Doc

Yes I walked part way down the driveway and turned around to get a picture looking back at the house and yard .... That was the first picture. The other three were taken sequentially as I walked down through until the water started getting over my boots. I just looked out a few minutes ago this morning, and while it is so dark that I can't be sure, the water is still there. I'll have to check it out in a bit.

Ha-ha .... even back in the olden days (60's) and even with simple bows like recurves, I learned early that any weapon can malfunction, and the frequency of making visual checks can avoid some horrible outcomes. That old bear whitetail hunter taught me that when a frayed string let go at full draw once. Since that exciting day, I have picked up on more darn potential failures that could have turned to personal injury and/or tremendous expensive inconveniences. So there are a few things that I do inspect everytime I pick up the bow. The wax/mud/crud build-up is just one of those things that I pay attention to. And yes, if you are noting frequent problems with wax impacting in cam grooves, it may be time to start backing off on the frequency of waxing. I personally have not experienced this as a problem, but I certainly could see how it might happen.

I suppose everyone has to do whatever they have confidence in. As for myself, I have dealt with ground stands where I have removed every leaf, stick and twig that I might step on while at that stand. Guess what..... when ever I go to the stands, I have to do it all over again because leaves that were in the trees when I cleaned out the stands are now all over the ground that I cleaned. The other thing that I discovered with exposed earth is that on those 20 degree days, the frost lifts the dirt into nice crunchy chunks of dirt/ice that makes way more noise than any leaves ever made. Creating trails? ..... you can count on the deer using those trails, so it had better be cleverly guided past your stand, or you are going to be confronted with a whole lot of face shots. Another thing is that I do not place my stands where I expect the deer to be when I come in. My entrance direction is not where I expect deer to be. My stands are generally placed on travel routes where I am hoping the deer will pass by after I am in my stand. If a deer is close enough to hear me coming in, I consider that I have screwed up and placed my stand in the wrong place. That is kind of like trying to put a stand inside a bedding area. That doesn't very often work well.

There is no reason to regulate corn. For one thing, most of the deer bait being sold is not corn. For another thing those that may be conducting an out-of-state hunt may want to buy the product here before they leave. They should have the ability to do that. Also it must be remembered that the product has not been deemed illegal. It is the act that is deemed illegal. Someone said that calling for these kinds of regulations had a parallel to gun control. I didn't catch on when I read that, but now thinking about it, he had a valid point. We are calling for establishing an illegal status for a "thing" when in reality it is the illegal use of the product that needs regulation. Also, legal users of corn and mineral blocks do not need another layer of regulation to go through. If we are serious about eliminating baiting, then enforcement of that law is the answer. There is another aspect of all this that should be addressed. That is for people to stop justifying and ignoring law-breakers when they spot them, regardless of whether you agree with the law or not. Baiting is a very visible, blatant, and obvious violation. It is very hard for someone to conduct baiting without someone eventually seeing or hearing about it. Enforcement would be a whole lot effective if people would report law breaking when they see it. We don't need additional regs.... just better enforcement of what's already on the books.

My Driveway-

I heard that some parts of Honeoye are flooded. Rain just refuses to stop. I think we will be having problems pretty soon.

I would think that cable channels are just another of the things that you have to keep track of. The problem is that there is no recommended frequency of waxing that can guarantee that you always have enough wax in the string and guarantees that the buildup is not occurring without frequent visual checks. So my approach is generous waxing and frequent inspections of all parts of the bow. But I suppose anything can be over-done. It is good you mentioned the clogging of cam grooves. That's something people might not pay enough attention to.

I try not to make that much of a disturbance around my stands. Perhaps that is being a bit overly cautious, but I simply try to minimize whatever noises that I may make. Yes, it takes a bit more patience and care on the approach, but I generally use my best still-hunting techniques and hope that is good enough. One of the reasons that I struggle my way into the stands in the dark is to get all hunkered in and let the area "settle down" a bit before shooting light.

Could you elaborate on the idea of over-waxing? I'm trying to picture what harm that could do.

