Doc

It might do the job, but I would first try to drop the weight down on your bow as much as possible and see how that works. You can't beat archery equipment for building back archery muscles. By the way, back those limb bolts out carefully and make sure that you stay within the minimum design draw weight of the bow.

Not to take this thread to far away from its topic, but I do have to point out how much non-lethal area there is in the neck. Don't take my word for it, consult the following link: http://huntingny.com/forums/topic/6770-deer-anatomy/

Grow- You asked the question as to whether the DEC has taken into consideration the ugly winter that just passed or the potential of consecutive ones that may come when they put in motion their grand and glorious deer management manifesto. Well, unless they have a well polished crystal ball, I don't see how they could read future events. Also they seem to have such a panicked fixation on slamming the deer population, that I think they see whatever devastation that might have been caused by local weather impacts as well as the resulting increases in predation as a welcomed bonus. But, in fairness, I will say that they did have the foresight to make some of their policies dependent on the prevailing conditions of the herd and habitat as each hunting season approaches. Do we have confidence in their observations, calculations, conclusions, etc.? Well that's a conversation for another thread. But my understanding is that many of these elements of the deer management plan are contingent on need that they feel exists at the time of the printing of game regulations. So if you have confidence in the principles and science used by the DEC, you have to believe that their efforts to crash the deer herd are warranted and justified. I am not offering my opinions on that here in this thread, but I will say that I generally have a skeptical nature.

Coyotes are a lot like the TV ads for medications. Each one comes with a long list of terrifying and life altering side effects. They can solve a problem of over population of deer, and help to bring nature more back in line with a balanced situation. But along with that comes the side effects of turkey predation, livestock and pet predation, and the fact that without adequate control of their own populations, they themselves can become forces that unbalance the natural coexistence of many elements of nature.

If I had no other hunting opportunities, perhaps I would consider it. I watched that program on TV about the urban/suburban bowhunters (Chasing Tail), and frankly, they got involved in some rather ugly problems that I would just as soon not be confronted with. Plus, that sort of "public" hunting lacks a lot of the necessary ingredients of any hunts that I would like to be a part of. Atmosphere, nature, solitude, and all those things of that sort, are essential to the quality of the hunt ..... for me. It's a personal view of hunting that I am not trying to talk anyone into or promote. It's just the way I look at the activity and what I personally need to enjoy it. I will say that it is fortunate for city dwellers that all hunters don't have my attitude toward hunting and the environment that I personally choose in order to enjoy the experience. And I have to admit that it is a good way to fill the freezer. I personally would never try to discourage anyone from that kind of hunt. I believe that it satisfies a need and handles a very difficult management problem for urban/suburban dwellers, and thank heavens there are those that will do it. It just isn't for me.

Pretty nice pictures there that you are painting with your words. Each thing that you mentioned sparked memories of things that I have done or continue to do. Well, perhaps my generation may be a bit before the snowboarding thing, but I do have great memories of a huge old homemade bob-sled that we used to come screaming down through the woods on when I was a kid....lol. You have hit most of those things that have been highlights of my life, and hold a very special place in my life. But I have to include a couple other things. There is that feeling of pride and accomplishment at coming up to a trap-site and finding a fox, mink, muskrat, coon, beaver, and yes even a possum in one of my traps. Those days wallowing through the swamps with the water just inches from the top of my hip boots. Or helping my grandfather (my trapping partner) skin out the day's catch. Just one more set of things to add to my outdoor exploits. Oh yeah, and don't forget those hikes that have very little real purpose other than to explore and see and experience nature at her finest.

I wonder if it smells like old sweaty socks in there.

But bear in mind that this is only good news as long as we keep Republicans in control ...... a condition that could (and likely will) change with future elections. Remember.... this is NYS, and the gun lobby has a very short attention span. My take on it all is that this is a way of sidetracking efforts to make real, more permanent changes to the law.

I suffered with that old shoulder-mangling, 12 gauge Ithaca Deerslayer since 1969 when I bought it new. Never could practice with it. The best I could do was the annual 5 shots off the bench just to check out the scope. If I didn't get the pattern I wanted, that meant I was in for a very ugly day of shoulder abuse, because about that time I would be developing a pretty good flinch.....lol. Today, I can go up to my range up on the hill and shoot tiny little groups until I just get tired of it, and in the last couple of years I have already put way more rounds through that .270 that I ever did with that 12 gauge in 46 years that I owned it. Whatever you get, it should be fun to shoot.

Yup, and that's exactly the way it should be. One hunter - one vote. His vote is as valid and appropriate as mine.

I'm a do-it-yourselfer too. Even our moose trips were done mostly by studying topo maps and planning out our own meals and camping gear. Yes, at the time, Ontario Canada required by law, that you hire an outfitter. And actually that was handy for guaranteeing all the tags that we wanted. But after the first night of arrival at their camp, we headed off on our own with tents and canoes and never saw the outfitter again until we got back, lugging our moose quarters into his walk-in cooler.

I went through this wrestling match a couple of seasons ago when deer hunting with rifles became legal. I wanted a caliber that had sufficient range and energy, but yet could be very comfortable on a bench for an hour of steady shooting (As opposed to that stinking 12 gauge that has me flinching after 5 shots). I settled in on the .270 Darn comfortable round to be shooting and yet enough bite to put the deer down. I could have dropped down to a .243, but the recoil on the .270 was so light that I really didn't have to go any lighter.

