MORE DEER COVERAGE • 2004 Deer Outlook, Part 1 • 2004 Rut Report in North American Whitetail Forums

By Terry Madewell

The buck had left his telltale sign along the same area for the second straight year and all the sign pointed to the animal being a very big buck. During the prior hunting season, we found his scrape line, but didn't catch him running it, partly because we had very few days available to hunt once we found the area he was working. However, the second year we had a better game plan.

First, we found the scrape line when it first became active in late October. Once we knew he was active and in the area, we essentially stayed completely out of his way. We knew the terrain, the habitat and we'd already done enough scouting to be able to select the right trees to hang our climbers on to hunt that were a reasonable distance from where we figured the buck would be coming from and heading to, but well within striking range of a .30/06. After that, we kept ourselves and alarming human activity out of there.

Fortunately, the buck actually went where we thought he would one morning when my buddy was in his stand. However, as with most trophy bucks, the deer did have his own little twist to spice up the game just a bit. The buck came from the direction we had figured he should and was headed to the next scrape, but he almost came too early. Even three minutes earlier, and the big buck would have likely made it through the area without being seen. Although it was legal shooting time, the cloudy sky and dark hardwood canopy that covered the area we hunted contributed to the low visibility.

When I heard the report of the rifle, I had just started really looking for movement in the woods where I was hunting only a few hundred yards away. As the story goes, ol' man luck was with my buddy and he just happened to catch a dark shadow cross a light background. He followed it as best he could through the understory and when the deer stopped, it was slightly backlit and the scope easily allowed my partner to see the massive rack. To his credit, he maintained his composure and quickly dropped the cross hairs to the buck's shoulder and squeezed the trigger. After running about 60 yards, the buck crumbled in a heap. The 10-pointer rough-scored 135 Boone and Crocket points and certainly met the standards of a trophy animal.

Harvesting trophy animals, while certainly not routine, is becoming less and less rare across the Palmetto State. The opportunities to take trophy animals are better than ever, at least according to that data available from the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

For many hunters across the Palmetto State, deer hunting has become much more than simply a hard-fought quest to put venison in the freezer. Based on data from the SCDNR, the past two years have been extraordinary in terms of hunter success.

In 2002, 80 percent of hunters in our state were successful. They fared nearly as well during the 2003 hunting season, with a 75 percent success rate. Based on success rates from most other Southeast states, Charles Ruth, Deer Project supervisor for the SCDNR, says we've really got it good here at home.

Photo by Jeff Palmer

The next logical step for most hunters is to begin to target larger bucks, the trophy animals that are truly difficult to hunt and harvest. Based on the data Ruth has compiled from the 2003 hunting season and the 2004 scoring year, South Carolina hunters are also doing exceptionally well on trophy animals.

When asked about his prognosis of the trophy deer being harvested in South Carolina, Ruth responded quickly with the facts.

"There were three Boone and Crockett and 10 new county records added to the state's Deer Antler Records during the 2004 scoring session for white-tailed deer antler scoring conducted by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources. We've never had three Boone and Crocket bucks in the same score year and setting 10 new county records is quite a feat as well," Ruth said.

Each spring, the SCDNR wildlife management personnel make a concerted effort to score deer racks throughout the state, with a major scoring session during the Palmetto Sportsman's Classic in Columbia.

"Of the 418 sets of antlers scored at the 11 scheduled sessions this spring, 163 met the minimum score for entry on the state records list, which is more than normal. The 163 racks included 156 sets of typical and seven non-typical racks. Of the antlers scored, 135 were taken in 2002 or 2003. Antler racks must score a minimum of 125 B&C points typical or 145 B&C points non-typical to qualify for the South Carolina state records list," Ruth said.

Records are based on the Boone and Crockett Club scoring system, which measures the mass and symmetry of deer antlers in two categories - typical and non-typical. In addition, this enables Ruth to track where these big bucks come from, information we'll examine to help you plan your trophy hunting efforts for the 2004 hunting season.

