Doc

That is weird! I've never seen them shed in that kind of pattern. Great pic!

I did take advantage of that cold-snap to get out, dressed in some of my heavier cold-weather gear to do some shooting. I have some issues to work out on that. I have not been able to detect any actual interferences, but there is something about having a lot of heavy clothing that causes restrictions in stance and draw and other pieces of my shooting form that have a severe effect on where the arrows fly. It's just not the same as shooting in a tee-shirt. I think I need some more cold mornings to work that all out. Doc

I wouldn't mind it if they actually tried to pass on some tips here and there, but they don't even try to do that anymore. It's all one big infomercial that features fictional hunting. But this latest dopey attempt at commercializing hunting is worse than useless. I think it is even bad for hunting and the attitudes of hunters. But then, that's just my perspective. Doc

This is the first indicator of the coming ice age. It's being caused by all the cut-backs in the aerosol propellants that used to keep us all nice and toasty.

I wonder if the ink is water-soluble. Perhaps moisture from sweat, atmosphere or other sources is disolving the ink. My guess is that the printers used for licenses are ink printers just like mine here at home. And the ink is water-soluble.

I have seen this point made several times over the lives of these AR threads, and I have never seen anyone rebut it. It seems there is something really wrong with the notion that AR is such a popular concept when apparently so few actually practice it. Why is there never any response to this point?

See, I knew that was the attitude ...... "That's not my situation, so that's not my problem. I'll get mine and the hell with everybody else". I do appreciate you admitting it. Doc

Yeah, and how about the 17 year old first timer. Or the 22 year old first timer. Or the 30 year old first timer. Or the 75 year old guy just looking for that one last buck. Or how about the hard working stiff that is lucky if he can squeeze a Sunday off here and there for hunting. Do you people ever even think about those hunters? Sure you have a right to push for whatever you want. You don't have to think about whatever hardship your trophyism might cause others. Not your problem ...... right?

My wife bought me a pair a couple of years back. Aluminum tubular frames with rubber/canvas webbing. I wasn't all that impressed. They're a bit hard to maneuver, and they still sink into the snow a whole lot more than I thought they would. Of course, bear in mind that I know nothing about snow-shoeing, so I'm probably not a good one to be offering opinions. I do have another possible alternative. Have you considered cross-country skis? Again this coming from someone who is totally ignorant on the subject, but I figured as long as you are still at the planning stage, you might want to look into those as another winter possible snow-hiking aid. Doc

I can see the hunters now with great big sponsor logos on their camo, walking around looking like the side of a Nascar race car. ;D Don't these jerks understand that hunting has been commercialized enough already without this kind of nonsense? They're trying their darndest to turn it into a spectator sport. Ever try to imagine what hunting will look like 50 years from now? I can sure conjure up some rather humorous images (and some that are not all that humorous) that unfortunately may not be all that far from what the whole thing eventually evolves into. Can't happen? ........ Within my lifetime, I have seen some ridiculous wild changes to hunting that I never would have believed would ever happen. Doc

Dick Henry, the guy who wrote the artice, is a recently retired big game biologist from the DEC. He knows his stuff. There's a lot of people who "know their stuff" including a few in the DEC, that don't seem to agree with the premise of the article. But then I suppose that a person would have to fancy themselves as a bit of an expert themselves in order to know whether somebody really "knows their stuff" ..... lol. But in the end, it all turns out to be a "my biologist is smarter than your biologist" kind of argument. Not terribly meaningful and frankly, I'm not impressed. However as much as I am not really an expert in the field, I feel pretty secure in predicting that the deer herd will most likely get along just fine for the next century and probably a few after that without AR, inspite of all the "sky is falling" claims from all the self-proclaimed "experts". How on earth is it that we still have all these deer running around, and even a surplus of them occasionally? Doc

Yes, I am looking at some of that "needed rain" pouring down right now.

The deer read those posted signs and have figured that it must be safe in there. Wise hunters understand these things and put their stands where they can look into posted land and shoot those posted-sign reading deer. Of course guys hunting along property lines know that the posted signs don't pertain to them, so if they have to go over and drag the deer back over to their own side, it's not really a problem.

