nyslowhand

Stabilizer bars - Put mine ~5-6' high and then crisscross a ratchet strap from one side of ladder, around tree and back to other side of ladder where bar is positioned. This really cinches the lower ladder section. Of course, you really need to torque the thumb screw when length of bar is set. Can't imagine carrying a fully assembled ladder stand over any distance. More power to anyone (Larry302) than does it!! Anyone not aware of it, the balance point (center mass) on an assembled ladder stand is near the 1st or 2nd ladder step down from the platform. Little more tricky moving one thru the woods as opposed to across or along the edge of a field. If you're young, strong & determined enough, suppose most anything can be accompolished. Us old "duffers" are determined, but lacking in the other traits, so we must get creative. LOL

Typically 15' ladder stands are in the 50-70# range. Some heavier as they get made taller &/or more substantial! Made lightweight intentionly due to shipping from mfgres in China. They are also refered to as permanent, so you wouldn't be packing one in to your site the day of a hunt! Mine are all set-up &/or relocated no later than the end of July for Oct 1st hunting. I assembly mine in a large shed on my property and leave in 2X pieces; platform and one ~4' ladder section. 2nd piece is 2X ladder sections. They get strapped to a small-ish trailer & hauled as close to possible to where I want to put them up. 2X pieces bolted together and then uprighted against tree. Suppose you could haul the box in and put together at the site. Boxes are generally ~4-5' long, ~3'wide and ~12" thick. Boxes aren't always in the best condition either after the long trip being shipped from China & handled several times before it gets into your possession. So missing smaller parts or hardware is not uncommon due to tears in packaging (box).

A deer's line of sight follows the terrain and as you mentioned an uphill incline can be a tricky stand placement issue. Converesly, the "higher is better" philosophy isn't w/o its' drawbacks. First, when the leaves are on, being higher puts you into the canopy and requires what a friend likes to refer to as "clear-cutting" to open up shot opportunities. Secondly, the higher you are, the smaller the kill-zone becomes. Arbitrairly, 20yds or less. You start looking at steeper angled shots possibly into the top of the shoulder. Oh yeah, .... on windy days, being higher gives you more of a "white knuckle" ride, if you're into that! LOL. As I said before, to each his/her own. The 15' stands have proven to be successful for me, but may not be ideal for your hunting location or style! So, stay low or get higher, just get out there and enjoy!

If you're new to ladder stands, look at the specs (dimensions) for the stand you're thinking about. An advertised 20' stand might only have a platform height of 15-17'. The larger the platform area (LxW), the better! Another consideration I've run into, is the taller the stand, the longer the ladder sections become. Most have tubular ladder frames, 3/4 - 1" sqr. Can be sort of flimsy, especially uprighting. I have many different models/mfgers ladder stands & all the bench seat cushions are crap. I carry either an inflatable or thicker seat cushion to the stand. Supplied ratchet straps are also crappy, so do yourself a favor & invest in better/stronger straps! One of my better 18-20' stands was from Sportsmans Guide. S/H can be up to $50-75 on some models/sites. To each his own, but I've found little difference in the deer's reaction to a 13-14' stand over a 20' one. It's all about placement & backlighting or concealing your profile while in the stand. One final little quirk about ladder stands is setting them up on bare ground. I've used concrete blocks, flat rocks or sections of treated lumber to rest the base of ladder on. Prevents ladder from sinking into wet ground & possibly bowing/twisting the ladder section.

Very cool pics (as always) Dave!

One of the reasons I like my T/C Triumph with the removable breech plug. Don't have to fire it to unload pellets & sabot! Few cleaning patches & 5 minutes work can put away for season!

Be nice, us "Grumpy Old Men" have feelings too! Kidding, of course!

Bet there are 1000s of flint & cap lock rifles in NYS locked in gun cabinets when people upgraded to in-lines. Know I have one stashed away.

All started with CNN's documentary Blackfish. Film's focus is on one single Killer Whale, its' captivity and fatalities he caused at SeaWorld facilities. Like all CNN's special reports, basically trying to envoke controversy. May be able to DVR it, probably being repeated late nights on CNN.

We still talking about "primitive" muzzleloaders? Think some of you are confusing the current in-line MLs, their seasons &/or harvests to the OP's primitive ML suggestions. Not to add fuel to the Mason-Dixon (I90) fued.....suggestions may only be viable for SZ.

