To be quite honest, I don't normally think about deer hunting in June. I consider myself more of a "meat hunter" than anything else and my preseason big game preparation usually begins and ends with clearing out a few shooting lanes and checking my stands in September. This year, however, might be a bit different.

Last October a rogue buck wandered by my trail camera and I've had a tough time picking up my jaw ever since. Figuring he was just passing through, I didn't think much of it when he didn't show himself during the 2010 firearm season. In fact, by the end of the year, I assumed he had already made someone else's day.

New evidence proves otherwise.

To my astonishment, not only did he survive the gauntlet known as the Minnesota Deer Season, he looks bigger and better than ever. Common sense would say I need to have my rear-end glued to my deer stand for a majority of this fall, but unfortunately I know that in order to keep the lady happy, I only get so many weekends afield and my true passion is hunting pheasants with my dog.

Do I fill my freezer with a healthy doe and be happy pheasant hunting more with my Lab, Beau? Do I just hope he happens to wander by one of the times I plan on hitting the hardwoods with my bow or gun? Or do I devote every spare moment to taking what could be the buck of my lifetime? I do wish some of my favorite hobbies didn't all take place within the same 4-month window of time…

What would you do?

The "Big Boy" shows himself in a trail camera picture taken in fall of 2010.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever's Marketing Specialist.