Doc

Yeah, that's what I was saying. That term takes on a special significance when the population gets real low. And as much as some don't want to understand it, there are places where deer numbers are still hurting. And the brown/down phrase is not really all that unreasonable.

Yeah, when I was there I could see they were undergoing some start-up problems. There were a couple of isles that were clogged with boxes and people trying to finish with the stocking of shelves. I think once they get up and running and encounter some of the problems, they will smooth out a bit.

I had a borrowed harness, but that really didn't help any. I was sure to wear a harness because I am aware of what the symptoms are of vertigo. It's a balance thing and that sort of thing makes a harness more than just a luxury.....lol. Actually "fear of heights" isn't exactly an accurate description of what is going on. There is no way that I was falling out of that stand. It was darn near impossible. So it wasn't even a fear of falling. It is indeed an equilibrium phenomenon. There is a feeling of loss of balance ability. It is a triggered response to a loss of connection to ground. I have the same reaction when going over a bridge. I can even get it when in a movie that is showing scenes of height. High-rise buildings even where I am completely enclosed and only a window to indicate height can trigger it. It doesn't happen when standing on the ground in the course of normal activity. So it isn't a physical thing. It has slowly snuck up on me over the years and doesn't look like something that is going to reverse itself. Hanging on to things like the railing of the stand definitely helps. It probably re-establishes contact with ground or something. It is the third point of stability. But it is really difficult to shoot a bow one handed ..... lol.

We have gotten awful spoiled, haven't we? In many places these days, it is not a question of finding a deer. It is more a question of figuring out exactly which deer we want to shoot. We've actually gotten to a point of arrogance about the subject. We get downright cocky about our hunting, or at least that's the kind of image we want to project to our peers .... lol. But a lot of us remember times when deer were not so plentiful, and taking a deer was not taken for granted. We didn't raise our own back then, or feed them or coddle them for our own benefits. A deer, any deer, was a hard earned trophy, and there was a very real reason for the saying that "If it's brown, it's down". However, in spite of our modern-day arrogance, it has to be admitted that there are still places where a deer harvest is not a given, let alone the ability to be "picky" in the selection of that kill. So when somebody says that this year if it's brown, it's down, I don't come out with the criticism. I understand exactly what they are saying. Either life's demands has limited their time, or the limited availability in their hunting area does not allow them to assume that they have the luxury of picking and choosing. At any rate, the fact that they have purchased a license and that they intend to abide by the laws of NYS means that any success that they have will get a sincere congratulations from me.

Well, you know things are getting a bit desperate when I finally resort to climbing into the trees. I have a stand in what appears to be a very active area. I built it several years ago before the great "heights thing" took over. It is a 4' x 4' platform attached to two monstrous willow trees (each about 2' in diameter). Held to the tree by 5/8" x 6" long galvanized lag bolts. All built out of 2" X 6" pressure treated and camo painted lumber for support beams (2), Topped off by another 2x4 floor joists with 3/4" pressure treated plywood. Over that is rolled roofing. It was built to last a lifetime and be an integral part of the trees. It all looks as good today as it did the day it was built. I have railings all around, and a section of aluminum extension ladder that gets me up in there. You would say that there is no way that anyone could be bothered sitting in this massive indestructible structure. Well, I made it up to quitting time, but 90% of the time I never let go of those railings. I'm not sure I ever could have let go to get off a shot....lol. That never was a problem because in spite of all the heavily mudded up trails full of tracks, and the perfect, steady light wind direction, nothing came through. But what a disgusting, debilitating, affliction this fear of heights (vertigo) is. My gosh, there is absolutely no way that I was going to fall out of there or that the platform would break, but I was just about as uncomfortable as one can get. It is a combination of light-headedness and a loss of balance. Like I said, I am not sure that I could even let go long enough to shoot if I had to. Just plain weird! What the heck causes this illogical and unexplainable reaction to being a mere 12' off the ground. Has anybody here ever cured themselves of it once they have gotten it?

Perhaps if people started to get involved in tipping off the DEC to violations, maybe it wouldn't be a "common practice".

Years ago when I first started bow hunting, it was like semi-wilderness hunting experience. And that was state land. There weren't a whole lot of people that even knew about bowhunting, and it was quite a few years before I actually saw another bowhunter in the woods. Bikers and hikers?..... never. You honestly had the feeling that you were the only guy in the woods throughout the whole valley. Compared to those days, the woods today is pretty screwed up. That's what makes me a bit over sensitive about gangs of people in the woods when I am trying to bowhunt. But now I try to content myself with knowing that I am one of the few still alive that will ever have experienced that quality of a bowhunt from years ago. So know when I see some guy jogging along the mountain-bike trails like some kind of pimped-out gazelle in his spandex fluorescent shirt and shorts, while I am trying to bowhunt, all I can do anymore is just chuckle and remember a time when these aggravations just simply didn't happen....lol. Times change, but not necessarily always for the better.

Yes, it has happened that I have headed out the door without my back tag (southern zone) which was still fastened to another warmer weather garment from the day before .... lol..

I'm not real big on moving shots, and that is regardless of whether the deer is moving, or I am moving. It's not really a concern for me anymore. I've evolved into a ground dweller and came out of the trees a few decades ago.....lol.

