zoschag08

You can buy highly detailed Topo maps in any town near where you plan on hunting. On our recent trip we picked up one while there. Having a hard copy with you while out in the woods can be really helpful.

So my trip to the Adirondacks was a success! My dad, uncle and myself hunted out of Inlet for a week although we saw few deer I was able to close the deal on a decent 8 with a huge body. On the first day I saw 2 deer, a doe & big buck but couldn't get a shot. On the second day I was walking back a trail to an area I planned on hunting after about three miles I cut into the woods towards the saddle I had in mind. I had only been off the trail for maybe 5 minutes, sneak hunting my way up a small rise when I crested it I saw him standing there at 30 yards. He was facing me and I immediately thought to raise the gun and shoot. My shot went through the brisket into the heart and stopped against his back rib. He dropped instantly, such a good hunt to share with family. It was a long drag out, made even longer by the 215 lbs of deer.

Could be a labrum tear too. Tore mine two summers ago and could hardly draw my bow. After having surgery I'm back to 100%. Light weight exercieses work best, extensions and raises will do the trick. Getting a nice exercise band to keep your shoulder warm while in the stand is good too. You need very little movement to keep it from stiffening up on you.

Guys like the Salerno bros who are infamous for getting deer on public lands have a certain strategy to do so. They wait for fresh snow to hit the ground and then track track track. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free I've heard of them. That's what I was planning on doing, I get to impatient to just hunt from a stand all day. I've gotten better due to archery hunting but I do prefer to still hunt. Thanks for all the suggestions guys. I'll update you all when we get back.

That was one of the areas we're looking at. We're looking at land west of Long Lake too.

I'm planning a trip to hunt Hamilton County during rifle season. My father and I are renting a cabin near Inlet. Anyone have any suggestions for places to go/things to look for during scouting trips? I'm making a trip up sometime in the next few weeks. I was told to look for Breech trees and places where logging is on process, so that will be my initial targets when I head up. Thanks guys.

I shot a bear this year and used most of the meat in sausage. Combined it with venison and pork, by far some of the best sausage I've ever had. The prep process is extremely important (skinning quickly and cleaning all the fat off, having it be a younger bear/non nuisance bear may be just as important), but the work was worth it. I had planned on taking a few years off and just being a driver but with how well the sausage turned out I'll be carrying my gun again next year.

You do need a license for it. It's not very hard to get though. And you only need to have the license if you charge a fee. If you do it for free you aren't really a "guide" and don't need to have a license. As for finding the elk, as long as you don't get a crappy draw zone it's not that bad.

Beer carrier, can also be for wine (would just have to make it a little bigger). If anyone has any requests get creative. I'll do what I can!

Honestly not that proud of the bed. Made it a couple years ago in two days before going to school. I now have access to a lathe so I plan on making a new one soon.

Pictures coming. Having some trouble uploading them. As for a shotgun stock, I've never tried to make a stock but you made me curious. If you can provide some dimensions I'd like to attempt a rough copy first and if it turns out well I'd make a finished product.

I am selling custom made furniture. Anything from gun cabinets, coffee tables, book cases, bed frames, etc. I will work with anyone interested to make their purchase as personal as possible.

Would they have to be a current student to apply? I graduated this past spring and am open to an opportunity like this. I have an environmental management degree (30+ credits in business).

I grew up in the area that the elk hunt occurs. If anyone on here is lucky enough to draw a tag I'd guide for free. I've gone in past years with my uncle when he guides but he's looking at getting out of it unless he knows the person well.

Correct, PA has no antler restrictions for hunters under the age of 15. Some sections of PA have AR of 4 points per side, some have 3 depending on herd density/genetics/habitat/etc. I'm not positive but I think military and senior citizens don't have AR implemented on them either.

Winchester .30-06 Springfield Ammunition - 165-Gr. Pointed Soft Point. I've always used this load, this is the first year the deer didn't drop or leave a blood trail a blind person could follow. There was snow too, so it's not like I was missing just missing it.

Nope, more broadside then quartering. Bullet went in behind the shoulder and never came out. When I skinned it you could see where I hit the back rib on the far side but it never found an exit on the hide. It's weird because the week before I shot a bear went clear through there.

It happened to me this fall, I tracked my deer for over 150 yards before I found blood. If there's no exit hole there isn't much blood, the majority of the blood lost was out of it's nose or mouth. I found the deer after tracking for another 100 yards beyond the first blood sign. I use a 30.06 with 165 grain bullets, you would think there should have been blood or hair but there was nothing for a long time. Not even sign that the deer was struggling. I guess what I'm saying is that even with a good hit and a larger caliber gun you can still have occurrences like this happen.

I'm not saying that it's a trophy in everyone's eyes. However, shooting a young buck is not challenging - no doubt you feel similarly. And as to being told not to shoot a 110" buck that's why I hunt public land. I have the opportunities to hunt in clubs where it's a rule that you can't shoot anything smaller than 120". Have I considered joining - yes and I've seen the bucks that have come out of there recently. There have been some monsters, my friends dad shot a 160" buck this fall. I see nothing wrong with having antler restrictions and if the game commission made it a law that you can't shoot anything smaller than that I'd be fine. Antler restrictions produce a more balanced heard, you don't have everyone going out and shooting the first 1.5 year old buck they see. So by allowing bucks to grow you help the heard by balancing out the doe:buck ratio. The key to all of this though is that there are bucks of said quality available, you can't shoot a 160" if it was killed when it was a 1.5 year old. That's where the antler restrictions are nice, they allow bucks to get past the stage where they don't know how to avoid hunters.

My brother has been a similar funk lately. He wasn't sure if he was going to hunt this year but went out and did his scouting anyway. Turned out he was seeing some decent bucks in the areas he was working and they got his blood flowing. Sometimes a change of scenery is all you need to spark that feeling again. Do you not enjoy just spending the time in the woods or had it become too much about the "success" of the hunt?

If they're running I'll look for the nearest opening and wait. If they're walking I'll swing with the deer until a good shot presents itself.