Nomad

Thursday evening hunt. inside corner of hardwoods with shots to edge of corn field,always a good spot. 74 degrees and sunny... slow walk in,up in stand by 5:00. Saw tirkeys and one doe ! Very slow. Took some pics of the area to post if I can figure it out. Will hunt tomorrow AM. hum got in figured out ! 2 shots of either side of woods,one from stand, and a field with my "hut" added another better view from stand to edge of corn.

To bad HE did not die on the side of the road. We've had poacher issues in the past during bow, one reason a handgun should be legal to carry in bow .

Nice job Red ! I'd be happy to see those numbers in 3 or 4 times out....

No kidding I was planning on thur. afternoon, but its going to be in the mid '70's. Perhaps I'll go waterskiing instead.

Nice job ! I like to use the same arrow and broadhead over as well, I mark the fleching with year and sex .

i'm not against food plots, but its kinda interesting, to a farmer deer in his crops is a nuisance, "give me more nuisance permits ,issue more doe tags ". To a hunter deer in his food plot is the point. When the crops are cut around me deer go where they still stand , nice to never have to cut them I'd guess.

I know some great traditional archers/hunters who live in cities... I wish you best of luck looking. There is something to be said for the "old days", I'd drop my roll of film off at the drugstore,(you youngsters can google 'film" ) and maybe call 1 or 2 guys if your kids were not tying up the phone all night . oh use your nose in the thick stuff,if your close you should smell her,I've found a couple in the dark by smelling them ,knew I was close.

Got up at 4:30 53 outside light wind,drove 32 miles to my spot colder and windy but from the west good for todays stand on hay field. Moved the stand this year after a few years of passing does and small bucks,while watching big ones take a pretty set route to far away. Got busted walking in, but it never seem to run off,snort i'd stop, walk some then it would snort from the same spot. 7:00 or so 2 doe popped out to feed , go back in pop out again . Not a too bad for the first morning. My plan was to go back for an afternoon sit, but they don't come out till dusk and I don't like to bow hunt then unless I can come back the next morning and I gotta work tues. Don't want to burn out my stands or me, got 2 weeks off end oct. beginning of Nov. and plenty of hunting days before that as well, may wait till thur.afternoon.

Good luck stay safe and most of all have FUN ! I just sharpened my knife, the final thing i do in getting ready. Hegedorns,(man I go there every day and still don't know the spelling) did not have any Atomic Fireballs !!! Forget the wind,scents,calling, this camo vs that camo ,pop in a fireball and a buck is sure to show up. Its like a food plot in your mouth !

I tried to and sometimes do go light in gun on the last week end when we drive.I'd like to just grab a knife,light and gun, but then I need pen,like the gloves,wipes,rope for dragging and to tie in when I did not think I'd be in a stand..and so it goes.... I could use a son for dragging i got one 22 y/o daughter that hunts,not much at dragging but she's dissected human bodies , so as she says" gutting a deer is nothing" .

I carry to much ! I keep the same stuff no matter where or how long. NY farms or mountains out west. 2 lights,headlamp and handlight. First aid kit w/ Quick Clot. Knives and broad heads cut deep ! Gutting kit.gloves,zip ties,pen, tags.ez out, small folder for gutting,flagging Extra facepiece. Hat. If I wear a ball cap then carry watch cap. wear watch cap carry ball . I have one haul line for all my stands.Its in my pack in the water bottle holder. I use it as a rope bag.tangle free works great. Water. Snacks. folding saw. Survival pouch. Fire,compass,trash bags,550 cord ect. Binos. lenght of rope. and most important Fireballs! Well maybe baby wipes are most important..... Cell,wallet, large Spyderco folder on me.

I have a friend who lives in Great Falls,i could perhaps PM you his email if he agrees. Another friend comes from seattle each year to hunt Montana. We deer hunted a river bottom about 2 miles of it,in 4 days we saw 2 other guys way off. Get this folks there consider that river bottom to be "high pressure" LOL Getting on private land and ranches is very easy, many get paid by the state for letting hunters on,you sign in and out. My friend from Seattle found a ranch where one can see 300 deer a day. The owner used to guide,but not anymore,he does let you use one of is cabins for $50 a night and will show/tell you where to hunt..... When i shot my mule deer,I took it to the nearest town to get cut up,I drove 80mph for close to an hour to reach this town....I'd say ya there is plenty of land !

Ha I still pay the price like all married men lol. I have thought of a food plot in the field. The farmer mows half of it now,this allows me to drive to the edge of the woods to drop off pick up stands and deer,I also have a small shooting shack/hut near the road end of it but still 300 feet or so in.The feild has crops beans and clover this year on two sides now. I know zero about plots and its not my land, the farmer would have to do it. BTW I got married Nov. 4th ! What a dummy, but I did not bow hunt then. For some reason I started the next year..... A few years back i went to Montana on the 4th. That cost me a diamond neckless.

