Crazy Buck Encounter (Huntsville)

They're moving in Huntsville area. Last night driving home over Cecil Ashburn around 1845, I saw a big buck dart out from the uphill side of the mountain and narrowly miss the traffic coming towards me. I hit the brakes and missed him (still not sure how-I was sure I would clip him) and he jumped/flipped over the guardrail on the downhill side. He was already limping bad crossing the road so I guess he'd already been hit...Couldn't count the points because it happened so fast and he was so close and broadside, but he was a mature buck and had a TALL rack. I stopped this morning and looked around for 30 minutes but didn't find him. I'm sure he's dead somewhere down there. Really steep rocks where he jumped. I don't see how he could have survived.

Crazy thing is I had pretty much the exact same thing happen just before Christmas back in 2010 in nearly the same spot on that mountain. It was the lady right in front of me that hit that one. It slammed into the side of her Expedition, somehow turned a flip over the top and landed on the other side. She was freaking out - thought she'd hit a person. I made sure she was calmed down some and then went back and finished the deer off with my knife.

Watch out cause they come out fast.

Probably one of those poorly placed deer crossing signs in the area. When will they learn and put those deer crossings in safer less travel areas ?

They got the crossing sign in front of the strip mall on the Jones Valley side.
I once saw like 10 or 11 grazing in the yard of that little church at foot of Mtn bug that was years ago.
Saw that crossing sign other night and said "This looks like a good place for a stand. You could just sit on top of one of these buildings."

They're thick in there. Used to be a decent little 8 point that would feed in that church yard every evening. Wife and I named him Jesus (you know, like the Mexican pronunciation...).

Some dumbass got arrested at the spa parking lot 10 or so years ago for shooting a deer out in the pasture where the new apartments are now. Pulled up, got out, watched the deer, shot one, started to get it -- on the Jones Family property, no less -- in broad daylight. Police and game wardens arrived pretty quickly.

Haha I remember that Clem! My wife went to nursing school and is friends with one of the nurses at a clinic that backed up to the field. They used to watch the deer every day, and watched in horror when ol' Cletus pulled up and blew the deer away!

Think they wrote him or just gave him a warning? same thing happened here few years ago at Pier 69.

I saw a BIG buck laying dead there one day last year or the year before. I was heading to a job shortly after daylight one morning, passed by 30 minutes later with intentions on cutting the head off, It was already gone. I'd like to be able to hunt some of these patches around Huntsville.

One of my customers had a 150+" deer, along with a lot of other deer coming into his yard regularly last year. Lives over off the side of Chapman mountain.

Road going up to the Ledges always has big rubs on the side of it. Lots ofem.

There are some damn studs on that mountain.

Sure are. Also on the side of Monte Sano- Beckett Dr. had one of the biggest rubs that I've ever seen at one point.

The Land Trust is public land, right? Amirite?

Public land is Public land in my book.

I live over this way as well and want to find a area for bow hunting only lease for next year.. Anybody got ideas on who to contact that may be a realistic option.. you can pm me if someone comes to mind.. thanks!

I can tell you they are all gonna say no.

haha. I know man.. thought it was worth a shot.. I know who a few land owners are but thought someone may take pity on me and throw me a bone.

We've done a lot of herbicide applications for Huntsville Utilities on the transmission right-of-way that runs from the Jones farm over to Hwy. 431 over the years, and there's always a ton of deer sign on that powerline. We found a nice 7 point dead there one Summer and we always jumped a bunch of deer while we were working.

RMFT, welcome to the Cove.

Those power line ROWs would be a heck of a long shot.

I still can't believe that dumbass shot a deer from the parking lot of the women's spa and on the Jones property in broad daylight.

I Used to work on a fellers boat that got arrested for shooting a 160"+ buck in McMullen cove one time. Stopped the truck, got out and shot it dead across the field. Got arrested dragging it back to the truck lol. I asked him why and he said cause obviously no one else could kill it so he did lol

The only albino deer I've ever seen on the hoof was in Huntsville right beside Obryans steak house one night. I've seen some big deer in jones valley and McMullen cove over the years

Thanks Clem. I'm holding out hope the golf course is going to let me hunt their deer someday. They are running around everywhere in those woods!

