Doc

I wish that all regulations could be left to the discretion of individual hunters, but I think we all know that that would not be wise. If I were to write down all the irresponsible and dangerous things that I have witnessed hunters doing out in the woods, it would fill a couple of volumes of a very large book. So some things need to be regulated. Shooting hours is a huge one that needs some attempt at regulating. We have all heard shots in what would accurately be described as dark or near dark situations, so we know that individual responsibility on that issue cannot be counted on. Regarding what states do or don't do, I'm not sure that I really even care. Some states voted for Hillary, but that doesn't make them right ...... lol. I can rely pretty much on what I actually observe, and I can say with certainty that what I saw the other afternoon would have people shooting after dark if the law read 1/2 hour after sunset. I have also been in sections of woods with very dense over-story that has a whole different lighting than out in your bean field example. And the fact that people still are eligible to wander through the NYS gun season in full camo also points out the need for full light being the standard, without compromise. Sunrise to sunset ensures a good practical vision to allow for safe shooting. That is based on actual observations and not theory. Perhaps other states break under hunter pressure a lot easier than NYS does, I don't know. I cannot say what makes people in other states do what they do. I do know that safety is not a "majority rules" kind of thing and should not be based on poll results.

How about a deer that was down in a dark hemlock woods. Yesterday afternoon was a great display of how crazy it would have been to switch the closing hour to 1/2 hour after sunset. It would have been a challenge to see your crosshairs. When that rain came in, I took a look outside and about 1/2 hour before sunset it would have been impossible to do a decent job of checking out the back-drop behind any animal you intended to shoot......impossible. See the post 5 replies up. The reason that they use sunrise and sunset is because that system is for everywhere regardless of natural available light and regardless of weather conditions. It is not always perfectly clear. Heavy clouds and drizzle or snow can make things a whole lot different from the nice sunny morning out in the middle of a bean field. Not everyone is scoping out a deer in a wide open bean field. And while we are at it I have to mention that all other hunters out there are not using blaze orange. Because we don't want guys touching off their rifles in the dark, you have to have some kind of universal system of defining the shooting hours. Sunrise to sunset seems to be a practical, easy to use, quite reasonable limit. I would hate to ever see them change it.

Ha-ha ...... Its a shame about that 19 pointer that was about to step into the open. Lol..... Just kiddin'. It looks like you made a nice shot and knocked down the population a little. What are you going to do with it now. Ready to try your hand at a little home taxidermy or tanning?

I think I might have the same concerns with a rock wall for a back-stop. I really don't know what the worst case ricochet might be. I doubt if anyone really has done any study on it. But I don't think I would use a rock wall as a backstop for target practice, so I don't know why I would do so with a hunting shot. 20 yards is not really very far. That may be overkill regarding safety, but that's kind of the way I am.

It's those damned visitors again. I think they're harmless and just checking us out. They are still abit shy, and haven't tried to establish contact yet.

Yeah, if it weren't for those damn Bambi killers, all deer would be able to die of old age, passing quietly in their beds. I know, I saw it in a Disney movie. Relax with the tear-drop sympathy emotions. Starting to sound like an anti-hunting convention in here. Shoot what you want and don't be spending so much time worrying about what the next guy wants to shoot. It's all venison, and I have no interest in mocking and ridiculing what another hunter may be darned proud of. Perhaps that is why we have a declining hunter population ...... too many people trying to force their standards on others.

I did notice that my processor was not having any difficulty keeping up with the deer compared to other years. Yes, it was early, but usually they would have the carcasses corded up like firewood by that time. Not sure what happened yesterday. This is WMU 8N, supposedly totally out of control and over-run with deer (Which by the way I have been in agreement with).

The afternoon got rained out and it was cold and sloppy and right on the edge of being snow, so I took the afternoon off. I was sitting on the couch and I glanced out the window. About 1/2 hour before the legal end of shooting light, it was really questionable whether there was adequate light to shoot and ascertain all the features of the background behind your target. So sunrise to sunset is a good rule, but there are still certain cloud and rain conditions that would even make that not restrictive enough. I never seen anything like it before. The whole last part of the afternoon was like that, even out in the open. It was absolutely weird! Anybody else notice that or was it just down here in the valley. Of course most of the hunters were gone already because of rain so nobody was in danger of shooting past legal shooting hours.

I can see a decoy during bow season (or at least how bow season used to be), but during any sort of gun season I would think that it might draw more gunfire than bucks. And some of that gunfire might happen with you is the background. During gun season, it is not likely that a decoy would draw in a deer into rifle, shotgun, or muzzleloader range that wasn't already at a shootable distance. It is primarily a bowhunting tool.

So another opener is history again. What was your impression as to the amount of hunter activity? Same amount of shooting? ....... More shooting? ...... less? How about hunter participation? ....... Big crowd? .... About the same as usual? ...... much fewer guys out? Deer? Lots of them?....... same as usual? ....... didn't see what you figured you should?

Deer go nuts when that first snow arrives, especially when the rut is in progress. Deer show up great when silhouetted against a blanket of white snow. The whole story of deer movement and patterns are laid out in the snow for you. All those things that you have been wondering about are now written in the snow for you to read. I love still-hunting in the snow.

