The dawn broke heavy with the promise of rain. A steady drizzle had been falling all night, and with the exception of one brief respite as I climbed into my tree stand, there was no reason to believe that I would not be facing another long, wet day in the woods.

A LONG, HARD ROAD
For two years, I had stalked, photographed, videotaped and studied a particularly huge, typical buck. He had roamed within 500 yards of our cabin and left ample sign throughout his domain. Had I not had the pictures and video to prove that this giant of a buck did, in fact, exist, I might have thought him to be merely a hunter's mirage.

When I first saw the buck that I would come to know as the "Coal Mine Monarch," I estimated his weight to be in excess of 275 pounds and his rack to contain at least 13 points. He was definitely a buck worth pursuing.

A WORTHY ADVERSARY
His sign began to show up as early as 2007, but the nocturnal giant was nowhere to be found during daylight hours. That year the Monarch outfoxed me at every turn. He always avoided my stand and I suspected that he moved mostly under the cover of darkness. This Buckeye State bruiser seemed to taunt me by leaving a continuous string of sign, almost as if he knew I was after him,

My hunting cabin is in southeastern Ohio in the heart of the region's coal country. Rural Belmont and Harrison counties have long been big-time coal producers.

The ground that the Coal Mine Monarch called home is in the middle of numerous old mines, and he roamed that land unmolested until that warm September day in 2008 when his luck, and mine, finally changed.

TAKING HIS TIME
Despite the rain, I heard him before I saw him. To my right I could hear the sound of a buck polishing his antlers on a nearby tree. Through the mist approximately 30 yards into the brush, I could just make out the outline of a deer.

I held my breath.

The big buck was almost in range as he moved away from his rub. Directly to my front, I had cleared an area about 10 yards wide. The trail he was taking would put him 17 yards in front of me, well within my skill level and the capability of my bow.

He continued moving slowly through the thick underbrush. My heart was pounding in my ears and my forehead was growing warm. Every ounce of my attention came to bear on my quarry.

I readied my bow. The buck took another step forward.

"Breathe . . . relax . . ." I told myself, over and over.