We found where all those bucks big as those in Kentucky are, they're in Southeast Huntsville living amongst the beautiful people.

Monte Sano doesn't have any huge bucks that would make you say "DAYUM " wish I could hunt here.

I've seen a few places I wouldn't mind having a stand on the River Course, for sure.

Was that the infamous PW that fired that shot?

February 1 about 8 years ago I had a nice buck walk off Bell Mtn, across Hobbs Road and into the little scope of woods at the south end of WalMart. This happened about 3:30 pm in full view of South Parkway and oncoming traffic on Hobbs stopped to let him cross. Damnedest thing I ever saw in Huntsville.

My daughter hit a spike last Sunday night on North parkway. 7500.00 in damages according to insurance. Ugh...

Yall sound like yall must be drivin through the little fence inside the big fence! ha

I used to see Studs all the time over at the driving range right before the Wall Triana exit.

Still see does sometimes out on the driving range by Wall Trianna. Once saw.2 turkeys walking down the shoulder

All I've ever seen at the driving range was does, but none this year. Plenty of times in years past they'd be out there mid day even.

Saw a turkey multiple times last year on the shoulder near gate #9.

We found this funky buck's skull while spraying a powerline at the rock quarry (beside the driving range) a few years ago:

I've worked a lot in Huntsville the last 10 years, even had a guy i worked with that had permission to hunt McMullen Cove. Some of the deer he got on his camera were absolute studs. I went scouting with him one day and found a cedar tree as big around as my thigh that was destroyed. If I hadn't seen the pictures to prove what was walking around out there I would have thought it was man made.

Saw a doe get hit by a truck tonite on sutton rd.

Couple of summers ago the jogging route I had was through McMullen Cove on the little path past the pool and pasture to the next neighborhood. If you're on that street it goes up to the city greenway path that goes to Sublett Point.

One day after seeing some turkeys, I asked the guy in one of the houses there if he ever saw deer. He said he watched a 14-point for a year (autumn-winter-spring) — counted them with binoculars — and saw everything from 8s to 12s and the big one. Also a lot of turkeys.

I used to work for Two Men and a Truck, and did several moves in McMullen Cove when it was new. Every customer, without fail, complained about the hordes of deer that would tear up their flowerbeds.

And yet I'll bet most of them, if bowhunting was suggested as a possible remedy, would not want to allow that.

I was at a house in McMullen Cove for a youth group event and as we were in the backyard grilling a 12 point came trotting through the backyard right past us, mid day. My jaw just dropped. Only racked buck I have ever seen in person lol.

biggest deer ive seen in person was at mastin lake and 53. it was an 8 with maybe a 23" spread.

Scrape you're right about that. I live off of 53 in Harvest and the biggest deer I have ever seen in my life have came off Capshaw Mountain.

All the land around heres old Kelly land and I used to talk to them when I'd see them around. Used to tell me that he had trail cams on different small tracts that were in the area around the big neighborhood and high school and those bucks ran all over.

Sure enough last night I was driving through the neighborhood and came to where I faced a service road up the mountain and turned right. When my headlights hit the woods I could see eyes so I whipped around and got out my flashlight; staring back at was three sets of eyes, two does running in the woods and then a REAL big 8 in the middle of someones backyard that backed up to the mountain. He just stood there staring down the does while I had my flashlight on him about 30 yards away. Definitely didn't give a damn that i was sitting there with a big light in his face.

Two seasons ago I was on the way to hunt one morning and I had a monster level with the truck trying to run a doe across the street Had to have been an 150" deer. IF my truck hadn't been there to come between them, that buck would have ran that doe on to the Sparkman football field.

Don't even get me started on those deer on 53 before it becomes Jordan Lane.

the biggest whitetail ive ever seen was right past donegal drive, in the neighborhood below cecil ashburn. One night leaving a friends house and he came off the mountainside and ran right in front of my jeep, stopped and looked at me. another friend i went to high school with hit a huge non typical on donegal drive as well. i will post a pic when i get it. i think it was 165+. there are some real bruisers running around up there.

here he is

Good lord. Back in my newspaper throwing days, my friends who had the routes on Donegal and up in the ledges would tell me about monsters they'd see just hanging out in folks yards early in the morning. Thats a stud.