Photo by Billkenney.com

It's no secret that the best way to consistently encounter trophy bucks is to find places where deer have time to grow to record size. That generally means locating areas where deer have multiple food sources, great cover and limited hunting pressure. In a state the size of New York, there are plenty of places capable of growing such bucks, and the 2004 season produced a lot of them!

(Note that all references to antler scores come from the Northeast Big Buck Club records and represent the gross Boone and Crockett score.)

2004 IN REVIEW
Empire State hunters bagged some 88,733 adult bucks last fall, and archers, muzzleloaders and gun hunters took Boone and Crockett qualifiers in seven different counties. Although the overall buck harvest was down 17 percent from the previous year, 2004's trophy buck production was impressive.

According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Steuben County had the highest deer take in 2004 with 11,571 deer, including 4,499 bucks harvested. Cattaraugus County was second with 10,658 deer, including 4,067 bucks, followed by Allegany County (3,939 bucks), St. Lawrence County (3,562) and Chautauqua County (2,985).

While these counties produced the most deer and the most bucks, the largest buck of the 2004 season was a great non-typical taken by Sam Thaw in Wyoming County. Thaw's buck, taken during the firearms season, scored a whopping 192 3/8 gross B&C as a 15-point non-typical.

The largest archery buck of the season was a massive 172 7/8-inch 10-pointer arrowed in Livingston County by Lance Wolfanger.

In the Adirondacks, where there is only an average of one buck per square mile, trophy bucks reach maturity by simply avoiding hunters. In western New York, where deer populations are high, hunting pressure is offset by good genetics and nutrition. However, in the Southern Zone, fewer bucks avoid shotgun season hunters long enough to see their second year, so while many bucks are taken, most have smaller racks.

New York's whitetail herd is currently estimated at over one million animals. Given the reduced harvests in 2003 and 2004, state deer experts are encouraged about this fall's buck-hunting prospects.

WESTERN NEW YORK
Western New York includes regions 7, 8 and 9, which stretch from the Interstate 81 corridor west to the shores of Lake Erie and the Niagara River.

In 2004, hunters downed 47,627 bucks in all, or 54 percent of the statewide total. This included 16,270 bucks in Region 9's six counties, 18,190 in the 11 counties of Region 8, and 13,167 in nine-county Region 7.

This section of New York produced six of the 10 best buck harvests last season. Steuben County was again the leader at 4,499, or 3.2 bucks per square mile. Hunters can expect to do well in Allegany, Cattaraugus, Ontario, Erie or Chautauqua counties.

Region 9 produced four of the top 10 buck harvests in the state in 2003 and 2004 (Cattaraugus, Allegany, Chautauqua and Erie counties). Allegany County produced the most bucks per square mile in this region (3.8). Erie County produced two of the state's top six bucks in 2003, including a 182-inch non-typical and a 150-inch typical.

Counties along the Pennsylvania border contain more than 160,000 acres of public hunting grounds. In addition to the 65,000-acre Allegany State Park, sportsmen have access to 17,200 acres of state forestlands in Chautauqua County, 33,600 acres in Cattaraugus County and 46,300 acres in Allegany County. A map showing all of these parcels is available by calling (716) 372-0645.