"It's pretty remarkable to add three Boone and Crockett records to our state list in one year," Ruth noted. "One of the three sets of antlers will qualify for recognition under the Boone and Crockett All-Time Records list and two will qualify for the three-year Awards Program. The B&C All-Time Records has minimum scores of 170 and 195 points for typical and non-typical antlers, respectively. The three-year Awards Program has minimum scores of 160 points for typical antlers and 185 points for non-typical antlers."

Ruth also notes that he was very impressed with the 10 new county records set at this year's scoring sessions.

New typical rack records were set in several counties, beginning with Calhoun County with a buck scoring 173 7/8. Randy Hoffman took this massive buck in August of 2003. In Kershaw County, Carl Kambeitz took a 156 4/8 buck in September 2003. In McCormick County, a 152 4/8 rack was scored that was "picked up" by Dennis Holden in 2003 (racks that are "picked up" or found on an animal that died of natural/non-hunter causes may be scored and noted in record books). In Orangeburg County, a new record was set with a 160 5/8 taken in October 2002 by Jay Sox. In Sumter County, a new record of 167 6/8 was scored and was taken in November 2001 by Todd Ledford.

Not only was the buck taken by Randy Hoffman the largest typical in South Carolina in 2003, it qualifies for the Boone and Crockett All-Time Awards Program and is now the new No. 2 All-time typical from South Carolina.

The bucks taken by Todd Ledford and Jay Sox each qualify for recognition under the B&C three-year Awards Program and these deer rank Nos. 7 and 21, respectively, on the All-Time typical list for our state.

New non-typical county records were set in several counties as well. Anderson County has a new record, a 180 7/8 buck taken by Mark Huntington in October 2002. Donald Shealy took the new Kershaw County non-typical record in October 2003 with a 170 5/8 buck. Hugh Gaskins set the new Williamsburg County record in October 2003 with a 170 5/8 buck. In Sumter County, the new non-typical record is a 168 6/8 buck taken in November 2001 by Todd Ledford. In Pickens County, the new record is a 162 4/8 buck taken in December 2003 by David Elrod.

Just to assure to you there is no typo in the above information, Charles Ruth confirms that Todd Ledford did indeed set both Sumter County records with two different bucks taken in November 2001 and that the score on the racks was only one point different.

"I scored them both myself and the 167 6/8 typical buck was a tremendous buck. The non-typical scored 168 6/8 and was also an excellent buck, but they were two totally separate sets of antlers and quite an accomplishment. We're seeing some really good bucks from Sumter County in recent years," Ruth said.

Although taken in 2002, the Mark Huntington buck was the highest scoring non-typical documented this spring and with a final score of 180 7/8, it stands as the No. 5 All-Time non-typical in South Carolina. The bucks taken by Hugh Gaskins and Donald Shealy tied for best non-typical taken in 2003. At 170 5/8 points, the Gaskins buck also qualifies for recognition by the Pope and Young Club, the organization that chronicles North American archery records.

Ruth collects data on each buck that makes the state book and from that information we can glean more information about where big bucks are being taken. First, we'll look at the counties leading the way with the highest number of entries into the state record book.

"After seven straight years of being No. 1, Orangeburg County was knocked off by Kershaw County as this year's top producer of state record entries," Ruth said.

During spring 2004 scoring activities, SCDNR wildlife management personnel documented 13 record entries from Kershaw County. Lancaster was a very close second place with 12 entries. Aiken County was third with 11 bucks and Anderson was fourth with nine. Orangeburg still remained strong with eight bucks added to the record buck list to finish fifth. Oconee, Pickens and Union counties tied for sixth with six new entries each. Barnwell, Chesterfield, Dorchester, Greenville and Sumter counties all tied with five new entries each.

"The adjoining counties of Kershaw and Lancaster have been showing promise over the last few years and this year they moved to the forefront. Other top big-buck-producing counties like Aiken, Anderson, Orangeburg and Oconee are not a surprise, as these counties have historically produced good numbers of record entries," Ruth said. "What is encouraging for hunters is the number of counties producing a respectable number of state records, which shows the wide distribution of large-antlered bucks."

