NFA-ADK

Nice buck! Congrats, the first of many I am sure! Way to go!

Because the rut is close and chasing has begun anything can happen! A good drag line sounds awesome and could pull him in. Some doe in heat calls could seal the deal if they are not on a hot doe already. Use your climber if you can, it will keep your scent up high and limit them seeing you up close. Good luck, hope you get him! Or the other brute that will show up!!!

Welcome aboard! Great to have you! Congrats on the doe!

So you finally get your deer, what is your reaction when you come upon your downed game? How did you react to your first deer vs your last? Did you celebrate, feel sorrow for this beautiful animal or jump for joy and scream "I did it!"? How has your reaction changed as you progress in your experience? Deer one 2000 I finally connect with a buck after 13 years and hear a car key Ding after the shot? Ding Ding Ding?? All I could think was "I did not know deer made that noise after being shot!!!" Then I hear "he is down!" What the heck I said? I happened to shoot this deer next to a road that another hunter was driving on and luckily shot him before the road hunter did. His kid was funny and said it was like watching the outdoors channel. I was happy, shocked and elated with my first buck and later learned how to gut and that my first shot was through the heart. Congrats where given and we dragged the deer about 45 yards to the road, easiest drag I will probably ever have! I was on cloud 9 all week until the DEC officer gave me a ticket for not putting in the date, lol I was young, I needed the money. Stupid me in my excitement forgot to finish the tag date, now the first thing I try to do is fill my tag after I stop shaking. I took a 4 pt in Roscoe around 2007 and made a bad shot and had to finish the deer. Never before was I so down that I: 1 shot a young buck, 2 made a really poor shot choice. No celebrating this kill, I was really pissed off at myself. After 10 more years in this remote area (Moose River Plains) and many heart-brakes at my failed attempts to get another ADK Buck I finally connected with a brute in 2010 after missing another 2 days before. To say that my highs and lows drove me nuts would be an understatement. They always push me to improve! This buck taken in 2010 was really the culmination of many years of hunting and knowledge gained in books and by putting miles on my boots. When I actually saw the beauty and large rack of this mature deer I was in a bit of shock and aw. I think I screamed holy sht and are you kidding me? I think a loud YES was also given. If you where close you would have heard this. I was overjoyed at finally getting a mature buck and could not hold back my enthusiasm! I quickly called on the radio but produced nothing until a few minutes later my buddy Shawn called asking if that was any of us. I screamed "I got one!" Simply put I was in heaven! 2013 I connect with another beauty in the Dacks This was a young deer I debated on passing but he showed me 5 antler points on one side and it was my Birthday so he did not get a pass. After hiking to the last location I saw him I felt deep disappointment in not seeing where he went and got out the GPS to mark the spot, further inspection found the deer a few feet away from me to my left. No celebrating or jumping for joy on this deer. I was happy I took my 3rd buck in this remote area but felt bad for taking from the land and stated that out loud. In the tradition of the Benoit's and in memory of Larry I marked myself with the blood of my prey so our spirits can become one. I thanked my best friend Chris for his spirit was with me on that trip. It was an emotional hunt with some very deep feelings. 2015 After many years of hunting bucks only I was told I need to help with population control. I was given the green light to shoot any doe in range. I choose the one with twin buck fawns Again no celebration and I had little emotion on this kill as it was a high population area and I knew it was good for the land. I promise myself that I will always thank the deer for the adventures they take me on, for the regret of taking a life off the land and for the health that I have to continue to chase these amazing animals. I thank them for the bounty of food they provide and always promise to mark myself with the blood of my prey so our spirits will become one! I encourage all of you to do the same, especially if you are on film! We tend to jump up and celebrate a monster buck but how many of us thank that animal for the joy, bounty and respect it deserves even if its a doe? How have you changed over the years? If you only have taken a few or even just one what was your reaction? Will you pay respect to the next animal you take from the land? One of the most amazing animals on our planet deserves this when you kill them! Thanks Grampy This was posted before but in a different format. Grampy's response was what got me thinking about this topic a few months ago. You are a true ethical hunter Grampy good luck this year hope you get your young guy into some great action, he has an awesome mentor in you! Keep up the good work! Hope you get to celebrate and pay tribute to your deer this year!

I had a buck following a doe yesterday and we took a decent buck that came into doe scent. The young bucks could not stay away from the scent and doe in heat call. Seems like the rut is real close and chasing should be in full swing this week!

