Leaderboard

Here are a few of my bucks I've shot over the last few years. I've shot others but they were at the beginning of my hunting career so I wasn't as picky. All of my deer are up on my wall as they are all trophies and memories I will always remember. Hunting is more than just killing and consuming an animal, or putting antlers/mounts on the wall. It teaches respect (to the animals and other hunters), hard work, dedication and patience. Yes we ALL sit in the woods and imaging a 160+ inch buck walking down the trail right to us, but we get carried away with this sometimes. Everyone just needs to sit back and take in all of the little things and appreciate what the sport/passion of hunting truly gives us. The next time you go out, sit there and just think about how lucky you are to be right where you are at that exact moment. Good luck to everyone who goes out this weekend and hunt Safe and SMART! Going from L to R top to bottom 2009 175 pound 4 point (bow) shot from ground at 10 yards while making a scrape 2010 150 pound 8 point (shotgun) shot in swamp opening morning 2011 ??? pound 6 point (bow) shot before college class, showed up late but my teacher didn't care because I got a deer 2014 ??? pound 8 point (bow) 40 yards from the ground opening morning of September season. (did all the mount myself)

OK doubled it. Try now

Harvested this Buck last Friday (11/7) in Steuben County. Got in the Stand around 5:30 a.m., it was 28 degrees and raining, it continued to rain til about 8 a.m. then it turned to snow. Had a couple smaller Bucks and some small deer pass by throughout the morning so I decided to stay in the stand til 11 a.m. At 11, let my Bow down and started packing up when I noticed this Buck coming straight at me. Quickly pulled my Bow up and nocked an arrow, by this time he was passing under my tree. He stopped at less than 10 yards, I drew and released my arrow. I heard a "whack" and off he bolted across the field. I watched him go into the neighbors woods about 200 yards away at a dead run, never slowing down. When I got down, I found that my arrow had snapped off with about 8" still in the deer. My buddy and I headed down and got some lunch, came back about 1 p.m. to the location where I saw the deer go in. We found a couple thumbnail size drops of blood and then we came to the property line. I called the neighbor and thankfully, he gave me permission to pursue. After another 100 yards of following minimal blood and scuff marks, the blood started spraying out! Another 50 yards or so and there he was piled up. Never found the arrow but, apparently when it dislodged it allowed the blood to come out. I hit him right behind the front shoulder and the broadhead appeared to hit the opposite side shoulder as there was no exit wound. I took him to the Butcher on Saturday and when I got back to Virginia on Sunday, I get a call from the Butcher informing me the deer must have been hit by a car recently because it was infected from front to back and was a total waste. Ugh...was looking forward to some Venison Tenderloin & Burger...and lots of it!

Had a good week, Deer are starting to really move in my area! This guy came in dogging a doe that I missed an hour before. Clean miss which is thankful. I put this in the boiler room at 20 yards took out the lungs and cut the main artery running to/from the heart. .

Hit a 6 pointer. Time to track!

Well thank God those teens had the presence of mind to shout and run to call cops...and not have to be facing charges that could ruin young lives and possibly have to live with killing another human being...kudos to them...

No.. we all do not agree... the important thing is that we all follow the law and there will be no ambiguity which insures safety... using sunrise and sunset times insures that there is ample light for everyone... no guessing... we can not rely on hunters to always do the right thing.. which has been proven by some of the posts in this thread.

