ATbuckhunter

I have never had much luck with rattling in deer. I think that where your calling has a huge part in success. For example an active scrape line would be perfect for rattling and grunting in bucks.

Congrats on the deer! I have always preferred to skin them while there still warm. As far as butchering the only way i do it is to cut all the fat i can and separate the main muscle groups in the thigh and front legs. If your going to grind the meat, the best meat to use is the thigh because it is dryer and not as good as the shoulder. Don't forget to take out the tenderloin and back straps if you can.

Not to steal your thread but how do you like Fins to Feather?

You could go to a taxidermist and get a rug made. I am not going to do that unless i shoot a piebald or albino. Some people tan strip the hair off it and turn it into leather while others take the hair for fly tying. Most people throw it away or bury it. There are tons of things you can do with deer hide.

I think there just getting out of lock down phase and the mature bucks are really starting to move. If you have a hot doe near your stand you are in the money.

I strap the gun to my back and go down the tree.

touche...touche

Do you skin your mounter deer first then gut or gut then skin. I always gut then skin but when my dad grew up in Europe they would skin their sheep first so they don't ruin the wool with blood. Im am planing on doing this on any deer I plan on mounting for a quality hide.

It used to be 30 min before & after so why cant it be again? I think its all the antis that live in the city around me.

Ill be missing the opening day but ill be out on Sunday.

I use a scent wick with a 10 foot string.

I have heard that 25-06 is pretty light on recoil and does a number on deer. I know the T/C venture is under $500 and a superb rifle.

This will be a quick-ish story so don't worry about a long read. The day started out pretty good when i got out of my car and smelled a rutting buck close by. I watched the small lawn for a little but hurried to that stand with my dad. After getting set up and pulling all of the cards out of my cam i looked up and saw a deer in a big 13 acre field about 200-230 yards away. I watched the deer for 10 min until it returned back into the woods. About 3-5 min later my father pokes me and says a deer is coming our way from the bedding area. As the deer got closer it got a good look at my decoy and skirted around the edges of my good shooting lanes. It finally got just close enough to sneak a shot through the trees and branches. I did not see the arrow hit but i heard the unmistakable thump of a good rib hit. I watched the deer run about 40-50 yards max before falling over and jumping in the air. I got down about 10 min later and tracked him anyway for the practice. When i got there i realized the shot was an inch higher then i wanted but still a center punched lung shot. I was originally going to wait for a buck but i could not resist. When i was talking to the land owner around 2:00 i was greated by a big 8 running the egde of his lawn working his way righ towards me. If he would have continued on his path he would have been 12 yards broadside, but he saw us and took off after does. Here he is

People are sighting in their guns. I will be doing that tomorrow.

T/C ICON .30-06 3-9X40 Nikon Buckmaster scope 180 grain TSX Barnes bullet.

In 3J i has a little spike dogging a group of 11 does all day. I also had another bigger buck on a doe early in the morning and a buck running around in the middle of the field in broad daylight. I think this snow storm will get the big boys moving in the southern tier.

I have seen some smaller bucks chasing.

I think that the rutting will slow as the storm is passing, but as soon as it passes they will be going at it hard.

Im hoping it will stay until Saturday so i can bow hunt in the snow again. Maybe this time i can see a deer in the snow while hunting.

I would be traveling about 2 hours out of NYC near the town of Gardiner. That area is supposed to be getting 3-6" of snow.

How much is it snowing north of NYC? In the city its snowing pretty good and just enough to make my ride home very unpleasant. I hope it stays on the ground until Saturday.

Looks like a rainbow to me. It sounds crazy but there's actually a difference form steel and bow's.

Watch it turn into a booner in the future.

Like other people stated i would take down the one stand and bored up the other leaving a note to call you and you could talk or refer him to the land owner.

I use barnes TSX copper bullets and they eat deer for breakfast. They absolutely are better then lead in every way but price.