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Rookie Is Dead; Successful Swap

sureshot

The Hunt Never Ends....
Some of you may remember earlier this year when I posted a photo of a mule deer that I had killed in Montana……that hunt was part of a swap hunt; Montana Muleys for Iowa Whitetails. We were 2 for 2 in Montana and were ready to return the favor. Well, the guys we did the swap hunt with, Josh and Terry, arrived in Iowa on the evening of the 26th so on the 27th I took Josh down the farm that Rookie was living on.

During the weeks prior Rookie had been showing up on a consistent basis. I knew with him being a day walker that the odds were high that he would present one of the swap hunters with an opportunity. We hunted the 27th and saw a lot of deer but no Rookie. On the evening of the 28th the stars aligned though and Rookie presented him with a shot. It was a bittersweet feeling seeing a buck that I had chased for 3 years go down, but I was super happy for Josh. Rookie ended up grossing 172 6/8, making him Josh's biggest whitetail yet. The history behind him made him even more of a trophy. In my eyes, Rookie was a legend. Josh was very gracious and I am super happy for him.

The history is long and I don't have much time, but if you are interested in hearing more of Rookie's story simply click on this link for the video:
"Rookie's Last Bite"

Here is a pic;


Two days later and Terry tagged out as well on a great buck that I had no prior history with;


Overall, our swap hunt was a success……we were 4/4 as we killed 2 montana muleys and they killed two Iowa whitetails!

-Chris
 
Wow congrats to all. You 4 had very good hunts. You 2 that went west will be looking west in Oct. and trying to smell the sage.
 
I bet it was bittersweet, Sureshot.. Hey, at least a new friend can now enjoy him and you both will be able to enjoy the mount when it's finished.. I just loved the whole story of your encounters with rookie. He was a deer I was anxiously waiting to hear more about.. as the year progressed and Hoped that you would end up harvesting him this year. It didn't worked exactly how I'm sure you envisioned, but at least, rookie didn't go down infront of someone you didn't know and who wouldn't appreciate the harvest as much as I'm sure your new friend does. Tell him and the other guy congrats for me.
 
Hey guys I just wanted to say how blessed I feel to be the one to pull the trigger on Rookie, I will be forever greatful to the landowner and Chris for allowing me the opportunity!
A guy will be hard pressed finding a better person than Chris!
 
Awesome! I got halfway through the video today. Can't wait to finish it! Congrats.
 
Hey guys I just wanted to say how blessed I feel to be the one to pull the trigger on Rookie, I will be forever greatful to the landowner and Chris for allowing me the opportunity!
A guy will be hard pressed finding a better person than Chris!

Great job on Rookie! Heck of a deer.
 
Congrats Josh, that is cool opportunity for both of you. Glad it worked out for you. Heck of a trophy to take home.
 
Amazing story and history on an awesome deer. Congrats, Josh on having the opportunity. Awesome stuff Chris! Congrats guys
 
I just finished the video a little bit ago. Fantastic history and recap. Josh, congrats on a beast of a deer! Chris, hats off to you man! That's a tough deer to "give up" to someone else. Although it's not the purpose of the video, there are some valuable lessons to be learned from your character and willingness to put another on your best deer!
 
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