MORE DEER COVERAGE • 2004 Deer Outlook, Part 1 • 2004 Rut Report in North American Whitetail Forums

By Jeff Brown

New England's trophy deer hunters have increasingly turned to bowhunting and blackpowder hunting in response to state biologists' efforts to increase season lengths and bag limits.

According to the Northeast Big Buck Club, several new state records were set, and several bucks scoring over 200 gross Boone and Crockett points were recorded.

Here's a look at the trophy potential in all six New England states, recent trophy harvests and the areas that are most likely to produce your buck of a lifetime!

Great bucks were taken throughout the state, however, with new records set for archery typical, muzzleloader typical and muzzleloader non-typical bucks.

"If a hunter spends a significant amount of time in the woods, he can take a trophy buck anywhere in the state," said Al Wentworth, Maine Antler and Skull Trophy Club president.

When selecting a place to hunt in Maine, the question is not, "where to find a trophy buck?" but rather, "what type of hunt do you want?" The northern section of the state offers vast, unpopulated territories with limited numbers of deer, but if you cross paths with a buck, it could be one of those massive-racked, 200-pound-plus bruisers the region is famous for.

The southern section of the state is densely populated with both deer and humans. While it does produce many trophy bucks, it offers the best chance to fill your tag if competition is not an issue.

The central region, which includes everything from the Penobscot River to the Kennebec River and the lower sections of Somerset and Piscataquis counties to the northern sections of Penobscot County, offers the best of both worlds - reasonably good deer densities and plenty of open land to hunt.

Great bucks are taken statewide each year by rifle and muzzleloader hunters, particularly when tracking snow is prevalent. Bowhunters, on the other hand, and firearms hunters who prefer hunting from tree stands in smaller pockets of woods, would do well to consider hunting southern Maine, or the southern portions of the central region.

During the last several years, the top five buck-producing wildlife management districts (WMDs) tend to be districts 24, 23, 22, 21 and 17. All are in central and southern Maine.

According to the Maine Antler and Skull Trophy Club, the biggest buck of 2003 was a giant non-typical found dead after being hit by a truck. Hunter Bruce Damon found the 21-pointer dead in Penobscot County in late November. That rack scored a whopping 238 6/8 gross and 235 net Boone and Crockett.

In the early October archery season, Brian Collin arrowed a new No. 1 archery typical in Cumberland County that scored 164 0/8 gross and 159 6/8 net Pope and Young.

The largest buck killed by a hunter in Maine was another great non-typical taken by a muzzleloader hunter in Knox County and is the new No. 1 trophy in that category. James Kenney shot the 206 1/8 18-pointer in early December.

The biggest typical buck of the year is also a new muzzleloader record, but this one is a typical that scores 190 5/8 gross B&C or 188 3/8 net. The buck was taken by Luther Tripp Jr. in Penobscot County in December.

For more information on Maine's trophy deer hunting opportunities, contact the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, 284 State Street, Augusta, ME 04333; call (207) 287-5248, or visit the MDIFW's Web site at www.state. me.us/ifw/ homepage.htm.

Roscoe Blaisdell, president of the New Hampshire Antler and Skull Trophy Club, said that the hunting season of 2003 produced about the same number of trophy deer (bucks over 200 pounds) as in past years.

"There were four deer that dressed over 244 pounds," he said. "As usual, most of the trophy deer came out of Coos County (six of the top 10). It takes a big deer to survive the hard winters up there.

"In the past, the Connecticut River valley from Canada to the Massachusetts border had produced most of our B&C qualifiers. This trend has been changing over the last few years, with almost all of our B&C-qualifying racks coming from Rockingham and Hillsborough counties."

During the 2003 season, two outstanding Boone and Crockett typical bucks were shot by muzzleloader hunters, including a 186 7/8 10-pointer from Hillsborough County and a 178 5/8 10-pointer from Rockingham County.

A new state-record typical archery buck - a 163 6/8-inch 9-pointer - was arrowed in Carroll County.

Hunters planning on visiting New Hampshire are encouraged to contact the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, 2 Hazen Dr., Concord, NH 03301; call (603) 271-3421, or visit the NHFG Web site at www.wildlife.state.nh.us.

