Despite his popularity and a heavy dose of hunting pressure, Moses always found a way to survive -- that is, until Nov. 19, 2006, when Trevor Oleson connected on the buck. There were 10 non-typical points totaling 23 inches. His final net non-typical score was 194 inches. Photo by Craig Bobula.

An old adage says, "A cat has nine lives." However, an old whitetail buck from Buffalo County may have had even more.

Over a four-year period, many hunters stepped foot in the woods hoping to get a crack at this legendary big buck -- a buck that became widely known as "Moses." Moses was widely videoed, was sighted countless times, posed for literally thousands of trail-cam pictures, and had numerous narrow escapes with hunters.

Despite his popularity and a heavy dose of hunting pressure, Moses always found a way to survive -- that is, until Nov. 19, 2006, when Trevor Oleson was lucky enough to connect on the buck that evaded so many hunters over the years.

IN THE BEGINNING . . .
The story of Moses starts back in 2002, when trail-cam pictures of the buck were first captured by Tom Indrebo, owner of Bluff Country Outfitters. It is believed Moses was only 2 1/2 years old at this time. He was an 11-pointer with a 9-point typical frame and split brow tines. Tom and his friend, Stacy Nelson, found the buck's sheds that spring. The following season, the buck carried a 10-point typical frame with split brow tines, giving him a total of 12 points.

Dave Palmer, one of Tom's long-time clients, and Trevor's dad, Geno, would both hit Moses that year while bowhunting, but the buck survived both encounters. It was the last time Trevor and Geno would see the buck for the next three years. His sheds were found the following spring and gross-scored 156 inches!

Trail-camera photos and sightings of Moses during 2004 showed the buck now was growing a non-typical rack. This is about the time the big buck was dubbed "Moses" by one of Tom's guides. Even without a fully-grown set of antlers, Tom knew Moses well enough by now to know the image in the photos was the big buck. Torn up ears and several other characteristics clearly confirmed the buck's identity.

Moses' sheds were found again that spring. This time, the antlers featured non-typical characteristics, including 21 total points! Moreover, the gross score of 188 inches was proof the buck was only growing larger!

Several narrow escapes with hunters would occur again during the 2005 hunting season. One of them was by Tom's good friend, Ole Eastensen, who got a shot off at the buck but couldn't connect.

Amazingly, the buck's sheds again were found in 2005, holding remarkably similar features seen in the 2004 rack. The sheds carried a total of 17 points and had a gross score of 184 inches.

By the time the 2006 hunting season rolled around, Moses' existence was becoming legendary. Pat Reeve, host of his national television show, "Driven 24/7," was bowhunting with Tom during the first week of the 2006 archery season. Not only was Pat lucky enough to see the monster buck on this mid-September hunt, he was also able to get a shot at the buck. However, despite what appeared to be a great hit, an exhaustive search for the buck didn't recover the animal. Moses couldn't be found.

Many hunters thought the buck was dead, until late October of the same season. That's when Tom's son, Shane, spotted the buck chasing a doe during the middle of the day in a nearby soybean field. Needless to say, everyone was relieved . . . and excited! Now, the legend of Moses grew even larger. Through November, several hunters had encounters with Moses, and once again, the big buck was able to slip away.

The night before opening day of Wisconsin's 2006 nine-day gun season, Geno told Trevor this was the season when one of them was "going to get him."

"We hadn't seen the buck with our own eyes since my dad hit him during the 2003 bow season," Trevor recalled, "so I thought it was wishful thinking." Not only had they not seen Moses, but they were also hunting about a one-half mile from where most of the sightings occurred.

Opening day found Trevor sitting in one of his favorite stands. He saw plenty of deer and even passed on a 130-class 10-pointer.