I have been hunting this property where I shot this buck for around 10 years. It is 45 acres and I have killed several very nice bucks and missed a few others. I have always tried to do my part in QDM and told myself I would only shoot mature bucks regardless of where I hunted. That being said this is the only buck I have taken off the property in the last 4 years and this is my honey hole. All I can say is passing up small bucks is worth it, no matter how much property you control. OK on to the hunt!!! I set up my climber 5 days ago from what I noticed to be a very active scrape line along very thick cover that butts up to mature hardwoods. I hunted it 3 out of the 4 last days when the wind would blow w or sw or downwind. The last 3 days I have been seeing small bucks and young doe/button buck fawns. I called in most of those deer out of the thicket with a doe bleat can call and buck grunts. What was bothering me was not seeing any mature does around. I wasn't sure if bigger bucks had them locked down or if they were just staying put and not moving. I was feeling discouraged this morning and almost hunted a different property. Glad I didn't, I decided to stick it out. This morning was calm and the woods were moonlit. At first light I noticed the scrape I was hunting downwind of was reworked by someone overnight. I hit the can call and a few grunts around 6:50 but nothing immediately responded. I was thinking about doing a rattling sequence when I noticed movement in the thick stuff. I see big white horns moving through the thicket and on a beeline headed right to a scrape that I thought was 40 yds away. Well I new that was a long shot and I hit the doe bleat to see if I could direct him my way. Nope, he was set on checking that scrape. I had an opening just before he made it to the scrape and decided to go full draw and prepare to stop him broadside as he came out of the thicket. I just didn't think he was going to come my way so it was now or never. I thought he was 40 yds away and aimed a little high on his back and released. I watched my nockturnal lighted nock as my grim reaper broadheads hit its mark. I heard a loud smack and noticed a lot of my arrow sticking out and watched it break off as he ran back into the thicket. Needless to say, I am totally shaking and adrenaline is at its peak, and I am worried about arrow penetration at this point. I waited 25 min before I got down from the tree and went to check for blood. Blood was pretty much instantly visible right where I had shot him. Followed the blood trail for about 25 yds, we're I then found my arrow. About 5-6 inches had broken off in the deer. Blood was looking good but decided to back out for 3 hrs to give him some time. Around 11:00 we resumed working the trail and about 100 yds later, I walked up on this dandy 8 point.

The kids did the right thing. There are many people out there who are alive simply because it's illegal to kill them.

Actually NY has one of the better records - better than some states with mandatory BO. The original post is a condescending piece of crap.

Booner you've been watching all summer finally steps out and gives you an opportunity 5 minutes after legal light.........OK, nail his ass! Booner you've been watching all summer finally steps out and gives YOUR NEIGHBOR an opportunity 5 minutes after legal and HE nails his ass......... Now your speed dialing your local ECO and sheriff to have his poaching ass arrested, his hunting implements taken away, and hunting priveledges revoked for life.....

11/08

Well my first year went great! Sitting on the ground is a hard thing to do. Saturday we saw 4 coyotes I was able to get one of them with my crossbow. Sat night I was able to harvest my first ever deer! Was a nice little button buck but hey he was my first one. Sun I was ready to wait for a mature deer, it didn't happen till the PM but wow worth the wait! She was 40 yards away and I got a perfect heart shot! I can not wait till next season! All shot with Barnett Ghost 410 Oh yeah here is that heart shot!

hmmmmm.... what to do what to do?!

I think you should only be able to shoot young deer the half hour preceding sunrise and the half hour following sunset,only from a stand you place on the property line and right next to the neighbors stand. You must not wear any hunter orange,and must mark the blood trail with survey tape. There did I cover them all? AR restriction discussions generally go,south fast.... Now where I hunt in 8 several large farms,land owners all have self imposed AR ,it's seem to work well for us. I see more bigger bucks then before ,now we ve been doing it for idk 10 plus years and control miles of prime farm land. Sure there are some gaps in it and I'm sure a few guys get desperate and shoot a young one here and there. We have an annual meeting of hunters,last one we had 75 plus guys attend,seems to be catching on! Keep in mind few will kill a big buck each year even under our conditions .

It makes me so uncomfortable when people talk about intentionally breaking the law. I NEVER break any laws...Well ALMOST never. There was the time when I ripped the " Do not remove under penalty of the law" tag off my mattress... I felt SO cheap and guilt ridden that I took the mattress out behind my neighbor's barn in the dead of night to burn the evidence. Then there was the arson charge....How the heck did I know that the burning mattress would set his barn and woodlot on fire ? Oh yeah, I almost forgot the time I got charged for indecent exposure for waving at that troop of Girl Scouts in the Walmart parking lot... I got the ticket as soon as I got out of the hospital... Who would have thought that den mother had a black belt in Karate..??.. Anyway, other those couple of little incidents, I NEVER break the law...

I wouldn't shoot at you even if you and your family were wearing a deer costume. I've been doing this for too long to be fooled. I think most of us here have the utmost respect for the non-hunters with whom we share the woods each fall. With the exception of some of the motorized vehicle guys who resemble packs of coyotes. Wear orange, put orange on the family and on the dog, and you'll be fine.

