THE WEEKEND HUNTER: HUNTER PROVES RUMORS ARE TRUE

With the rumors flying around Southern Missouri about big bucks, it's almost impossible to keep track. When the rumors of big bucks come from Southeast Missouri, it's almost like a dream. At this point in time, there are seven to eight different record-book deer, if not state and world records rumors

Five rumors of record book-deer are from Southeast Missouri.

Randy Kasten of Jackson can prove one deer is not a rumor.

After talking with Kasten, if any deer hunter has found a honey hole on his land, it's he.

Daybreak on the opening day of firearms season Nov. 11, Kasten and a friend walked out to the woods in Cape Girardeau County.

His friend hunted the honey hole in the woods for a short while that morning before he had to go to work, and Kasten, who had not seen anything, decided to hunt that same ground they had hunted in the past.

After 10 minutes or so, Kasten was about to leave and then at 8:30 a.m. two does showed up in some thick cover. Then the buck of a lifetime came in, with his nose down chasing the two does. With the buck in some dense cover he took a shot with his 12-gauge Wingmaster at 40 yards and missed.

At this time he did not know what size rack the monster was carrying. Kasten could not believe he missed and took a second shot and hit the deer in the rear. The buck then took off running straight at Kasten, and with his third and only shot left in the gun, he dropped the deer in its tracks.

In this honey hole in the woods, Kasten's friends had taken seven bucks within in 50 yards of this spot, just outside the Jackson city limits.

With bean fields, plenty of rolling hills and dense woods nearby, the bucks have a natural place to roam and eat.

Last year the friend he hunted with on that day had taken a four-point buck, and during this year's season another one of his friends took a five-pointer.

But nothing measures up to this. A 24-pointer is non-typical. The buck has three drop tines and a third pedicel.

Kasten, 42, has also taken two other eight-pointers in the six years he has hunted, but nothing like this.

Congratulations to Randy Kasten on this magnificent buck.

Allen Morris of Jackson is a free-lance writer who has written "A Moon Guide for Missouri Deer Hunters" and is a member of Missouri Outdoor Communicators. He also maintains The Weekend Deer Hunting Web Site, at http://walden.mvp.net/~gam/.