Daveboone

Mine would be a boat based Alaskan coast/ Canadian pacific coast trip for big coastal black bears, deer (blacktail up there if I remember right), with a side trip for moose. Combine it with halibut and salmon fishing, with a lot of down time for exploring/ beachcombing.

Anyone who doesn't know how to use a ready sling position is losing out on a great shooting aid. The only two guys I knew who would remove it tended to be careless with their gun going up and down stands, (carrying not slinging) and like all pocketed items, would misplace or lose the sling. Drove me nuts.

Whacha mean hunting is over? Now its time to go for grouse, rabbits and squirrels. Get out in the woods and see what the deer are doing and read the story in the snow. Practice outdoor skills: a nice afternoon jaunt , practice some firemaking skills, roast some venison over a fire, .... Few things are more fun than stalking winter squirrels with a scoped 22.

if I am remembering my NY hunting regulations correctly, the magazine would need to be modified to take a maximum of only 5 shots.

The locals feed both the deer and bears resulting in a higher population close to town. Since the state clamped down on garbage management and deer feeding though, their numbers are greatly increased. Probably the area still has a higher than average population, but where you can hunt them it will still be hunting...and bears are primarily nocturnal...find the food sources, hunt around them. Still only around 8000 bears in NY, which would mean even a higher than normal population in an area such as Old Forge is still going to be pretty scanty.

no doubt the 45-70 whumps, but especially primarily for deer, standard rounds are more than fine. Handloading to the upper levels don't do much for improving effective range. Most folks new to the 45-70 are surpised by the recoil...a few shots a season they don't mind, but frequent shooters avoid it.....I am not particularly a whimpy guy, but one range session ended in Severe pain to my shooting shoulder...it curtailed my day. Two years later a chest x ray (ruling out pneumonia) showed the collarbone was fractured...now healed of course. That load was for a 350 gr. slug in a moderate modern rifle loading. I love the 45-70....but it isn't for every one.

The only time I could say I found a difference in taste, is in the case of deer I wasn't able to wash out/ cool properly in a reasonable amount of time.....(with probably a close to 50/50 split of deer from the north county and the fingerlakes area). Beef is "finished" on grain to improve the taste , after fattening and being raised on grass, and the difference in flavor is very apparent. I have no doubt that the deers diet can also greatly affect the taste.

most of my hunting is heavy woods, so I am leery of going out when gusting or blowing steadily above about 25...tough to say though, because the wind direction affects how it travels over terrain. I see deer out in the fields regularly during the daytime on high wind days....they probably feel safest themselves there, or I may look for them in the low glens out of the wind. I am more concerned for my own safety

Recoil from an o6 to .308 can vary quite a bit, as long as you take into account several things: first, don't go to a lighter rifle: the wt helps with the recoil. Heavier bullets increase recoil....a 150 grain .308 is pretty mild. Even with my .308, I wear a shoulder pad when practicing, and be sure to hold the gun tight to the shoulder to reduce jump.

I used to carry a .22 pistol for targets of opportunity....but once I stopped being side tracked by the other critters, I became more successful with deer. I also was a lot happier not carrying the extra weight.

If it still sites in accuratey. is it possible it is mounted tight, but the rusted surface is because of sliding the scope at mounting/ previously, leaving the outside coating scraped ? It may not have been noticeable previously, and rusted after the fact.

You may have over torqued the scope mounts screws...it can put pressure on the scope tube, resulting in jumping groups. Been there, done that. Use one of the little torque wrenches for scope mounting.

I have no confidence if I didn't have venison for breakfast.

after 25 years in insurance, my wife lost her job to downsizing. Despite a huge amount of experience and work recommendations, all the jobs she applied for were filled by new college graduates who stared at half her pay rate. Finally she applied to a temp agency, and quickly found a job that led to a permanent position and promotion within a few months. Not ideal, but she was back to work.

