Greene hunter bags ‘monster’ Ohio buck
Scouting is probably the most important part of any successful hunt, but technology has taken over in recent years, raising the art of scouting to a new level. I never knew how important a tool the trail cameras has become to the deer hunter until I spoke with Ryan Grandel from Jefferson in Greene County about the Pope and Young Buck he bagged in Ohio.
Grandel now lives and works in the area after residing in the Cleveland area for the past 10 years.
If you can say someone bagged a “monster” buck, that is just what Ryan killed this year.
While living in Ohio, he found a few choice deer hunting spots south of Cleveland in the Tallmadge, South Akron areas of Summit, Coshocton and Geauga counties.
Grandel said, “I’ve seen some decent bucks around here, but nothing like some of the Ohio bucks. I still go out there to hunt in the early season.”
He noted that this year’s Ohio buck is the biggest he has ever killed anywhere.
The antlers green scored 172 Pope and Young. It is an 8-point with numerous smaller “kicker” points.
To put the size of the antlers in perspective, Ryan noted that the antlers measured 6 1/2 inches in circumference at the base. The G2 tines measured 12 inches, and the G3s were 8 inches. The main beam measured 27 inches with a 23 1/4-inch inside spread.
The buck was no lightweight either as he field-dressed at 224 pounds. Ryan said that even for the area he was hunting it was a “massive” buck.
While Ohio bucks are nice, they are not all 200-pounders as many would lead us to believe. “I only killed one buck before that broke 200 pounds, and that was back in 2003,” he said. It was a big 7-point that scored 137.”
The buck wasn’t a total surprise for Grandel. “We were on him last year. I had trail cameras out there. Before the season started last year we were on him, but when the season started, he disappeared, and we never saw him again until this summer. We had a couple more trail cameras out there, and we had this buck dialed in. We knew exactly where he was.
“The trail cameras basically led to my success.
“We knew where the buck was at and what he was doing every single day.”
Grandel noted that the Ohio season comes in a week before the Pennsylvania season.
“The first weekend out there is was horrible – windy, rainy, cold, horrible weather.
“The first Saturday I saw a couple of does, but did not see a buck. Sunday morning I did not see anything, and then Sunday afternoon the rain let up about 2 p.m. He came in about an hour before dark on Sunday, and I put the hammer down.”
Yes. Sunday hunting is legal in Ohio.
Grandel said that it was an 8-yard shot. “I wasn’t up much more than 20 feet in a walk-on stand, he said.”
He put a perfect shot right through the heart.
His choice of broadheads is a 100-grain Grim Reaper. “I’ve been using them for years, ever since they came out. I’ve never had a problem.”
It is fascinating to hear how trail cameras are now used to scout deer hunting areas.
I had friends who tried trail cameras years ago, but they often had pictures of only one deer on the whole roll of film. Yes, I said film. Now they are all digital.
My concern was how they can leave cameras out for such a long period of time without having them stolen, which was something I read was a big problem for many.
“Yes I do have that problem Grandel said, but I have only lost a couple of them.
“That is a risk you have to take. Since trail cameras came out, I think that was the best thing to happen since Matthews made a bow that would shoot 300 feet per second. With the new digital cameras, you can go out there and see what you got, erase everything and you’re ready to go again.”
I mentioned how limited the early film cameras were compared to the new digital models with high capacity memory cards. He said, “I left mine out there for a month to a month and a half and even two months in the summertime. When I went back, there was 2,200 pictures on it.
“It wasn’t one of my better spots. The memory card had a bunch of does, some raccoons and a couple of bucks on it.”
A lot of his favorite hunting spots are on private property, but a couple of the areas he hunts are on public land.
Prior to killing this year’s buck, the largest buck Grandel ever killed was a 154-inch, 9-point. “It was also an Ohio buck,” he said, noting, “I never killed a Pope and Young buck out of Pennsylvania.”
He said the largest buck he ever killed in Pennsylvania was a 100-incher. “I saw some nice bucks back here this year, but I couldn’t close the deal.”
He hunts mostly the Carmichaels and Jefferson areas of Greene County.
He said, “Last Saturday I almost closed the deal on what would have been the biggest buck I ever got in Pennsylvania, like a 115 or 120. He wouldn’t respond to grunt calls or anything.”
He planned to seek the buck out last Friday and Saturday, after missing out on the hunt for most of the week due to work.
Grandel says his buddies and his father said the deer were running around all over the place last week.
I was hearing the same from several sources, but still very few bucks were being killed, considering the number of hunters afield.
Of the bucks being taken, many were real wall hangers.
Grandel’s choice of equipment is a Matthews Outback 72-pound bow with 400-grain carbon arrows and a fall-away rest.
He also wears scent block clothing all the time.
While baiting is legal in Ohio, the said he doesn’t hunt over bait, but he does bait his trail camera areas with corn.
In Ohio, he says he sees a lot of coyotes on the trial cameras, but around here it’s a “ton of turkeys, plus squirrel and raccoons.”
He uses a trail camera that costs about $140. “They get a lot more expensive,” he said. “They have trail cameras out today that can take a picture and e-mail it to your computer or send it to your phone.”
Technology is sure changing the sport of hunting. Now you can sit back and check your favorite rub lines and scrapes from your computer or cell phone without have to go afield and risking spooking that big buck.
Some of us were just born a few decades too early.
Local elk hunters on top
Congratulations are also in order for two local elk hunters who bagged bulls during the state’s annual, restricted hunt.
They were among 44 hunters who scored during the hunt, Nov. 2-7.
The largest antlered elk was killed by Reed Bamburger of Graysville in Greene County. His bull dressed out at 652-pounds. He bagged the 8×9 trophy Nov. 2 in Covington Township, Clearfield County.
Lisa Banasick, of Connellsville, killed the second heaviest elk. Her 643-pound, 9×11 was taken Nov. 5 in Gibson Township, Cameron County.
Herald-Standard Outdoors Editor Rod Schoener can be contacted online at rschoener@ heraldstandard.com.