NORTHERN WHITETAIL OUTFITTERS

Big Buck Magazine - Featured Article

Chris Lorson o f Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, took this massive whitetail in Saskatchewan in 2005. The 6x6 not only had big antlers, but weighed in at 325 pounds. With great brow-tines and over 44 inches of good old mass, the antlers scored 167 inches.

After a long year of waiting for another deer season in Canada, I was ready. It was time once again to leave my busy work schedule, along with my family, and head to Saskatchewan. It is a place I truly love.

I was to meet up with fellow friends and hunters Lee and Gary in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. From there, we would fly to our destination of Saskatoon.

After arriving late in Saskatoon and clearing customs, we called it a night. We got up the following morning, ate breakfast, and then met up with other friends of mine: Brett Nick, Heister and Mark. All of us would be hunting with Mark and Ron Schumlick, owners of Caribou Trail and Northern Whitetail Outfitters. They're a father and son team, each of whom operates a top-notch outfitting camp. It must be really special for them to be able to work together at something they love doing.

As we drove north to Chitek Lake, it finally sunk in that I was about to embark on another hunt in the big bush that was home to monster whitetails. I wondered if I's see another great buck, or even better yet, a Booner, and possibly be blessed with a shot. I have hunted with these camps for six years now, and have taken nice deer each year, always holding out and trying to better myself. In 2004, I got my best buck, a 161 7/8 inch mainframe 11-point which had great tine lengths. In 2005, after sitting for 77 hours, I shot a 140-class 10-point after passing up bigger bucks prior to settling on this one. However, the buck had character, with holes in each of his beams.

Sunday is a day of orientation, explaining their system, style and methods of hunting. Introductions are done as well as catching up with hunting friends from previous years. Guns and bows are checked to see if they are accurate. Hunting licenses are handed out with instructions on use, and all the gear is double-checked.

Monday was our first day of hunting. It was slow for me as I only say a few deer, including some smaller bucks. Others had good sightings and activity at their stand locations.

On Tuesday we awoke to a few inches of fresh snow and a balmy -8°F, a great day for hunting. I have been told that the best deer hunting in the North occurs when it's -30 with lots of snow, but I have never experienced such extreme conditions.

It is unbelievable what we will do for a chance to see a great deer. I have invested in the entire Ravenwear system. In my mind, It's the best you can get. Susan makes top-of-the-line specialty garments for all aspects of hunting, and the best part is that all of the clothing is tailor-made to fit you, one piece at a time.

The ride to my stand brought sightings of a few deer before I got off the quad. After settling in, "master guide Todd" gave me the thumbs-up and left. It was quite until about 10:00 a.m., when I was a young 10-pointer pass by. He was all broken up on one side but should be a good deer in two years.

At 11:45, a doe came in, followed by a spiker and a broken-up 10 point. They went past me and started heading down towards the slough. Looking back, I caught movement. A buck was running with his head down almost to the ground on the same trail the other deer had taken. Seeing a lot of heavy dark-chocolate antler and counting six points on one side, I picked an opening that would give me a clear shot, and waited. When the buck reached the spot, I fired and hit him squarely in the front shoulder. As he ran down into the slough and up the other side, I could see he was running out of gas, and he soon bedded down. While gathering all my gear together and giving the deer time to expire, I looked through the scope at the heavy, dark antlers and huge brow-tines. As I walked towards my buck, he got up and I had to put another shot into his boiler room to put him down for good.

Heister Linn of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, with his impressive Saskatchewan whitetail. A sight to behold, this whopper-sized buck ended up scoring 196 4/8 non-typical points.

Upon approaching the buck, his antlers actually seemed to grow instead of decreasing in size. My biggest buck ever, he weighed 325 pounds and sported 12 scorable points for 167 inches. As I thanked God for allowing me this opportunity at a great deer and to be able to hunt in this incredible deer mecca of the Canadian bush, I can only marvel at how lucky I am. That evening I called home to tell my three babes that I had connected on my best buck to date and that I would be home for Thanksgiving dinner.

When Wednesday started off with the thermometer at -14° F I was just glad I didn't have to sit in that. After wishing everyone a good day, my day consisted of relaxing, letting my hunt sink in, and touring the woods with the guides and helping with deer taken. There were several good bucks harvested that day, one with a good drop anchored by Gary of West Virginia, and others taken by my friends Gary, Mark, Winston and Nick.

This photo shows us just how big this deer is. The full shoulder mount was done by Timberline Taxidermy out of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Garry Donald photo.

While we were eating dinner that evening, not all the hunters had returned yet. When Nick came into camp all fired up, saying that Heister had taken a huge 200 incher, we all jumped up and ran for the door. As I looked at the buck, it was hard to fathom - the deer was a monarch, truly immense, with a huge frame, heavy mass, and a good spread. The monster ended up grossing 196 4/8 non-typical, and its tines were as heavy as most beams are on other good bucks.

My other friends who had come up north with me, Lee and Brett, finished the week with good deer as well. All in all, it was another awesome week, and the weather had been great up until Wednesday with cold temperatures and snow. Even though it warmed up on Wednesday afternoon, which slowed down deer activity for the balance of the week, everyone still fared well. For great Canadian bear and deer hunting, visit Mark and Ron's websites at www.ctoinc.ca and www.northernwhitetailoutfitters.ca or you may call them: Mark (403-528-4353) and Ron (306-386-2093). I would like to thank all the guides, all my friends, and last but not least, Mark and Ron Schumlick for always giving me a super hunt and accommodations.