Here is country music singer, Bobby Kendall’s story on his Brown County 211 inch bow kill! Congrats Bobby!
You can find out more about Bobby, his music, and where he is going to be next on his website: http://www.bobbykendall.com/
Like most guys I talked to the 2009 season had been very spotty for me mainly due to standing corn. However, I was in brown county Illinois and knew it was just a matter of time before the big boys started showing up. From mid October on, I passed several deer in the 130-140 class range. I even had two encounters with a mid 150’s 9 point that I also passed. Not a sit went by where I wouldn’t wonder if I should have shot that awesome deer. On November 17th I knew why something stopped me from releasing that arrow.
I arrived at my hunting location and realized I had forgot my backpack, which contained my Carter Hammer release. So I spent half an hour rushing back to the house. I made it to the tree about 2:45 in the afternoon and immediately started putting up my umbrella to stop the pouring rain from soaking me. I managed to catch a glimpse of a deer, which I could tell was a buck, hoping the fence on the other side of the road and crossing the street towards me. After quickly finishing the umbrella, I pulled out the binoculars and waited till the buck emerged from the strip of woods he walked in to.
The deer popped out and I glassed him for about 3 seconds. I remember telling myself , “ok dont look at his rack again he is a shooter”. He was walking at a pretty steady clip across the crp so I snort wheeze/grunted at him. He eventually came my way and hit the wood line about 75 yards down from me. The creek was to flooded to cross. After debating what way to go he headed my way, straight down the edge to check the food plot I was on for that buck he heard snort wheezing.
He stopped at 25 yards behind the last set of limbs that were in the way and just stood there. This whole time the north east wind was in my face and I was thinking, “a couple more steps”. The deer backstepped in his own tracks and walked off into the cedars. It was then that I looked in the binoculars to really see what his rack was. I described it that night to friends as a deer with so much mass and so many tines that it appeared to be a solid triangle of antlers from a distance. I knew I had seen my first 200″ whitetail in the wild!
The morning of the 18th brought southwest winds. At 7:30 I glanced across the road and thought , ” NO WAY IS HE DOING THE SAME EXACT THING!”. I watched him walk down the hardwoods, across the pasture, hop the fence, cross the street , disappear in to the hedge row, pop out and begin meandering his way to me, parting the head high CRP with his face! There he stood at 40 yards in the pouring rain yet again, nothing between us but one large branch. I ranged a spot to the left and one to the right of that branch. When he committed to heading right, I kept the large branch between us and inched my Elite XLR back. He stopped at my 40 yard spot and the arrow flew. I watched the deer run back across the street, stop in the pasture, and fall!
The buck had 23 scorable points and unofficially gross scored 211 and 6/8ths! The whole experience is still surreal! My buck was the 4th deer over 200″ in Brown County in one season! Thank you brown county and all my friends there!
Tags: 200" deer brown county illinois, Bobby Kendall, giant whitetails