6 Photos
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
I became familiar with Jim Forbes in June of 2014 when he participated in a trail camera photo contest that we were running and he won. Jim also became familiar with Star City Whitetail's website as well as our FB page. It was on the FB page that Jim shared some of his Virginia Buck harvests and I quickly recognized that Jim isn't your average run of the mill deer hunter.
The pictures he shared were of great Virginia bucks that spanned more than 30 years and it was clear to me that this wasn't just luck. As I looked at the pictures of Jim alongside these bucks, it immediately dawned on me that I needed to share his story with our hunting community.
Jim Forbes is 56 years of age and has been after whitetails since he was 12 years old. I drove out to Jim's Roanoke County residence a week ago to meet with and interview him. When I stepped into his family room it was clear that this guy loves Whitetail Deer hunting. There are 25 mounted bucks that adorn his family room walls. Each buck has it's own name plate with the date and location of harvest. I noticed that the majority of these bucks were taken in mid to late November which wasn't a shock, but I also noticed that many of these bucks were taken in different counties. The locations included Roanoke, Montgomery, Craig, Bedford & Botetourt counties.
I asked Jim how he was able to secure hunting ground in all these localities and he said that it was National Forest land. I was amazed at the number of nice bucks that he had taken on National Forest property. I personally thought that hunting on government land was a thing of the past, especially given that the majority of today's hunters do their hunting on private land.
Jim is a "throwback" hunter. He likes to hunt off the beaten path and sometimes will walk an hour and a half back in the mountains to hunt. He uses GPS as well as Topo maps to help him formulate a plan. Jim also does quite a bit of scouting for big buck sign in these areas before settling on a particular spot. Jim keeps journals and spreadsheets of his time in the woods and has basically come to the conclusion that in order to see a shooter buck (4 1/2 year old or better buck) that he would need to put in 100 hours of hunting. This might not be the case for the majority of hunters in today's world with food plots and quality deer management, but Jim enjoys the true thrill of hunting new uncharted areas where he is hunting deer that have very little if any human contact.
Several times during our discussion Jim mentioned the word "Goals" to me and it's importance as it relates to his hunts. He sets certain goals for himself prior to the season and a plan of how to reach his goal. His goal is to take the nicest buck he can find of course, but his true goal is to harvest a mature buck that has lived at least 4.5 years. Jim passes many bucks during his hunts and just like last year he sometimes goes buckless for the year.
During Jim's scouting he will concentrate on areas where the "Red Oaks" are bearing mast. He calls these acorns produced by the Red Oaks the "KILLING ACORNS" because he has killed the majority of his nicer bucks while they fed on these. Although he agrees that the White Oak acorn might be the preferred Whitetail deer food, these acorns drop sooner and are usually non existent come November.
I truly enjoyed my time spent with this skilled hunter and I realized that we share many of the same deer hunting characteristics. Neither of us are fans of the over- sensationalized deer scents and consider staying scent free to be at the top of the list of importance when hunting Big Mature Bucks. The biggest difference is where we spend most of our time hunting. I have a great appreciation for how Jim goes about his passion and how he does it on National Forest land so consistently. Speaking of consistency, Jim said that is his biggest asset in hunting mature bucks. He stays after it and doesn't allow himself the chance to get "hunted out". Regardless of wind, rain or shine you might pass Jim heading to one of his many different spots, but I seriously doubt you will cross paths with him in the woods!
Jeff Phillips
