Bowhunter Kills 216-Inch Buck While Walking to Treestand
Posted 2025-10-15 by
Tyler Hunter was slipping to his stand shortly after daybreak, following a heavy rain, when his target buck suddenly stepped out of the woods just 30 yards in front of him
| Rack Report Details | |
|---|---|
| Buck: | 216 6/8" |
| Time of Year: | Sept. 20, 2025 |
| Place: | Pierce County, Wisconsin |
| Weapon: | Hoyt Charger compound bow |
The buck’s antlers are roughly two times larger than those of Tyler Hunter’s previous best buck. It’ll be tough to top this one. Image courtesy of Tyler Hunter
Wisconsin bowhunter Tyler Hunter had a new piece of ground to hunt and learn this fall. The front portion of the property is in crops, while the back part of it is timbered, about half a mile from the road. Hunter set some trail cameras on the property about three weeks before the archery opener to gauge the prospects. To his delight, he soon began getting consistent pictures of a world-class whitetail. The deer was moving only in the dark at first, but Hunter got a break shortly after Wisconsin’s archery opener when the buck daylighted on one of his cameras.
“I got that picture on Sept. 19 around 9:15 in the morning,” Hunter said. “The forecast was showing rain for that evening. Sure enough, it was raining while I was working the night shift at the oil refinery. I checked the forecast again and noticed that there would be a break in the rain from midnight to 10 a.m. I decided to leave work early and see if I could catch the buck moving the next morning.”
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It was Hunter’s first bowhunt in 2025. He was planning to go sit in a treestand that he’d hung about 40 yards off the field in the timber. The stand overlooks a large wooded valley.
“I pulled into the field driveway around 5:30 a.m.,” he explained. “I wanted to get there nice and early so I could get situated in the stand and let things settle down. But I saw a deer in my headlights. So, I parked and sat in the truck for about an hour. I didn’t know if any other deer were in the field, and I wanted to be sure I wasn’t going to spook anything.
“At 6:30, I could see across the field,” he continued. “I got my bow and slowly started walking toward my stand down a wooded fence line along the field. It’s about a 400-yard walk from my truck to where I would walk into the woods. I took my time, walking 10-15 steps at a time, then stopping to look around. Now that it was legal shooting time, deer would easily be able to see me, so I stayed alert. About 30 yards from where I planned to walk into the woods toward my stand, I stopped and looked around, as I had done multiple times since leaving my truck.”
All of the leaves were wet from the previous night’s rainfall. That helped Hunter slip along quietly but also made it to where he was unable to hear anything, including the monster buck from his trail camera, which walked out of the woods onto the field edge.
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“We were 30 yards apart staring at each other,” he said. “I stood as still as possible, and I thought he was going to spook. About 20 seconds passed, and he finally turned his head back toward the woods. I drew back my bow in the position I was in, about 90 degrees to the buck. Immediately, he whipped his head back towards me. I was stuck at full draw with my bow sideways and the buck staring my way. I don’t think he saw me, but it made it more nerve-racking.”
About 15 seconds elapsed, and the buck started walking. He went behind a small patch of saplings. Hunter adjusted his aim to the opposite side of the saplings, where he expected the buck to walk out.
The deer was a regular on the trail cameras, though mostly at night. It wasn’t until Sept. 19 that the buck finally daylighted. Image courtesy of Tyler Hunter
“Everything worked out as planned,” he said. “The buck stopped perfectly at 30 yards broadside, and I took my shot. He took off like a deer that was hit really well, but I wasn’t exactly sure where my arrow hit because he was in some taller grass.”
Hunter’s arrow was equipped with a lighted nock, and after a few moments, he walked toward where the buck had been standing. He located the arrow, which had passed through the deer and was covered with blood.
“It was overcast and only 7 a.m.,” Hunter said, “so it was pretty dark. I turned on my headlamp and was looking for blood. I couldn’t find any, which made me nervous, especially with a buck this big. I left my arrow where I found it and left the area.
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“I got a hold of a buddy and explained that I had shot a big buck,” he continued. “After waiting about 4 hours, we went back to the impact location. We still couldn’t find any blood, but I had seen the buck run away, so I pointed out the spot where he had disappeared. We walked over there and found lots of blood, which was relieving. The buck was dead just 20 yards ahead and over a hill, tangled up under a downed tree. I was speechless. It was one of the best feelings in the world.”
As it turned out, Hunter’s arrow had pierced the buck’s heart. As the two buddies admired the massive animal, they counted up 20 antler points. The inside spread is 22 1/2 inches. Hunter joked that the racks of his previous bucks could fit inside this buck’s main beams. He also said that the largest buck he’d previously killed was only about half as big. Altogether, the rack grossed 216 1/8 inches.
