The Ghost (updated with story and pics)

Some have heard me mention a deer I’ve been after for a few years but never seen pics. Well he made a mistake yesterday evening so I’ll show some trail cam pics from this year.

Nice deer wanna be congrats

I’ll post some better pics when I get them. I have no idea what he scores, my son asked to be the first to score him and he’s with his family at Disney World (our Christmas gift to them this year) and he’ll be back tomorrow.

ISO deer lease in SW Georgia.

That one is a dandy! Nice job.

He looks under the weather in that last picture.

Congratulations, nice buck

Good one!

Nice deer Wanna Be! Love those swooping beams. How old you suppose, maybe 6? Definitely mature, great buck congrats!

Classy looking buck.
Dandy!!
Congrats.

Impressive looking deer. Congrats

I like to keep a “journal” so to speak of my hunts hoping one day when my memory fails me that my boys can read to me and maybe I’ll remember some of my adventures. This is one of the buck I recently killed that I called The Ghost. It’s a long read…

The Ghost

I saw this deer as a 10pt with long brow tines 3 years ago. Brennan and I both thought he was a great deer with a lot of potential but still young. We thought 3.5, maybe 4.5.
Well the following year he blew up in growth but stayed nocturnal for me. Night time pics only.

Last year I decided I was going to hunt him exclusively with my bow. I was close a couple of times as far as stand sits versus where he would show up on camera, but never saw him. On November 16th last year he ran a doe by me at 70 yards only to stop 120 yards out when the doe laid down. All I could do was watch. I had an 8pt that was high 130’s walk directly under me, but there was no way I’d shoot after looking at what I had named “The Ghost”.

I didn’t see him again during daylight the rest of the year. I still got his night time pics and thought I knew where he hung out during the daylight, but a camera there never produced a single picture of him. I knew he survived the season based on after season pics and finding one side of his shed.

Now this year he was my main focus and I actually got a pic of him in velvet…during daylight! I deployed every camera I had and some of Brennan’s.

This year was a little different, early season he was making daytime visits. One morning after I’d gotten his pic on a certain camera I was perched up 25ft in a pine and just new it would happen! A nice solid 140-150” 10pt showed but he didn’t. As I’m sitting in the climber waiting I get a text from Brennan…”You got got!! Lol” he told me to check out camera number 2. Sure enough at 0900 he was about 375 yds SW of me…for 30 minutes feeding on acorns. All I could do was say “Touché” he won that battle.

This went on for most of archery season. I’d hunt North he’d show up South. I’d hunt East he’d be West. I’d hunt South and he’d be East. It was like he knew exactly where I’d be. At this point I still hadn’t seen him in person. That ended the Friday before firearms season started.

About 30min before dark he showed up chasing a doe. That hunt was pure irony…I trap this place and what ruins my hunt and diverts the deers path to me???? A coyote!

So firearms season starts and Brennan threatens to have me institutionalized if I don’t pick up my rifle…so I do.

Well The Ghost is still playing with my head and I bring Brennan in and we decide we’d double team him. One of us should at least see him or best case, shoot him! Turns out The Ghost apparently could read both our minds, lol.

This past Thursday night and early Friday morning he gave us a clue where he is probably living and it’s exactly where we thought it was.

I sent Brennan a text that I was going to move my climber yet again for Saturday mornings hunt hoping to catch him slipping back to where he thought he was bedding up. I was also thinking the rut is about to kick off any day and he could start back making daylight appearances searching out a hot doe.

I drove my truck to the area removed a couple of small trees around the pine I picked out and got everything ready for the next morning. As I was driving out and had the windows down I thought, it’s a pretty evening and a little breezy so I might as well sit. I was already on AG heading towards the horse pasture and decided to just park and walk back the 500 yards to the climber.

Got up the tree and set up when I took a screen shot on OnX of my location and sent it to Brennan. He immediately sent back a marked screenshot of where he thought I should sit for the forecasted SE wind over the weekend…it was about the exact spot I was sitting in. The Ghost had gotten in his mind too, lol.

I was up and ready about 1730. I immediately started seeing deer. In fact it wasn’t an hour and I was taking the video of the little piebald. I had just cut the camera off and I glanced back the way they had come from and there he was…The Ghost in broad daylight.

I got the phone back in my pocket and got my rifle up and ready. Something wasn’t right though…at that moment I remembered I had never chambered a round after pulling the gun up. With the buck of my lifetime at 75 yards I “quietly” chambered a round. He paid no attention as he was working a scrape.

The next few minutes were a blur. I shot and he ran. I was shaking like a leaf and text Brennan that I had shot The Ghost.