I've never heard of such a study. There are so many different factors that go into deer take that I doubt you would be able to draw any conclusions about rifle vs. shotgun except maybe over a long period of time. It's an interesting thing to ponder. My guess would be that there are some accuracy advantages to rifles so that may mean that more of the deer shot at are harvested. Probably the added range of rifles wouldn't be of much effect since most deer in NY are seen at shotgun distances in wooded or brushy areas. I don't know..... good question.

That fox is in great shape. I got a picture of a red fox the other day, and his fur was very thin. He wasn't mangy, but something was up with the thinly furred tail. Just didn't look good at all compared with the little guy in your picture. By the way, the quality of those pictures is quite impressive.

Simply pointing out your lie. Sorry you got caught. But those deer hanging in that picture show quite clearly that your crap about passing up deer of the quality that Stubby posted is simply BS. Obviously you don't and you even provided picture proof of it. It's unfortunate that you feel the need to stretch the truth just so you can feel better about yourself, but you should feel good that at least one member here reads and remembers the crap you post here.....lol. Anyway, enough said. It serves no purpose to continue conversing with you. Your credibility is shot.

What the heck has been chewing on that pole?

I went last year. It was great. Farming really is not the same industry that I knew as a kid. The equipment and techniques are pretty darn "space-age" now and absolutely fascinating to look at. So many things that we used to do by hand are simply a push of a button now. I would recommend checking this huge event out to anyone. You don't have to be a farmer to be dazzled with the technology.

The wax sits right next to my bow rack, so I do wax it frequently. Also, you can kind of tell by looking at it when it is drying out. If you notice your string looking dry, you have not been waxing it enough. It simply is a way of keeping it pliable and also protected from the elements. Takes only a few seconds and adds to string life.

I have to point out that the more you respond to this guy, the more BS he will continue spewing. Understand that he needs this kind of nonsense. It apparently is the only way he gets through the day. I would suggest that you just leave him babbling off in a corner as the others here have done. Don't feed the troll.

We've dealt with these kinds of guys before, and it turns out that like a typical troll, he feeds on the attention and somehow thinks that making enemies here is some kind of thing to be admired. I'm beginning to find his bragging style of conversation to be a bit tiresome and boring. He does seem to have this delusional super-hero persona. Who really wants to converse that that?

Talk about stating the obvious..... lol.

But it was just the other day when you were claiming that you pass the kinds of deer that Stubby had pictured. I guess that wasn't exactly true was it? Sorry if I embarrassed you.

What a tangled deal that would wind up being. Farm outlet stores would be legal to sell corn, minerals, and salt blocks, etc., but outdoor stores could not. Can you imagine the legal challenges and entanglements that sort of regulating would cause? I'm not sure of the gun control analogy, but it sure would be a messy law.

What a great idea! A listing of shooting sports clubs with contact, location and other details. Now if we can just get people to offer up that info here, we maybe will be able to construct a useful listing for members that are looking for some place to shoot, compete, or just hang out.

So once the flutes of that head get clogged with hide, hair and meat, you essentially have a "blunt" ......right? Legal? ..... I suppose so. It's hard to really tell from the picture, but it looks like the back of the blade is 90 degrees to the axis of the shaft. That makes it technically meet the minimum legal requirements.

Ha-ha..... Are those the huge trophies that we have been hearing so much bragging about?

Time will tell. I have heard all the theorizing and arguments for or against. Now, if the stats are kept and analyzed, we will start getting a real picture of whether the fears were justified or just overactive imaginations. One thing is for sure.... any reversals in our current safety success is sure to be blamed on rifles. I have some mis-givings in certain areas and situations, but there is no way to be certain one way of the other without just "doing it".

I believe the sale of these materials is legal because of the fact that people can buy them for out-of-state hunts. Of course we all know what is really going on, but that is the justification that is used for the legal selling of materials (and equipment) that is illegal for NYS use. Apparently there is not enough opposition to support getting the law amended to include sales.