Doc

I have a policy when I suspect that there is a mentally deranged person in the area. That policy is to avoid further contact with him ..... lol. That might involve some inconvenience of hunting in areas farther from the lot-line, but would certainly be worth it to avoid any other incidents that might get even uglier. I know it doesn't seem right to give concessions to someone who acts in a crazy irrational manner, but believe me they don't make a deer that is worth some of the ugly ways that neighbor disputes can sometimes go.

Blaze orange saves lives. There are stats that show that. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00044112.htm The arguments against blaze orange that I have heard relate to a paranoid (my opinion) argument that mandatory blaze orange would lead to a slippery slope to the end of democracy as we know it....lol. There seems to be some that believe that any safety laws are a terrible infringement of civil liberties and to quote some, "we all have the right to be stupid". Well, to be blunt .... No you don't. Not on matters that affect those around you. There also is an argument that says that if blaze orange is mandatory, anything else in the woods that is not will automatically be shot. Well, that is a nice theory, but there has been no study that has proven that or even suggested that that notion is likely. Apparently the majority of states that do have some form of blaze orange law have not experienced that, but maybe it's something to investigate before passing any B/O law. Also, there is an argument that says that the deer can see blaze orange. Yes, there are all kinds of studies that say that they do not see blaze orange the way we see it. I can't say that I have ever seen a study that says that things shrouded in blaze orange become invisible to them. I have never read any study that claimed that the highly reflective color doesn't look like some glowing shade of white that doesn't blend in with the surroundings. I have never seen any studies that would indicate that the eye-catching flash of movement isn't enhanced by that color as far as catching their attention. Personally, I have had experiences that would support both theories. I have had deer approach me dressed head to toe in blaze orange and never recognize that I didn't belong .... as long as I didn't move. I have also had deer stop and become fixated on me for no other reason, that I could tell, other than that they saw a big flashy blob of something that looked completely out of place in "their" woods. I also have had cases where a slight movement of a very small exposed area of orange immediately caught their eye like I was waving some flashlight at them. So the question of what a deer sees when it sees an orange colored hunter is not all that clear to me. Frankly, for me it doesn't matter. Wearing blaze orange may require that I sharpen up my hunting skills a bit and be a bit more careful about movement and exposure. I can do that. What I can't do is to plug up a slug hole that some idiot puts in my body because I didn't have the intelligence to use a readily available, easy to use, piece of safety equipment. To me there is no deer that is worth my life or the use of major parts of my body. So my final choice would be to not argue a whole lot with mandatory blaze orange. For me it wouldn't be the end of the world.

If I were going out (and I'm not), I think I would get back to the trails leading to the current food sources. So far this late season has been absolutely dead quiet. I haven't heard a shot since regular season ended. The state parking lots are almost completely deserted. There is no indication that there even is a season open. So my guess would be that deer should be starting to move back into their pre-season patterns. The 5 deer on my front lawn the other day during legal shooting hours also indicates that.

I had to laugh when I opened up the latest issue of New York Outdoor News and found an article on this exact topic. That has happened before on a lot of other hot topics on this forum. It almost seems like they monitor this site to get ideas for their articles .... lol.

Yeah, I realize that with enough research, anyone can eventually find out what these hunts are really all about. But those non-hunters who have simply paused to view one of these things just out of curiosity is not going to launch an investigation to see if what we do is really being represented by these programs. The newbie hunter is probably not going to question what they see either. They just set their expectations on what is presented to them and most likely are set up for huge disappointment. In fact anyone watching these shows probably will do nothing more than watch them and form opinions based on exactly what they see. I also believe that the constant drumbeat of huge deer taken rather easily and quickly is having its effect on even more experienced hunters in terms of what their expectations and their demands are developing into.

I think that's what most are complaining about ..... the fact that they do pass it off as real hunting. And there is never any disclaimers to indicate otherwise, so the general non-hunting public that happens to stumble across those programs assumes that they represent what every hunter does. So, when we talk about challenge and such in our hunting, they kind of look at you sideways, and then change the subject .... lol. Also, new hunters pick up on unreasonable expectations when they enter the sport because they have been raised on these phoney-baloney programs. Also, I see more and more hunters driving themselves crazy trying to grow huge deer in open lands that look something like the pen-raised deer that they see harvested on TV. Also the expectations and demands that many hunters are now pursuing are being influenced by what they see on TV. I do understand why they have to take shortcuts and knock a lot of the challenge and time out of their hunting process. Let's face it, they have a weekly show to do. They need results. They have demanding sponsors that want to see action and not excuses. If they are going to be in that business, they have to be prolific and can't be bothered by rules and fair chase and everyone else's versions of hunting ethics. No, there absolutely is nothing illegal about what the TV hunter-heroes are doing (most of the time), but there is a false representation of what most of us do as hunters. And that will always be true whether we watch the shows or don't. So, if some hunters get a bit bent out of shape over the deceit and fakery that goes on, I guess I understand some of it.

Remember, safety measures are a two-way street. They are there to keep you from doing something foolish and most importantly from our own concerns of well-being, they are there to keep the guy who is drawing a bead on you from doing something foolish. Sometimes it really isn't all that wise to squeeze every part of a safety measure out. Frankly I do appreciate that little additional cushion when it comes to my safety.

