Hunter: Natalie Kesper
State: Iowa
Animal: Whitetail
Trophy Score: 179 3/8
Weapon: 20 ga. shotgun
Public/Private Land: Private
Outfitter: none
Where hunt can be viewed? Victory Outdoors on Mossy Oak GO (coming soon!)
My daughter, Natalie, has been on a hot streak! In three years, she has killed three bucks that hunters three times her age only dream about. Year one, at age six, she killed her first turkey and a beautiful ten point (150 2/8) and last year she killed a nice eight point (134 5/8). Many times, people have asked me what tool aids a youth hunter the most, without a doubt my BOG DeathGrip Carbon Fiber Tripod. Why? Because it is highly portable and makes for a rock-solid rest. This allows Natalie to focus on making a good shot and not holding up a heavy gun.
Entering the 2020 deer season, we planned to hunt the same farm she had success on in 2019. It’s a farm with many wooded draws, surrounded by tall native grasses, with an alfalfa hay field in the middle. At dusk the deer fill the alfalfa field. In the weeks leading up to the season, Natalie and I can scout this field from about 600 yards away. While scouting, we identified many deer that if given the opportunity Natalie would take. However, we never saw the buck she would end up shooting while scouting. In fact, we didn’t have trail cam pictures of this buck until the morning of the hunt. At 4 a.m., we got a cell cam photo from my Reveal Trail Cam. The buck had walked right by the blind heading for a main bedding area.
Even with all her success I want her to learn the basics in hunting so that when she hunts later in life on her own, she can make good decisions. This year on a faithful afternoon hunt, I was using the HuntStand app to show her the importance of using the wind to a hunter’s advantage. Using the HuntZone feature, I was able to show her how I had picked our blind location for that afternoon’s hunt. We have hunted this field for a few years now and she understands where the deer bed and how they enter the field. I was able to show her how the wind was in our favor and why that is important when hunting mature bucks. Little did I know that a few hours later a true Iowa giant would walk into the field upwind of us, just like we planned it. The buck entered the field only 40 yards away, I carefully helped her get in position to take the shot. She made an outstanding shot. With a green score of 179 3/8, she is proud to tell everyone she has killed a bigger buck than I have. I couldn’t be happier for her!
