Iowa Youth Hunter’s First Buck is a 190-Inch Monster

Twelve-year-old Cooper Cahoon wanted to go deer hunting. And he wanted that hunt to be with his 18-year old-brother, Connor. In preparation, Cooper had gotten his hunter safety certification the year before so that he and Connor could hunt together during this year’s Iowa youth season.

Cooper Cahoon wanted his first season of deer hunting to be with his older brother, Connor. All Images by Cahoon Family

Cooper took a doe for his first deer. Connor says that Cooper was pretty excited as the doe came in, but he made a great shot. After that success, he wanted a buck. He and Connor had hunted about 10 days so far of the 15 day Iowa youth season that had started back on September 21. The duo had a close call when Cooper got a shot at a nice 8-pointer. Unfortunately, it was a clean miss. Both brothers were feeling the pressure of the rapidly approaching season end.

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As darkness fell on October 2, the brothers headed out from another fruitless evening in the woods. When they got to an open bean field, they saw several deer feeding, including one with a large body that they were pretty sure was a mature buck. While it was too dark to see much as far as antlers go, they were encouraged enough by the sighting to make them want to hunt there the following evening.

After seeing a large bodied deer the evening before, the brothers set up in the same area the following day.

The deer had been feeding in a narrow strip of beans between standing corn and thick timber that had grown up around a small junk yard. Connor checked the wind and thought they could get away with hunting from the standing corn.

Early that afternoon, the brothers headed into the standing corn, getting a few rows in so that their silhouettes would be broken but they could still see out. They sat directly on the ground and settled in for the evening.

As the afternoon wore on, a few does started feeding in the beans in front of the hunters. “We’d been sitting on the ground for a while and I think Cooper’s legs were getting numb and he was moving around just a little. The does noticed and started to get a little nervous,” Connor said.

Both brothers sat on the ground in standing corn to overlook the narrow strip of beans where the buck had been feeding.

Just before dark, Cooper leaned forward to poke his head out of the standing corn to look around. He leaned back in and whispered to his older brother that there was a big bodied deer standing beside them. Connor himself leaned out for a look.

The deer was a buck, and a big one at that. When it lifted its head, Connor couldn’t believe the set of antlers standing just 70 yards away. He leaned back in and whispered to Cooper to get ready to take the shot. “The does were nervous and starting to stomp and I knew the buck wasn’t going to stick around long, so I wanted him to hurry. At the same time, I didn’t want to make him nervous and make him rush the shot,” Connor said.

Cooper steadied his .450 Bushmaster on his shooting sticks. The buck was quartering hard to and there was no shot. But when a nearby doe snorted, the buck turned to her and offered Cooper a good angle. The young hunter settled his crosshairs just behind the buck’s shoulder and squeezed the trigger.

Cooper eased his rifle up and squeezed off a shot.

“I stayed pretty calm before the shot. I was paying attention to the does and trying to get steady on the buck. But as soon as I shot, I started to shake all over,” Cooper said.

At the shot, the buck bolted toward the nearby timber. The brothers watched the big buck run for about 30 seconds, then slow to a walk, then come to a stop. The deer wobbled a bit, then fell.

After the shot, both brothers watched as the buck ran a short distance then toppled over.

When they approached the deer, neither brother could believe what he was seeing. Cooper’s first buck ever was massive, with 16 scorable points, 8- inch brow tines, kickers, and bladed G3s. Once they got the buck dressed and out, they put a tape to it and came up with an incredible green score of 189 4/8 inches. Cooper’s first buck was a true trophy whitetail, and he says that getting to hunt with his big brother made the experience even better.

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