Editor’s Note: No, Taylor Drury, the daughter of Mark Drury of Drury Outdoors, wasn’t wrapped in Mossy Oak when she came home from the hospital. But according to Taylor, “There is a picture of me hanging at home of me in Mossy Oak when I was 6-months old. So, I feel like I was born in Mossy Oak.” Now 18-years old and a freshman in college, this week Taylor Drury will talk about growing-up as a hunter.
When I was 15, I went hunting with my dad. Everyone who knows me understands that I hate to get-up and hunt deer in the morning. I’d rather sleep-in and hunt in the afternoon when normal people are up and awake. I love to sleep, and I’m not a morning person at all. On the night before this hunt, my dad had talked to me about going on a morning hunt the next morning. He was really confident that I would have an opportunity to take a trophy buck. Dad had patterned this buck and said he felt he had the buck dialed-in. He had even named this buck the Landers Bottom Buck, because this buck was coming in regularly to a field we called Landers Bottom. Every time Dad checked his trail camera pictures on his Reconyx trail cameras, (www.reconyx.com) this buck was in the field in the morning and at night. Because Dad knew we’d have a favorable wind the next morning, he really wanted me to get out of bed and climb into the stand before daylight. He said, “Please, Taylor, give me one morning hunt, just this one time. This deer has been on our farm all his life, and he stays on the Landers Bottom field.” So, I told Dad I’d go that one morning with him.
Dad got me out of bed early, and we were in the field before daylight. Dad and I were sitting in the blind having a good time telling stories and talking about what was going on in his life and in my life. Suddenly, I looked-up and spotted the Landers Bottom buck. Dad had shown me so many pictures of this buck that I knew this was the buck my dad wanted me to take. That big buck was out in the green field and in a place where I could take him. He was running straight toward us. Dad said, “A coyote must have spooked that buck out of the woods.” We have a lot of coyotes on our farm. I watched this buck, and when he got within 40 yards, he presented the shot. I brought-up my pink Thompson Center .223 rifle, aimed like my dad had taught me, and took the shot at 40 yards. When we finally got out of the blind and went up to the buck, and I put my hands on the Landers Bottom buck, I couldn’t believe I’d taken that buck. I had seen all the big bucks that my dad and my Uncle Terry had taken. I never could imagine that I might someday have an opportunity to take a buck like this. I knew all the history of this buck, because every year my dad would show me the trail-camera pictures of the Landers Bottom buck. I couldn’t believe I’d taken a buck that scored 167 Boone & Crockett points. This was such an awesome hunt and such a great buck. I really felt blessed not only for being able to take the deer, but for having my dad with me on the hunt and having him share this very-special time with me.
Day 2: My First Bow Buck with Taylor Drury
Tomorrow: My Biggest Bow Buck with Taylor Drury