Yes, the suspended coon is in a completely illegal set. Look I am an old trapper from way back, and I am proud to say so. However, it still is a good idea to use a bit of disgression when posting pics. You can pretty much tell what pics might be offensive to those that don't trap. There are times when you can be too graphic for our own good, and a poorly thought out picture certainly can convert a lot of non-trappers to anti-trappers. That's not something the activity needs these days.

I have no idea what that other animal is, but I will say that it is absolutely the silliest looking critter I have ever seen. That thing needs to be taken before it breeds or something.

I'll bet they get one heck of a discount on their fencing ... lol.

Here's something you don't see much of anymore ...... people waving at other people, even those they don't know. It was just kind of a nice greeting that didn't cost anything, but simply provided a friendly acknowledgement. Used to see that all the time out in farm country.

That's the beauty of re-loading. Guns have individual personalities and they don't always care about cost.

That's exactly right. What a difference in group sizes out of the same gun changes in load and components can make. It can be huge.

Well, you sure can't beat the price. Also, I have found Lee products to be pretty good quality. I'm not sure about dragging along all the materials and components for reloading while I am trying to shoot. But I can understand why he is doing it. On-the-fly evolution of loads while you instantly check the results for verification. Something to think about. I would start out with a supply of pre-sized and pre-primed cases, ready to go. That would cut down on time and baggage.

Any drives that I get involved with anymore are more like still hunting toward a standing hunting partner. They are very low-key activities. We have also done two-man still hunts separated just enough to still be within sight of each other, with one point man out ahead a bit. The one lagging behind is traveling through where the deer are expected to be bedded. The theory is that when a bedded deer spooks, their route of flight is usuall out ahead of the guy that spooked them and also the beginnings of a circle to get behind the intruder. It often works quite well. We have an area that is heavy mature hemlocks along a ravine that is about 200 feet deep with near vertical walls so escaping deer can only go straight ahead or off to the uphill side (where the other hunter is).

Ha-ha-ha ..... would you admit to it if you did?

Not that our school system is anything unique, but we have what they call "the late bus" which is an additional bus route (after the regular afternoon trip) that is primarily for all the after school activities (sports, etc). Imagine what that has to cost in additional bus driver wages and fuel. That's just crazy and un-necessary. I went to the same school years ago, and we had after school activities too, and it was up to parents to take care of transportation.

Yeah, I read where someone in the DEC was talking about how hunting would spread the hogs. And so, I immediately started wondering just how these Einsteins were proposing to slow or halt the spread. Are we supposed to just go out and pat them on the head and hope they all stay put and stop breeding? Maybe providing them with food so they don't leave the area ..... lol. I never heard the 2nd part of that brilliant statement that offers up what stops them if you dis-allow hunting. Basically what they were suggesting is to give up and let them reproduce. Oh and buy the way, the credibility of that statement was never backed up with regulations and laws to prohibit hunting them. In fact, they have publicly encouraged hunting by publicizing the fact that they are un-protected, unregulated and available for hunting with any hunting license. So I don't think they were putting a whole lot of stock in that particular statement. One thing is for sure ...... a dead hog doesn't reproduce.

I'll check that out. I haven't had a chance to go through my copy yet.

I have seen 4 different black squirrels so far this year.

There probably is no real official size limit when trying to define a "canned hunt". I generally figure if you can see prey species lounging around in the shade chewing their cud with their eyes half closed ....... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If you see a guy walking out into a barnyard banging the side of a grain pan with a wooden spoon and calling one of the animals by name ..... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If the prey animals are all congregated around a pan of food ..... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If you see a deer that can barely lift it's head because of the weight of its antlers ..... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If the animals to be hunted have ear-tags and collars..... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If the ground is worn down to dirt because of constant animal traffic ..... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If the animals walk up to the fence in front of you and stick their noses through for you to pet ... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If there is a barn and stalls supplied for the animal's shelter .... you're probably looking at a canned hunt. If you can use the fence for a gun-rest while you shoot the buffalo next to the watering trough .... you're probably looking at a canned hunt.

I would think the bigger problem has been the lack of snow. No, I am not fond of plowing my driveway, but when there is a coating of snow, those critters silhouette pretty darn nicely. This year I only had one day when there was enough snow on the ground to be of any benefit. Also, tracks in the snow do not lie when you are trying to assess what the heck the size of the herd is and where they are.

I just finished an article in the Sunday paper that describes an event to try to trim down the infestation of Burmese pythons in the Everglades. They sponsored a contest which awards $1000 for the longest snake, and $1500 for the most pythons. Interesting how a small amount of money ($2500) will provide an incentive for people to go after this particular invasive species. It woukld never be enough to coax me out into the everglades to play with snakes mind you ..... lol. But apparently they are expecting there to be enough participants to make a dent in the population. Of course that brought to mind our growing problem with one of our own invasive species, the wild boars that are taking up residence here. I wonder if some similar kind of "bounty system" could be implemented to encourage people to go after these critters? I don't know what the nuts & bolts of such a contest would be like, but it seems like something that maybe should be considered. This is better than a bounty system because you would only have two minor actual payouts instead of a chunk of money on each head. I know we have a law that prohibits state sponsored "bounties", but perhaps this kind of contest is different enough to not be considered a bounty. Or if that is really a problem, perhaps one of our private conservation clubs or coalition of clubs could take up the effort. $2500 ..... cheap enough for implementing a contest to help rid us of this potential environment scourge.

I would think it would be pretty tough to set your bow up to hunt nights. Seems like something Iwould like to experiment with....lol.

It's been quite a few years since I have seen any ticks (thankfully). I hate them things!