Daveboone

Three nice walleyes are a nice fish fry to me. No need for greedy. If I recall, they try to balance the walleyes to the prey fish quantity...I think they are concerned about over foraging the minnows.

Great thing about a compass....never needs batteries and you never have to worry about signal strength. A GPS is very helpful at times, but a simple compass bearing before you walk into the woods to get the roads orientation and your general direction of travel, is simple. if you get turned around, reverse your bearing. You may have a long walk but eventually you should get back to the road. Of course having a map showing the terrain and the roads layout is even better idea. Alot of folks will say "there is a compass on my cell phone''. Well , no there isnt. there is a function that is giving a gps bearing reference that looks like a compass. No signal, no bearing. IF your life may depend on it...eliminate batteries from the equation.

Someone else mentioned The Moose River Plains area..it is just outside Limekiln state park near inlet. A lot of access, and a huge area known for its bears. Very rugged though but with alot of old logging roads for access. The state park is a magnet for bears, and also alot of locals feed them around Inlet. There is a good DEC website for the area. I was hoping to get up there myself pretty soon, but life keeps getting in the way.

If you go with the intention of enjoying the woods, you will be successful. Get a compass and understand how to find your way in and out of the woods. Call or stop in to your local DEC office asking for recommendations for state land in your area. They usually have plenty of hand outs to get you started. When small game season starts, cruise the roads to see where the crowds are, then you know where to avoid. For your own confidence and safety at this time, wear plenty of orange...it isnt fool proof but it does increase your visibility. And practice moving as slow as possible, being observant of the little things...birds, squirrels, bird calls, and of course wind. Have fun and be safe. I have never hunted that area of the state, but there are no where near the number of hunters out that used to be.

Do Not leave a pyrodex/ 777 or any of the other black powder substitues residue in your barrel. You will have a horrible mess. Even though it takes much longer loading and sighting, I recommend working your load to a clean barrel...as your first shot hunting will be. If you cant get good groups, try a different projectile. You are correct that the primers residue should be non corrosive. I dry fire a couple to clear my flash channel then run a dry patch down the barrel before loading. Looks like you have a pretty good load in process.

Lots of hot weather keep the bears moving around. I agree not very big. The bigger the bear, the smallere the head looks.

People are not going out to shop, now more than ever due to the Corona virus. Stores are keeping stocks very low and people are simplhy avoiding shopping. Almost all we do is online too. Shipping companies only have so much facility.

I would think still hunting is as safe as any other...less chance of breaking your neck falling out of a tree! Of course not all areas are equal for still hunting. I wouldnt do it in a heavily hunted area or where no one else knew where I was.

Aint no other fishery in NY like it...our favorite boating and fishing destination, but we usually stay away during the hot busy summer months. This is my son with our day best from last september. We specialize in pike and perch....bass are fun, but too easy and taste....well, pike and perch are much better!

Yo. I was pleased to see the county land behind my land was lumbered through last winter and spring. I was happy enough to have the reopened logging roads and paths I enjoyed using twenty years ago or so. Yesterday when walking them, I was delighted to find that the roads were leveled, harrowed and planted with clover, which is coming up nicely! Does anyone know if the logging companies on state/public lands are now required to rehab the land and roads after they are done? (sorry guys, I aint getting too specific where this is, but it is public that I hunt the Tug HIll.)

Never for sure. Up around here there are alot of small chunks of state/public land that are poorly marked or arent at all (at one time you could get print outs of all state/dec lands in a given area...not available anymore). I guess the same argument could be made for "if there were no posted signs isnt it still public land unless its posted private?"

I think having a trailer there would complicate things for you, as far as liability....any building/structure you would want a security deposit, etc. . Who is responsible for cleaning after use? Risk of fire with the propane heater/stove? Water, sewer clean out, etc. My opinion is that I would only rent/lease by the season or year, letting the other party supply thier own tent/trailer,etc. I certainly wouldnt break the property into smaller parcels to lease. One party on ten acres may be fine in the right spot, but four parties in forty acres or so is no where near enough elbow room.

We specifically looked for a camp in an area that did NOT have power, because it is a self limiting factor for area development and we wanted to keep maintenance costs as low as possible. Alot depends on the type of use you anticipate the camp being used for. We are totally off grid. Propane lights and stove, but we are in the early planning for a simple inexpensive solar set up just to run LED lights. We have a camp rule of no electronics (tvs, computers etc. ). We go to the camp to be together. A Yamaha 3500 watt generator runs needed tools, etc. or in the warmest weather fans and an airconditioner. Know what you are getting into when it comes to running power. My neighbor down the road was planning on running power when he built his camp which became his home to discover...75.000.oo$$$. The power ended over 3/4 a mile away.

absolutely ! I have had a great run on Coleman garage sales stuff....last years deal was a like new 2 mantle lantern with hard case and hanging accessories also for five bucks.

Whoaaa...that is a beautiful stove! I also would strongly advise to stick with white gas/ coleman fuel. It is pretty cheap at Wally World, and you wont run as much a risk of gumming your generator. My guess is that replacing it will be costly and difficult (to find). Two weeks ago I found a brand new in the box Coleman Two Burner dual fuel stove...for five dollars!!!! I didnt dicker on the price!

Last year I bought a .308 and traded it off the trigger was so horrible and heavy, with lots of misfires. It is a well documented terrible design. I am eager to see if they are any better afterwards...I traded to my brother in law, so I will probably be involved in the shoot testing when it comes back. This was my first Henry, and I was very excited to get it. It was by far the prettiest rifle I had, but the experience left a very bad impression with me.

Damn same horse almost killed me last week. Good thing I only put 75 cents in....they should put that mustang down!

LOTS of Ithaca sweet sixteens out there....great slug round. I wouldnt sweat harming the value much.

Very nice, I cant but it looks great! I hope life smooths out for ya

ooohhhhhh...........looks great!

Looks like a lonely youngster Mom kicked out. Keep a clean camp and dont share your peanut butter sammich with him.

Contact the regional DEC office for your area, or better yet stop in and ask for information on state lands (which are different than the NY City Watershed lands). Do you have your safety class? No such thing as getting out there too soon for scouting, even if it is just getting familiar with the lay of the land, scouting mast crops , browse, recent logging and crops nearby..With all our COVID restrictions there are NONE on the public land access. :).

Many hunts are cancelled this fall due to Corona. This is putting a real hurt on almost all outfitters around the world. alot of folks are just outright cancelling the hunt, but if possible you help them and yourselves out alot if you reschedule. We have been four years in planning a trip next spring to South Africa, and the small amount of money (by our standards) the locals get for their services is huge in getting them by. We are keeping our fingers crossed but are keeping our plans. We will reschedule if have to.

Hmmm, do you take pics of Squatch too?

beautiful rifle! About the only firearm I regret not buying was an M1 back in the nineties when they could be had for 120.00. I used to woodchuck hunt with our ML. Same challenge, but sure as heck no quick follow up shot!