Birdhunter

I like the up close ones of the birds and insects....great job!

That guy is awesome.....although he must feel sick after all of those challenges. How that guy doesn't weigh 500 lbs. is impressive.

That a nice looking buck and a great picture. Thanks for sharing.

I had a 6 pointer sneak up behind me two years ago, but I couldn't get a shot off with the bow. Not a big rack, but it was cool to see. It either had offspring with the same trait or it was an older buck going down hill as i got trail camera pics of a small racked piebald the following year in the same area, but I never saw while I was in the stand.

I've had both cameras (2) and a stand stolen. You really feel violated when you get there and notice that it is gone. One camera was on private land and that really got me pissed and the other was a mistake on my part, I guess, as I put it on public land....even though it was in August...

I have a small collection of sheds (10-15) from over the past few years, but I did not find any this year even though I went out looking a number of times.

Doewhacker, I'll send you a PM so the thread doesn't get hijacked.

I just got some material together to make a ground blind. I am going to lash together some bamboo garden stakes and cover it with some camo material that I got at Wal-mart. Once I get that done, I am planning on brushing it in with some local stuff, cut some windows and I'll leave it for the summer for the deer to get used to. I'll try to remember to post pics when I finish it. A good suggestion I read on another site was to put a black plastic bag inside the blind, above the top, so that the deer might get used to some movement inside. I don't know if it will work, but it sounds good in theory....

Welcome back....I just found my way here a couple of days ago. Spread the word to anyone that you knew from before.

My journey into bow hunting is a different one. As you can tell by my user name, I like to spend my Fall with my German Shorthair bird hunting. Even though many of my friends are bowhunters and they tell me how much I would love it, I knew that if I got involved with it, I would become obsessed with it (like everything I do) and my time bird hunting would be cut. Things changed when I moved into my new place about 5 years ago where I can literally walk out my basement door and be in a stand in 5 minutes. I couldn't resist any more and I picked up a bow, practiced and was able to harvest a buck and a doe that first year......hooked! I have been sucessful every year with the bow and I have never been out with a gun. My first GSP is now in retirement, but I picked up a 2 yr. old this winter and he looks like he will be amazing with the birds, so now I am going to be faced with a dilema come this fall. I will probably bird hunt hard in the first few weeks of the season, and concentrate on bow hunting as Halloween rolls around and into the begining of November.

After the season, I will pack up the bow for a little while, but during the winter I might pull it back out an shoot in the basement. From corner to corner, I can get 20 yds., but I have to put the basement ion "lock down" mode so no one comes in during my practice. During the summer, I set up a couple of bag targets (30 & 40 yds.) in the back yard and shoot from my elevated deck (about 15'). I don't put in long sessions, but I do shoot 4 -5 times a week for 15 minutes. I will increase the frequency as the season gets closer, but I actually shoot fewer arrows/session really concentrating form. When it gets to October, I put out a buck target and will shoot only 1 arrow/session with the theory that I will only get 1 shot and no warm ups when the season starts.

Hey everyone, I, too am another former Empire memeber that has found my way here via a message from another site. I missed being in touch with other NY hunters and I look forward to the successful launch of this site. I am located in southern dutchess, hunt in dutchess, putnam and westchester. If anyone is from these areas, let me know and maybe we can help each other out getting some properties to hunt.