Well, first you have to be able to drive to where-ever you're going to b hunting. 18" plopped on the roads all at once can get to be a pretty hairy driving challenge depending on the steepness and quality of the roads. Second, depending on your age, wallowing around in 18" of snow may over the entire day be a bit more strenuous exercise than your used to. That is how every year they wind up with a certain number of heart-attack victims being pulled out of the woods. The other big consideration is what kinds of monster hills is that 18" covering. Third, depending on the wind and snow characteristics, that 18" of snow can turn into significantly deeper snow drifts. In my case 18" of snow would mean that I am too busy plowing my driveway to be out hunting......lol.

But there are times when I feel that it's better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. For an all day stand, I tend to go overboard and carry a bit too much. I seem to have every need covered .... lol. But one thing I hate is to walk up steep hills and go way back in only to be forced to go back home and get something that I didn't think I would need, but did. One thing that comes to mind is extra clothing for warmth. Sometimes it is hard to imagine as you begin to break a sweat climbing those hills, that sitting motionless for several hours will freeze you right off your stand. So it truly is an art to "right-sizing" your pack items. You can go overboard in both extremes.

Two days at camp with no hunting? That's what the Monday opener gave you. Either way, it has to cost you 1 day vaco from work, You either take it on Friday as a day at camp, or you take it on Monday to hunt. For guys that could not get any days off, the Saturday opener had to have been an absolute gift. I think it was a brilliant move to put the opener on a day that is typically off-work for almost everyone. It can make the difference between being able to hunt the opener or not for a lot of people.

I have a flashlight that flashes a bright red light off and on. I set it up on the corner of my stand, so no one can set up in the dark without knowing I am there. I turn it off about 1/2 hour before legal shooting time. by that time , my blaze orange can be seen clearly. Years past, I have had people sneak in on me way too close for safety. In the dark, I didn't see them come in, and they didn't know I was there. Of course we both assumed we were there first, and a lot of irritation developed as somebody had to move at a very late hour of the opener. Now with my flashing beacon, that can't happen. It may look stupid, but it avoids a lot of arguments and inconvenient relocations.

I didn't forget a thing. That may be a first! However, I bought a new back-pack that has so many pockets and compartments that I had a heck of a time finding my bullets. I was getting convinced that I had left them down on the shop bench and was getting ready to head back when I finally found them.

At 6:35, the far hill kind of lit up for a few minutes as apparently some deer began to run the gauntlet. Then shooting got real sporadic with just a few shots here and there. It is probably one of the quietest openers that I have heard in a long time. I know that the DEC whining about huge overpopulations of deer is pretty much on target. The hunter traffic seemed to be a little heavier than it has been in recent years. So I am not sure just what is happening, but things are very quiet. However, I deserve an Atta-boy from the DEC, because I dropped a doe about 8:00 or actually a bit before 8. Here in 8N, they tried last year to threaten and harangue the bowhunters with demands and threats that they are the chosen ones to single-handedly reduce the herd in this and several other WMUs. Well, I didn't do it with the bow, but I did do it. The .270 once again came through.

If there is any gun season for deer going on (that includes muzzleloader), I have a whole lot of blaze orange on. Because of where we live (kind of in the middle of the woods), that includes out in our yard as well.

All set. I'll be building sandwiches and coffee in a half hour and out the door around 5:30. Do I really have everything? we'll see. I always leave wondering what critical thing I have forgotten.....lol.

I'll have the last 8 factory built (Winchester) rounds for my .207. That should get me through this year with some left over. Next year I'll be using my reloads for target and deer season.

I think it is perfectly legal to carry as many weapons as you are willing to drag along if you are talking the regular gun season. Frankly, I have my hands full just toting my scoped rifle and all my other gear. I can't really think why I would ever drag along other weapons unless my stand was just a few yards from my house ..... lol. This question conjures up a funny imaginary vision of some guy pushing a wheelbarrow full of weapons through the woods on his way to his stand. It would make a heck of a funny cartoon.

Know your target and what is beyond. Almost all of us are using rifles now, and under some circumstances this allows you longer shots with more distance to scan closely. Beware of those that still insist on wearing camo. There still are some out there tempting fate and they could be blending in with any part of the woods behind that deer. So, while blaze orange is still the most effective safety item in the deer woods, there are those that like to place their safety in the hands of luck, and they are out there in the woods with you. Maybe a lot closer than you realize.

The question really is whether deer can be taken purely as a result of good luck. The answer is that it happens all the time. A lot of hunters do all kinds of time consuming things and form all kinds of grand plans and buy all kinds of super expensive equipment, and if they were to be honest, the results still turn out to be more good luck than good management ..... lol. But, in all seriousness, scouting and other proactive planning can really put the odds of good luck more in your favor. Scouting in particular can put you in more concentrated deer numbers which has to help the good luck come your way. So if you are asking if it a good idea to forgo the time-consuming scouting, I have to advise against it. Put the odds in your favor when you can.

Far better we should have voted for the gal that comes right out and brags about how she hates guns and wants to screw over every law-abiding gun owner she can. Buckle up boys, we just saved another set of your rights ...... in spite of you.

This is my opening day stand. It is on a plateau that is about half way up the hill and serves as an escape route for the deer caught down in the valley. This will be about my eighth year there and it seldom disappoints.