Indiana Bowhunter Arrows 205-Inch Buck During His Last Hunt on Farm

Many hunters can relate to Indiana hunter Larry Stoops’s 2025 dilemma. For 14 years, he’s had access to a great farm that’s a short walk from his back door. Over the years, the memories have stacked up: big bucks, hunts with his wife, children and friends, unusual wildlife sightings, you name it. Every acre has its own special story. But those stories were coming to an end. The farm had been sold and was slated to become a subdivision in the near future.

After hunting the farm for 14 years, Stoops faced the reality that this year would be the last. Images courtesy of Larry Stoops

Knowing this would be his final deer season on the property, Stoops wanted to make the most of it. And as the season kicked off, he had some nice bucks on his trail cameras. He was determined to take one of them and make one last memory on the property that had served him so well over the years.

But despite several hunts throughout the season, he had yet to see the right buck. On Nov. 19, Stoops arrived home from work around 3 p.m. and decided to go hunting. “It was a little late, but it just felt right,” he recalled. “I told my wife, Ann, that I had a good feeling about the afternoon hunt.”

Even though he had yet to see a buck he wanted to take, Stoops had a feeling that this would be a good evening to be in the stand.

After a quick shower, Stoops gathered his gear and hiked 400 yards to one of his favorite spots. The stand was in a large walnut tree surrounded by oaks near a recently picked cornfield. While the acorn crop was light this year, the spot is a regular travel route the deer use annually. He climbed up and got situated, giving the woods time to settle.

Don’t Miss: DRAW HUNT BUCK POTENTIALLY THE LARGEST EVER TAKEN BY A WOMAN IN SOUTH CAROLINA

The wind was light, but its direction was a bit iffy for the main deer trail. With his stand only 12 feet above the ground, Stoops was understandably concerned. “I’m pretty religious about scent control and cover scents. I hoped that would be enough if a deer came from downwind,” Stoops said.

After 45 minutes of solid squirrel action, Stoops reached into his pack for a doe-bleat call. He gave three low bleats and was reaching down to return the call when he caught movement nearby. He turned and saw a deer merely 20 yards away.

Don’t Miss: THUNDERSTRUCK | WISCONSIN HUNTER BAGS 185-INCH TYPICAL ON 38 ACRES

“I could tell right away that the body was huge, but his head was behind a large tree and out of view. When the buck turned his head, I got a glimpse of the left side. Immediately, I knew this was the one,” Stoops exclaimed.

Stoops knew at a glance that the giant buck was the one he wanted to take for his final deer from the property.

One problem. Stoops was seated, and his bow was still on its hanger. The buck had appeared so quickly that it caught him off guard. Worse, the buck was about to be directly downwind. After a few seconds, the giant began walking away. When his head passed behind some cover, Stoops quietly reached for his bow. With no time to stand, he came to full draw.

The buck was quartering away hard, now at 33 yards and moving steadily in the wrong direction. Stoops said, “I like to practice in real-world hunting situations. I place my targets at weird angles and close to cover. I practice shooting while seated. That sort of thing.” It paid off.

Don’t Miss: FATHER AND SON DUO STALK INTO BOW RANGE OF 25-POINT BUCK

Settling his 30-yard pin slightly high, Stoops aimed for a spot low on the buck just behind the ribs, hoping the arrow would travel through the vitals. When it felt right, he released and watched the arrow hit home.

“I immediately panicked and started questioning myself,” he admitted. “My adrenaline was pumping. I was shook up. I worried I might have hit too far back, possibly in the rear quarter. I questioned if the angle was more severe than I had thought and started beating myself up a little for even taking the shot.”

Upon impact, the buck lurched forward on a dead run. Stoops watched the buck run nearly 100 yards before disappearing behind a large clump of cover on the field edge.

When the buck didn’t reappear on the other side of the cover, Stoops assumed it had run straight out into the cornfield beyond. He had shot bucks before that crossed the field and entered the woodlot on the opposite side before expiring.

After calming himself and giving the buck time to lie down, Stroops climbed down to inspect the blood trail. He immediately found good sign and started following the trail. When he got to the field edge, he scanned the area and noticed a brown lump he didn’t recall being there before. Continuing along the blood trail, Stoops soon realized it was leading straight to the unidentified brown spot. At that point, he abandoned the blood trail and walked directly to the deer.

Don’t Miss: HUNTER’S FIRST ANTLERED BUCK IS A 241-INCH OHIO GIANT

“As I got closer, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” he exclaimed. “My biggest buck up to this point was a really nice 166-inch deer that I took three years ago. What I was seeing in front of me dwarfed that buck.”

As he got his hands on the rack for the first time, it just kept looking bigger. Stoops quickly realized that he had never seen the buck before. It wasn’t one that he had on any of his trail cameras.

After taking a few minutes to come to terms with killing his biggest buck ever and to reminisce about all the good times that he’d had on the farm over the years, the real work began. Stoops quickly realized that the buck was way too big to drag out alone. He called his sons, and they soon arrived to share the excitement and help extricate the deer. The large size wasn’t just his imagination; the buck’s field-dressed weight was a whopping 225 pounds.

Check Out Our Latest Camo Pattern: Realtree APX

The giant frame featured nine points and two kickers, with massive 16- and 14-inch G-2s and G-3s of 13 and nearly 12 inches. After taping the buck, it grossed 205 4/8 inches.

The buck’s rack featured 14 and 16 inch G-2 and G-3 points.

Stoops added, “I went back out to pull my stands for the last time a few days later. I climbed up into each one before I took it down to think back on the memories each held. I’m sad that the farm is getting developed, but I’m thankful for all the good times we had there.”