After 15min I climbed down and couldn’t find blood to save my life. I spent the next 1.5hrs looking. Even went to what in my jumbled mind was the last spot and hung my facemask and hat.

Brennan knew my state of mind and had a buddy call me and tell me he was on the way and for me to go to my truck and relax.

He and Zachary showed up and we went to where I’d shot. We still couldn’t find blood but continued to where I’d marked the last spot…still no blood. I went left, Zac took the center, and my buddy went right of my marked last known sighting.

Within 30sec my buddy yelled he had good blood! I was thinking Thank God!! I was trying to maneuver out in front of his voice looking for blood and he kept saying come in a little, a little bit more cause he had “real real good blood!” As I broke through some of the thick stuff I realized he had found The Ghost.
The way rigor had already set in, he was dead within a minute of my last sight of him.

I’m man enough to admit I broke down a little. I’d chased this deer for three years and it was over. I was both happy and sad. All the time, effort and even money trying to find this deers pattern had come to an end.

I haven’t scored him yet, waiting until Brennan gets back from Disney World today, but to be honest I really don’t care what he scores. It was a great challenge and God smiled down and let me win the war.

You are a very handsome man

As soon as I read the first sentence in the quote I knew, I have experienced the same thing many times before. What a great deer, and an even better story. I hope the story telling tradition never goes away. Even Dale Earnhardt loved to tell a good hunting story, how awesome. Thanks for sharing this WB.

Now I’m blushing…

Awesome buck!! Way to go Wanna Be! Great story too!

Now I am uncomfortable! LOL

He combed his hair for the picture.I think he combed the deers hairs too.LOL,,NICE deer,,good job.

Congrats

That is a great deer.

Been a goodun next year.

If it was only my son and I hunting this property we had discussed that. I have his shed from last year (actually it’s at my sons house) but we are going to compare his score on that side and see if he grew or lost inches. If he grew then we could speculate what he might have been next year. All I know is he will never get any bigger. But I suspect it will show if you let them go, they will grow.
I realize not everyone feels that way. And for many many years I didn’t feel that. A buck with antlers no matter how small or big was getting shot. Brown it’s down, lol.
Over time I realized there much to shooting them. I decided to start watching and learning instead of shooting. Eventually it got to finding a buck and keeping track of him. Sometimes they make it to “hunting” size and some don’t. That’s the beauty of it to me.

Thank you for sharing!!

That's a real good'un and great story. It's an awesome challenge to locate, figure out, and then get a chance at a mature buck ......Congrats!!

In my opinion, if the Ghost was 4.5 years or above being a southern deer, he is likely maxed out on size assuming there isn't some drastic change in minerals or food. If this was in the north, I would put the max at around 6 years, but tons of factors. I definitely would be interested in a jaw pic no matter what though.

Congrats...good deer

Great deer and a great history u have with it. Love the long upturned beams

Matt, I do have the jaw. Sending it off to be aged for my own curiosity, but I can post a pic.

Always neat when can make the decisions for you and hunt like you want. Nice deer. Congratulations.

Mac

Looks to be around 5-6 to me, the back cusp is very worn and concave. The dentine and general wear on the 1st and 2nd molars also look to match that general time frame. Definitely lived a great life no matter what though, very interesting.

Pard, I say that about every buck I’m envious of

Congratulations and thanks for posting a picture of a deer where your not putting the rack three feet in front of yourself. A truly big rack looks impressive taken just like you did. And gives us a better picture of the proportions.
Your family should enjoy many fine meals.

Well, my son just got home and scored it. Now all we care about is gross score…168 2/8”. By far my biggest deer ever and feel extremely lucky to have had it all come to a positive end. What’s really cool is my son killed a 172” off this same property last year.

Nice deer he has a good heavy frame on the antlers some I’ve seen that big but they have a pretty thin set of antlers.

Beautiful buck thanks for sharing. I would say a 6 year old but it’s hard to tell once they get past 5 ( for me anyway ). Good job Wanna Be !

John

Good story. Would enjoy more stories like yours. Maybe that 172 and yours are related. Their dna must be out there.

Good deer congratulations.

Outstanding!! Way to go on the determination.

And I thought my big 9pt was a stud!! That beautiful buck there easily puts it too shame!! Very nice deer and excellent story sir!

Great buck congrats. We are after a 6yr old this year that i have both matched sets of sheds from the past 2 years, last year he was 159", and he added quite a bit. Hopefully my dad can get a crack at him. We both passed him last season multiple times

Man I hope y’all get him. If he was 159” last year, he’ll be mid 170’s or better this year. Can’t wait to see pics.