bottomland hunting at it's
best, at least somewhat unspoiled. For nearly five decades (since
it's formation back in the 1950's) it has been one of the state's
most consistent big buck producers.Wayne himself is a Vietnam vet, having served with the Marines Corps there. Today he owns his own business, Wayne's Appliance Service, in Harrisburg. A serious and dedicated bowhunter, he is somewhat unique in that he has never gun hunted, having "done enough of that type of hunting while I was in the Marines."
Wayne and Pete had hunted the same area the year before, and actually put up their stands in the same trees they had used previously. Apparently a rather large black bear also liked the same area, because Wayne was surprised to find that his stand tree had become a 'marking post' for the bruin.
"My stand was located along the edge of a large thicket," Wayne said, "and I had taken a good 8-point from the same stand the year before. As I put up my stand I could see a good rub line leading out of the interior of the thicket, and the trail exited within yards of the same spot where I had found a good shed after the previous season."
On opening day the weather was clear, hot and dry, conditions that held true for most of the past deer season. Wayne slipped in and hunted the stand in the morning, but with no success. That afternoon he eased back to the same spot about 4:00 o'clock, taking his time in the muggy heat.
Along about 6:00 o'clock (this was before the change to daylight savings time) he saw a large buck come out of the thicket. Unfortunately the animal was on the wrong side for Wayne to take the shot.
"I had carried a coke in with me," Wayne grinned, "and when I was through with it I stuck the can on a nearby limb. When I tried to shift into shooting position I hit the can with my bow and it made a tinkling noise. I was sure I had spooked the buck, but he never seemed to notice, even though he did turn and walk back into the thicket."
"I was standing there kicking myself, thinking I had missed my chance, when he came right back out at the same spot. But this time he proceeded to walk straight toward my treestand, never pausing. I let him get almost directly underneath me before I drew. I use one sight pin and operate under the belief that when you can see the buck's eyelashes he's close enough. When he finally turned to look back in the direction of the thicket he was plenty close."
Wayne shoots a Jennings Aerostar pulling 31-inch arrows. At 12-15 yards the Savora head caught the buck right behind his foreleg, and the big animal (which weighed in excess of 230 pounds) went less than seventy yards before going down. Listening intently, Wayne heard the crash as he fell in the twilight stillness.
Measured by Todd Sharp of Little Rock, the Arkansas County buck grossed 183 6/8 Pope & Young (P&Y) points, and netted 177 7/8. That means that Wayne Lindsey's big 5x5 will become the new Arkansas state record typical bowkill, replacing another Arkansas County buck taken by Donald Ray Sweetin of Tichnor in 1996.
And that's not all of the story. A preliminary check of the Pope &Young record book reveals that at 177 7/8 points the Wayne Lindsey buck will also become the largest typical ever taken with archery gear in the South! It will rank just ahead of a 177 2/8 buck taken by Bobby Dale over in Kentucky in 1986!