Never thought I had the patience for a flintlock, but I can appreciate a gorgeous rifle when I see one!! Out of curosity, what makes this a Tenn Mtn style? If you hadn't described it, would have thought it was a PA influenced flintlock. Not that it matters what it's called, beautiful longrifle!

Assuming the real interest in any primitive cap or flintlock ML season would be among the older more mature hunting population..!?! How about a split two week special season, 1st weeks of October (anterless) & January (either sex)? As enticing as it would be to dust off my T/C Renegade, not sure I'd be too eager to endure the typical weather (temps & snowfall) after Dec 25th for a two week season during that timeframe. Would the harvest during the proposed late season even justify implementing a special primitive ML season?

If family supports you, time away from work is manageable and finances available - DO IT! Years ago I worked with guys that took the annual "road trip" to Ontario, Canada to bow hunt spring bears. Got invited, but never went. 30 years later, wished I'd gone! Live your life with no regrets! (Disclainer; Within reason.) My philosophy is, when I'm at the Pearly Gates and St. Peter is reviewing my life, what's he going to say? You're boring! You had a pretty good life! Was that the best you could do? You blew your chance!

Bad link!?!

On the positive side, you qualify for NY "Resident" status being a fulltime student. The Ohio license &/or hunter safety/bow courses might be acceeptable in NY. http://www.dec.ny.gov/permits/6094.html Some are going to disagree, but hunting state or public lands in NY is a less than desireable option. Getting permission to hunt private lands in NYS is more difficult that what you mentioned for Ohio. You could spend several years finding the right spot in a public area or getting permission to hunt private lands. If you look at the "big picture", two years isn't a long time and the best option might be to make the hunting trips back home...? Another long shot option, might be a "swap hunt". Sure there are a lot of hunters on this forum that would like to hunt Ohio. You could possibly get permission to hunt in western NY with someone in trade for semi-guided hunts in your home state. Worth a try!!??!! BTW - Good luck with your Graduate studies!!

Been there, done that and still struggling with Restless Leg Syndrome for the past 25+ years. Seen specialists, couple of monitored sleeps, 50+ prescribed medications, vitiamin/mineral supplements, holostic options, etc. Nothing seemed to work. Typically it isn't your bed or sleeping arrangements. What really helped me coop with my issue was to stop putting caffine into my body after about noon-ish. God knows I miss my Coke, Snickers, M&Ms, chocolate cakes... Everyone's body reacts to caffine differently. BTW - Caffine comes in all forms from chocolate, coffee, most soft drinks, all energy drinks, etc. If you partake of nicotine products (smoking, chewing, dipping..) that also has an effect somewhat. Yeah, as you get older you also require or get less sleep. If it's a breathing related issue (apnea), as others have mentioned self-help isn't much of an option. As someone else mentioned modifying your sleep times, anyone going through sleep problems knows that's much easier said than done!

Here's a different whine, but a true vintage! Enrages me every month I am forced to write a check to T-W cable. Probably pay less than most as I only have regular cable & RR with no premium channels or DVR service. Granted I get over 1000 channels, but only watch maybe 15-20 on a regular basis. Remember a few months ago when T-W complained about declining profits due to everyone switching to satellite networks? Basically said they were going to reduce "switch-over" incentives and get more profits from existing customers! WTH!!! So I called and said I was switching over and what could they do for me. We can reduce your bill by ~$35 for a year, but then it will increase above what you're currently paying by $20+ after a year. CS rep was amazed I wasn't overwhelmed by the deal. And the "switch-over" incentives seemed to have gotten even better recently. So much for any loyalty to long term customers. It's no wonder T-W is on the top 10 list for " Business Insider's list of Most Hated Companies in America."

Of course, the annual, pre-dawn 1-2 shots coming from a couple different locations. All happening as you look out into the woods and can't even distinguish the trees apart. Other than waiting for the deer, I really look forward to the mid-morning shooting. Get a couple of guys (gals) tired of sitting and bump deer on their way out for coffee. The 8-10 shots, minute later a few more and several minutes later several more shots. Couple years ago, across the road from where I hunt, think I counted a total of 15-16 shots over a 10 minute peroid. Poor deer! Idiots! This is on private lands, so I can't imagine what NYS lands would be like.

