2007 Firearms season at the RedHawk was a pinnacle year for so many reasons.  Though I had spent the past two months afield off and on archery hunting, as my work schedule would allow,I hadn¹t had much time afield with my kids as they both had been busy with various high school activities.

Coupled with my anticipation of spending the next few days with my kids afield, I was excited about the fact that during my archery hunts I had sighted one really decent buck making his way through our property and, often using an entrance and exit route that would put him well within range of my daughters blind for opening morning.

Opening morning came and went with no success for any of us however, our mystery buck had passed thru my daughters blind both at dawn and dusk but not during legal shooting light.  Second morning, though against my encouragement to stay with her stand, my daughter decided she wanted to try out my stand on the edge of one of our fields for a change of scenery and so I snuck into her spot well before shooting light.  Two minutes after legal light, he came down the trail, nose to the ground and presented me with an easy 30 yard shot.

Walking up to this buck was one of the most bittersweet things I have ever done.  I was heartbroken this deer of a lifetime was not my daughters and at the same time flushed with emotions that he was mine.  At this point in my hunting life I had 29 years of wins and losses afield but, had never harvested a Whitetail over 160².

That evening I sat down and wondered, after 29yrs why that day?  I concluded that Buck had been waiting for that day, the day I was with my grown children before adult life and responsibilities started to get in their way and, we were all together.