Doc

I swear they can tell time. And one of them must have a copy of the hunting regulations. Also I believe they have a calendar hidden out there somewhere. In previous years I have seen those critters come out on my lawn to feed on my shrubs in broad daylight on the exact day following the end of the season. How do they do that??? Doc

I would check one thing before going out. If you are in a "shotgun only" area, check out any regulations about having a center-fire rifle afield during a deer season in such areas. I'm not sure but I seem to recall some sort of restriction in that regards. Maybe somebody knows more on that. Doc

All done??? Can't we get another 68 pages out of this one? ;D ;D ;D

Yeah, but in all fairness, that was the second Monday of the season. It doesn't surprise me much when things get quiet on a weekday that far into the season. What I find kind of noteworthy (and disturbing) is when opening day shooting starts to shut down around 9:00, and other weekend days and even Thanksgiving morning starts to get so quiet compared to previous decades. That's when I start to wonder what the heck is going on. By the way, seeing 11 deer on the 2nd Monday of the season without anyone out there to keep them moving, isn't really all that bad in my estimation. Sounds like you have a decent spot. Doc

Should we do another 500 replies on crossbows (34 pages on just one of the threads)? Starts pretty easy doesn't it? Somebody lays out for the hundredth time some thought that they figured sounded pretty profound (as though one more repeating of the same line would magically convert it to fact), and then a dummy like me comes along and picks up the bait.... ;D . I think I'll set that bait back down now before we wind up boring each other with another 500 repeat arguments . Doc

No, as long as I was able to salvage most of the meat, I figured that between the doe earlier and this buck, I have gotten my share of venison for the year. I did consider taking it over to the region 8 headquarters and seeing if I could get an opinion on what caused the wounds. But I decided against it because the earliest I could get to it would have been Sunday morning and trying to find someone credible there on a Sunday didn't seem too likely ;D . Plus it is a pretty good drive over there with a stinky old goat in the back of an SUV. Doc

Somehow when it comes to drinking and hunting, I really prefer that people be a little judgemental. After all, it is a subject that involves judgement. Good for the members here for speaking their minds on the subject, and thank you for being the second one to get the opinions of condemnation going. Doc

I think hunting the Adirondacks is one of the great things that I have missed in my life. I have spent a lot of time up there during the summer months hiking, camping and fishing and I have heard a lot of you describe that kind of hunt and I'm sure it would have been something that I would have really enjoyed (with or without a kill). I think in order to do it right, it is a bit beyond my physical abilities now, but I certainly do appreciate the appeal of that kind of hunt, and I really love the descriptions of those who have done it. So when someone asks if Adirondack deer hunts are worth it, I don't doubt for a minute that the answer has to be yes. To me it sounds like a quality hunt.

Ha-ha.... I think if you also refer back to the first immediate "opinions", yours was the second. I also noted that on several of the replies, sits himself got into the old opinion game (imagine that on a forum ..... lol). Warranted???? ...... How about "expected". But anyway, opinions were not asked for but were offered ...... So what?

Yes, I think there are definite features on a crossbow that relate to a gun, but I still don't think that anyone is giving "a spin on the definition of a crossbow as a gun". I think that anyone with decent vision can see that a crossbow is not a gun and is not a bow. And, I don't know anyone who is really confused on that point. There are those that would blur the lines on those definitions, but a crossbow is a unique and specific weapon that should not be confused with either a bow or a gun. Doc

Some of these deer just don't know how many antlers they're supposed to be growing. ;D I think he went past his quota by a few.

I wonder if you might have some liability if someone got hurt while using your stand ....... even without permission. I think I would not leave a stand installed on public land. Also, those things are a bit too expensive to leave behind. I would not be surprised to see it sprout legs one of these days. You may very well be fortunate that it was only the scent-bombs that were taken. As far as the mess left behind, it seems that I never spend much time on state land without coming out with pockets full of wrappers, cans, bags, zip-lok bags, surveyors tape and all kinds of trash that someone has thrown down on the ground. It's crazy! And by the way, it is not just hunters that do this. The hikers and bikers that swarm all over our little chunk of state land all summer seem to be pretty big litter-bugs too. There's no excuse for that kind of mess, but there also doesn't seem to be any way of stopping it. Doc

I didnt pull out an "imaginary dictionary" and come up with anything. Ive posted the definitions of crossbows in the past, use google and look it up for yourself. FITA and most of the other major archery organizations consider a crossbow to be archery equipment. I dont see you saying the same thing when someone gives a spin on the definition of a crossbow as a gun. I wonder why? Pretty convenient that you start your brow beating only when someone disagrees with your opinion. : Like I said, Id like to see all archery equipment in archery season. I'm not browbeating anyone, and by the way, I have never said that a crossbow is a gun. In fact, I have never seen anyone saying that a crossbow is a gun. I have no idea where you come up with this stuff. It must be from that imaginary dictionary that says that a crossbow is a bow and belongs in bow season.