Been hunting this way for 29 years and it has taken years of dedicated research, scouting/hunting and remembering general knowledge of how the doe and bucks travel, bed and if possible eat to put it all together and make it work. I still learn and try to improve something every year and feel I always have room for improvement. Just like on private land if you find a good area it will tend to hold deer. Food, pinch points, tracking in snow and generally covering some area have all help me locate deer. If you learn how to call deer you get even more action! If you see no deer or good sign go to another spot until you find one or a few you like. Reading the sign, rubs, scraps, food preference and pattern, doe beds, travel routes and escape routes all help when hunting. Some of the best knowledge I have personally gained was when I tracked bucks on fresh snow but this is not always possible. (First you have to find them!) Most of this knowledge can be learned in books but you have to put the boots to the ground and really study the deer woods to understand how they utilize it. Putting everything together is what really counts and I have been lucky enough to get it done a few times and had more than my share of mistakes along the way. Explaining how to do all this is really hard to do but a few things are needed to become a good deep woods deer hunter. 1) Knowledge and most of all experience. Having good knowledge of deer only works if you can use it for hunting. Knowing how many glands on a deer or the weight of a fawn is nice but cant help you when hunting. Knowing the difference between a doe and a buck track however will help or that a dark tarsal that smells musky means something. The more you observer and study the more you learn and gain better insight to how deer work. Knowing how to use a grunt or fawn bleet is good but hearing it in person and then having confidence in that call is experience. Same with rubs, scraps, food source and travel routes. Seeing any of this in person is the experience that tells you what you are doing is working and gives you the confidence to execute a plan to get your deer because of the insight you have gained. No substitute for experience along with good knowledge. 2) Food: Anytime I hunt I always look for food deer can eat. (This is one of the hardest things for me.) Beechnuts and general foliage and brows especially in streams or swamps. 3) Remembering any location you jump them from a bed, food source or travel route. Getting up high and glassing is always good to cover area, scouting river beds, ends, swamps and other thick cover along with hunting ridgetops are good ways of locating deer. (In many deep woods, locating deer is the hardest basically due to low populations.) When the snow hits I try to cover some ground I know should cross a few well known trails to pick up a buck track. Often the next morning finds me back on the same track deep in the woods with activity at dawn. 4) Woods, land and how to navigate. Study topo maps for terrain and elevation features along with birds eye view will help locate good area's to focus when hunting and locate travel routes sometimes even food sources and natural barriers. Having the confidence to follow a track regardless of where it goes is what you will need to track in the snow or follow a trail into unknown area. Maps, GPS and compass are invaluable tools if you know how to use them well. 5) Go in early and stay late. Be prepared for dark with good flashlights and extra batteries for GPS and lights. Be ready to sit the last part of the cold day with extra clothes and food to keep your mind on hunting and not what's for dinner. 6) Tracking any deer will give you valuable data,the more you do it the more you will learn! Doe are the best bait for bucks so tracking them can help locate bucks or other doe groups. Bucks tend to drag their feet and have a wider stance and gait than doe. Often a doe has fawns or yearlings with them resulting in more tracks vs solo buck tracks. Buck tracks of older deer usually weigh more so they sink in deeper and are noticeably larger. Bucks tend to go around trees they can't easily get there antlers through and can give you a rough antler size if you track them long enough. 7) Base your success on what you accomplish, some hunters might have great land or high population at their disposal many public hunters do not. 8 ) Most successful hunters scout, are excellent with their weapons, patient and above all persistent. 9) Hunt how you like to hunt, learn from your mistakes and always try to improve something every year. 10) Enjoy the woods and the adventures you go on and never be afraid to see what is over the next hill, valley or mountain its just the next journey! Good luck, hope some of this helps! Never used a trail cam or app for hunting.

So far all the deer I have taken run after the shot, one actually charged me. (I don't think he knew where I was.) The other thing I always try to do after the shot is keep your eye on the deer as long as possible. Most well placed shots in thick cover will have your deer drop within 100 yards. Double lung/heart shots. Otherwise like Papist stated above sometimes even a well placed shot can have them go an excessively large distance from the shot location especially if they can still run! Any rule made can be broken by deer!

The doe I shot last year had twin buck fawns. I have no video or camera proof but this is one of the twins I saw today. Both where under my buddies stand today. Again I have no proof. I did this hoping they would not disperse. This could be two other yearling bucks and I am completely wrong, lol. But I am pretty sure these two boys are the twin buttons I saw last year.

Well I was out sick for a couple weeks and it was really getting me down. Today was the first day (since my cold) in the woods and it was awesome! My buddy Chris gave us the ok to shoot doe and any buck that we wanted and was decent. Well around 9 am I heard a shot and crash, a few minutes later our buddy Chino said he shot a buck in the 120 class. Shortly after the spike under my stand that I called in so my buddy could P left the area with 2 doe. (They also heard the buck crash!) 10 minutes later I had a doe at 50 yards and noticed a buck a few yards behind both just walking. He was a good buck but by the time I found out he was an ok shooter he was out of range and did not care about my calls because he was stuck on a hot doe. He was in the high 130 class. Possibly 140 5 by 4. Nice looking buck but I though he was young, his body looked like a 2 year old to me but his rack was really nice! Possibly a 3. I could have shot at him but felt It would have been rushed, did not know exact yardage and have not shot in 2 weeks so I was not comfy with the shot and let him walk. After getting down from the stand to do the drag (One has a bad back and one has bad legs!) I found the deer and Chino 40 yards from my stand. After a few pics we cleaned and I dragged him out. Congrats Chino! Nice buck! One of these days I will get a shot on one I like!!! Hope its Monday my B-day!!! The ticks where bad on him! The tarsal glans where stained black and he came into the Doe P! The seeking and chasing is on! If you can hunt this next two weeks do it! Action is really starting to heat up! First pic shows how they can survive a pass-through shot, this was an existing wound (High shot close to spine), next pic is the ticks. We have them just as bad as western NY. Next is Chino! Last shot makes the antlers look really big, lol. I like that shot!