The trick is exactly what Culver mentioned. Get washer & dryer cleaned of any detergents, scented laundry soaps &/or UV brighteners before washing hunting clothing. I have a couple of bath towels dedicated to my scent-free showers, so I run those thru washer with a 2nd rinse cycle and then into dryer first. Then all your hunting clothing. Probably never got washer & dryer completely "decontaminated", unless you have the luxury of a dedicated washer/dryer specifically for hunting clothing. I use the earth scented dryer sheets & never had a problem with deer picking up my scent, that I'm aware of!?! "Scent-free" is one of those topics that you're either a minimalist or overly OCD about it, to each his own! Other option is to never wash hunting clothing, simply put a couple handfuls of corn in the jacket pockets every time you hunt... Just kidding!

Yes! It's not any different than if you get venison processed for yourself. It's your deer, your filled tag, your rack & cape, if you want them! Yes, where I donate mine, they ask if I want any part of the meat for myself! Also, it's my understanding once a deer is at a processor, there is no longer the need to ID by sex. Meaning, they always saw the rack off for me when I drop off a buck.

Your friend is the best reference for hunting opportunities in the small portion of Sugar Hill State Forest you'll see. Problem with Sugar Hill is it's ~9K acres, non-contiguous, vastly diverse terrain/habitat and bordered by heavily posted private land &/or agr fields. If you don't have adjoining property like your friend, the access roads are NOT maintained very well. Most hunters park at tower or along the numerous access roads and venture only a few hundred yards. When I lived down there, I hunted there every May for turkeys. Wish I knew, but have to assume over the years I put on several hundred miles on my hunting boots. When hunting the interior of Sugar Hill, I never had many sightings or saw a lot of deer signs. Having grown-up in the area, all the stories I heard were of big bucks being taken around the perimeter of the State Forest that adjoin the posted farm lands. Exception might be some of the isolated NE portions that are surrounded by farm lands. Couple of FYIs if you decide to go back in the future. The State Forest covers 3-4 different topo map quadrangles. Possibly today's GPS maps show the forest's boundary. There are horse trails that interweave most of Sugar Hill and a map of those is also available, forget where I got mine. If you happen to get a deer off the beaten path, you're in for a haul!! Last I knew there was NO ATV access, so if you didn't bring your pack mule... It's NYS land, so don't be shocked to see horseback riders, hikers with or w/o dogs, BMX'ers, etc! At least that's what I saw in May. They'd be fools to be out there during deer season, but it is public land. Almost forgot, don't be suprised to hear the prisioners at Monterey doing their morning exercise if you're near Six Nations, Evergreen or Goundry Hills. Twenty years ago when I roamed that area, they were just starting to get bears around. Probably a lot more there now!!!

Way kool!!! That 10pt is a stud!

In all the years I've been hunting, this year was the 1st time I've had a personal experience with an ECO. I got a deer that I believed to be "Unfit for Consumption" and needed DEC's verification. Officer arrived in a timely manner, was courteous, quoted the regulations, chatted about the deer and issued me a replacement tag. Overall a good experience with an ECO! FYI - 8F. Not to justify any bad experiences folks have with ECOs, but they are people too. The all have different personailities, varied egos, personal perceptions of how to perform their jobs, individualized interpretations of the regulations and like us they all have good & bad days. Some may be "thin skinned", so a bad situation on a stressful day may create an unusual temperament for the entire day. They do routinely deal with the public (us) and that can be challenging. Betting that isn't a large part of their training and some may deal with the public better than others. Conversley being the "Devil's Advocate", their job is to serve & inform us, we indirectly pay their wages and do have some expectation of courtesy or respect.

Python cable locks are the most popular and a lot of cams have attachment loops/tabs to accept them. The camo versions have a smaller 1/4" cable. FYI - I got a set on ebay that were all keyed the same which makes marking &/or fumbling with different keys a lot easier. The lock mechanism in the camo version of the Python cable is not the best. They can sometimes be a little stubborn (impossible?) to unlock after sitting in the elements a few months. Cable locks for trail cams aren't any different than posted signs, merely reminders that it's someone else's property and aren't by any means intended as fail-safe security deterrents.

FYI - Those that subscribe to his theory, Alshiemer's "Rutting Moon" in 2013 is Nov 17th.