Four trips- about 275-300# of meat. About 90#/load. Some heavier some a little lighter. I already have the head boiling for a european mount. I going to have it scored outta curiosity. I've been cutting meat the last few evenings. Should finish tomorrow. I am going to make a lot of sausage. Italian, breakfast, kielbasa, etc. I'm going out with a buddy next weekend and we will try and find one for him. The temps are getting cool at night and they are bugling big time now. Good luck hunting! R He lives in Great Falls,but hunts all over the state. I've hunted the Maria river bottom and the Gatlin mtns. they now have a deer spot to the East of great Falls where before the winter kill of 2 or3 years back you'd see 300 deer a day ! the guy who owns the ranch would get a B+C each year..... I may need to go back ! With the poor economy you can now get out of state Lic. over the counter !

Some background. I hunt 8h, same piece of farmland for over 24 years i guess. I have 25 acres or so of hardwoods, a 10 acre over grown field and about 15 of thick brush. Around it is corn,beans and clover.The woods and brush are 900 feet in off the road. I find it easy to fill the freezer most years bow and gun,but i'm trying to step up my game and was put under the farms "big bucks" only rule a few years back so I have no choice anyway. I've managed to take a couple in the last 2 years. My wife and siblings own 120 acres across the road all crop fields we rent it out,only a couple hedgerows to hunt there. At 53 I got time now and the job that lets me hunt a lot. I got 8 stands up mostly on edges I stay out of the heart of things prefering to let them come out to me . My wife not only came with land but she does not care how much I hunt, no really around now she says,"see you around Christmas " ! Oh I just got my first digital camera so with any luck,I'll have some pictures to post. Good luck to all.

Thanks guys. Knowing Rodger he's pretty good with his camera,so I'd say a timer and setting it on something. Oh ya I'd do the work to, but you'll be walking way more then1.6 miles,its several round trips packing out head,hide, meat. I'll ask him how many. I will say where we hunted elk (gun) we were camping and it got down to 6 degrees in the AM and we had to wade through waste deep snow in spots, so the thought of getting an elk back to camp was not worth it to me . Now some of the ranches they'll drop it into your truck with a front end loader, thats cool.

Ya i've hunted out there with him and a friend from Seattle. We out of staters would buy the deer/elk combo because the odds of getting it are far greater then deer tag alone.We did some elk hunting, and I was thinking,"theres no way in He!! I'm going to shoot an elk this far from camp !" Well maybe...but it'll suck. In NYS we think dragging a 140 pound whitetail a 1/4 mile is reason to buy a 4wheeler.

My friend in Montana. Hunting alone 1.6 miles from camp! Bow kill.

Stands have been up for some time. I got a guy working for me Monday, then I work days tue and wed. then I'll be out a little thur.fri and sat? before i go in on nights. I can hunt 3 out of 4 days without taking time off all season. Have last week of oct and first of Nov off though.Saving some spots for then . Bows spot on as usual . Ya pool closed, hot tub cleaned and refilled, boat ready to go in my buddy's factory for the winter, both kids at college,wife happy to have me gone for 3 months.....

Wow you guys have my sympathy. I got my daughter an 870 while she was in high school,bought it at a garage sale.....

The guys above got it covered. I'd say practice from a stand if you can. I shoot from my roof and one arrow from my stand each time I hunt. From a stand you' ll learn many things,your arm may hit the trunk,or the strap from the harness gets in the way turning around and so on . Up close bow shots can often lead to a one lunger, a thin target like those square white ones shot close off your roof will show you this. I aim the same as on the ground works well for me. Last year I killed a doe with the bow while seated (me not the doe) and leaning out from the seat and shooting behind me just shy of 20 yards,double lung kill, she went less then 60 yards. Good Luck. Practice like you hunt.

I hunt a 2,500 acre or so farm. I have a small chunk of it to myself,hard woods,brush,thick field with crops all around it.This year corn,beans and clover. Farm across road is cutting corn. called my wifes cousin and he said they were a few weeks away from cutting corn by me !! Nice come over here and eat the corn,pay no attention to the man in the tree...

Ya 25 years of bow hunting 2 bows, first one for 18 to 20 years I guess. I don't tinker,change, adjust a thing, bring it to a shop every few years to have it looked at . my 'new" bow i take it out end of August and it shoots as great as the end of last season. I practice more with the shotgun , but thats me YMMV.

One more reason I'm glad im far from NYC. Everyone wants to move to the "country" but don't want the smells,noise or farm equipment on the roads, to funny. Kinda like me moving to NYC and complaining of the sirens,horns,and crowds..... If that land was mine and the neighbor stopped me from shooting I know that opening day Id be all over the property line shooting and hanging dirty work out socks, to name a couple things. 30 acres is not much land and its narrow to boot. I'd think a little give and take is in order.

Long term, my basement as well in a closet in my gun room. Hunting season ie. in use a tote . Plenty of room for extra and spare gear,the top makes a nice clean dry place to stand while changing into and out of my hunting boots,then I bungie ? the muddy boots to the top for the trip home . I'm really going to miss my mini van,had one since '91. In hunting season took all the middle and rear seats out, plenty of room to change,sleep,put deer inside store gear and super easy for one guy to load deer into .