Use rubber gloves and there probably won't be any problems as long as you don't go banging it around on stuff. The main thing is to keep crud away from it.

Use the TIPP line to report this violation. http://www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/393.html It is anonymous if you specify it to be. Which I would suggest you do. The DEC cannot be everywhere or see everything, so they rely on conscientious people to report what they see. On the other hand, it seldom is useful to start neighbor wars (nobody wins at that) so the anonymous reporting will take care of this. Don't be leaving notes, or making phone calls, or making visits to the neighbor, or inserting yourself into the middle of something that could blow up in your face. That is why they have the anonymous option.

I like the computer reporting. Straight forward, simple, and I get a print-out that proves I did it in case that were ever to come into question.

Of course we need to do the best we can within the limits of practicality. I have a copy of the Environmental Conservation Law of New York for the years of 1984-1985. It is 3" thick and is some very dense, smallish print that I'm sure almost all hunters have never laid eyes on. That's what it looked like 30 years ago. so I can imagine what it is like today. Couple that with the fact that almost every line can have multiple interpretations depending on the ECO, Judge, or the outdoor enthusiast, and I think it is a fair thing to say that the very best that anyone outside the business of enforcement can do probably isn't anywhere near enough to protect him from stepping over the line regardless of how well intentioned he is. So, when we have people hired to be experts on this stuff, it is entirely reasonable to expect that you will get an answer that is better than a shrug of the shoulders and an, "I don't know" as an answer. When some of the penalties can involve thousands of dollars and the confiscation of hundreds or thousands of dollars of equipment, it sure would be nice to have an LEO offer some kind of answer to a question regarding their area of expertise when asked.

Imagine the challenge of finding that one small spot where an animals foot will be, given the thousands of acres where you may be trapping. Yes, you do have to know something to be able to find or arrange that scenario. There is more woods-lore involved in that, and more expertise required regarding the knowledge of the life habits of critters than all the hunting knowledge combined. It doesn't involve predicting the location of the prey within 20 yards of a bowshot or 100 yards of a shotgun or the 200 yards of a rifle. It involves knowing the precise 2" that it will step on overnight.

The term is used either as a point of derision, or simply a statement of fact that the time of the season has arrived where some venison (any venison) has to be taken. I have been there, and I make no apologies for basically saying that it is time to take a deer, any deer. I hold out for bigger deer until it is obvious that I am not going to have my annual fix of venison. At that point the goals change.

So the unfeeling, cruel and heartless hunter card that the anti's are constantly playing got trumped by you. Good for you. A clear demonstration that often the hunter's bullet or arrow is the least unkind ending for wild critters. No guarantees, but the most likely scenario would been that the deer would have died a slow lingering death of disease, starvation, or being eaten alive, a piece at a time. I think it was lucky to have encountered someone who was kind enough to do the right thing. Oh, and by the way, like someone already has said, even if the fawn had been perfectly ok, if you had decided to take it, there would have been nothing wrong with that either.

Good video! Not sure that I agreed with every minute of it, but they did try to take on some very controversial aspects of why we hunt. Measures of success, and the thought processes that hunting brings to our personalities are very individual, and do cause controversy where perhaps there shouldn't be any. But what the video did jump over was the elements of the human thought process that causes these controversies to be so deep seated and entrenched. Individual experiences, traditions, family influences and personal goals all pull us in different directions. It's never as simple as saying, "Can't we all just get along?" There are many things about hunting that come from so deep within us that the answer really is, "Yes we can co-exist, but no, we probably can never really put ourselves into the exact same mindset as the next hunter". So, coexistence may very well be the very best we can even hope for.

And so, what chance does a hunter, fisherman or trapper have. I always have suspected that everytime anyone goes out hunting, fishing or trapping, they likely are breaking some law that they didn't have a clue existed, or that they have misinterpreted because of sloppy wording and ambiguity. We seem to be constantly "set up" by the legal system. However, we do look to enforcement officers to be an authority on the legal code they are enforcing. If they are not, they are not doing their job.

I prefer a ground blind pulled together with natural local materials. I have been down out of the trees for a couple of decades now.

Or better yet, how about he says, "I'm not sure but hang on a second while I call regional headquarters and get an answer for you." There really is no excuse for any law enforcement officer to not know what it is that he is supposed to be enforcing. And at the very least, there should never be a situation where he cannot almost instantly get the proper interpretation with a simple phone call.

Any other success stories?

A spike

Ok, so some hunter sees you walking through the woods with a full-size body draped over your shoulder. I wonder how long it would be before the cops arrived....lol.

I understand that there can be some growing pains when a new law is being implemented. But, I would think that an agency charged with the responsibility of enforcing laws would be staffed with people who are experts on every aspect of that law. There are things that can be done in parallel and don't always have to be done in series, so there is no reason why you should ever get the "I don't know" answer. These guys should be fully up to speed by now. Even if they have to carry around a cheat sheet for a few weeks, or carry a phone number to an expert, an answer should never be more than a few moments away. My gosh, if those guys don't have the answers, how on earth is a hunter supposed to abide by the law. That's ridiculous.

And if they have a gut shot to contend with and wait the prescribed 8 hours before even beginning the long difficult blood trailing in the 80+ degree temperatures, I wonder how many of them are simply left for coyote food when they finally find them .... lol