2017 - Young Hunter Scores Big Buck in First Lawler Season
Fourteen-year-old Matthew Andrews enjoyed a memorable first deer season near Lawler, harvesting a buck that initially appeared to have 10 points but was later identified as a seven-pointer after part of its rack was damaged during the hunt
November 21, 2017 • Voyageur Press
The hunt was part of a successful outing for Andrews and his family. Of the seven members in their hunting party, six harvested deer, with Andrews taking the largest buck.
The excitement began when Andrews’ father, Marty, and uncle Mark decided to prepare lunch and sent him out to the stand.
“They started making a fire to prepare lunch and told me to go out in the stand and sit,” Andrews said. “They said they would call me when lunch was ready.”
Andrews settled into the stand, and within five minutes, a doe appeared. Soon afterward, a much larger buck emerged.
“Then, this giant buck comes out to check out the doe,” he said.
Andrews took his first shot, striking the buck in the spine. When the deer continued moving, he fired again, hitting its antler.
Mark and Marty were about 300 yards away and could see the action unfolding. By the time they reached Andrews, the deer was down.
Upon examining the buck, the hunters initially counted seven points. After locating the three additional points that had broken off, they determined the deer had originally carried a 10-point rack.
The successful hunt was especially meaningful for the family, who traveled from St. Michael to try hunting in the Lawler area for the first time.
Mark introduced the family to the area after hunting there for 15 years.
“Mark has been hunting up here for 15 years,” Andrews said. “This was our first year here, and we are hoping to make it a tradition.”
His father agreed that the family had found a new place to continue its hunting tradition.
“We will be coming back next year,” Marty said. “We had too many family members hunting in our previous location, and it wasn’t safe, so we decided to start a new tradition with our children near Lawler.”
Whether the buck is remembered as a seven-pointer or a 10-pointer, Andrews has plenty of bragging rights heading into next season. His first year hunting near Lawler produced a memorable trophy and a promising start to a new family tradition.