On October 29, 2005, he decided it was time to climb into the stand he had hung specifically to hunt this buck that had been eluding him for years. The buck had created many fresh scrapes under some apple trees near the stand.

The woods were quiet, with no wind, as Berestka arrived at 3:30 p.m. for his afternoon hunt. The scrapes were all fresh. It was obvious that the big buck had been working the area hard. Berestka was ready, filled with anticipation. It wasn't long before all that anticipation turned to raw adrenalin!

At 4:15 p.m., Berestka heard a deer coming and saw movement from about 75 yards away. The hunter was perfectly positioned with a favorable wind as the deer continued on the trail leading to the apples. The deer finally got close enough for Berestka to recognize it as The Buck!

Berestka's heart started beating wildly as the old monarch came out of the pines and fed on apples at about 25 yards. There was no shot to be had at this point, so Berestka waited as the big buck worked his scrapes. Finally, the big buck came back to feed on apples. His empty stomach led him to within 15 yards of the waiting hunter.

As the buck turned and offered a perfect broadside angle, Berestka raised his 52-inch Bear 50-pound recurve, drew and let fly. The shot was true and penetrated well, with about two inches of turkey-feather fletching sticking out. The buck bolted away, running below Berestka's stand for about 60 yards and into a thicket.

Berestka's whole body quaked with the "after-shot jitters." But he collected himself and waited for about 30 minutes, then came down from the stand with great hope and anticipation.

He found good blood sign at the shot site and followed it for about 50 yards, passing no fewer than 10 fresh scrapes as he trailed! Suddenly, he heard the one sound a tracker hates to hear -- the big buck got up and took off!

For a moment, Berestka worried that the buck was not mortally wounded and that he might lose him. But as that thought crossed his mind, he heard a loud crash. It sounded like the buck was down for good.

Berestka followed the trail another 75 yards and found the great buck --dead.

It may be difficult for non-hunters to understand the feelings that raced through Berestka's mind as he stared at the object of his hunting obsession for the past several years. Lying there on the ground, the great buck looked even bigger than his pursuer had imagined.

Berestka called his wife and son-in-law, Paul Allard, and grandson Christopher to let them know that he had finally shot The Buck. Paul and Christopher came down to help him drag the monster out.

It took the men 3 1/2 hours to drag the 240-pound (dressed) buck a half mile. They checked the buck in at Archery Plus in Spencer, and the event created quite a stir. The owner of the shop told Larry to contact the Northeast Big Bucks Club to get it scored for the record books.