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2 seasons only. All bows in bow. All guns in gun. Just that simple.

This black bear was strolling down the road in front of my vacation home. The house is at Big Bass Lake in the Poconos. The area has a decent bear population. This one was walking right in the road at 8:30am. I was so excited, I nearly forgot to snap a cell phone pic.

That's the point. In the country side, you're either into it or your not bit you at least know about it. For those in the city, it's a completely untouched market of potential hunters who many don't even realize such a thing is accessible to them but now more and more are being exposed to it than ever before.

City guy who wants something different. I have two boys and took a look at them watching TV one day and said that was it. Been on an outdoor kick for the past 3 or 4 months and don't plan to stop. Currently taking up the Bow and learning how to camp and hike properly. Built my own archery targets, own tent (just a painters tarp I altered an silicone water proofed) and putting together my gear and building knowledge to start hunting and extend that knowledge to my kids and nephew. hope ya don't mind me poking around the place. take it easy.

A decision , one way or the other will occur concerning x-bows...This in turn will initiate a replacement of endless threads over those to ones on AR's and the legalities of food plots. So study up and settle in your facts and suppositions in order to fill the void...LOL

M buddy pulled my cards and sent these to me. Nothing outrageous but its a start.

Relax Doc, You have 7 rounds to protect yourself and your family!!!!!

No, the bow hunting and muzzle loading parts of hunter recruitment are just fine. It's the gun hunting that is faltering. And I don't think crossbows are going to help them one bit. Yes, perhaps crossbows will coax gun hunters to load up the bow season, but they will not grow over-all numbers.

Let me rephrase that for you.... "Being able to hunt w a compound bow during the bow season is about as ridiclous an idea I've heard. How can u tell a real bow hunter who honors the sport of hunting to simply hunt with a recurve while others have it easier with compound at the same time. If there is to be a compound season it can only be separate from bow. Period." See how your statement comes off? Seriously though, no one would be forcing you to do anything differently during archery season if you dont want to. If you want to take advantage of what a crossbow offers, go for it. Want the added challenge of a compound, by all means. Want a real challenge, grab a recurve or longbow! They are all BOWS.

OK, thanks. Let me get off topic here and point out we need to start making friends and educating the democrats, especially down state, and especially in the assembly. I will shut up now, back to your war boys...

Ive got Muck Wetland... I like mine

Never tried Muck or Bog.....Have been wearing LaCrosse for years and love them. If you decide on the Muck/Bog type boot, check at Agway they have a similar boot for less money.

That pretty much says it all about the fact that crossbows have definite technological benefits, and that's all I am saying.

But isn't that the sign of a good redneck? DIY' ing something that could easily be purchase and more efficiently run just to say, "hey, look what I made!"

Congrats Red! You're such a stud! Let us know if you have a buck or doe fawn!

I have to agree grow. I got into bow season because everyone I talked to said they saw more deer in bow season and it would give me more time in the woods which was a huge part of the decision making because I don't always get a vacation during deer season and only have time to spend one maybe 2 days a week in the woods. I could care less if they opened crossbow to archery season I would continue to use my bow I have become comfortable enough with my accuracy I wouldn't spend the money on a crossbow. That being said the only time I have ran into someone in the woods while hunting it was my uncle heading out as I was heading in and I wasn't surprised at all to see him. I find poachers to be more of a problem in my area than a high density of hunters.

Just to clarify the chapter he belongs to does not push AR's. A chapter in the eastern part of the state does.

lol, mine too. Im new at this fruit tree thing.

Since it is the tradition and the discipline of true archery that seems to be the concern. How about we leave the compoinds in the first half of bow season and give the more traditional hunting time and season of the seconds half of bow to the longbow and recurve hunters? Put the crossbows up with the compounds since they both aren't "true" archery equipment?

Doc...I've been growing them (peaches) for many years...if the trees are loaded you, need to thin to the two best fruit in each group..or go with a dropping of every other fruit...depending on how your trees set.... in order to get bigger fruit...but they still need Sun

That's cuz the rest of the state has been doin' it for ages! LOL Heck, I didn't know what asphalt was til' I was 17

I've been on the same kick for 45 years, I think you really have to enjoy being out there before you can really enjoy hunting. You couldn't have picked a better sport for you and your sons...Welcome

Im with you my ears will never recover from that. YIKES

I'm in

better yet, take the two earlier weeks that were given to archery and designate them primitive bow only and give the old season dates to modern bows...I'll be more than happy to get a recurve for those two earlier weeks and pick up my compound afterwards and you can use your crossbow if you so choose.

Tell ya what belo, I challenge you to leave all of your equipment, scent control, tree stands, and your compound at home this year. Pick up a longbow, and get out there on the ground with old school green checkered shirt and jeans with leather boots, and lets see how you do. You really sit there and say that as bow hunters, we are no more effective today than 30 years ago? Theres no way you can say that with a straight face. Not to anyone that knows anything about bow hunting, or the history of it.

Again, if you think gun season style drives, etc are going to be effective with a crossbow, you are either delusional or just have no clue about it. If you think less hunters participating is good for the sport, I say you have no idea what you are talking about. As far as giving them one week? Really? Just more complications. Going on that logic, compounds should only get a week as well. The rest of bow season should be left to True Archery.

I'm glad to see you are so open minded and generous with bow seasons. I can hardly wait to hear you proposing that muzzleloaders join us out there and then of course .... why not any kind of gun. When you say "any kind of weapon", I assume that you are including any kind of weapon. That is exactly the attitude that makes bow hunters want some rather stringent regulations put on what should be allowed into bow season. There are many hunters who are irritated at the advantages that bow hunters have fought for and earned. Most of the those are gun hunters who simply salivate at a chance to easily jump into the middle of early bow-season. And in case anyone thinks that crossbows will be the end of these kinds of incursions, Don't be so naïve. Crossbows are not the end-game of those pushing them.

For the life of me i cant figure out who any of us are to say what and when someone else can hunt with any kind of weapon! You dont want to use something! So Dont!

There is intent by the DEC to put xbows into the archery season. This bill would give them the ability to do so. That's why many of us are opposing the bill.

Foodplots.....

It seems to me that those that are concerned with the handicapped and aged and infirm would have made that their first priority and crafted their first round of legal incursions into bow seasons limited to taking care of that problem by itself. I won't predict how NYB would have reacted to that kind of bill, but I will say that nearly all of the opposition from rank and file bowhunters would have disappeared had the bill simply been written in that fashion alone. But I think that crossbow proponents use the handicapped issue only as "sympathy" side issue to push their real agenda. Frankly, if someone had posed a bill that allowed the handicapped and aged to use crossbows in bow season, I would not have written even one letter opposing it. I suspect that most bowhunters are of the same opinion.

I think my fiancé figured out hunting was a big deal to me when I asked her to marry me while we were in a turkey blind lol

Bedding areas shouldn't change much.They sometimes bed in the corn,but not always.This is the time of year to hang some cams,check runs and make a game plan.That way if the deer do change a lot then you can be on them quick.The farm we hunt switches the fields back and fourth and it does change them up a bit but they are generally in the same area but just a little different from the last crop cycle.

Joe, I agree about the predictions. Calls and/or scents are a tool bag essential.IMO I wouldn't care for having to travel to hunt. I'd go nuts! I'm out there every chance I get. Those who do have to plan vacation days to travel are going on nothing more than predictions and experience. This is where an "experts" general opinion could come in handy. After all, they're the "experts"! I'm most content in being a foot soldier!!!