PWGUNNY

I was out Saturday morning near the peconic river on public land. I didn't see anything. At 11:30am I gave up and scouted some other spot. Walked the trail, still hunted for another 80 minutes there. Saw 2 horseback riders and a pack of 8 quads and dirt bikes, headed back to the truck and called it a day.

On Long Island, we consider upstate anything north of Westchester or Rockland County. When I was younger my buddy and I would bowhunt Stewart Airport co-op. You had to get there the night before, park your truck on line outside the gate and sleep in the truck till the rangers opened the gate. We would put the bows on the roof of the truck and fold the seats down in my SUV and sleep in sleeping bags. Now I hunt out east, so it's out the door at 5am and drive an hour to get out to Riverhead and find an open hunting site.

Good job. Way to break in the new rifle

With that chainsaw in your avatar, you're not gonna need a knife.

As I expected on this thread, more good advice contributed from my fellow hunters. All good stuff. The pen is important and I also fill it out and tag at the truck. I once lost a tag and spent another frantic 30 minutes searching for the lost tag. I always hear or read stories about how guys like to hike in deep, and the thought always pops up in my head,"how do you get your deer out".

Just some friendly advice for new deer hunters. You need to plan and prepare for "after the shot". If you bag a deer, you have some chores to do and you need to plan this part. 1) Tag your deer and gut your deer. Know how to do this properly. Read up and watch some youtube videos. 2) drag your deer out of the woods. If you are alone there are several methods here. Use a drag rope and if necessary, you may have to do what I call the relay. Walk you bow/riifle gear up a 100 yrds. leave it on the ground and go back and drag your deer up to your gear. Repeat until out of the woods. I have a deer cart that I leave in the truck. If I bag a big one and need the cart, I will mark the deer spot, return my gear to the truck and retrieve my cart to wheel the deer out. 3) Transporting the deer. I purchased a hitch-haul that goes to my trailer hitch to make it easy to get the deer to the butcher. I no longer want to tie a deer to my roof or put a carcass with blood and ticks in the back of my SUV. You need to think this through. Just some friendly advice. I've had to work out these issues since I hunt in 3 different situations. Rifle season in Cobleskill is easy as I'm always with a buddy and I have a quad to move the deer out. Long Island I am bowhunting alone and PA, I am hunting alone.

They might come in handy trying to recover a shot deer, though it may be too late at that point.

Welcome Angelo.

Never saw these guys on Long Island before. I took this pic pulling out of my office parking lot in Jericho yesterday. These 2 guys were pecking at a dead squirrel.

That's right. After Nov. 1, some of the spots require the daily pass, which is obtained at the Ranger check station. There are still plenty of spots that will allow the seasonal pass, just know which ones they are. I would make an effort to go to the Ranger check station and get the maps they provide. All the information you need is on the back of the maps.

IT's easier than you think. The "seasonal permit is something you print right from the DEC website. Just make 2 copies. One for your dashboard when you park and one for your pocket. At the DEC website type in "LI Hunting" this should bring up the info you need. The daily permit is not needed until Nov. 1st when small game opens. Even after Nov. 1st, only some property requires the "daily permit". I use two maps that I picked up from the ranger office last year when I was bird hunting. The ranger station is on ridge rd in Rocky Pt. The 2 maps I have are the Rocky PT. map and the Otis Pike map. You can find these online. When you drive out east to these spots(LIE exit 69-71) you will see the trees posted with Gameland signs. you will also see parking pull off areas. They will be numbered. Best bet is to find an open spot(not hard to do) to park and hunt. If there is a car parked in the spot already you need to know if the site will allow more than one hunter in that spot. The map and signs will have a (1) if only one car is allowed. I find open spots to hunt since there are plenty. Get out and hunt now before Nov. 1st, and it won't be crowded.

I always think these stories are legit till proven otherwise. I guess I have a hard time believing somebody would attempt to pull off a fraud in regards to shooting a trophy buck. This guy looks like a total loser now, and rightfully so.

Last year while rifle hunting in Cobleskill, I was leaning against a tree watching 4 does play around. I was waiting for a buck to show up. After about 20 minutes of observing from about 60 yards away, I decided to do a little experiment. I lit up a Marlboro and waited to see their reaction. Nothing, they enjoyed themselves and I enjoyed my cig. Another 10 minutes past and suddenly they left the area quickly. A minute later I spotted another hunter walking up the slope from below where they had been hanging out. Smoking did not seem to have an effect. I'm also pretty sure the other hunter was oblivious to the fact that a group of does had just evaded him.

Real or not, it makes alot of sense. I'm not a fan of redistribution of wealth. I believe in America, a country where you have the potential to make your own wealth. I have a simple creed, "Be productive".

The guy next to me at the counter was putting in his application, they gave him a fingerprint appointment for June 15

Nassau is different My buddy just got his permit, there was a 4 month delay from the interview till the issuance

I put my harness in my backpack and secure it to the stand. I put my harness on at the tree. I put everything that I don't need up in the tree into the backpack and ditch it near the base of the tree. Whatever goes up the tree with me goes in my waist pack

Had the interview and fingerprinting Now I should have my permit within 6 months. Yippee!

I've had this appointment with Nassau County PD since Nov. 2011. The date is finally here, not sure how much longer it will take to actually get my permit from here. All I want is to target/hunt with a pistol in NY. It seems my 2nd ammendment provides me with the right to apply and wait. I guess this hunting season will pass me by without a sidearm.

Sounds like a lot of activity this weekend. I hunted public land in PA on Saturday. I didn't see anything. I am going to be hunting LI this weekend, hope I don't get soaked.

Sorry to hear this, but I hope you lighten up on yourself. Things happen, especially with a bow. Good luck on your future hunts.

I hunt in Seward, been hunting with my buddy on his property for 32 years now. We only make it up there for opening weekend each year, which I think is a shame. We had a doe and a 4pt buck last year. My buddy shot both. I always see doe, but I'm just looking for a big buck. 3 years ago a dirt bag neighbor moved away, he was known for year round deer hunting. It seems the population is improving now. Interesting that a bear has been sighted in the area. Something to think about as I walk into the woods in darkness. As for the Amish, they are subject to the same hunting laws as everyone else.

At least you saw deer. I was out in Calverton area on Saturday morning. Near the swan lake golf course. I was up in a tree stand but I did not see any deer. I'm still scouting out the public land and trying to find the best location.

Nice buck. Congrats to the hunter. That is a crazy rack.

Nice! Congrats on that. Now I'm pissed I didn't take the day off to go hunt. Maybe one day this week, but I know I'll be out Sat. and Sun. This will be one of my first times Deer hunting on the Island. I will be on DEC property, probably Rocky PT.or Calverton. I've done plenty of Bird hunting on State lands but haven't really scouted any good spots for deer and my climbing tree stand. I want to see the pic of your 10PT.