Thomas Neils’ September velvet buck scored 152 1/8 gross Boone and Crockett points. The buck was taken during archery season in Windham County. Photo courtesy of Thomas Neils

According to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, the total deer harvest in 2003 was 14,528, down 13 percent from 2002. Bucks made up 63 percent of the harvest, for a total of 9,194 bucks with antlers of 3 inches or more. That number is down from 10,791 bucks in 2002, or 67 percent of that year's harvest.

The 2003 buck harvest fell 21 percent short of the department's goal. Severe winters over two previous years and a poor mast crop were contributing factors to the declining buck harvest. What may be most disturbing, however, is that a very high percentage of the buck harvest (66 percent) consisted of yearling bucks (1 1/2 years old). This number is generally between 50 and 60 percent. Fortunately, state biologists are exploring a CDM program (Comprehensive Deer Management) that would decrease the number of immature bucks harvested each year.

According to the state, the statewide average of bucks harvested was just under one buck per square mile. Grande Isle County was by far the best, with 3.38 bucks taken per square mile, followed by Franklin County (1.46) and Orange County (1.17).

According to the NBBC, three of the five biggest bucks taken during the last three years have fallen in Bennington County to archers and muzzleloader hunters, while rifle hunters took the top two bucks in Caledonia and Windham counties.

For more information, contact the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, 103 South Main Street, Waterbury, VT 05671-0501.

There has been a noticeable shift in hunting pressure as more eastern region hunters who used to travel west to find big bucks are having better luck in their back yards! But defining any trend is a challenge at this point. For instance, Plymouth County (in the east) produced the biggest buck of 2003 in this state (a 178 7/8-inch non-typical gun kill), while Worcester County (central) produced the new state-record archery non-typical buck mentioned above. Hampshire County (in the west) produced the new state-record muzzleloader typical. That's a trend we like to see.

Massachusetts' Worcester County (deer management zones 8, 9 and 10) perennially produces more trophy bucks each year than any other county in southern New England. Zones 8 and 9 are always hotspots, and hunters who gain access in northern Zone 10 (Essex County) may also expect a shot at a trophy. Meanwhile, in southeastern Zone 11 (Plymouth and Bristol counties), bowhunters may have better luck connecting on a mature buck in a small pocket of woods.

To the west, towns in and around the Connecticut River valley will probably get more attention since the new 200-class state-record typical was taken in Franklin County.

For more information about big bucks in the Bay State, contact the Northeast Big Buck Club, 390 Marshall Street, Paxton, MA 016123; call (508) 752-8762, or visit the club's Web site at www.bigbuckclub.com.

Last year, the NBBC recorded 25 new record-book entries. Several deer scored higher than 150 gross B&C.

Washington County produced three of the top four bucks of 2003, including a 164 3/8-inch 10-pointer that is a new state record for gun typicals. Providence County produced the second-largest buck of the year (a 156 7/8-inch 14-point non-typical) and six of the state's top 10 bucks last year.

Muzzleloader hunters have a unique opportunity to hunt during the rut, so it follows that Rhode Island produces more muzzleloader record-book entries than any other state in New England. In 2003, for example, a dozen new muzzleloader entries came from this state.

For more information, contact the Rhode Island Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, 4808 Tower Hill Road, Wakefield, RI 02879; call (401) 789-0281, or check out www.huntri.com.

The 2003 season was defined by a large number of outstanding archery bucks. The state's archers took 3,258 deer last season, fully 26 percent of the total harvest. More than 90 bucks from 2003 have been scored and entered in the NBBC record books, with 45 percent of those taken by archery hunters. Hunters took 15 bucks with gross B&C scores of 150 or better!

State biologist Howard Kilpatrick generally recommends the northeastern and northwestern regions as trophy hotspots. He attributes this to quality habitat and relatively low hunting pressure. This region has some of the state's largest public lands, but the NBBC's records indicate that big bucks come from every county. In 2002, the best buck (a 189 6/8 non-typical 15-pointer) came from Windham County on the Rhode Island border. In 2003, the best buck (a 177 6/8 archery buck) came from the opposite end of the state in Litchfield County.

For more information, visit the Northeast Big Buck Club's Web site at www.bigbuckclub.com, or contact the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, State Office Building, Hartford, CT 06115; call (203) 424-3011.