coonhunter

I killed a lot of deer with Rocket mini blasters. They were fold back mechanicals and were only 75 gr. My bow speed was only in the 235 -245 range. Unless I hit the off shoulder blade, all were clean pass thrus with blood trails that you couldn't miss. Majority of shots were between 15 and 25 yards, but a couple were 39 and 42 yards. The 39 yard shot went through, the 42 hit the off shoulder and came back out the entrance hole. Both were still easy blood trails, although the longer shot took about 20 yards for the arrow to come back out. Now this is just a quick review for the Rocket mini blaster with the arrow speed from a chronograph. Now I use plain ol Muzzy 3 blade in 75 gr. The only reason I switched is because I am cheap, not because I thought the mini blasters had problems. For the most part, the mini blasters are one and done unless you miss bone completely. Whereas the muzzies I can resharpen or change blades. I can shoot just as far with the Muzzy fixed blades as I could with the mechanicals, and I get good blood trails from them as well. All I can say is practice killing deer. Get used to having deer in range so you can make a good shot whether it is a doe, young buck, or a big buck. When you make a shot, follow the deer with your eyes and mark landmarks in your head that you can walk to because sometimes they may run 20-30 yards before they start pouring blood. For those of you shooting 60 pounds and are uncertain about using a mechanical, I can recommend the 75 gr mini blasters. But remember to change your field points to 75 gr as well. People always ask me why I shoot such light heads, and all I can say is that is what I had when I started. Then, a buddy and I got a deal on a bunch of the mini blasters that kept us in broadheads for years. It always worked fine for me, so I never switched.

You can see some pretty good videos on You Tube of squirrel hunting with dogs. It is a good time with a nice dog whether it is a fiest or a cur. Fun for a father and son/daughter. Any hunting is more fun when you have a dog for a partner. Good luck

The only weird thing I can think of that I eat is peanut butter and dill pickle sandwiches.

Howes Cavern is pretty close to Fort Plain too. It is a pretty cool place, and if the weather is hot, it is literally pretty cool.

Dirt track racing at Fonda Speedway on Saturday night. They have a kids club to sign up when you go in for free prizes. Probably want ear protection for the youngsters, but it usually is pretty exciting for kids and family. When the nascar trucks are off, Stewart Friesen runs a modified there.

I'm just a cheapie 3-5 buck a stick dominican guy. I mostly smoke mild to mediums with a Connecticut wrapper. It is pretty relaxing to sit around and enjoy the cool evening with a nice cigar.

I used to go through Geneva to get to Stanley when I ran hounds in the competitions. I loved it out there because it is a lot flatter than where I'm from, and there was always a lot more coon. I met a lot of good people out there and won more than my fair share of money.

Wow! That is true master craftsmanship. I knew through reading your posts that you were very knowledgeable with old and modern hunting rifles and marksmanship, but had no idea that you were an expert making wooden arrows as well. You are truly a master at hunting weapons. Thanks for posting the pictures to give people like me a small view of the process.

I have already picked a bunch of leeks. This year is the most I have ever seen, and I always have a lot of them in my turkey spots. I made up a big pot of potato and leek soup, ate some, packaged some, and gave away a few bowls to friends.

Storm, my turkey gun is just an old westernfield 12 guage my father used for deer hunting back when it was slug guns only. I shoot 25-30 yards with no issues with cheap, 2 3/4 turkey loads. Most shots are closer as I stay in the woods as much as possible when i turkey hunt, using terrain for getting closer shots.

Mowin, I did the same damn thing many years ago! I stick to the Quaker Boy calls because I know they are aluminum. What a sick feeling in the gut to hear that snap.

Most of the snow in the open is gone or minimal. Still some drifts and snow in the woods. Piles of snow from plows is probably still there, but should be manageable.

I have been at quite a few bear trees, and let me tell you, it's is a miracle that that bear treed close to the road. Most of the time it seems like, they are on the other side of a big beaver pond with no road on the other side. I love watching and listening to a pack of hounds working a bear track out to its conclusion. If it trees quick, it is usually a cub. For every quick tree, you will have a dozen long runs and some of those end up with no tree at the end, or you are scrambling to catch dogs before darkness sets in. Even if you have no intention of shooting a bear out of a tree, it is worth your time to go out a couple days with the hound hunters just to see the excitement and the hard work that is involved.

I consider myself pretty good at it, but when I hear my buddy working a diaphragm and a slate or box at the same time, I feel like a rank amateur. The best I can give myself is a 5 or 6.

I have seen so many of these bands when I was a young buck. You could see most of those bands for 7-10 bucks when I was a teenager. All except AC/DC. We used to bitch because they cost 14! But, what a show they put on. We never missed them. You knew you were going home with your ears ringing, and you just couldn't wind down for quite awhile. They were the best show for show, never saw a bad one from them.

Thanks Water Rat for digging around for all these memes. They do bring back a ton of childhood memories.

Now that is an absolute awesome day! I once hooked 8 and landed 6 in Altmar and I thought that was about as good as you could get from shore, but you more than doubled it.

A compass is a coonhunter's best friend. For years, that is all I used to get back to my vehicle in the dark. Sometimes I would be way in there, but a compass would always get me back to the road I entered on. As long as you had some sort of landmark, like a pond, hill, field, or even a logging road, i could come out reasonably close to my car. Once the handhelds came out, and I finally took the time to figure one out, I switched to that, but still always had a ball compass on my coat for back up.

He's as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

I think you did a pretty good job with the video. You spoke clearly and I could understand you perfectly. Post up some more as you make them, if you get the time. I think you have a darn good voice for these types of informational videos.

I know it!!!! Sure is nice to see the sun a couple days. I think that is the reason for the winter blahs. All the trees are bare and it is dark and dreary most of the winter. Get some blue skies and the sun shining, and almost everyone's mood improves.

People need to remember that high school graduations are late in June and maybe the beginning of july. Hate for people to make plans and then get an invite for family members that are graduating. I plan to make it for a few hours no matter what the dates. It is always nice to meet people that are like minded about hunting and fishing and the outdoors in general.

I got my wife a card and fancy balloon, plus 80 bucks so she can get her hair and nails done.

We had a much better weekend of fishing, but damn!, it was -11 Saturday morning when we hit the ice. It's funny how fast you can drag a sled out and get set up when it is that cold. We still had a lot of lookers, but figured out to let the jig sit still, and picked up a bunch of nice perch. Yet, at the same time, we would have some that came 3 feet off the bottom and engulf the lure. Just a weird couple of weekends.

Nice morning! We are hoping for the same luck tomorrow. No repeat of last weekend!