No, I was replying to erussell's comment about Alabama, not western states. However your comments about NYS are on target . Doc

This is a perfect example of how hunting is turning the focus on hunter vs. hunter competition. I hate it! This is what is making hunting a cut-throat activity that has hunters all jockeying for advantages over each other and climbing over each other's backs just to out-do each other. The whole mentality is strangling hunting.

I'm never ready. I've got all year to organize things and build things and do all the things that I will wish I had done, and I still never seem to have enough time to feel like I am completely all set.

Apparently some states do put their money where their mouth is when it comes to wildlife management. NY will never have that level of management because they are too busy giving away all the money to anyone who asks for it, and also supporting a bloated monstrous bureacracy. Too bad but that's the penalty for living in a pinko state. Doc

Yeah, I think it is a good idea to make the distinction between anti-hunters and non-hunters. I have no particular use for anti-hunters. Their minds are made up, and they are the more aggressive, militant style, of in-your-face people. Non hunters simply don't hunt. They don't want to for any number of legitimate reasons and they are not on any social campaigns to rid the world of the practice of hunting. I can live with that. Not only that, but occasionally there is a chance of winning over a convert. That is not a possibility with the anti-hunters.

How do glasses work when using a peep sight? Any problems?

For deer hunting, a logging operation is the best thing that could happen. The new browse that will come up in future seasons will draw deer like a magnet. The tops (if left) will provide great cover and the benefits of the whole thing will be there for quite a few years. The bad news is exactly what everybody else was saying. The same year as the logging, there may be a bit to much activity. Also, any patterning that you have done will be trashed as deer trails get diverted and covered with tops. Also food sources may change with a lot of new ones being opened up. The good news is that all these inconveniences are temporary. Overall ......... it's a good thing.

I'm glad this thread was started. You all kind of reminded me that it would be a good idea to get mine set up so the deer can get used to it. I'll be getting busy on that as soon as I get the rain to stop long enough to get out there. Thanx for the reminder! Doc

Of course it would be a good idea to speak first with someone with a bunch of years in the driveway business, but here's my thought on the trench idea. Depending of course on the nature of the soil you're putting the driveway over, digging a trench and filling it with gravel may just provide a gravel filled "canal". If the grond is predominantly clay, a trench filled with gravel could actually contain the water under the driveway until it slowly leached through the clay. That's why I suggested that a slightly raised driveway with ditches on the side would conduct water away from the driveway area and leave a fairly thick, high and dry, well-drained, road-bed. I don't know ..... that's what worked well for me with some very extreme water conditions. But like I said, I would talk to somebody who has actual experience in putting in driveways in all kinds of ground conditions and see what they suggest. Doc

Every stand I build is a maximum of 20 yards from the trail that I am watching. Of course, deer don't always stay on trails and bucks are notorious for walking crosswise to trails when they are doing their scent-checking thing for does. So, I am still forced to make a judgement call on how far I will shoot. I have a 30 yard pin on my bow, and that is as far as I feel 100% competent and as sure as anyone actually can be that things will go well on the deer's end of the shot. Doc

Unfortunately, that's not exactly what they said. They left out stating flat out that bait has to have a "food" component to it and all else is legal. By the time you get done reading all that crap, you kind of come away with the idea that that is what they are getting at but for some reason laws are generally written up in the most confusing way they can think of.

Here was my experience with my pop-up that I got last year. I set the thing up nested neatly into some pines. I thought it was good enough ..... lol. A group of several does came out at the lower end of my small field (about 150 yards away) they moved up the field and at about 100 yards, the one larget doe stopped and began the old head bobbing, foot stomping, routine. Everybody but her was fooled. By the time she got done, they all took off although I think the others really didn't know what her problem was. The next day, I set it all back up again, except this time I tucked it back behind the limbs of the pine trees, and brushed it all in with goldenrod. When I got done, it was an absolute perfect camo job. In fact about a wek later when I finally decided to try out the new set-up, I actually got a bit confused for a few minutes as to where I put it. It was a good set-up and is the way I should have done it in the first place. But this time, nobody showed up. So, the moral of the story is camo or not, those things still stick out. Do your absolute best job of concealing and brushing it all in right from the first time you use it. I'll be trying it out again this year. Doc