I have first hand experience of being in that situation. It's not fun. My experience was with deep snow on a steep unmaintained mountain road. We wound up walking off the hill and down into Naples to buy a set of chains and then climbing back up the hill to put them on and get the heck out of there. At the top of the road, there was a steep stretch that turned out to be a point of no return. After sliding down that 50 yards, like a bobsled totally out of control, we knew we were in trouble. I knew there was no going out the bottom because of twisting steep areas, so the only way out was to somehow get back up the stretch we had just slid down. Of course that was impossible. So we had to hike down into Naples for the tire chains. We turned around in an old driveway used for logging after we got the chains on. That did the trick and we made it back up that steep part, but the entire day's hunt was wrecked. Doc

Has anyone ever seen a slug wound that was about 8 to 10 inches in diameter that obliterated the poop-chute and all that area around it? The confusion is because, as I explained, I did not include the picture of that wound because I decided it would be in poor taste. It's just a bloody mass of ripped up meat. However, I can assure you that it was no slug wound or broadhead wound or an antler wound. To be blunt, the ass end was eaten out of this deer while it was alive. The whole area under the tail and completely across the whole white area on the rear was missing for about an inch or better deep. I will agree that the other wounds could have been made in several different ways, but that big rump wound has only one explanation, Unless somebody is shooting explosive ammo ;D . Perhaps this animal was the world's most unlucky deer and was the victim of two or more different kinds of wounds, but I don't think so. Most likely what ever happened to that big area on his back end is related to the two wounds on the neck and the one in the side of the ham. By the way, I lost a heck of a lot of meat on those roasts.

Opinions posted on an internet forum is not being self righteous. You want legal advice check with a lawyer. You want opinions check out internet forums. You want to talk about booze and hunting, expect that not everyone is going to see that as a positive thing and most will darn quick let you know how they feel. If you want to call that self-righteous, then feel free to twist that term as far as you want.

The ones that I posted weren't particularly bad. The one that I decided not to post (the butt-shot) was particularly gross. I determined it wasn't appropriate for this forum. Doc

I have never seen a shot that blew a 10" diameter chunk of skin and meat off the back side of a deer.....lol. Also, each of the other wounds were long (3 to 4 inches long) and narrow ..... nothing like a slug hole. Also I ruled out archery wounds because of the number of them. Also, the age of these wounds look older than anything made since gun season began. Actually, I have seen wounds of this kind before back when we used to have sheep and dogs got into them. These are tearing wounds not punctures which is consistant with canine attacks. Doc

I love it when these discussions degenerate into people pulling out their imaginary dictionarys and trying to declare their personal versions of term definition. It happens about a dozen times in each one of these crossbow threads. Look, just admit that you want to jam weapons other than bows into bowseason and be done with it. That I understand and we don't have to sit there and parse every syllable and play the Clinton game of defining what the meaning of "is" is.........again.

Ha -ha that is funny. The same thing was running through my mind. As the protest kept growing with each reply, I started getting the same idea that maybe there is no "friend" ...... and yea Doc, you just never let us down, this is pretty much the school yard response i would expect from you, Oh, lighten up a bit! for crying out loud. You seem to be the only one here that is trying to defend the booze and gunpowder mix. And you keep going on and on about it as if you are looking for approval. Thankfully, I don't think you will find too many that do approve, but don't be getting upset if you happen to get a few opinions on a forum. It's kind of what forums are for. Doc

Ha -ha that is funny. The same thing was running through my mind. As the protest kept growing with each reply, I started getting the same idea that maybe there is no "friend" ......

And yet today, in NYS thousands of hunters are wandering around the woods asking each other where all the deer went ..... lol. They do seem to learn something when those first shots go off opening morning, and many of them seem to be quite adept at making fools of us all. I suspect that boils down to something beyond just instinct. Doc

I would. I would like to see shows that I can relate to. And maybe a show here and there that has some real useful info. If these guys are such "experts", what is wrong with doing a bit of education along the way. Frankly, I could get into shows that focus on certain specific aspects of hunting. For example, how many of us know everything there is about blood trailing, or scouting and all the interpretation of various kinds of sign, and how about all the decisions that go into stand placement in different circumstances. Or how about a show on the selection and use of trail cams or other pieces of hunting equipment. I like the Deer & Deer-hunting style shows where they actually try to tell you something interesting and/or useful. Yeah, I would like to see some of that "actual work" in real average hunting areas and hunting situations. I do not really get off on the rather boring parade of ridiculous farm-raised deer. Frankly, I think some of those genetic freaks look rather stupid. There is an awful lot of info about hunting that doesn't even involve shooting a deer that could be tailored to conditions that real actual hunters encounter every year. What I have found with most of these whitetail hunting shows is that they are predictable, routine, and just plain boring. Everything is the same except for the particular hunter-hero playing his role. You could pick any show from the past 20 years and replay it and everyone would think they were brand new. There is nothing memorable or unique about any one of them. Doc

These pictures are a bit graphic, and I left out the one that showed all the damage around the butt-hole. That one was really gross. The first pic is a wound on the left side of the neck. The 2nd is a similar wound on the right side of the neck. The 3rd is a wound on the rear flank. They are all deep and all around 3 or 4 inches long or maybe a bit longer. Doc

I'm thinking coyotes too or perhaps dogs. Over the past bunch of years we have had problems with dogs that people just let run free. Doc