For Serious Whitetail Hunters, What Is It That Drives You?

I feel like we go through stages as deer hunters, and I guess I'm speaking mostly for myself.

When I first started, I was just intrigued by all wildlife and by learning. I wanted to tag as many deer as I could and simply enjoyed seeing deer. I wanted to shoot something and was trying to figure it all out.

As I started to shoot more bucks, it progressed into trying to kill an older age class. At first, that probably meant a 3.5-year-old. Then I was able to hunt a couple of older deer that I had visually seen from the stand or road, and I started wanting to target a particular buck.

That stage has really held steady for a long time.

For a very long stretch, I put a lot of pressure on myself to fill a tag every year. But in my late 30s, I started caring less about the kill itself and more about building history with a particular deer—almost putting together a story.

The goal now is to have a pipeline of bucks so that going into each season, I have one to three deer I really want to target. Some seasons, there may only be one buck I'm willing to take.

Of course, I recently killed my largest and oldest buck, but even before that, I could feel myself shifting more toward the land management and habitat side of things. You're trying to create healthy habitat for all deer and wildlife. The kill is still a passion, but I definitely look at the season through a much broader lens now.

That got me thinking about what drives different big-buck hunters.

I recently listened to a podcast with Spook Spann, and his approach is fascinating. He's trying to locate some of the largest bucks he can each season through tips and networking, then gain permission through different means and ultimately go one-on-one with that deer.

Other top hunters I know take a different approach. Their goal is to grow and manage deer on property they own, lease, or otherwise have some control over. That's not to say they're opposed to hunting other permission pieces, but much of their passion comes from trying to eventually put a tag on the biggest mature buck they have history with.

Neither approach is right or wrong.

But it got me wondering: What drives most serious big-buck hunters?

I would fall into the latter group.

I think part of that is because I've been blessed to hunt a few properties for multiple years and have some control over managing those spots for older-class deer. That has allowed me to build history with bucks—getting pictures of them at two, three, four years old and beyond.

Then you start putting the puzzle together. You learn where they bed, where they feed, how they use the property, and eventually you try to put a plan together to successfully harvest that particular deer.

That's probably the part I enjoy more than anything—the puzzle.

I even posted a poll question on social media:

Would you rather locate a legitimate 200-inch buck, get permission for one season and go after him, or kill a 170-inch gross buck on your own property that you've had several years of history with?

Obviously, that's a broad question and comes with plenty of caveats, but I really think I would choose the latter.

Now, I'm not sure any of us would turn down an opportunity to chase a 200-inch deer. But let's say several people know about him, there's competition to hunt him, and the whole thing comes with a lot of pressure and stress.

Compare that with a super-mature 170-inch buck—say six or seven years old—on a property I've hunted for years. I've watched him grow, collected trail-camera pictures, managed the habitat around him and spent years trying to understand how he uses the property.

Give me the second option.

Someone could say, "Well, just pass the 170 until he becomes 200." That's not really the point. Assume he's reached full maturity and 170 inches is simply what he is.

Those podcasts got me thinking about what makes me tick. And I didn't just have an epiphany—I think I've always known.

I hunted public land years ago when I lived in Iowa, and I absolutely enjoyed it. But if I had the choice, I'd rather plant plots, improve habitat, hang stands, run cameras and watch a property develop year after year. I'd rather build history with a particular buck and, when I finally decide it's time to hunt him, get to play that chess match.

Obviously, you can scratch that itch with the first scenario as well. And I think a lot of what drives us probably stems from our individual situations and the access we have.

I doubt I'll ever turn down a free pass to go chase a 200-inch buck. But I'm probably not going to spend my fall actively searching for one somewhere else when I have a place where I can build history with deer of my own.

And I realize not everyone has that opportunity. I've been blessed with access that has allowed me to hunt this way, and I'm sure that has shaped what I value.

Maybe that's ultimately what I've realized about myself as a deer hunter.

The older I've gotten, the less it's become about finding the biggest buck I can kill and the more it's become about the story behind the buck I kill.

The habitat work. The trail-camera pictures. Watching him grow. The encounters that didn't work out. Figuring out where he lives and how he moves. And finally, if everything comes together, getting your opportunity.

The inches still matter. I'd be lying if I said they didn't.

But the story matters more to me than it used to.

And maybe that's one of the great things about deer hunting. We're all chasing something a little different.

So I'm curious: What drives you? Would you rather chase the 200-inch buck you've never seen before, or the mature 170 you've watched grow up on your own ground? And more importantly—why?