Lawdwaz

I have seen such a change in thinking in the past 10 years guys I hunt with and many many others I know in regard to "letting 'em walk". I believe that that kind of thinking is what has helped to let some of these bucks get a little more age and consequently bigger head gear. Ten years ago you shot the first buck you saw on opening day and were damned happy to. These days many but not all of my friends/family will pass a young buck on the first day and maybe for the first couple weeks.....some end up with an unfilled tag, others may shoot a 1.5 old buck and rarely but occasionally a few will shoot an older mature buck. "Letting 'em walk" is great, but choice is better.

Heck yea........they can sneak up behind and be in the tree on you in seconds. You'd NEVER even know they were there.............................................................then all of a sudden------------CHOMP CHOMP CHOMP. I wouldn't sweat it though..........................

If he really knew it was 5.5 years old (and I doubt that) that would be quite a buck to kill, IMO. Can't eat the horns..........the meat can be marinated.

Make sure you check prices with a taxidermist BEFORE you go. Bear rugs/mounts etc are surprisingly expensive!!

I'm going out on a limb here and thinking this was a low budget HF deal that you went on.........the places I'm talking about aren't going to have people ramming around hunting hogs and such while a spendy hunt is going down. I bet he would see a buck at some of these places (and no hog hunters )........ http://www.sanctuary-ranch.com/ http://www.cherryridge.com/Welcome.html http://www.dreamwhitetails.com/Home.htm

It's all good harmless fun I know..........like video shoot 'em ups? I'm sure my age has something to do with it but I don't like guns pointed at me or anyone I love.........

I remember that picture/story now. Very cool looking animal, how was the meat?

I have no problem with people hunting HF................. What animals have you hunted on those hunts?

Our relationship is sooo much deeper than a little squabble like this................ I don't think I said anything derogatory about a preserve other than they are a shoe in, unless of course a hunter doesn't find the animal he is after. And I'm talking the high end white-tail hunts. I've only hunted one preserve; spring of 2013 for hogs. It was far from a challenge but still a hoot! Matter of fact I just tossed most of the meat in the trash a few weeks ago, it was that bad. By the way, did you or anybody else go home empty handed from those hunts?

Does anyone ever go home empty handed at your place?

Now I'm not sure if YOU are serious?? I don't think anybody goes how without the biggest buck their pocket book can handle................I have a friend who hunted the Sanctuary many years ago (20 at least) and he ended up shooting two..........just pass the bar code scanner over 'em and you'll get a price before you shoot them......... It's a shoot, not a hunt from what I have seen and read about.

You take Mr B's tractor or the Gator?

Hold on.......there is no guarantee on those free range muley hunts. I'd bet a dollar to donuts that the high fence hunt for white-tails comes with pretty good guarantee of success on a slob!

If anyone is interested the Tonawanda Gander Mountain has a heck of a price on a 100% condition Kimber Montana in 30-06. Tag price is $895 and they have a 10% off deal going on now. For Approx $805 that is a smoking deal. Oh, it has scope bases too mounted too. I wouldn't expect it to last long and IIRC they will transfer for free to another store?? Also, ALL their guns and EVERYTHING in the store is 10% OFF. Yup, everything. Its the first time I've been in there since Cabela's came to town..............

White-tail deer are more of a "trophy" to MOST eastern hunters and a more desirable animal to hunt since they can't kill one free range they can go and cork a monster buck on a cushy farm hunt. They drop a $5,000-$12,000 and most of their family and friends don't even know (or care) where it was shot and that it has a bar code on its ass. A great white-tail is the most in demand animal because it is the most popular game animal. Just my $.02...............

Interesting mount.......is it yours? It sure looks expensive! {Never mind on :is it yours?" comment, I see it now.] Whats kind of weird is the way it looks like the right front leg is positioned. Doesn't look natural to me??

That's also why ice cream only last a very short time in a regular refrigerator/freezer.

Swiped off the web in much more understandable way than I could do....... Here it is: Frost free freezers don't dehydrate meat via air circulation, they dehydrate meats (and other foods) due to the freeze/thaw cycle that allows them to be frost free. When the frost free cycle runs, it partially thaws your food. The edges of the food will thaw and then refreeze, causing the ice crystallization to pull water from the edges of the food. After enough cycles of this, it will turn your food into leather. Regular freezers don't have this problem since once the food is frozen, it stays frozen--the water never recrystalizes. If you don't vacuum pack your food before storing it, it will keep longer in a regular freezer. However, if you vacuum pack your meats (and other freezables) they will suffer only minor damage even in a frost free freezer because there are no air voids for the water to accumulate and crystallize and draw the water from the food.

I asked that earlier in this thread but don't recall the answer. I know a plenty of guys that do............ Regardless, if they can't kill a 2nd buck I think the antlerless count will most certainly increase, as is the intention of the DEC. They wouldn't even have to increase the allotment of antlerless tags as there are so many unfilled each year. AR's or OBR would most certainly result in a reduction of the overall deer herd with button bucks and pregnant adult doe being harvested in place of a 2nd buck.

I hunted black bear once in Saskatchewan, shot the first one to come in I was so excited. Probably should have passed as I had about 4 more days to hunt. It was a baited deal my buddy and I booked through Cabela's back in 1997 IIRC. Great time when it was all said and done. Spent hours and hundreds of miles on a four wheeler helping the outfitter fill bait barrels all over the province. (it seemed ) More mud than you could ever believe. We winched and winched and winched!!

Well said.

Like paint ball, I don't think it would be for me. Guns and bows (IMO) are not toys and as such shooing people with them is something that wouldn't be my idea of fun. But, YMMV I never bought my son any toy guns either...........

I assume everybody here is NOT putting their venison in a frost-free freezer. It sure won't last long in one of those and I think the link provided is speaking of that type of freezer. A non-frost free freezer is where all my meat is stored.

I measured 13" on the deck this morning. 3" or so from yesterday and about 10" this morning +/-. Thunder & lightning this morning too............and a pile of wind. Blue skies & breezy now..................................