Hell of a day today!!! Started out with a coyote coming in at 50 yards but got downwind of me so no go on a shot.Then I had a buck chasing a doe up and down a ridge for 10 minutes or so.I tried to sneak down the ridge to get close but I jumped anther bedded deer and that one took the whole clan across the road.Then I moved to a different spot.As soon as I set up I had a deer walking around a old overgrown grass field but couldn't make out what it was,then this little button buck showed up and hung out for a hour or so eating briar leaves.Great night and will be right back at it in the AM!!

The way I see it, During archery as long as I Think I can make a clean safe shot, I am gonna take the shot.. Wether that be 2, or 5 even 15 minutes after (Legal light).

deer were movin late that morning! still as all hell, cold, and I was amazed when I finally saw the first buck cruise through at 8:30... Then a doe n two fawns, and about 9:30 I was gonna call it... so I tipped the can over a couple five or six times n here come this guy nose to the ground trottin at me looking for his lady... I had originally gone into this sit looking for a big chocolate ( well more of an amber or caramel color) rack but never showed. This being my last sit for bow and I hadn't gotten my usual doe yet, I decided he'll due and get some meat in the freezer... shot em at 5 yds , went 30 yds, wobbled, and then made a death dash/leap into the thicket not 5 ft from him in which he managed to get all tangled up in and expired seconds later... It was hell getting him all untangled out a that mess... Stoked for the weather for the SZ gun opener this saturday n have some pretty good bucks on cam I'd like to have mozy on by... good luck all , n thanks for reading... Joe

I remember my Dad's last deep sea trip with me... We didn't know it at that time... But this is one of my most favorite pics..

Ever get that chill down you spine and the little voice in your head whispers, "This never ends well"?

2nd coon of year same spot Taking them were I can get them pelts are slow coming this year for me

The answer is purple! welcome to common core math students! hahaha

id think if its dead youd use the bow tag. bringing a gun would be legal due to the date of retrieval. If you had to finish off the deer it would be a gun kill warranting the gun tag... just my opinion, no facts being that

The story broke about a week ago on a local radio show. The 18 y/o hunter called in as well as his father. The whole story on the radio lasted an hour or more. Cops and Econ officers responded and would not press charges. Dogs collars have gps chips and owner could show them dog was never on the shooters land, they really did not care...... Man fired and reloaded and kept firing despite kids yelling to stop that people were over there,that and they had on headlamps. All as pellets whizzed by and hit all around them. Responding officers still did not care,said he could protect his livestock, which the dogs were never near......and they could have looked at the gps tracking to confirm. Finally after public pressure,due to,the news picking it up they rethought things. Once I yell and someone keeps firing,well I'm in fear of my life and have been forced to respond.

Might have to take you up on that! LOL I'm trying hard to not "Like" so much!!

When I saw the Topic ( Picked up a nice Savage for the wife ), I thought you had made a trade .

On the first hunt of the year, or before I get to make that first shot, the gun is fired with a clean barrel. After the first shot the gun doesn't get cleaned until the season is over. I highly doubt that the difference in point of impact, or differences in group sizes one get from a dirty barrel vs. a clean one will make one bit of difference when making a good aim on a deer. I think we read way too many magazines where they brainwash people into believing that one needs to fire .25" groups in order to kill deer. That surely is not true.

Be thankful you can still pick up the phone and call your Dad to share hunts with. Some of us aren't as fortunate... My Dad was my one and only hunting partner for 40 years. Massive heart attack... Poof...Gone. Hunting season is always bittersweet. Thank God the following year my kids were old enough to tag along with me to keep me going.

Good advice, Philo.. I see that you even have an orange TRACTOR...<<smile>>....

Think your a little confused ! At 5:30 am its DARK , not 10 minutes past/before legal time , but DARK... Not saying I'm condoning anything but your talking apples n oranges when you say 63 minutes past/before legal... So how did u have a shot at an 8 pt at 30 yds when it's , well, DARK ... Not fading light , but DARK lol... I get a kick out of this internet interpretation bullshit ...

Irish...you are wrong in your trespassing post response...it is ILLEGAL to enter any property not belonging to you with out prior permission...posted or not...it is in the NYS penal code and CLEARLY written on the DEC web site

When I was younger I used to speed, a lot. I grew up and got smarter, same thing has happened with hunting over the years.

I liken it to the speed limit, the majority of us exceed the limit by a few mph, but are smart enough to not act recklessly and travel at dangerous speeds......unless someone is gonna tell us they NEVER speed or break any traffic laws.

