Doewhacker

oh no not this arguement again.. :

Sam brought up Iowa and their season structure, if there is one topic that will burn the house down faster than AR's, a shortened gun season is the one...

Thats is pretty much what the DEC has said, it is far better for us to monitor and improve our own land. There is no one size fits all approach and it would be impossible for the DEC to do much with their limited resources.

"Don't complain about there being no big bucks in your area if you keep killing all your potential big bucks when they are yearlings" I'm not complaining.. I could care less about a "big" buck. There are bucks killed each year acrossed the state, they are there reguardless of what part of the state you come from. Some are big and some are small, the ratio of older bucks killed has not changed.

Nice back peddal. Most people that disagree are more concerned with preserving their freedom to choose what deer to shoot and are not worried about what other hunters will say about it. Sam you left out the part where you hunted in two different states to get those doe's.. right? Not every one can or wants to do that, but good for you and your accomplishments.. that is your choice and you are free to do as you please.

For the same reason your attacking him... Yes, food plots are great, and food plots, the ones I plant do not just "last a year". Perennial crops and grasses can last for years and years. So you are answering for him because he called other hunters ignorant for not following the same path as him?

AR's protect yearling bucks. FACT is that Antler Restrictions are accomplishing the objective of reducing the yearling buck harvest by 70%. Very good QDM stands for Quality Deer Management, hence the reason for supporting one animal. But the result of QDM ends up benifiting more then just deer. QDM is about herd management, habitat mangement, hunter management, and herd monitoring. By improving the habitat for example, by doing food plots, your not only improving sources for deer but also for everything else that feeds there. Turkey, yote, etc etc... And why exactaly are you answering for this punch guy? Yes food plots are great.. but only for that year, what happens when you stop doing them? It is not a lasting conservation effort and does not change the overall landscape for very long.

Most times slow and low is the way to go however I prefer high heat searing for venison loin and cooked no higher than med rare. Lesser cuts benifit greatly from slow and low, I go with 225-250 degree's when doing that method. If it is on the grill I only use the back burner, leaving the meat towards the front and let it go for as long as I can stand it...I get hungry and give in to temptation.. Hey Geno, how do you have loins left at this time of the year!!! I'm jealous..haha

Yes, especially stinky bucks. One time I shot one with the bow at last light, I had forgotten a flash light and had to go out in the dark and find a light. I smelled the the buck and had walked right by him on the way out but couldn't see him due to the darkness. I remember stoping and saying boy I can smell him, where is he?

I only use one scent wick at a time, and only a few drop, usually if a deer is smelling it they are some what down wind and it may not help me much any way. I use it as more of a cover scent than any thing else.

"Guys that say "You can't eat the antlers" are completely ignorant" Well based on the post's here on this site it really seems like those "ignorant" guys are more informed that those who are not "ignorant". A points based AR does not protect any certain age 100%, it only protects bucks with less points. "Just trying to get more hunters (THE # 1 CONSERVATIONISTS) to think about what it CAN be with more positive effort" AR and conservation have nothing to do with each other, conservation is about more than the number of points a buck has when it is killed. I'll even take it a step further and say that QDM does very little in the way of conservation efforts, it deals with one specific animal not the whole environment. (+1 to Steve863's post also)

Aim Small miss small, same idea and it works well.

Mine was late season, me and the old man went down on a week day due to my schedule at the time. It was one of the last few days and boy was it cold. The wind chill had it around -21 and we had to bundle up like eskimos to hunt. We had set out to hunt a different spot but that required a creek crossing with waders and it was so cold I couldn't stand it so we went to plan B. Lucky me, we went in still hunting along this low lying ridge and with in a hundred yards or so we spoted some deer. I dropped off the edge and stalked up and peeked over the ridge to find the herd about 40 yards away. I quickly aimed and fired my sidelock and about 100 yards later recovered a nice doe. After the shot all hell broke loose as the pile of deer ran for cover, that was a sight. Man was it cold that day!

Oh man thats funny! How the hell did that happen, must have been a mistake, that slat lick and corn are for livestock..hahahahaha

Lets see been hunting for 15-16 years killed about 10 w/bow and 10 w/gun Gun 1 lost but only gave a hair cut Bow 2 that I gave hair cuts, I don't know if that counts Thats not to say I and my family haven't had our share of bad shots, we are just really good at tracking and recovery.

Thats what I figured but wanted to test you.. I know a guy that shot at one last year with the ML and the deer never even flinched just kinda walked off. He never check, why I don't know, but he found the buck later in the season right where it had gone to die from what I guess was a liver or gut shot. That kind of thing sickens me, and I will not likely hunt with this guy again because of it. I have in the past got better with the second shot, I tend to get mad and hunker down and aim a little better. That would be with a rifle or shotgun though not ML. Which is because I only have one shot with it, and I stink with a gun.

Here is the web site, some might find it interesting. http://www.gardening-for-wildlife.com/Gardening_For_Wildlife-Acorns-and-oak-trees-142.html

Here is why.. I got this from some tree lovers web site because I remembered my Dad telling me about it as a youngster. (I do have a memory I guess) The masting cycle: Much of the variability in acorn production is the result of a natural cycle in oaks called "masting". In this cycle, oaks produce low or moderate acorn crops most years, and an abundant acorn crop once every two to five years. Acorn production during an abundant crop year may be 80 percent higher than in a low production year; the difference to deer can be hundreds of pounds of acorns per acre

JGaruti3.. you cannot use it Turkey season, go to the DEC web site here and reveiw. This is the same list thatbpb posted on his blog by the way. Thanks bpb. http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/68802.html

I have no idea why some one would pick up the habit now with prices being $10 a pack..sheesh thats alot of loot over a years time. Lets see pack a day would be $3640 a year for a thing that will spead up death..no thanks!

YES! they are really heavy this year. Darn things hurt when you get hit by them too!!! So far both the wife and myself have been vitims of the Acorn Rage..hey isn't that a bait product or some thing..haha now I know what it means.

"If you can do simple math..." Nope he can't, I witnessed that the other day. Fairgame, I have a question, maybe you left out the part of the story, did you check to see if you hit that doe you were flinging lead at all willy nilly? I have only shot a couple with the ML, but each were one shot one kill.

Some DEC reports show adult male and fawn male, usually the fawn male numbers run in the 18-30K range every year state wide. Anyone remember the return rate for doe permits, I think its in the 1 out of 6 range but I'm not sure. They can hand out a million tags and still only get a limited return on them. I don't really have a huge problem with the current system, but I would if I were a just a gun hunter.

Well when you are done reading about how great AR's are in NY and PA, go ask a PA hunter if they are happy with the way things are managed down there. You will be surprised at how unhappy alot of them are with the PGC.

I know that its thin!! I may have missed it but what about a cheap piece of counter top from Lowes, would that work?