Try another spot. If you have hunted this place 10 times and only seen one deer then I would try another spot. The spot you are in might be a good buck spot early season from the rubs you say are present but the bucks leave that area this time of year in search for doe. Find where the doe are and you will have better luck at seeing deer. Worst case I would at least give that area a rest for a week or so, you do not know how many others are hunting the area, if it has high presser the deer tend to avoid these locations during the day and will go back in the dark. If you had more doe I would say stick with it but with only one sighting I would say to try another spot. Ask around the area if your local! One of them might let you in and this could be the area the deer are using when the presser is on! Good luck, hope you get some better action, and don't give up this next 2 weeks are prime time!!!

Like stated above you could have a very small piece of property 5 acers or less and have great hunting grounds, or you could have hundreds of acers and deal with trespassers, poachers etc. Buying next to state land can be hard if to many guys put presser on the area. Good news is if you have it posted good and they stay off your land they can push deer onto your safe heaven . Personally I like to have about 100 acers to myself when I hunt. If you have more than just yourself hunting anything over 40 acers is decent to set up a few stands, blinds and a safe spot for the deer you do not go into. (This is usually a bedding area) Marsh, swamp, tall grass. ) If you have good neighbors or bad this can make a big difference to. Many factors. Gun hunting vs bow, is this land just for you, if so than you do not need much land if its in a good area. Good area with high population I would say 20 plus acers is good enough for one person. If more than one person add at least 20 acers per person. Otherwise I have hunted 4 guys less than 300 yards from each other in high population area and we could have all taken deer. This was about a 5 acer plot. Good luck, any land is good land! If you are going mainly for deer, do some research before you buy.

Wow! Good luck Turkeyfeathers, some real nice deer!

They will both share the same gene as mom so I would think at 2 years old plus they would have similar antlers if both stay healthy. As separate embryos I would think they could have different racks to a degree. They say a percentage of doe that have twin bucks are sired by different fathers. That could also have a factor in the genes and rack configuration.

Welcome aboard! Nice fish! Some good bucks on your property, best of luck with it!

When I really get into the season I must have triple decker honey ham, honey turkey and cheese sandwich with chips and soda! Something often happens when I am eating lunch, must be the honey mustard they like! Otherwise my only other superstition is my 44 Mag. It has always worked when I needed it and for some reason my other guns have not! Usually due to user error but keep that hush hush!

Good luck with him WNY Bowhunter! Real beauty!

Your true colors shine through Papist! Way to stick with it! Your determination and steadfast drive to keep going after this one lost deer is a true show of sportsmanship and perseverance! You are Da Man! Congrats on a really nice buck!

Dam it tree guy I told you to put that cannon away! On a serous note they are amazing survivors capable of sustaining a multitude of issues and injuries. One of the most adaptable survivalist in the animal kingdom! Amazing creatures!

I would say yes. Like Phade said this is not a typical buck bed but a doe bed, bucks like to hang out waiting for the doe to return. They will bed in the area for a while then roam to another location if no doe show up. They seem to only do this during the pre-rut and rut basically looking for doe. Sounds like a great spot! Good luck!

I understand, passing deer becomes a habit that gets hard to stop when the exact one you are looking for does not show up. You have to make a decision before you go out. "Today I will shoot any doe in range." Or "today I will take any good 8pt or better." Then when something comes in range you will be ready to shoot.

Nice Buck! Congrats!

Keep at it Grampy blind looks good and prime time is just getting started! The only thing I would add to that blind would be higher cover to mask your outline. I never like when deer can see me from every angle. I would not change a thing this year but next season I would make that blind into a fort with a pine roof! I would also cut up some of those fallen trees to make an easy path past your blind. You would be surprised how the deer will follow a path you lay out for them and if you hinge cut or drop a few more trees it will make that path the main runway. Nothing you probably don't know already but your woods look nice! If you change nothing you will be fine! Good luck and keep at it! Like Moog says the best is yet to come!

A fat ham, turkey and cheese sandwich usually does the trick for me. Chips and soda optional. Something always happens when I am eating my sandwich, might be just as I finish or after I am done but something always happens! Good luck and keep at it! The best is yet to come!

Go get em! Happy B-Day, hope you are struggling to drag a monster out!!!

Looks like a good one! Good luck with him Bionic! Hope to see you on the harvest thread with him! Real beauty!