catches Barden’s eye; the buck is 10 feet from his stand and too close.
“That darn buck walks straight away from me, so no shot again, but I know at 30 yards it has to turn left or right. It turns right and stops. Two more steps and it would be gone again, so I pulled the trigger and the Red Hot bolt and Rage blade make contact.”
Barden said he waited around five minutes and climbed down, heading back to the house.
“My wife is up now and says: ‘What did you forget?’ I tell her I just shot a decent buck so I’m back for a cup of coffee. After 40 minutes I’m back tracking and find the deer 35 yards from where it was shot with a perfect double lung shot.”
Barden’s hunt lasted only 25 minutes on opening day and the buck, his biggest archery deer, was his first gift on his 64th birthday.
“It’s amazing how it all worked out and how all the odds were against this happening. Thanks to everyone in the archery department at Green Top for their help!”
Linthicum’s National Forest Triumph
Many of you know how difficult it is to harvest a trophy buck hunting public land, especially the National Forest. Well, Grant Linthicum did just that and he shared his story with W2.
“We woke up to a rainy morning and decided we were going to scout a new area on National Forest and when we got there, we saw six trucks parked where we wanted to go. So, we switched up our game plan and drove to another part of the County to a different section of National Forest we had scouted by looking at the map and found a good looking location.”
Linthicum noted he and his buddies drove up that way and as they were driving up the National Forest road, they saw a doe run across and the buck was just behind her chasing her. Predictably they found a place to park and hopped out of the truck.
“My brother walked up to the top of the ridge where the deer had run back through the brush, and I went down into the hollow below about 150 yards in.”
Here Grant told W2 he grunted a couple times and as soon as he did the doe came busting over the top of the ridge, looking around and stopped about 35 yards in front of him.
“I kept watching up at the top of the ridge looking for him and about five minutes later I saw something in the brush a little further down the ridge. I looked through my scope and saw him walking the other direction but there was too much brush to take a shot.”
Reacting fast, Grant grabbed his grunt call, hit it a few times and the buck stopped and turned to look back at him, turning back through the brush coming in his direction.
“I ended up losing him in the brush and I started to get nervous he was gone so I kept scanning the last place I had seen him. Finally, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye, and I turned, and he was standing where the doe had come over the ridge about 70 yards from me,” Linthicum remembers. “He was standing straight on and just behind a log laying on the ground, so I looked, and I found the white spot on his throat and squeezed the trigger and immediately began to shake as I could see the antlers sticking up off the ground.”
Grant had done it. The buck dropped right where he stood.
“My brother heard the shot and immediately called me and asked if it was me and I said ‘yes’ and he came running. When he got around to me and the deer we couldn’t even speak because it was the biggest buck either of us had ever taken, so we just had the biggest excited hug you could imagine. It was a very emotional hunting season for us because we lost our Pawpaw in June. He was always a big hunter and invested in our hunting adventures. We just knew he was there shinning down on us on that rainy cold morning.”
Linthicum’s buck ended up with a 22-inch wide outside spread and measured 145-5/8” and scored 137-1/8” green.
“It’s my biggest buck to date and definitely a day I won’t forget – a scouting day turned into a trophy buck going on the wall.”
Conley’s Albemarle Dandy
On October 12th, 2025, Jacob Conley embarked on an unconventional hunt in Albemarle County, Virginia. It was a misty evening, and the 30-something hunting enthusiast got out later than expected. Rather than venturing deep into the 40-acre property he was hunting, he decided to stay close to his SUV to minimize intrusion on this prized land that he had been hunting for three years.
“I like to leave a small footprint early in the season, reserving the best spots for the rut,” Conley told W2.
The Charlottesville resident created a modest ground blind on the edge of a field, about 75 yards from his vehicle. In no time he was watching many yearling bucks and a doe cross the field around a large white oak, left from an old homesite, standing solitary in the middle of the field.
As last light approached, Conley noticed another deer moving in and spotted tall tines through the limbs.
“I readied myself, and as he stepped into the field, I ranged him at 41 yards. Drawing back my Mathews Lift Bow, I settled my pin, released, and knew immediately it was a perfect shot with a clean pass-through.”
Being colorblind, Conley noted tracking has always been a challenge, especially with everything wet from the rain.
“I called my wife, Kathryn, for help, as we were only half a mile from home. Together, we walked in the general direction the buck had run and found him 80 yards away. It was wonderful to have Kathryn join me for the tracking and discovery. While hunting isn’t her passion, she appreciates the wild game we get to enjoy throughout the year.”
Jacob told W2 the buck has since been Euro-mounted and proudly sits in his office, a reminder of that memorable misty evening and the teamwork that led to its recovery.
