Unit8R

FYI, local paper showed up today and front page article about almost 197 typical taken nearby. Article says it ranks 4th all time (gross) in NYS and top ten all time for Northeast. Net score of 174 ranks it in top 30 of NYS. https://www.chronicle-express.com/sports/20200122/no-title

That scope and all your other equipment can be amortized over generations after you hand it down. Sure, we all love the fine stuff from the stores but to wake up after the same meal the folks living here a thousand years ago may have eaten gives me a big smile and to see it from field to table is priceless, Problem is I pale in comparison to the Native Americans as a hunter when afield with my longbow and the costlier items get me the meat. Quick amazon search: (Currently unavailable) 10 pounds of farm raised venison costs $115 whereas 10 pounds of lobster tails cost $208. My shotgun scope was about the price of the lobsters and crossbow a just a bit more. The lobsters are gone after the treat whereas the weapons can feed me for years.

sunfish and venison for dinner last night... poor(smart) man's surf and turf. Caught the sunfish on worms on a hot day and the venison with a crossbow on a cold one. Fish dipped in egg, breadcrumbs and pan fried, deer (just various chunks) sauteed in oil and butter and deglazed with red wine. Doesn't food always taste better when you work for it? Looking forward to Oct 1st.

search on "sinew backed bows". The tendons on large game animals are dried, shredded and applied to the back of a wooden "self bow" using hide glue - pre-compound commercial bows used fiberglass. It's a very fun hobby and lots of books out there. Woods like osage orange, walnut etc. The trick is to shave the back down to one growth ring only. I used to guide in CO so had access to lots of elk tendons but can buy them online.

yeah, he got the tenders. Understand on the heart but can be fished out. I grab the tendons from behind the legs for backing on another stab at a homemade longbow and the bones to be cracked and roasted for stock.

Searched around and found this vid on gutless method if anyone interested... if you love the heart and liver you'll have to gut

here ya go! Did the "boneless method" with game bags like the ole days packing out in the mountains... and yes, got inner tenders

Got my "Welcome to Social Security" letter on Saturday and first ever whitetail (lots of elk out west though) on Sunday! Other than a wall hanger, exactly what I wanted -good table fare, a good spike. 27yds, xbow, Rage crossbow X head from brushed in downfall ground blind with great back cover and good windage given SW breeze. He was nose down on a Tinks 69 drag I put across my lanes and stopped on a loud "meeeep" from me with him in crosshairs (xbow shoots flat 30 yds). Double lung pass through, little blood, lucky to find him 70 yards off. Learning a lot from this forum - thanks

Its been a blast getting up to speed whitetail hunting after living in the Colorado mountains my adult life and chasing elk... My biggest question is just how many trillion acorns can these little guys vacuum up? And yes, elk are wary but nothing like a whitetail doe that knows its hunting season.

... been following the posts RE: wind today so in the for what it's worth department, I researched deer movement a while ago and wind was 3rd highest factor after temperature and cloudiness... I pasted the following into my notes... I stayed home thinking I didn't want to shoot with a 40 mile an hour crosswind.. crossbow may be a different story from https://www.mossyoak.com/our-obsession/blogs/cuzs-corner/20-years-of-deer-research-on-deer-movement "The third factor impacting deer movement has surprised all of us associated with the study. Wind velocity plays a major role in whether deer move or don’t move. I expected to see a bell-shaped curve relationship with wind speed. I thought a calm day with no wind wouldn’t be good for causing deer movement. I assumed really strong winds with possible wind speeds of 30 to 40 mph wouldn’t be good days to hunt. I initially thought that wind speeds of 12 to 15 miles per hour would be the best days to hunt. But in our statistics, we’ve seen a linear relationship. In other words, the harder and the faster the wind blows, the more deer sightings and deer kills we recorded during that 20 years.”

Impulse bought a bottle today at Tractor Supply and checked Amazon Review when I got home... not good! Any experience with it?