TOWN OF BARKSDALE, Wis. - A South American exchange student here in the Northland has bagged his first buck. 

Near Moquah, in Bayfield County, the 18-year-old Ashland High School student and his host father shared the experience together.

On the fifth day of Wisconsin’s gun deer season, host father Dave Martinsen of Ashland and exchange student Tomás Landerer of Santiago, Chile, are tracking the north woods for a trophy.

"I just like the peace and quiet; the camaraderie of all the guys and everybody that comes up, so it's been a family tradition for us for a long time," Martinsen said.

And this year, Tomás got to join in on that tradition.  It was his first deer hunting experience.

"I've hunted before for rabbits and small birds, and Dave my host dad told me we hunt deer here, so it’s a new experience," Landerer said.

After a two-week hunter safety course, Landerer got his Wisconsin hunting license, and on the third day of the season, after 3 hours in the stand, he shot a 5-point buck. 

"I wasn't really expecting to see a thing, so I was ready to leave, kind of falling asleep in the tree stand," said Landerer. Then a 5-point buck snuck up on him.

"So I looked down and I saw these horns and got all excited and tried to get the gun quiet and take the safety off and I just shot it so, yeah, it was kind of exciting," Landerer said.

"I just got back to the cabin and I got a text message: 'I shoot one!'" said Martinsen, laughing. 

"He thought it was a doe so he wasn't that excited, and he came by and when he saw the horns laying there he was like, 'wow!'" said Landerer. 

It was a memorable moment for Landerer, and the rest of the guys at deer camp were happy to share it with him.

"All those guys were pretty excited," Landerer said. 

"We got a good bunch of guys that hunt here and they all really accepted him, really enjoyed having him around; it's been a real pleasant experience for him," Martinsen said.

It's been enjoyable for Martinsen, too. He said Landerer's buck made his season. 

"Most deer seasons if you don't see much it can be kind of a downer, but if one of my kids get one, I think most parents feel that way, I’m real proud of it - and in this case he's like my son this year," said Martinsen.

Landerer is far from his South American home, but he is having the time of his life in Wisconsin’s north woods. 

"It's a really good experience," he said. "My mother always told me to come here; my brother kind of convinced me and I came and I’m really enjoying it. [My host family is] just great; they treat me like their own son, so it's pretty nice."

Wisconsin’s gun deer season ends Sunday. Landerer said he also hopes to try bowhunting this year, and he will play basketball for the Ashland Oredockers this winter.

He'll head back to Chile next summer.