Wambli Martinez, 20, of Houlton has been hunting since he was strong enough to hold a gun.
He estimated that to be since 5 or 6 years old.
He has hunted bears in Maine and bison out West. He shot a 965-pound bull moose after getting a permit in the state lottery in 2021. Martinez mounted the moose rack on his El Camino.
But on Nov. 13, he shot a 12-point, 219-pound buck to add to his successes.
“I really like Maine hunting. I like the trees here — the evergreens. Green growth is nice to look at. I like hunting deer. Deer hunting and moose hunting are a toss-up for my favorite,” Martinez said.
He had seen the buck, which had two drop tines — tines that grew down instead of up — two years ago near a Christmas tree farm, and on a game camera last year. A couple of people have shot at the buck and missed, he said.
Martinez didn’t miss.
He was in his tree stand by 5:30 a.m. on Nov. 13, but the wind switched direction. Usually it blows from the northwest but on this day, it started coming from the south, he said.
He got out of his tree stand and sat on a stool, facing a different direction than he normally would because of the wind.
Two doe deer walked within 10 feet of him around 6:15 a.m., but spooked when he took a photo of them, Martinez said.
About 10 minutes later, the big buck came crashing through the woods. Martinez let out a bleat to imitate a doe, and the buck stopped.
When the animal turned its head, the hunter aimed his 6.5mm Creedmoor and shot him in the heart from 30 to 40 yards away. The deer ran about 30 yards and dropped.
Martinez said it was the first buck he had seen during legal hunting hours since the beginning of the season. He said he usually jumps deer on his way out of the woods once he’s left his tree stand and it’s no longer legal to shoot.
He plans to do a European or bare skull mount with the buck, displaying it as a double mount with his moose skull on the same board.
He had hunted with his compound bow during archery season — time he used to observe doe activity. Martinez has watched two separate deer families for a couple of years, he said.
This was the first year he had hunted on this particular property. Martinez, who identifies as Oglala Lakota and Mescalero Apache, also hunts with members of Penobscot Nation on their tribal land. His family is originally from Colorado, but Martinez was born in Maine.
“Hunting is something my ancestors have done for thousands of years so it’s nice to carry on the tradition,” Martinez said.