I kinda admire those who would not shoot the biggest buck of their lives as it stood under their stand 2 minutes Before legal light. I just wish they'd move out of the left lane while their cruise is set right at 55 because the rest of us are doing 65 and the Troopers don't even look up from playing Flappy Bird.

You do realize that we are in Ny state right. These things you list would never happen. I would also say that the few on here that try and make it sound like they are saints are..Well Whatever, But when we talk after legal time and bow hunting we are talking a matter of minutes. To walk out of the woods at the best time to be in the woods to harvest a buck that the only time you may get that buck is stupid at best. This could go back on us few that like and only will kill mature deer.

Really the sunrise,sunset rule in this state is as dumb as 7 bullets in your magazine, I see where the law should be there for gun, considering that every body knows that one guy who is a total dumb ass and scares the hell out of you during daylight hours, let alone in the dark, But then again he is the guy shooting when its still dark out, but too argue over a few minutes with a bow is insane, Just like the last election are true problem in this state is the fact that we are always at each others throats and can never just agree to pursue things that really matter, If we as hunters and gun owners had united in this state, Cuomo never would have won, Its all relevant when it comes down to law, Stand together and stop the bickering, unite to get the politicians out that are not in our favor and put in place ones that would change laws so this very topic would no longer come up, Fighting and name calling over a few minutes, Really!!!!!

Brings back a lot of fond and sad memories. My dad has been gone for years, but I still miss the time in the woods we had for close to thirty years. He had cancer for the last 10 years of his life. It was slowed considerably by chemo, allowing him to hunt right up to his last year. He was stubborn and there was no telling him he might not be able to deer hunt. The last couple seasons, he could not handle the cold very well. I would tell him to call me on the radio when he was getting chilled, but he would never call until I had to almost carry him out of the woods. The next day, we would do it all over. Sounds like a pain in the ass, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world.

My "Like Quota" is at 100% right now, and I am willing to sell them at $1/Like (I accept paypal). PM me with the comments that you're interested in

Finally got a chance to sight her in today Remy. blueprinted short action heavy recoil lug,custom 1 in 13 twist BBL.X 24" long ( made for 55 to 85 Gr. bullets ) H&S stock, Rifle Basics trigger, Piller bedded and floating BBl. After sighting in at 100 yards with 87 Gr. Nosler Partition. I shot 65 Gr, V-Max + 75 Gr. V-Max + 85 Gr. Berger Match and the 87 Gr. Partitions. All were inside of a Nickle size hole. Also tried 100 Gr. Win. factory ammo , It was off , on center but 3" low. Cases were fireformed first with, cream of wheat and pistol powder. Not he hottest loads for each bullet either.

What do you guys recon is the reluctance to letting people bow hunt? Less deer on road, some people lodging in area and dining generating local revenue, perhaps sell permits, it's quiet and won't disturb neighbors.

I didn't say guys didn't do it... I'm sure lots of guys do it.. that is not an excuse for the law... safety or no safety... if you are doing it illegally then you are also being unethical... ethics talks to integrity... a person that knowingly breaks the law has no integrity... therefore no ethics.. tagging, baiting, and shooting a deer outside of legal shooting time are the same thing... illegal... if you need to cheat in order to get a deer you are no hunter IMO. It will always be wrong unless the law is changed... until then you are poaching, not hunting. If someone is stupid enough to risk a fine and/or loss of their license they get what they get. Even if you don't get caught.. you know you did it... and I'm sure that detail would be left out of the story. Not a deer to be proud of...

Thanks John! I'm burning my first daily "Like" on you! LOL Sent from my VS980 4G

Ok but just to be clear this argument/thread is about the " day light" surrounding legal time most notibly sunset ... No one said flat out poaching black as night if I am correct ...

I love this forum and all the personalities!

I wish NY was like PA and CT with extra time, but its not. So when in NY, I follow NY rules. When in other states, I follow their rules.

I love that field. I had a monster walk right up to my car a few years ago, waiting for the light at Transit and Pleasantview. I think he'd have gotten right in my car if I opened the door, he was that rut-stoned

It's tough to tell from that angle, would be nice to see if it's broke off at the base or if it just never grew. He's a young deer that's for sure. I guess if you saw him and noticed he was limping or walked oddly you could probably assume a car hit him. I personally would let him walk if he didn't appear to have anything ailing him...he could be a super nice buck next year. His frame is pretty stout.