A familiar-looking buck in a favorite big-buck haunt. Whether the same northwoods brute or newcomer, one thing is certain: Our first HIT LIST weekly winner has been crowned. Send your pics now!
Things are looking up this summer for northern Wisconsin’s Nathaniel Melton. Melton, 46, of Spooner, was hunting a beauty of a barrel-chested northwoods buck last fall, and while that didn’t pan out a recent trail cam pic shows the brute just might have survived. And even if the promising buck Melton captured on his trail cam June 26th [see above] is not the buck photographed in 2018, well, just a quick glance of the image above will tell you he appears to be well on his way to becoming one heck of a HIT LIST-worthy buck in his own right.
For his diligent scouting efforts Melton becomes the first weekly winner in our 2019 Big Buck HIT LIST contest, which scores him a $50 gift certificate redeemable for any BigFoot Cellular Game Camera or accessories (see below), and also makes him eligible for our September drawing to win a BigFoot Cellular Game Camera.
In Melton’s own words, here’s the story of this promising northwoods buck and his plans to set up a successful Fall of 2019 ambush:
“Last year I was after this buck and hunted him hard,” Melton wrote. “I got plenty of trail cam pics of him [see image above and below] but I never did lay eyes on him. [The image at top] is a new trail cam pic captured in the same area the buck frequented last year, and I am pretty excited to see if this really is the same buck. 
“I know it is a little early, but the 2019 pic shows he has nice brows and looks like he will be nice and wide like the buck I had been after last Fall. We had a tough late winter in the area, so I am hoping that these big fellas up in northern Wisconsin start really putting on the inches. This buck is definitely on my Hit List and I can’t wait to watch him grow. My newest area pic of him is at a water source. The surrounding area is woods and swamp, with a few farm fields in the distance. I hope to pursue him with my bow, then my rifle, and maybe late season muzzleloader as well, but I prefer the bow. I scouted early this spring while looking for sheds, and have found a new area where I plan on setting a stand early, anticipating being able to hunt this fella during the early season, or during the peak rut.”
To enter the 2019 Big Buck HIT LIST Contest, simply send us a few clear, high-res. digital trail cam photos (two to five) of a buck (or bucks) TAKEN IN THE SUMMER OF 2019 (Day or night images, photos accepted NOW THROUGH SEPT. 6). Be sure to include the date and state where the images were taken, and a few sentences detailing the type of terrain/area where the image(s) were captured (i.e. funnel leading to soybean field, favorite stand site near wooded creekbed, etc.) and some info on the buck(s) pictured. Do you have any history with the buck? Is the buck a likely newcomer to your area? Is the deer somehow unusual or unique for the area? What weapons/seasons will you use to hunt the pictured buck(s)?
Along with your photos, include your full name and age, and also be sure to include your mailing address. Your e-mail subject line should read: Big Buck HIT LIST! Send photo(s) and requested info to: [email protected] 
We’ll choose 10 weekly winners that we will showcase beginning July 6. Each weekly winner will receive a $50 gift certificate redeemable for any BigFoot Cellular Game Camera or accessories. But hang on, there’s more.
At the end of the 10 weeks, all weekly winners will be placed in a drawing to receive a BigFoot Cellular Game Camera (MSRP $199.95; see image above). Don’t miss this opportunity to snare some sweet cellular game cam technology!
