Doc

Exactly the same thing that I have observed. Even as a kid, before I was old enough to hunt, I remember waiting for the bus and hearing an almost constant barrage of shooting. And yet they claim that there are so many more deer these days than there was back then. There certainly seemed to be a lot more hunters in the woods. Today there is a flurry of shots from well before legal shooting hours until around 9:00 or 10:00 and then it really starts to get quiet. And like you said, once the opening weekend is over, state parking lots are almost deserted. I don't think we have a shortage of license holders, but we do have a shortage of dedicated enthusiastic hunters that are out hunting hard and as often as they can. The bad news .... there are always just enough guys out to keep the deer in a survival mode, so nothing gets any easier as far as finding deer out in their normal daylight patterns. Not enough guys to keep the deer moving, but enough to keep them spooked. It will be interesting to see how the addition of rifles in our county will effect the participation. I have been hearing guys from all around the valley sighting in their rifles (at least I hope that's all they are doing .... lol). So there might be a brief re-birth of enthusiasm this year.

If there is anyway that you can get an experienced loader to sit down with you, by all means, do it. There are so many things that can be read wrong, or mis-understood that someone watching or instructing you could head off for you. I did all the reading first and then had my Brother-in-law sit down and watch while I first reloaded, and he gave me some tips that weren't in the books, or that were in the books but I hadn't really understood them right. He saved me messing up a lot of components and perhaps even creating some dangerous loads.

First time out with a rifle? ..... You bet I'm psyched! I had deer all bow season that have been just out of bow range. Boy do I have a surprise for them. There is a lot of pressure to figure out exactly the right spot for a stand. I have several real good spots that have been traditionally pretty good. But opening day is a very special time in the season. It has to be done right. A mistake of choosing the wrong stand could make the difference between getting a good buck or not. Yeah, there is a lot of luck involved, but that opening morning stand selection can go a long ways toward putting that luck on my side. My thoughts and energies are starting to slip out of archery mode and into gun mode right now.

Anybody ever consider that this might just be another case of a deer "jumping the string"? From video that I have seen, there is no doubt in my mind that it is a very real possibility. Especially a deer turning and dropping to flee.

I'm passing on this morning's stand and am going to use the snow to figure out where the deer are hanging out. From what I saw last night, there ought to be some pretty darn good tracking snow. It's time to get schooled.

Ha-ha .... older deer are smarter deer. I've been looking at pictures of an incredible 8 point that shows up pretty regularly at 1:30 in the morning. AR or no AR, nothing is going to make them stupid. They quickly figure out the safety of nocturnal habits. A little related side-question: I have to wonder how many of these critters succumb to the battles when bigger and older bucks start crowding each other's territories..... not only outright lethal battle wounds, but also the excessive physical exertion from too many violent fights just before the rigors of winter set in. Has anyone ever checked those kinds of mortality losses. Just a little thought that I have always wondered about. Anyway, anyone who expects that AR will produce common sightings of book-buck everywhere, has probably been watching too much Saturday morning TV on the Outdoor Channel .... lol.

Well, I know I sure wouldn't want to get hit with the thing, but I guess I'm just getting the pre-season jitters. I hate to mess-with-success, but I just had to get into the rifle thing this year since it's now legal in Ontario County. But as usual, with change comes a bit of uneasiness. Thanks for the reassurances.

I am amazed again this year at the scarcity of rubs and scraps in our area and yet my trail cams are showing that there are a pile of bucks of all sizes around. What the heck is making these guys so darn bashful? I saw this last year too. Compared to years ago, the rut sign is almost non-existent but the quantity of bucks seems to be more than ever.

Ok, bear in mind that I have never shot a deer with anything but a 12 gauge slug, and this is my first year with a rifle. So I am looking at a 12 gauge slug in one hand and my little .270 cartridge in the other, and some obvious questions pop into my head. At 60 yards and under, when I shoot a deer with the shotgun and hit just behind the shoulder, the deer either drops right there or takes off on a dead run for 50 to 100 yards and skids chin first into the dirt. What reaction can I expect when I make the same shot with my .270? Looking at that tiny little hole in the target starts some nasty little questions rolling around in my head. I'm just looking for a bit of first hand experiences from those of you that have taken significant numbers of deer with rifles, particularly with the smaller calibers.

Isn't it funny that we have no problems shooting wild canines like coyotes and foxes, but when it comes to a domestic dog doing exactly the same kinds of behavior and with much less need, we get all wimpy and worried about the dog's welfare. Frankly, if some of these owners would just show half as much compassion about their animals in terms of keeping them under control, there wouldn't be anyone considering shooting them. You all want to worry about the welfare of something, just consider the fate of the deer that these dogs are chasing. It has to be quite a horrible death to run the gauntlet over considerable distance, having chunks of meat pulled out of your hindquarters until you finally fall down from exhaustion and have the job of being eaten alive completed. I saw it once, and it was a pitiful and completely unnecessary sight. We worry about the results of an errant bullet or arrow that wounds and eventually kills a deer and yet, completely down-play this prolonged torture inflicted by dogs allowed to run wild.