While most of the deer scored were actually harvested in 2003, we've noted that some were taken in 2002 or 2001. Let's take a look at the counties where the top 10 typical deer were taken in the 2003 hunt year only. Then we'll also look at where the four non-typical antlers that made the record book were taken in 2003.

The list for typical bucks in order from No. 1 to No. 10 in terms of official B&C score were: Calhoun, Sumter, Orangeburg, Kershaw, Bamberg, McCormick, Dorchester, Dillon, Lancaster and Oconee.

The non-typical antlers in 2003 came from, in order of score, Kershaw, Williamsburg, Pickens and Lancaster counties.

Another important set of data that you can use to help plan your hunts is the all-time leaders in terms of counties producing the most bucks making the state record book. This is the long-term pattern of where hunters traditionally take big bucks, and while some new areas are certainly becoming very productive, the long-standing producers are worth your consideration as well.

As it has for a long time, Orangeburg County still leads the way with 309 bucks taken that have made the state record list. Since Orangeburg was still fifth in this year's scoring session, there's no question it is still a prime spot for big bucks. The No. 2 all-time producer is Aiken County with 236 entries into the state record book. Fairfield remains in third place with 218 (four more added at this year's scoring session). In fourth is Colleton County with 190, up four entries from last year. The fifth-place county was Williamsburg with 166 entries, and in sixth was Abbeville County with 163. In seventh was Allendale with 161 entries; Anderson County was eighth with 152. In ninth place, but coming on fast, is this year's No. 1, Kershaw County with 146 entries. Rounding out the top 10 all-time is Barnwell County with 138 entries.

Ruth also notes that while a few of the top trophy counties also have very high deer populations, some of these big-buck-producing counties have more moderate numbers.

"It is very important that hunters and land managers understand how the number or density of deer in an area affects the quality of the animals. Areas with fewer deer typically have better quality animals because natural food availability and nutritional quality is higher. Good nutrition is important in producing good antlers, but deer reproduction, recruitment and survival are also directly tied to nutrition," Ruth said.

He adds that if South Carolina deer hunters want to continue to have good numbers of large-antlered bucks, they will have to do something: kill more does.

"Over the past 10 years, most hunters have realized the importance of harvesting does. These hunters should be commended and encouraged to continue this trend," Ruth stated. "This is the second year in a row where more does were harvested than bucks. I think we're on the right track."

Ruth is very happy with the South Carolina deer herd, given the data he has and the sets of antlers he has seen and scored. His prognosis is that the deer herd is in good condition on a statewide basis. His feeling is that if weather conditions allow hunters to hunt effectively, there should be plenty more big bucks taken during the 2004 hunting season.

Ruth also notes that big bucks do not come easy and what constitutes a trophy is a matter of perspective for the individual hunter. For example, harvesting a B&C buck is an extraordinary occurrence and we had three in the most recent scoring session.

"South Carolina hunters should recognize that although a great achievement, harvesting potential Boone and Crockett bucks is not a common occurrence anywhere in the country. This is particularly evident if you consider that there are only about 5,000 white-tailed deer records listed by Boone and Crockett, which includes entries dating to the 1800s," Ruth said.

Similarly, the harvest of deer in the United States in recent years has been approximately 5,000,000 whitetails per year.

"Essentially, the average hunter stands a better chance of being struck by lightening than harvesting one of these record deer no matter where they hunt," Ruth said. "As for the South Carolina Antler Records list, about one in every 1,000 bucks harvested makes the state book."

But you can set your own goals as to what constitutes a trophy animal, and armed with the information listed here, you can set your sights on a trophy buck of your own.

If you hunt on private land and want to see more big deer, consider shooting more does if the population of deer is approaching the carrying capacity of the land; consider improving the habitat for the deer; and, of course, consider letting young bucks walk until they are old enough to have had a chance to grow a mature rack.

And if you hunt public land, strap on a good pair of boots and get as far back in the woods as you can. As a mentor of mine once told me: "Plan your hunt and then hunt your plan." If you do, you may be carrying a set of antlers for the DNR folks to score for you next year.