Another massively satisfying hunt would be to build from scratch a long bow from some native tree (hickory?) and build some arrows with knapped stone broadheads and turkey feather fletching, and take a deer (any deer) with that rig. All equipment as carefully faithful to the details of historical Indian archery equipment as possible.

Oh, I thought you were going to say "pick up small children and pets" and throw them at the animal.

I don't know. I have never seen that written anywhere, but with the volumes of laws that are squirreled away, it wouldn't surprise me any. I do know that it was a regular practice back in my grandfather's day and so, I never gave it a second thought. Anyway, I think 60 years or so probably exceeds any statute of limitations ..... lol.

Shoot. There is nothing that exercises those exact muscles better than actually shooting. If you are worried about muscle injury and over-stress, crank the poundage down a bit and keep the first practice sessions short. But shooting the bow involves specific muscles and muscle groups. The best exercise machine for archery muscles is archery equipment.

I'm not sure just what I am waiting for. I have been threatening to get them out for a couple of months now, and just haven't done it. There is still so much going on, and the crap weather hasn't really motivated me to get out and put the cameras up.

Do gators, water moccasins and rattlesnakes trip the trail cams ... lol.

I thought the intent of that particular forum was to discuss pending hunting/fishing/trapping/ and other legislation surrounding those sorts of outdoor activities. I really believe that is an important function of this site, to keep people informed as to what the legislators are doing to for us. But then, looking at the forum description, "New York Gun and Hunting Laws and Legislation and Politics Discussions”, there is an addition that if it were gone might just clean up the whole mess. That inclusion “And Politics Discussions” is the part that is totally unrelated to the theme of the site, and while some of that stuff can be interesting, it does have a tendency to get a long way from what people come here to talk about. Most likely the perfect solution if we want to stay on theme would be to remove the “and Politics Discussions”, and after a short period of enforcement, things would immediately be re-focused back to the core themes of the site.

When I was a kid (10 or 11 years old?), I used to go into our swamp with a fish spear and look for areas of muddied up water. I would probe around in the mud with the spear until I felt the hardness of the shell and then jam in the spear down and bring up the turtle. Then I would carry it over to a dry area and whack the head off with my hatchet. Yeah, it really wasn't as easy a I just made that sound. Then I would work like hell to get that shell off and cut the meat off the bones (no easy job). I then rinsed the meat off, and tried to figure a good way to turn that into food. So, I decided that I would make turtle burgers. So using a hand grinder, I turned it into some decent looking burgers shaped like meatballs and fried them up. They would have made very good centers for golf balls. It was exactly like chewing on cut-up rubber bands. There simply was no eating them. Ok, so that didn't work. So it was back to the swamp to get another turtle. This time, I was going to go find a good recipe and make some turtle soup. Also, I had an uncle that was famous for his turtle soup so I would question him about how to do it. This time I got two turtles. I worked for hours getting the shells off and the meat de-boned. Definitely a p.i.t.a. Nothing is easy on snapping turtles. I again put the meat in a pail to rinse it off and then began my research. Meanwhile, my little sister was playing out on the porch where I had the pail of meat and decided that it all looked way too dirty. So she added a little detergent to see if she could help me out and clean up the meat for me. That was the last time I messed with turtles.

There is a difference between tolerance and promotion. Apparently the people who run our schools are having problems distinguishing between the two. Our school system should not be involved in promotion of any style of sexual activity, homosexual or hetero sexual or any other kind of sexual. My gosh when did our school system become some kind of sex forum for adolescents? This must be another one of those "progressive" changes that have occurred over the decades.

We are in danger of contracting jungle rot. Seriously, these gray, wet, days are beginning to resemble winter an awful lot. Trapped inside the house, looking outside for a little glimpse of some lighter skies. Yeah, I know what you are saying. It may be that this year the gym is the only place you can actually get some exercise and stay dry doing it.

Does anybody make a pair of snake-bite boots that zip up over your head?

Some version of #1 is probably the most realistic and practical answer. No, not stop entirely, but cut back on the season length and bag limit when turkey populations show stress. That is the normal and traditional way to manage any wild population. There may be places where temporarily closing the season entirely is the most effective way to go. Thinning predators is not a bad idea, but likely there are no real ways to increase that activity. Predator hunting is primarily a function of fur prices, and that rightfully is a function of the free market. Their is no way to influence people to hunt predators when they don't want to. You can expand seasons, but if no one has any interest in summer hunting of predators, it likely ain't going to happen. We have to accept that there are practical limits as to what we can or should do to help out one species vs. another.

It would be nice to repeat the Canadian canoe & pack-in moose hunt that I took back in the late 80's. Miles of dirt road to a remote lake. The length of that lake, 150 yard portage and then off to the end of another long lake. Small tent camp on the shore. The only sounds were beavers splashing, moose wallowing around in the swamp across the lake and an occasional branch snapping back in the darkness....lol. There was no one around and no sign of people anywhere. Lot's of walleye and pike to eat from the mid-day fishing. And a bull moose to take home as icing on the cake. Of course that will never happen again .... lol. Getting a bit old to be pulling off anything that strenuous again. But that was my ideal hunt.