Any deer as big or bigger than a beagle will chase deer if unattended. It is just in their nature. They are not doing it from hunger either. Yes, labs have that same chasing and killing urge as any dog. Our years of sheep farming taught us that......no rabies required...lol.

All day there has been a constant roar of the winds, and I pity anyone who is trying to hunt out of a treestand today. It basically would be all moving shots even if the deer were standing still.....lol. That is if you could shoot while having one arm wrapped tight around the tree.

Don't underestimate how much the game laws are influenced by state history, tradition and hunter opinions. The various game management agencies from each state have to take into consideration the politics of their decisions. Right or wrong, hunters are their primary population control tools, and the agencies have to pay attention to many of the old institutionalized techniques. Imagine walking into Texas and telling them that baiting is going to be outlawed. I think they would have a rebellion on their hands. Each state has to do what it must do and that doesn't make any of them more right than the rest, and the decisions are not always based on a biological basis, especially if the outcomes are judged to be insignificant. As far as the more restrictive laws that we have, I have no real problems living with them. I have spent a lifetime hunting under them, and to me none of them are any real hardship. I don't want or need my every hunting need to be coddled, and I think the challenge here is just about right.

Yes, I put that "standing still" qualifier in there because I pretty much don't take any shots anymore unless the target animal is standing still or walking very slowly. A man's gotta know his limitations .... lol.

This back end of the bowseason has been a big disappointment. The wind and rain is starting to get to be a bit ridiculous with no end in sight. Not that that is unusual for late October and early November .... lol. I have learned one thing this year ..... Just because we have an extra long season, it doesn't pay to waste any of those early days. It was easy to make excuses about how it was too hot or too this and too that. I wish I had some of those days back now .... lol.

I used this day for checking out my gun stands and getting them all fixed up and ready for Saturday. I dragged my bow along just in case something weird happened, but it seemed like a more suitable day for getting things organized for the up-coming gun season.

What's the problem? Just buy a half acre and trespass on everybody else's land. Isn't that the way it's done these days? .... lol.

My cameras are showing just as many deer (in fact a lot more bucks) and they are all showing up after dark, where just a month or so ago, there was activity all day long. My theory? ... the leaves are down now and cover has evaporated. Perhaps they are a bit more aware of just how much they stick out. Also food sources are in the middle of change right now. Patterns have changed. Also, the woods is full of hunters (small game and bow). Also, rut movements are kicking in. Bow season is an extreme time of change in deer patterns.

Any reason why you have to check your gun exactly where you intend to hunt?

I have been shooting my .270 a lot since I bought it. It's just fun to shoot. But it would be a good idea to do a bit of practice of my bi-pod shooting sticks just to see how well that works. I have my gun zeroed at 100 yards. That is probably farther than most of my shots will be, but it seemed like a good place to have it given the terrain and density around here. What distance do you all set yours at? Probably sounds like a dumb question, but this is my first year with a deer rifle. At this point I am just full of dumb questions .... lol.

Yeah, but all summer long including just a couple weeks ago, they have been wandering around all times of the day. This has been a rather sudden change Seems kind of weird.

The good ol' head-shots are exactly what came to mind when I saw that picture in another thread of a deer wandering around with an arrow stuck through it's head. They blew a big old broadhead right through the head of that critter and never touched anything that would directly kill it. Pretty close to that tiny brain target, but not quite git'n-er-done. Nasty result. There is a lot of stuff in the head and neck that is just plain non-lethal (at least not immediately lethal).

Last time I checked the cameras (yesterday) out of 157 deer pictures, not a one of them (buck or doe) was in daylight hours. Not even one. That is a first for this year. That covered about one week of time.

I read the study by that Minnesota outfit, and I agree that high speed rifle bullets will fragment when they hit something. Their claim that shotguns are less safe than rifles was completely based on the fact that ricochets from a slug hold together longer. However, that is just one aspect of the travel of the projectile. I think they came up a bit short on proving the case that rifles are more safe than shotguns. But both sides of the argument carry enough unknowns that I figured it is worth a try. We'll see what the trial period brings. I just hope everybody keeps a little concern in their minds before pulling the trigger or this may turn out to be a very short experiment and I will have bought a very nice rifle for nothing.

I have a camera that overlooks a trail very near the house. Yesterday, I got a picture of a couple of jerks walking their dog through the posted line right onto our driveway at a point where the whole yard and house are completely visible. It's a wonder I didn't lose that camera. What a brazen act of trespass. If you look close, you can see through the spruce, the corner od a yellow metal posted sign. What you can't see (but they clearly can) is the sign on the back side of the apple tree that they are walking right past.