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Indiana bowhunter Joe Merritt took a large nontypical whitetail on Nov. 5 after trail-camera photos led him to a small woodlot. He waited about four hours for the buck to stand and offer a shot; Outdoor Life reported that other hunters had also pursued the deer. Its age and official score have not been established in the source report.
Indiana bowhunter Joe Merritt, 41, of Middletown, harvested a large nontypical whitetail on Nov. 5 after trail-camera images revealed the buck in a small woodlot, Outdoor Life reported. Merritt watched the deer bed near a doe for about four hours before it stood and presented a broadside shot at 22 yards.
Merritt told Outdoor Life that he received the first photo on Tuesday, Nov. 3, from a cell camera in a woodlot he considered one of his least promising hunting spots. The same camera recorded the buck again the following day, then at 3:55 a.m. on Nov. 5. Merritt said the repeated images convinced him to hunt there immediately. He reached the area before dawn and settled into a saddle stand attached to a thin tree.
As daylight came, an eight-point buck passed through. Nearly an hour later, a doe approached, looked back repeatedly and bedded about 35 yards from Merritt. The large buck then came in and bedded about 37 yards away. Merritt said neither deer gave him a safe bow shot while lying down, so he stayed still until the doe rose and moved closer. When the buck stood and followed, it turned broadside at 22 yards, and Merritt released his arrow.
Merritt said he saw the buck run and observed blood, but did not see it fall. He climbed down and found the animal about 60 yards from where he shot it. His friend Jared Leppink later joined him, and they moved the deer in a utility terrain vehicle. Merritt told Outdoor Life the buck weighed about 200 pounds and that its teeth were not heavily worn; he estimated its age at 3.5 to 5.5 years. Those are his estimates, not a documented age determination.
A Buck Followed by Other Hunters
The harvest drew attention because the animal was not only a large-racked buck but also one other hunters had been monitoring. Merritt told Outdoor Life that, after photographs of his deer circulated on social media, about eight hunters contacted him and showed images of the buck. Some had shed antlers they believed came from the same deer in earlier years.
One hunter told Merritt he was glad the buck had been taken because he could stop passing other good bucks while waiting for what he called the “23-pointer” to appear. That exchange illustrates how a known deer can shape individual hunting decisions across a broad area. It does not establish how many people had a confirmed opportunity to hunt the animal or how far it routinely traveled.
The episode also shows how cell cameras can affect where and when a hunter chooses to sit. Merritt said this was his first year using them to monitor multiple areas, and the photos redirected him to a spot he had ranked low. The account is a single hunter’s experience, rather than evidence that trail cameras produce similar results for hunters generally.
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Three Days of Camera Photos
The reported sequence began with Merritt’s first image on Nov. 3, followed by another on Nov. 4 and a third early on Nov. 5. Outdoor Life said Merritt was hunting during the first week of Indiana’s archery deer season. After the pre-dawn image arrived, he went to the woodlot and waited through the morning encounter.
Merritt believed the woodlot was near bedding cover and a private-property sanctuary where hunting was not allowed. That is his assessment of the location; the report does not independently map the area or confirm the sanctuary’s boundaries. The source identifies the harvest location broadly as east-central Indiana and says one hunter who had pursued the deer was about 12 miles away, but it does not provide a more precise location.
“I knew I had to go after that buck right then.”
— Joe Merritt, speaking to Outdoor Life
Age, Score and Deer History
The source report does not provide an official antler score, a scoring method, or independent confirmation of the buck’s age. Merritt’s estimate of 3.5 to 5.5 years was based partly on the condition of its teeth, and he said the deer seemed relatively light for the area. The quoted description “23-pointer” comes from another hunter’s account; the report does not explain whether that was a formal point count or how the antlers were tallied.
It also remains unclear whether the shed antlers shown to Merritt were conclusively matched to this buck, how many hunters had actively pursued it, and how widely the animal ranged. The account is based on Merritt’s interview with Outdoor Life, and the supplied report does not include independent wildlife-agency confirmation or a detailed location.
Official Scoring and Further Details
The available report does not say whether Merritt plans to have the rack officially measured, when any score might be available, or whether further documentation of the buck’s age or history will be released. Until those details are provided, the confirmed account is the reported harvest, the sequence of camera images and Merritt’s description of the shot and recovery.
Any later account or official measurement could add detail about the rack, but it would not change the limits of what has been established so far: the source identifies Merritt as the hunter and Nov. 5 as the harvest date, while the buck’s precise age and formal score remain unreported.
Key Questions
Who took the Indiana buck?
Joe Merritt, 41, of Middletown, Indiana, took the buck with a bow on Nov. 5, according to his interview with Outdoor Life.
How did Merritt locate the deer?
A cell trail camera sent Merritt images of the buck on Nov. 3, Nov. 4 and early Nov. 5. He went to the woodlot after receiving the third image.
How long did he wait for a shot?
Merritt said he watched the buck and a doe bed near his stand for about four hours. He released an arrow when the buck stood and turned broadside at 22 yards.
Is the buck’s age or score confirmed?
No official age or antler score is given in the report. Merritt estimated the deer was 3.5 to 5.5 years old; that is his estimate, not a confirmed age determination.
Were other hunters pursuing the same deer?
Merritt told Outdoor Life that about eight hunters contacted him after his photos circulated, and some showed him shed antlers they believed came from the buck. The report does not independently verify the deer’s history or the number of hunters who pursued it.
Source: outdoorlife.com
