Each season, thousands of hunters take to the New England woods in hopes of encountering their personal buck of a lifetime. For some, anything with antlers will do. But great bucks -- of the caliber of those in the Midwest or Canada -- can be found throughout New England.

Ed Daly's Tolland County trophy scored 184 5/8 gross Boone and Crockett points as a non-typical. Photo courtesy of Ed Daly.

Thanks to the efforts of organizations like the Northeast Big Buck Club, hunters around the region and throughout the U.S. have realized that every New England state has the potential for world-class bucks.

Over the last five years, According to the NBBC's records, the six states of Vermont, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire have produced more than 350 bucks with gross scores of 150 inches or better. Of those, 65 deer have scored more than 170 gross Boone and Crockett points.

The region's hunters did quite well in 2006, with New Hampshire producing the best buck. Shot by John Klucky, that massive typical 15-pointer grossed 199 5/8 B&C, with a net score of 185 2/8.

That year, Massachusetts produced two other 190-class bucks as well.

Did 2007 duplicate 2006's level of success?

Not quite. But in 2007, a small handful of hunters downed bucks that scored among the all-time best in their respective states.

WHICH BUCK WAS BEST?
Only one lucky hunter gets to claim having taken New England's biggest buck of 2007. For purposes of this article, 2007's biggest buck is the largest Boone and Crockett gross-scoring buck taken in New England during the archery, firearms, or muzzleloader season.

According to the NBBC -- and as of the date this article was written -- that honor belongs to Ed Daly of Tolland, Conn. In Tolland County, Daly downed a massive non-typical 12-point that scored over 180 inches!

That's a tremendous buck in any state, but encountering this buck in Connecticut surprised even this hunter!

THE DALY BUCK
If you're like me, you get tired of reading the same old big-buck stories in the national hunting magazines.

These days, it seems like every big buck harvested is the result of a multi-year strategy by some die-hard expert hunter who sacrifices everything to realize that dream. (Continued)

We all know that when it comes to hunting, "luck" is not a dirty word. The majority of big bucks are taken as the result of some form of pure luck, good or bad. Typically, the deer shows up in the wrong place at the wrong time, and some fortunate hunter who's composed enough to close the deal winds up with the buck of a lifetime.

Ed Daly left work early on Dec. 14 and made one of those decisions we all make during hunting season. Given that he had only a short window of opportunity for his afternoon hunt, he chose a convenient place instead of his favorite spot.

He grabbed his muzzleloader and headed to a spot close to home where earlier in the season he had seen a few big fresh tracks.

There was a fresh cutting in the area, and new snow had fallen the day before, so it seemed like a reasonable spot to sit. By 2 p.m., having found a comfortable stump with a few tracks nearby, he decided to sit it out for the afternoon.

It would be a good choice, indeed!

Daly wasn't sure if he was daydreaming, or if he had actually dozed off for a few minutes. But suddenly, as if by magic, a big buck was standing 25 yards in front of him -- broadside! And the deer's rack was huge!

Just as the monster began to walk off, quartering away, Daly carefully raised his muzzleloader. He did his best to calm his heartbeat and gain some composure, and then squeezed the trigger. There was a great cloud of smoke, and then . . . nothing.

Daly didn't know if he had hit the big buck and was still in bewildered shock at what had just happened. He reloaded and then headed over to where the buck had been standing.

To his dismay, he found no blood and no hair. He followed the tracks for quite some distance in the fresh snow, and finally saw blood. His spirits lifted. But because it was getting late, and because he was unsure of the shot, he headed home to let the buck lay overnight.