Fall 2002

My Two-Hundreth Deer: Evolution of a Deer Hunter
by Gearoge W. Barry III

My grandfather and some uncles were houndsmen, and their Walkers could really run a deer. My first few deer were taken with a Marlin lever action 30-30, topped by a Weaver K-2.5 scope. That rig was actually very good for the woods and the running deer we usually saw. It would shoot groups of 3" to 4" at 100 yards and was miles ahead of slugs or buckshot from even the best of shotguns available then.

About 1973, I decided that I needed a new gun for more distance and accuracy. Being left-handed and a fan of autoloading shotguns, I ended up with a BAR Browning in a 30-06 caliber. Mounted with a 2.5X Leupold, I could shoot groups about half the size of my old Marlin, and the BAR handled like a good bird gun. Running shots on deer came easily with the BAR and it served me well for many years. Along the way I learned to hunt without hounds, and I discovered that sitting in a stand could be more satisfying and more productive.

About 1980, I began to hunt as a guest on properties inside the Mississippi River levees, and for the first time began to question my equipment. Most of the places I was hunting were being managed using Dr. Harry Jacobson's method -doe shooting being a major tool. My 2.5X scope was woefully inadequate. I didn't carry binoculars and the old BAR 30-06 just wouldn't cut the mustard for long shots on the green patches. I could still kill deer, but I couldn't always be sure it would be the deer the program called for. Mature does mingle with big yearlings and short horn spikes, and with the just wouldn't cut the mustard for long shots on the green patches. I could still kill deer, but I couldn't always be sure it would be the deer the program called for. Mature does mingle with big yearlings and short horn spikes, and with the 2.5X scope at dark across 250 yards of wheat patch, mistakes were made -embarrassing, expensive mistakes.

In 1982, I built a custom Mauser in a .257 Weatherby caliber. Even though the caliber was designed in 1944, it is still among the flattest shooters available, and I have found it to be the answer to my situation. I have used scopes of up to 20X magnification and feel that lOX is about right for me. Along with a pair of Zeiss 7 X 50 binoculars the .257 has been a deadly management tool.

As my equipment evolved, so did my attitude toward deer hunting. Like most youngsters of my time, I started out shooting nearly every legal deer I could, proud to say I had bagged my limit each year. Once I started shooting on the managed properties, the game was to shoot only mature does and truly trophy bucks, as per Dr. Jacobson's recommendations. For every buck I shot during the mid 1980s, I shot many "management does", and I learned to enjoy the challenge. Some clubs even had contests for the largest doe or the shooter with the greatest average weight for all his does during the season. It was during this time that my friends started calling me the "doe roller."

Old does are smart cookies and don't get dumb during the rut the way bucks do, so killing them isn't always as easy as some would imply. One old doe I harvested had an ear tag she had worn for six years, this on a club with many active shooters.

In the 1990s, most interior clubs started working under the guidelines first used on river clubs. We shot more deer and grew larger bucks than we ever did when everyone shot bucks only and let does go. Fawns are born earlier, survival rates are better and more bucks are seen each year.

As I sit here now, having recently harvested my 200th deer, I can say we in Mississippi are lucky to have management pioneers to guide us in sustaining the great numbers of the whitetail we so love to hunt. As deer hunting continues to evolve, mixing science and hard work, we must continue to evolve as well, matching our tactics and equipment to changing situations.

Good record keeping and sound management practices will let us shoot more and better quality deer for years to come - a hunter's dream.

Good hunting!

George W. Barry III is a gunsmith at Thad Scott's Fine Guns in Indianola, Mississippi.