WYOMING COUNTY, W.Va. — When Hayden Blankenship climbed into his hunting blind on the opening day of the 2025 archery season he knew very well there could be a Pope and Young buck nearby.
“Last year I had probably five or six run-in’s with him and multiple trail cam pics. He came through trailing a doe last year and I couldn’t get a shot. There were probably four or five times he came in right at daylight when I was getting into my blind and I couldn’t get him,” said Blankenship in an interview for West Virginia Outdoors.
As disappointing as it was to see the big buck elude him last year, Hayden remarked he’s glad it did because this year’s version of the buck’s antlers were something to behold.
“He absolutely blew up and probably put on another 15 to 20 inches of horn,” he explained.
Once situated in his blind for the first sit of the year Hayden had no idea it would be the last one for his archery hunting in Wyoming County and things would happen quickly. By 8:30 a.m. a group of does had moved in and were feeding all around him. According to Hayden, the does were slowly filtering down the mountain when he heard something in the distance and the big buck he was after appeared on the ridgetop.
“He had daylighted about four times that week and there he was coming straight at me,” said Hayden.
Like most of West Virginia this fall, the acorns were thick in the hollow where Hayden had selected his setup. Although he had a feeder near his blind, the big buck ignored the hand-out offering and went straight into the acorns only feet away from the blind.
“He was so close I could hear him sniffing,” laughed Hayden.
His buck was about five yards away and while that was certainly a thrill, it also presented a difficult challenge. No matter how quiet he was, it was going to be hard to come to full draw without making the slightest creak of the bow limb or a slip of hunting clothing rubbing together. A wily deer with that kind of a rack isn’t likely to stick around to investigate the sudden, odd noises.
“I knew the feeder was going to go off at 8:30, so I just waited for it. When it went off he went straight to it,” he said.
The move put the deer at 22-yards and gave Hayden the perfect opportunity to draw and make a perfect shot on the buck’s vitals.
“He went 75 yards straight downhill and most of that he was stumbling. I honestly was afraid I had gotten more of his shoulder so I gave him some time, but I think now he probably died pretty quickly,” he explained.
So the season lasted all fo about two to three hours for him in Wyoming County.
“I got an extra tag so maybe I’ll try to get a doe, or maybe I’ll try and go get a second buck in another county,” he laughed.
Although he had killed bucks before in the 120-inch range, Hayden said it was by far the biggest one he had ever killed and would be his first entry into the Pope and Young record books once officially scored.