Butch Herman's 160-class muzzleloader non-typical was only one of several huge bucks killed in Connecticut last year. Photo courtesy of Butch Herman.

Blackpowder hunting continues to gain in popularity in the Northeast. As manufacturers improve the effectiveness, range and ease-of-use of these so-called "primitive" firearms, hunters are buying muzzleloaders in record numbers.

Deer-rich states are responding by lengthening their muzzleloader seasons and increasing bag limits. In fact, hunters in some states are foregoing their trusty shotguns during the firearms season and are grabbing their smokepoles instead!

As you might expect, harvest numbers have increased throughout the region. And each season, blackpowder hunters are harvesting a growing number of record bucks.

During the 2007 season, according to the Northeast Big Buck Club, the region's scoring and record-keeping organization, muzzleloader hunters harvested several bucks that made the NBBC record book.

No new state-record bucks fell to muzzleloader hunters in the Northeast, but many very impressive bucks were taken, particularly in Maine and Connecticut.

All six New England states continue to produce some very impressive muzzleloader bucks. In each of the last five seasons, in fact, New England's blackpowder hunters have recorded no fewer than 35 record-book bucks. Looking at the expanded records for the last five years, it's interesting to note that all the New England states have put bucks into the top 15 each year. (Continued)

That goes to show that blackpowder hunting is productive from north to south throughout the region.

In summer 2008, at the time this article was written, there were probably some great bucks from the 2007 season that had yet to be officially scored. (For the purposes of this article, all rankings reflect Northeast Big Buck Club records, with supplemental information provided by other local scoring organizations.)

What follows is not the final tally of the best muzzleloader bucks from the 2007 seasons. But it's certainly representative of many of the best bucks that were taken.

Massachusetts and Rhode Island dominated the rankings in 2006. But in 2007, Maine and Connecticut returned the favor.

2007 TROPHIES
Over the years, Rhode Island has been the one state in all of New England that consistently produces a large number of muzzleloader trophy bucks (defined as ones that meet the Northeast Big Buck Club's minimum entry gross score of 100 Boone and Crocket for typicals, and 115 for non-typicals).

One big reason is that Little Rhody's muzzleloader season typically runs during the peak rut period in early to mid-November. That's an advantage over most of the other New England states, where muzzleloader seasons tend to fall later in the year.

In recent seasons, the biggest muzzleloader bucks have fallen in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Maine.

In fact, eight of the top 10 gross-scoring bucks of all time in the NBBC's muzzleloader category have come from those three states!

Last year, those three dominated the records again, producing nine of the top 10 muzzleloader bucks.

The largest buck of 2007 was Ed Daly's monster 12-pointer taken in Tolland County, Conn. His massive non-typical was taken during the mid-December muzzleloader season and grossed 184 5/8 B&C points.