Wiley Averett, 43, has a 230-acre lease near his house in Livingston Parish that he really enjoys hunting, but a few times a year, he gets struck by a case of wanderlust. That’s when he makes the drive from home to Red River Wildlife Management Area.
Such was the case on the afternoon of New Years Day.
Averett had used his Ol’ Man treestand to climb a hardwood in a nondescript chunk of bottomlands, and didn’t see much to keep him entertained – certainly no deer.
“There was a 20- or 30-foot-wide clearing behind me, and every now and then, I’d turn around and look at that clearing,” he said.
Around 4:30, Averett made his turn, and his eyes about popped out of his head. Standing there was the biggest buck he’d ever seen in his life.
“He was just walking through,” Averett said. “I thought, ‘The only shot I have is in this opening.'”
So the hunter spun his body around, leveled his Browning .270 and fired off a shot.
The deer fell to the ground but held its head up. Averett wasn’t taking any chances, so he shot the deer again.
“This is the type of deer you see on TV shows,” he said.
Averett and his buddies put a tape to it, and measured the rack at 188 inches. The mainframe 12-point had an 18-inch inside spread and 25-inch main beams.
Visit the Nikon Deer of the Year contest to see more bucks killed this season and to enter your own photos. Only registered users are eligible to win the monthly and grand prizes, so be sure and sign up today!
User reports also can be viewed on our deer hunting forum, which everyone is encouraged to join.