Do you want to know a secret in the world of whitetail deer? Kentucky! If you’re looking to hunt trophy whitetail deer and even black bear, Kentucky is a solid bet. In fact, Kentucky ranks in the top 10 states for whitetails, according to the Boone and Crockett Club’s Records of North American Whitetail Deer . Kentucky wasn’t always the big buck factory that it has become. Consider that the majority of its top 10 record entries have been entered since 2000. And keep an eye out for big bull elk that are a recent transplant. They’re starting to grow very, very large!
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Boone and Crockett Club's State and Provincial Big Game Records
Whether you’re looking for record-book whitetail deer or the biggest moose to come out of your state, look no further. Here, you can search the Boone and Crockett database for state records for big game from Alaska to Mexico.
It doesn’t matter if you like the clean lines and picture-perfect symmetry of a typical whitetail or if you’re more into the kickers, stickers, drop-tines and freakish nature of a big non-typical, Ohio has you covered—and the deer are all over the state. The state has seen some real whoppers since 2000, including one non-typical that scored 295-3/8 in 2006. Since then, there have been more than a few entries over the 250 mark. As for typical whitetail deer, only one crosses that 200-point threshold. Even so, the state is crawling with big deer.
The good news is that Idaho has just about any species a hunter would love to hunt. The bad news is they’re just not as big as they used to be. The 1950s and ‘60s saw record-book mule deer being taken, and while there’s no doubt the state has some whoppers running around, the trends suggest the good old days may be behind them for mule deer. If you want to chase down a trophy cougar or maybe a Shiras’ moose, then give Idaho a try. Tags there aren’t going to break the bank, either.
So you like Columbia blacktail deer? How about Roosevelt’s elk? If either one of those species happens to be your jam, then Oregon holds the best book potential for your money. Look to the wet and rainy West Coast timber cuts for them. It’s not all rainforest, though. Look to the arid southeast where the antelope (pronghorn) play, and you might even find a top 10 all-time entry down there. With proper management, the Rocky Mountain goat population is expanding and growing some whoppers. Mule deer, Rocky Mountain elk and bighorn sheep call the state home as well.
Utah is home to the current World’s Record non-typical American elk and black bear. It’s great for mule deer, too. The problem is that everyone knows that. If you apply for a tag to hunt in a trophy unit there, buy a Powerball ticket at the same time—your odds of winning are likely the same. Fear not wishful hunter. There are “average Joe” hunts if you take the time to look. With varied landscapes, Utah’s variety of wildlife is robust. With Rocky Mountain goat, bison, Shiras’ moose, pronghorn, cougar, black bear, and bighorn sheep, you’ll be able to find something you can hunt.
When it comes to hunting big game, the Cowboy State has it all—and we’re not getting paid to say that. Just look at the records. With more than a dozen categories and nearly that many species, Wyoming is hard to beat for bison, elk, pronghorn, Shiras’ moose, mule deer, and even cougars. The state leads the records for top entries of Shiras’ moose and a few typical mule deer break into the top 10 of all-time. While they’re pronghorn may not be the biggest in the country, there are plenty of entries in the high 80-class.
Not surprisingly, Arizona is home to a number of desert-dwelling, record-book entries. From pronghorn to desert sheep to Coues’ deer and even a century-old jaguar. This is Grand Canyon country in the north and to the south, you find yourself in true organ pipe cactus territory. Pronghorn have a solid grip on the top 10 entries, but desert sheep reign supreme in Arizona record-book entries. This is Coues’ (pronounced cows) deer country, too, and both typical and non-typical categories show promise. The state is home to the number one typical elk that scores 442-5/8, and two other top 10 entries round out that category.
This may be the Land of 10,000 Lakes, but it doubles as the land of big whitetail bucks, some Canada moose, black bear and even a top five non-typical elk that died of pneumonia after it got its antlers stuck in the mud—true story! The big typical whitetail deer made the records many, many years ago. To be honest, the top black bear entries and that non-typical elk all happened in the 21st century. Nobody is saying the state is living in the past, but according to the records, Minnesota just isn’t producing record bucks these days.
California is long, like more than 1,000 miles long. Thanks to that north-south spread and being along the Pacific Coast, it has some truly unique antlered animals that happen to like wet climates—and they can get pretty big, too. Granted it’s the only state with tule elk, so it has a lock on those entries, but Columbia blacktail have a solid showing in the records, as do Roosevelt’s elk. Believe it or not the state boasts a black bear in the top 10 all-time and a desert sheep breaks into the top 20.
It’s deer, deer, and more deer for Illinois in the Boone and Crockett records. To be fair, the state does offer hunting for turkey, waterfowl, small game, upland birds, and furbearers, but we do not keep records for longest spurs on a turkey or fluffiest squirrel tail. Illinois made waves back in 2018 when Luke Brewster killed a giant non-typical whitetail in Edgar County that scored a mind-boggling 327-7/8. For the moment, it sits at the number three spot for all-time non-typical whitetail.
Pennsylvania is known for huge record-book black bears. The whitetail deer is also the official state animal—and they are huge. Most recently, the state has seen some massive non-typical American elk enter the record book. Elk reintroductions in Pennsylvania started as far back as 1913, and they are descendents of Rocky Mountain elk from Yellowstone National Park. With help from organizations like the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to bolster elk habitat, the state held its first elk hunt in the 21st century in 2001.
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-Theodore Roosevelt
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