Bowhunter Ends 3-Year Quest for 180-Class Oklahoma Buck
Kelsie Jo Harris finally tagged her 11-point buck, nicknamed “George Long Tines,” after a three-year pursuit. Despite missing the buck last season, Harris successfully ended her quest for the legendary deer on November 1st, 8 a.m.
Harris expresses her gratitude for the experience with George Long Tines, stating, “GLT taught me so much about hunting and made me a better hunter.”
Harris tracked the buck on the same 80-acre lease in Grant County, learning from trail camera photos that it generally passed her treestand in the evenings, well after dark.
However, two mornings before the shot, the buck appeared at 6:40 a.m. Harris recognized this as her opportunity to take him down during daylight hours.
Settling into her lock-on stand that Wednesday morning, Harris observed a small 5-acre patch of timber surrounded by soybean and corn fields. George Long Tines was about to make his final appearance.
At 8 a.m., the buck appeared downwind, making Harris nervous about being detected. Nevertheless, as she watched him approach, it felt like a dream: just the two of them with nothing else in existence.
While getting into position to draw her bow, Harris experienced some difficulties due to buck fever. Eventually, she managed to come to a full draw, but she accidentally hit her bow against the stand tree’s quiver, creating a slight click sound that caused the buck to pause at 30 yards.
Taking advantage of this moment, Harris settled her sight behind the buck’s shoulder and released the arrow. However, she almost missed the buck a second time when her arrow hit a twig mid-flight and struck George Long Tines in the ham.
Initially panicked, Harris believed she had ruined her only opportunity to get the buck. However, she noticed blood coming from the arrow wound as the buck trotted into a field.
Using binoculars, Harris watched as the buck lay down approximately 125 yards away from her stand. For around 90 minutes, she observed the buck stand, take a few steps, then lie back down. She remained in the tree until 10 a.m., when she called her husband, Brett.
Together, they searched for the buck with permission from a neighboring landowner. However, due to the dense vegetation, their efforts were in vain until Jerry Logsdon, a tracker, and his dog named Marley arrived.
Marley had to navigate the challenging trail as the buck had circled multiple times in head-high grass. Eventually, after two hours, Marley found the buck bedded in a thick jungle of grass. The deer had only traveled 200 yards from where it was hit to where it was discovered. Without Marley’s nose, it would have been nearly impossible to locate the buck in the tall grass.
The mainframe 5×6 buck, “George Long Tines,” scored over 184 inches, making it eligible for the Pope & Young record book. Harris and her husband estimate the buck was around 7.5 years old and may have been slightly past its prime. Previous trail cam photos showed that it was a 12-point buck last season, and its sheds this spring would score even closer to 190 inches. Regardless, this marks the end of a years-long quest that became an obsession for Harris.
Reflecting on her experience, Harris remarks, “I felt like it was just him and me in those woods. Almost like an old friend to see, and now it’s just too good to be true.”
A skilled hunter, dedicated conservationist, and advocate for ethical practices. Respected in the hunting community, he balances human activity with environmental preservation.