Words by Anna Lee Vaughn | Images Courtesy of Tim Ellis
What began as a routine afternoon of hunting with friends became an unforgettable experience for Tim Ellis. On December 6, the hunters reached their shooting houses in the late afternoon, unaware that, within the hour, Tim would have a formidable buck on his hands.
Around 3:30 p.m., Tim spotted the buck’s right side as it emerged, recognizing it as a shooter. He called the deer, enticing it into his line of sight, took the shot, and watched as the deer darted into the woods. Despite the deer’s escape, Tim knew his shot was precise, with his sights perfectly centered.
Leaving the shooting house, Tim began tracking the deer, searching for signs of blood. His persistence paid off when he discovered a patch of crimson in a bed of brown grass just beyond the clearing. Walking another 20 yards, he uncovered the deer, still revealing only its right side.
Upon flipping the buck over, Tim was met with the surprise of a lifetime—a 22-point left antler.
“I saw everything on that other side, and it was just unbelievable. Just incredible. That’s when I freaked out,” Tim says. “A lot of guys hunt really hard. They do a lot of scouting. They find a buck, get it on camera, and try to pattern how often he comes around. But that’s not the case with this.”
Influenced by a friend, Tim opted to have the buck officially scored. He contacted Buck Masters, initiating the process and meeting the scorer in Montevallo. The buck boasted an 18 ¾ inches tip-to-tip spread, with 7 points on the right antler and a staggering 22 on the left, totaling 29 points. The overall score reached an impressive 226 and 4/8, securing its position as the fifth-largest free-range buck in Alabama.
“You just don’t see that on deer around here,” Tim says. “But when it happened, I was excited, I was pumping my fist, and I just kept saying, ‘Thank you, Lord, for this deer!'”
Congratulations, Tim, on this remarkable monster of a buck! WL
