Taylormike

I do Chili, one of my favorite meals. I actually use Wendy's chili recipe but substitute the meat with my ground venison. Also, as Rob mentioned Jerky. Nothing will deplete your ground venison like Jerky. It usually takes about 10lbs of ground to make 3 or 4 lbs of Jerky. I made my own the last few years, well I used Hi Mountain Cure and Seasoning but did the rest in my kitchen. I recommend purchasing a Jerky Blaster, it's the same as a caulk gun and has different ends for different products. I use the double Jerky end. Obviously you'll have to invest in a dehydrator. It is well worth the investment. I can't keep the Jerky around, I actually have people from work asking to buy it. I don't charge, it's my good deed. Keep In mind, it's quite a bit of work and makes a huge mess. After the seasoning and cure set, the mix becomes very sticky. I think you should try it!!! It really is delicious...!!!

Don't overthink it... It can happen and will happen. You can just as easily strike and be successful. Stay positive!

I wouldn't worry about pressure. From the looks of your post in "Live from Stand", the deer are use to pressure. You in fact did get two shots at her and as Grampy stated, there will be more from where she came. I'd say, stick it out and soon you'll have another opportunity...

Great pics!

Daylight buck has much more antler mass in my opiniom. No worries, I'd take either.

Well, she only went 120 yards, caught a single lung. She will be tender. I won't be back in woods until Nov. 1st, buck here on out.

Hit a nice doe, not happy with my shot. Way too far back. Now the waiting game. Time to try and relax for 6 hrs. Arrrgghhh!

Too warm but as the old proverb goes you can't shoot then from the couch... It's warm but I'm on stand. Good luck everyone!

I see no purpose of this regulation. I actually don't know the basis behind it, (control deer population)? If that is the reason, I can say I do not see a need for this regulation. Where hunting is legal, I don't see an overabundance, I actually have been seeing fewer deer.

Here we go! I'm excited, my brother is picking me up in about 2-3 hours, headed for camp. My Dad, Brother and I haven't hunted yet this year. We are hunting tomorrow and Monday and then headed back home until our annual two week tradition hits. As of now, we won't be back down until Nov. 1st, we will be there from 1st-16th so hopefully we catch the majority of the chasing phase. I spent the majority of last weekend and today hanging with the family, I even stopped at Wegmans for groceries... I'm hoping the Deer gods bless me with a nice buck - LOL! I do not like the looks of the weather the next two days, warm and windy, but it is what it is. I will do a combo scent drag, Dominate Buck and doe n' estrous, just maybe I'll get a decent buck to follow. I do have a doe tag but even if the opportunity presents itself I might not shoot. Well, good luck to all and if I see anything I'll make sure to post to the "Live" forum. I do love reading your posts too!!!

This one is easy for me... I do not leave the cabin without my Camo Hand Muff. The reason being, I refuse to wear any glove on my shooting hand, only my release. I do not like gloves, even if their fingerless, too much material and bulkiness. I do wear a glove on my left hand though. On really cold days I will open a hot hands warmer packet or two and place them in the muff. It literally warms the entire muff.

Look, there is no exact science or maybe there is... But I have to agree with Doc...., the bottom line is.....Longevity, reaching a mature age. Some of you are familiar with Niagara County some of you are not. Niagara county has some very rural areas but also very suburban areas, places where blacktop and concrete = more square footage than topsoil. Two years ago in a very suburban area, I actually witnessed a 160-170 class deer walking in a Walmart parking lot. The only decent food around was in the dumpsters, from the waste of the employees and patrons of Walmart. Nothing was ideal about this location and btw. I have witnessed some other brutes there too. Don't misunderstand me, no question that good soil, food, hunting conditions play a role but not important as living to full maturity. The reason PA is seeing huge bucks is because the deer are now left to age or mature if you will. The soil is the same soil. Deer antlers will get big, the deer need to survive 4-7 years. This is my opinion.

What an absolute bummer! Still an awesome setup.

Looks really big. I imagine you have plenty of deer back there? If hunt right in the back?

Wow, forget the rainbow... Your backyard is gorgeous! Every morning I'd be on that deck enjoying fresh brewed Keurig!!! Too cool, I'm envious....

Niagara/Erie county, flat farm land almost impenetrable, plus some of the areas are bow only...

They must have a licking branch. Some experts will argue it is as crucial or even more important than the scrape itself. If you scout in another area from where you hunt, you can remove the licking branch and zip tie to your designated area. This has the potential of creating a buck frenzy if done right. You need to make sure you are as scent free as possible...

No deer can be hit through stomach or intestines and survive. In fact, it's quite the opposite, the deer will die 100% of the time. The problem is how long we have to wait, usually a minimum 6 hours and then tracking can be next to impossible if the deer was even slightly pushed. Septecemia -is was kills them. Poisoning of the blood from bacteria.

Guys I'm kidding... Absolutely you shoot those two deer 10 out of 10 times. I'm in 9P so I'm familiar with that area.

The only mistake I can see is you guys didn't wait another few weeks to harvest these two beauties... They didn't get a chance to Impregnate all those doe with their horse DNA... Great job!!!

Great Buck! Congrats! Not many people could or would pass a deer of this caliber. Love the pic with the food plot/field, looks great!!!

Although I don't envy your situation, I think stick it out and hunt hard. Things will change. I have 25 acres my neighbor has 140 and the next 200. They are good guys, good hunters, our deer too are nocturnal. He alone is not holding all the deer off the property. How's the coyote and bear population? You said you got a nice bear.

Actually as odd as this might sound. I occupy myself with a few other hobbies and spend a lot of time with family. I just built my kids a backyard hockey rink. I have a problem when I get to obsessed about things, hunting and camp is one of them. If it was my decision I can honestly say I'd be at camp often, working and scouting and whatever have you. However, I also realize there is a balance to life. The spouse and I work 50 hours each. We have two small children, my son is two and not ready for camp. My camp is rough, difficult for some women and almost impossible for young children. Working all week, seeing my wife for an hour or two, then catching up on some zzzzz's , finally Friday comes and you pack the vehicle and leave straight from work, won't see the family until Sunday night. If this becomes the norm, well lets just say I'll have all the hunting time I want, my wife won't put up with it. This long story does have a point......................... My wife realizes I love it and wants to bring the kids with her so we can go down together all the time. Currently, I'm calculating a way to get water and electric immediately and possibly septic next year. I just hate delaying and I sometimes get frustrated so I try not to think about it, kind of like, out of sight - out of mind. Hopefully soon!!!

I don't know, tough question... I would say the stands are not deep enough... I hunt exclusively a two-man I have plenty of width but when the seat is down there is just not enough room. I will almost always try to fold the seat up so I can pick up the extra room when standing. My feel will usually hang over the platform in the sitting position. Also, the bottom rung/step needs a welded platform that contacts the ground. Reason for this, if you don't accommodate and set the platform running up hill a little, as soon as the wet weather comes and you step on ladder the two vertical legs bury deep into the ground. Over time, they continue to dig in a little putting the platform even more at downward slope. The are small things just nuisances.

It's a lot easier for me to answer this question sitting in my office at work. Put yourself in this young man's shoes and well I'm guessing my answer would be a whole lot different. As I do not applaud his actions and feel jubilant there is nothing really wrong with it. Is he in his right mind going to pass this deer when he finally shows. I chalk it up to sometimes we're luck and sometime not. This 17 year was lucky and I feel he does not have to pay any retributions for his actions. However, one can say he is doomed because he will never have another opportunity at harvesting such a rare specimen his entire life... I don't have a problem with it...