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

By Norm Minch

Kentucky's deer seasons in this decade, in terms of trophy whitetails taken, have been some of the best ever enjoyed by Bluegrass State deer hunters. In each of the last three years, more than 25 Boone and Crockett Club (B&C) qualifiers were dropped from the mountains of eastern Kentucky to the lowlands of western Purchase. Production has been truly remarkable - and steady, which is equally impressive.

Finding trophy bucks in Kentucky has taken us everywhere on the map in recent years, including highly urbanized counties like Fayette and Jefferson, where although the volume of habitat is limited, at least one or two bucks grew headsets big enough to meet trophy standards. And we've also seen big bucks in spots like Lewis County that's more remote, away from the big city, which has pumped out trophy after trophy in factory production style lately.

After the 2003-04 season, Jonathan Day, who is Kentucky's big-game program coordinator for the state fish and wildlife department, was left kind of scratching his head - but not from disappointment, rather more in amazement. When the tally came in, Kentucky had reported more than 40 trophy bucks under the B&C scoring system, with dozens more trophy bow kills racked up that qualified for Pope and Young (P&Y) Club recognition.

"I'm not really sure why we had such a tremendous year last year, but as far as I know, it's the best on record for B&C-class whitetails," Day said. "I believe there were 25 different counties represented, several more than once, which shows we're still at the top of the list in production for our size, and that our hunters are doing what needs to be done to help us keep growing big bucks in this state."

Some of what Day is talking about is the willingness of deer hunters to keep taking as many does as they can find use for, and thereby helping keep the herd under control and in balance. Both these factors are important to trophy buck development, especially in spots where densities are greater.

"Age, genetics and habitat are the three big keys in trophy deer production," Day explained. "Other factors such as hunting pressure, well-balanced buck-to-doe ratios, and maybe some luck, too, also bear on the ability of the land and a specific area to produce record-book bucks."

Even though Kentucky has reported about 140 trophy qualifiers in just the last five seasons alone, hunters still have to remember to put the odds in their favor. They have to be selective. They have to consider the deer potential of an area, and spend a great deal of time scouting and hunting to be in the right place at the right time to bag a wallhanger. However, there is no doubt that with Kentucky's still- growing reputation, there are few, if any, better states to be spending your energy in.

Photo by BillKinney.com

Two other better spots to be on the lookout for higher quality bucks in this region include Christian and Livingston counties. Livingston County along the Ohio River has a good string of trophy bucks to its credit, emerging on the scene with book bucks the last three years running. The best of these was taken last season when Bill Sutton connected with a 180 2/8 monster typical with a rifle.

Christian County should also be a spot that trophy seekers mark on their list, even though no one reported taking a book-qualifying buck there last season. Four high-quality bucks have been taken there in the last five years, which makes it a great contender to get back on the list this coming season. Carlisle County rounds out our top choices in the Purchase Region, perhaps as a sleeper county. It also gave up a 180-class typical for Chuck Edrington last season, and hunters may want to watch this county to see if the trend continues toward more higher quality whitetails.

If you count the Justin Coe/Shane Colvin found buck, Hart County posted four of those 17. After a one-season hiatus last year, out of the past five seasons, Hart County came roaring back to the charts with a vengeance. Hart is undoubtedly one of the best counties in Kentucky for trophy buck production. It ranks in the top five, and puts itself in this extremely elite class with over a dozen listings on the books.

Yet, it almost appears that anywhere you step in the Green River Region, you might find yourself face to face with a buck of a lifetime. No, there's not a trophy behind every tree, but in comparison to what we know that less than 1 percent of all bucks achieve the antler size required for official recognition by the record-keeping organizations, it is very impressive so many of these bucks come from this set of counties.

Practically every county in the Green River has the potential to give up a trophy buck, but let's just focus on the cream of the crop - those that have in recent history led this zone with multiple trophies. From the 2003-04 season alone, Butler County registered three bucks, Muhlenberg, Henderson and Hopkins counties produced two apiece. These counties, and others like Ohio, Edmonson, Logan and Metcalfe, which also produced a trophy buck last season, have charted many other record-book whitetails over the past five years.

It's also a good bet that the Kentucky one-buck limit has helped shape the herd for improved buck quality overall, and because this region carries a lot of deer anyway, it has benefited it even more. In areas where more deer are present, hunters have the chance to see more bucks, so they can exercise selective harvest, wait on a bigger buck, or take a doe instead.

Hunters in counties with fewer deer tend to take the first thing they see. This can result in cropping out lots of smaller or intermediate-sized bucks, which could have been passed up and left to grow. Many hunters want to be able to say they killed a buck, even if it's only a 4- or 6-pointer. Those who want some larger bucks around, though, should consider letting the younger ones walk, or take a doe instead for meat. It's hard on a smaller buck to grow more trophy-like antlers when he's dead, no matter how good his food source and genetics may be.