I am always amazed by the folks who go hunting but cant leave their tablets, Gameboys, whatever behind. In the meantime they are missing what is happening in the woods or the whole reason they are there. there is a constant show around me every time I am out...squirrel drama, the local weasel prowling around, bird watching etc. There is absolutely nothing wrong with passing on shooting animals, but it sounds like playing with the camera is your distraction. Go back to hunting.

oh, boy. For the sheer joy of carrying and shooting, I love my levers: Winchester 94s, and savage 99. For accuracy and dependability, just plain business gun: bolt. For class, looks, simplicity, my Browning falling block. If I could have only one, my Mauser 98 bolt, but I wont be happy.

So far this year, 6 days out, nuthin! Granted, almost every day I have been able to go out it has been high wind, down pours or a combination. probably over half the times out so far, I was only on stand an hour before bailing...pretty miserable conditions, but I went through the motions so I could at least say I was out. North country big woods hunting here too, no agriculture within several miles.

Your .308 should do just fine...you may just want to consider something a bit handier if you move around much though (as in moving around in the woods/ still hunting, etc.).

One of my favorite books is "The Old Man and the Boy", by Robert Ruark. It is the tales of the writer growing up in the south, originally written in magazine article format then published as a book. All hunting, fishing adventures in the early part of the 20th century, the boys grandfather schooling him in the wise ways of the woods and field, with plenty of humor. Next if you can find a copy, is Skeeter Skeltons collection of magazine articles, all based on shooting/ hunting. ...darn if I can remember the title now , but tremendous fun. They read like a fireside chat from your uncle. Horn of the Hunter, by Ruark is written about his first African safari.....I have read it probably 6 times, due for another....

ooops, sorry, I just realized after re reading the initial question, that the writer was wondering about good diabetic snacks....my answer certainly wasn't any help....But my wife is.....and I think you should inquire with your md for your particular condition and care, to get his recommendations...actually a couple bite size snickers bars in the pocket are good insurance against low sugar.

nuthin. I have a power breakfast in the am before hitting my stand, and a big lunch to carry me in the afternoon. Kinda a stickler about no unnecessary movement, etc. That doesn't mean I wont have a snickers bar or such in my pocket for once I have left, or if I am still hunting. Now, if I am bear hunting, that's another thing all together....I am usually in a ground blind, that gives me much greater freedom of movement, but I am also usually there much longer....sometimes up to 8 hrs. I am bound to have 2-3 sandwiches, a bunch of cookies, etc. I'm hankering for one of Ms. Lindsays leftover sauerbraten sandwiches, now that I am thinking of it!

I doubt I would pay to hunt for White tail , as I hunt them here, and fill my freezer every year. I had allways wanted to hunt black bear, and have been to Canada 6 times for it, guided hunts averaging 1800. The camaraderie, fun, new experiences and people give you more reason to return. Those are about as affordable a paid hunt as you can find. I have been to Newfoundland once (and am planning my return) for moose, a fly in one on one hunt. Cost is about 4600. including licenses. For me it is a big piece of change, but I scrimp and save, and it is worth every penny. I dream of an Alaskan guided hunt for caribou and grizzley, or a boat based spot and stalk for big black bears on the west coast, but they are beyond my means.

I used to carry a handgun while rifle hunting, but long ago realized it was dead wt. Any rifle I carry has power far in excess of the .44 or .357 I carried, and was already in my hand. I hunt mainly out of my camp, so I usually have two rifles: my main scoped hunting rifle, then a lighter carbine for woods walking, scouting. This year I am hunting with my Krag Jorgenson mainly, so I have a newer vintage rifle if it is really nasty out.

Electric socks are still out there.....I know guys who still swear by them.

You need it ticketed before you can load it, or risk getting fined. I have butchered ALOT of road kill....local cops used to give us a call at the fire station if they had one. Sometimes you have a fair bit ruined by the trauma, sometimes they are barely touched. If the paunch is ruptured , we will usually bag it there, though.