Baker’s Lame Buck
Hunting in Powhatan County on opening day of general gun season James Baker enjoyed a great day afield as told by his son, Austin.
“During the first drive of the day with the hounds my Dad watched a buck come sneaking out of the drive and he smoked the nine-point, 23-inch buck with his Browning A5 bottomland 12-gauge shotgun,” said Baker.
While skinning this deer preparing to take it to the taxidermist the Bakers came across an interesting thing. The deer had been wounded with an arrow. Somehow the broad head broke off of the arrow and stuck into his front leg.
The Spotsylvania Special
David Sandridge was hunting November 15, the first day of gun season in Spotsylvania County when he found the perfect situation.
“Early that morning I had walked carefully down to a creek bed and climbed a tree stand waiting for the hunt club’s hounds. Unfortunately, the dogs did not come through my area but instead trailed a buck on a nearby ridge, so I waited until they were past and then got off the stand and moved to the top of the ridge.”
About an hour-and-a-half later Sandridge spies a big buck come tiptoeing through pine trees at around 10:30 am, probably trailing a doe in heat. The long-time deer hunter raised his 12-gaugle Benelli and dropped a fine 10-point buck with a single shot.
Sisson’s Truck Buck
In 47 years of hunting Lee Sisson experienced a first this season hunting in Floyd County on November 6 and shared his Buck Tale with W2.
“As my friend would say, ‘You can’t make this stuff up.’ I had parked my truck in front of an old, galvanized gate that afternoon to head into the woods. I had been hunting over a steep side of the mountain with very little action, so I decided to ease back to my truck before dark to check out a small field. I was about 80 yards from my truck when I see this buck looking at me. With only seconds to react I put the scope on him and saw a funky looking rack and took the shot.”
Sisson said the buck took off running in the direction of his truck and seconds later he heard a big crash that sounded like he had run into the gate.
“As I was trying to reload, I heard all kinds thrashing going on that sounded like the deer was hung up in the gate. I finally got the old muzzleloader reloaded and I took off to find the deer. I just knew he would be laying at the gate. Nope, no deer, so I start back tracking and I followed the blood trail straight to the gate but no deer.”
Sisson spent about 15 minutes or so walking around looking for the buck, but he said it “was like the deer just disappeared”. So, he decided to walk back to his truck to get rid of some clothes and gear.
Once back at the vehicle, Sisson thought he heard something under the truck, and guess what he sees? It was the buck!
“What I had heard was him running into my truck and not the gate. All the thrashing sounds were coming from under my truck.”
Luckily, there was very little damage to the truck.
“I guess I need to start leaving my tailgate down from here on out and just maybe they will jump in the bed of my truck.”
Hoff’s Wall Hanger
John Hoffmeyer’s deer season was going slowly. As an avid hunter with extensive access to good property in Charles City County and many trophy bucks to his credit he was just not seeing many nice bucks except two, 10 pointers.
He said his neighbors got one of them the first week of gun season. The second one had been around and on camera some so he was hopeful.
“I knew that second 10 pointer was in an area of hardwoods near the Chickahominy River. I had a little time after work and decided on a quick hunt, work clothes and all! I went to my stand at 4 pm and after seeing many does, I watched as the big buck came out feeding on that cold evening. I took the shot at 100 yards with my 45 cal. muzzleloader and he didn’t go far. God is good!”
Hoffmeyer had another 10 pointer and says he was happy to get a shot after not hunting much this year.
W2’s Big Buck Winner
Tyler Turner of Caroline County wanted to share the story of a special buck he harvested this season that made the Buckmaster’s record book and won our annual Big Buck Contest. The official score is 160-2/8. His rack had 10 points with a 28-2/8 main beam length and a 30-inch outside spread. The deer was aged at six years old and weighed 125 pounds field dressed.
Turner shared that he harvested the buck December 6 with a muzzleloader hunting in Caroline County.
“I had seen this deer two Saturdays before on November 22, right at dark on one of the foggiest evenings I’ve ever seen in Virginia. I took a shot in the last 15 minutes of legal shooting hours at 80 yards and missed as he was pushing does around.”
A week later Turner recalls he was sitting on the same ridge where he saw the buck and just happened to look over his right shoulder at 7:45 am and saw a glimpse of a deer at about 150 yards back behind him.
“I stood up and turned around in my climbing stand and got the binoculars up looking at the deer and my first thought was ‘I don’t know if I will get an opportunity to harvest this deer but nobody is going to believe me if I tell them I saw a buck that was 30 inches wide’, so I pulled out my cell phone trying to get a picture of him as he was working toward me. I never could get a clean picture. So, I put my phone away and I put the crosshairs on his shoulder and squeezed the trigger. When the smoke cleared, I could see antlers laying in the creek bottom.”
