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Virginia hunter Nick Dean killed a 17-point whitetail buck on public land on Oct. 28, 2026, after pursuing what he believes was the same deer for four years. The buck’s age, score and identity have not been officially confirmed; Dean plans to have it aged and scored.
Nick Dean killed a 17-point whitetail on a rugged Virginia public-land mountain on Oct. 28, after pursuing a buck he believes was the same deer for four years, according to a report published by Outdoor Life on Nov. 6. The animal’s age and official score have not been established, and its identity as the buck Dean had tracked across multiple seasons remains his belief rather than a confirmed finding.
Dean told Outdoor Life that he had trail-camera photographs of the buck and saw it at about 40 yards on Oct. 27, while it followed a doe. Thick cover blocked a safe shot with his crossbow, so he let it go. He returned the next afternoon, hiking about 2.5 miles up the mountain and setting up in a tree roughly 15 feet above the ground near trails he had found.
At about 5:30 p.m., Dean saw the buck in mountain laurel. He told Outdoor Life that the deer initially watched him, then stepped into an opening. Dean shot with a Ravin crossbow fitted with a 100-grain expandable broadhead. The buck ran into dense cover. Dean said he found little blood at first and called his father and friends for help searching.
Dean and a friend followed a slight blood trail after dark and found the buck about 65 yards from where it was shot, according to the account. Dean said the broadhead had pierced both lungs and the heart. Because the steep, rocky terrain and thick laurel made dragging the deer impractical, the group dressed and quartered it and packed it out. Dean estimated its live weight at about 180 pounds; that figure, like the antler count, comes from his account and has not been presented as an official measurement.
A Long Public-Land Pursuit
The reported kill reflects the demands of hunting in a particular kind of terrain: Dean described the public area as steep, rocky and difficult to access, with fewer deer than in other parts of Virginia. He told Outdoor Life that he has hunted mountain areas for about 20 years and finds the challenge of pursuing a mountain buck compelling, even though deer are less numerous there.
The account also shows why the outcome depended on persistence and careful shot decisions. Dean passed on the Oct. 27 opportunity because the cover was too thick to shoot through, then returned to hunt nearby the following day. His eventual recovery of the deer required help and a difficult pack-out. The report does not establish a broader trend in deer populations or public-land hunting; it documents one hunter’s experience in a specific area.
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Four Seasons of Close Calls
Dean said he had pursued the buck for four years and had previously seen it during muzzleloader season. On that occasion, he said, his black-powder rifle malfunctioned and misfired. He also recalled a prior encounter in which he shot toward a buck facing him and believed he had missed.
After the deer was killed, Dean’s taxidermist reportedly found a wound on its neck while caping it. Dean believes the wound came from his earlier shot and supports his conclusion that the buck was the same animal he had pursued. The wound’s cause and the buck’s identity have not been independently verified. Dean said he thinks the deer may have been about 7.5 years old, but planned to have a state official age it.
““I had some trail camera photos of him, and on October 27 I had the buck at 40 yards, but it was too thick to shoot.””
— Nick Dean, speaking to Outdoor Life
Age, Score and Identity
No official age or antler score was reported as of the Outdoor Life story’s publication. Dean said he would have the deer aged by a state official and later scored by Buckmasters. His estimate that it may have been 7.5 years old is not an official determination.
It is also not confirmed that the buck was the same animal Dean had pursued for four years. Dean bases that belief on earlier sightings, trail-camera images and a neck wound found during caping. The report does not provide an independent comparison of photographs, a confirmed origin for the wound, or official measurements of the buck. The account does not identify the public hunting area by name.
Official Aging and Scoring
The next reported steps are for Dean to have the buck aged by a state official and submit it for a score through Buckmasters. Those results could provide more reliable information about its age and antlers, but they would not, by themselves, establish whether it was the same buck Dean had encountered in earlier seasons. The source report did not give a date for either assessment.
Key Questions
When did Nick Dean kill the buck?
Dean killed it on Oct. 28, 2026, according to Outdoor Life. The story was published Nov. 6.
Was this confirmed to be the same buck Dean had pursued for four years?
No. Dean believes it was the same deer, based on his past encounters and a neck wound found during caping, but the identity has not been independently confirmed.
How large was the buck?
Dean described it as a 17-point buck and estimated its live weight at about 180 pounds. The report said no official antler score or age was available.
How was the deer recovered from the mountain?
Dean and a friend tracked it into thick mountain laurel after dark and found it about 65 yards from the shot location, according to Dean. They dressed and quartered the deer and packed it out because the steep, rocky terrain made dragging it impractical.
Source: outdoorlife.com