Pendleton County, to match suit, accounted for the top typical buck last season, which was taken by Jason Newcomb. Newcomb's 189 0/8 buck even scores well up the list of Kentucky's best typical whitetails ever, easily into the top 10. It sheds light, if you will, even more heavily on this small northern Kentucky county as a real trophy deer producer. Recall that Robert Smith downed Kentucky's current state-record typical 204 2/8 buck in 2000 from Pendleton County, which also broke the top 10 listing for typicals taken anywhere in the world.

We alluded earlier that Kentucky hunters have begun to find trophy- class whitetails in what you might consider unusual places. That's again evidenced this past season by a dandy 3-year-old record-book buck taken by John Murphy in Jefferson County. Fayette County charted a 170-class animal in 2000, when Larry White's gun kill hit the ground in the Bluegrass Region's horse country.

You can't rule out urban farms, and even horse farms in the inner part of this region as good places to come across some excellent bucks. These spots are growing thoroughbreds of all types, according to what the records are starting to show.

You may not get access to these spots with a gun, but bowhunters may be better suited to gain permission. It won't hurt to ask if you're noticing a lot of deer standing in wood lots and open fields on the outskirts of farms in Fayette, Woodford, Scott, Jessamine and Bourbon counties, for example, as you drive the countryside or interstate.

Lastly, in the Bluegrass, a superb producer of trophy bucks in the last five years has been Hardin County. You might want to think about getting in on a hunt at Ft. Knox if you can, or on private lands in this county. Two non-typical record-book animals were taken in Hardin County last season. Another trophy was taken in Hardin in 2001, and two more in 1999, not that long ago. Troy Gentry's monster typical came off Ft. Knox in Bullitt County in the same vicinity. Obviously, good things are happening in this pocket of the region.

It's not an overstatement to say that if there's anything close to a "sure thing" in deer hunting, somebody hunting in Lewis County this season is going to score a buck of a lifetime. Two of Kentucky's top 10 all-time typicals are Lewis County deer, and three of the best non-typicals, too. Just unbelievable big-buck production going on up there - fantastic!

Other counties where records indicate trophy bucks are possible include Carter, Boyd, and Greenup counties. Even Nicholas County produced a listing last season - an out-of-the-limelight county where David Gay dropped his trophy during gun season.

Pike County also hit the list last year, where for years back in the 1980s, hunting had been kept very limited to try to get this county's herd up and running. Things have greatly improved in the last 20 years, and although habitat isn't the best, it appears some older bucks are finally starting to get some bragging-sized racks nonetheless.

It is always a good bet that counties where fewer days of gun hunting pressure are permitted will allow more bucks on average to survive the season and be bigger the next year. Check the Kentucky Hunting Guide and pay attention to counties listed as Zone 4. Pike County and Floyd counties are limited buck hunting areas in the Northeast Region. The rest are in the Southeast Region.

Hunters in Casey and Adair counties, in most recent times, have been the ones most often catching the big boys unaware. Four hunters the last three seasons have killed trophy bucks in Casey County, including two last season that ranked among the top 10, one each in both the typical and non-typical listings. Larry Haggard took a 170-class buck in 2002, as did Jeff Bastin in 2001, the latter being the top typical for that season in Kentucky. Might want to knock on some doors in this county.

The counties to the western half of the region generally have a little better deer habitat and historically have been the best producers of big bucks. Stay to the west of I-75, and research shows almost every county in the region has recorded a B&C buck in recent years. One other fact about this region, especially the western side, is that some of Kentucky's largest antlered bucks anywhere in the state have come from this section of the Commonwealth.

Wayne, Pulaski and McCreary counties seem to grow exceptionally big bucks, posting multiple non-typicals in and above the 220-class range, and some cracker jack 180 and above scoring typicals. Given Kentucky only has two typical bucks that scored 190 or better on its B&C trophy list, and less than 20 non-typical bucks that measured 220 or higher, the seven or eight records from these counties that make that cut are an impressive showing. This portion of south-central Kentucky is cream of the crop big-buck country without a doubt.

According to Jonathan Day, Kentucky hunters can expect to continue seeing numerous high-quality bucks this season. Nothing in the makeup of the herd, or problems with overpopulation or disease should cause a change in the production the state has enjoyed over the last decade.

"We've been extremely fortunate, and we will continue to be very protective of the quality buck hunting we have," Day said.

"We will keep on encouraging our hunters to do the things we need to, and help us maintain good deer hunting so these kinds of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities can be something as many hunters as possible can experience.

"We may not set another record like last season, but the potential, we believe, is certainly there to have another outstanding record-book season," Day concluded.

Indeed!