Pygmy

Getting a pistol permit sounds a lot more complicated than it was when I got mine in Steuben County in 1974.... All I did was...Picked up the permit application at the County Office ; Had pictures taken at the local small town newspaper ( Addison Post); Went to the local village police dept. to be fingerprinted ; Had 4 character witnesses sign before a notary; Turn in the application and wait for a Sherrif's deputy to perform his investigation and submit the application to a county judge for signing.. There was no interview or anything like that..I think it cost me about $20, including the fee for the photos.

I got mine 39 years ago....It took me 8 months...A friend of mine applied at the same time that I did and got his in 5 weeks.. I learned later that the reason mine took so long was that the Sherrif's deputy ( who eventually became Steuben County Sherrif) that was handling my application put it on top of his refrigerator and FORGOT about it for 6 months....True story...

Well, that explains it...I have hunted woodchucks here in Steuben County since around 1960, and there have been lots of habitat changes, but I also know many places that have been hayfields for many, many years and used to have LOTS of woodchucks in them...There are very few there now. The woodchucks have adapted and will survive, but they need to live in places where they are less vulnerable to coyotes than they are in open hayfields.. BTW...Do you sell lamb to individuals ? I and several of my friends love lamb, but you need to take out a bank loan to buy it at the supermarket.

I hunted deer in New Brunswick, Canada last fall.. Evidently the temps were enough cooler up there so that the apple crop was not affected like it was here.. There were apples everywhere up there..

Geeeze, Chief....Are there no coyotes on your property.? In my area, woodchucks are nearly extinct in hayfields...The yotes have figured out how to hunt them there.. Still lots of chucks in road ditches and peoples' back yards, where it is more difficult for the coyotes to hunt them. My buddy who lives in Ontario told me that before the coyotes became numerous, he had LOTS of woodchucks..He used to hunt them very successfully with his bow... I have hunted spring gobblers with him up there for about 13 years...I have YET to see my first woodchuck, OR a woodchuck den in an open field...

My standard setup is with one Bobblehead hen and one feeder Sceery inflatable hen plus either a Sceery inflatable upright hen or a Sceery inflatable jake.. Works for me..

Paula Darlin'.... That's what my ex-wife called me... " Just another thing to dust "....hehehehe...

The glands, or "kernels" as some oldtimers call them, are on the underside of the shoulder blades and on the inside of the body cavity next to the backstraps, one on either side of the spine. Squirrells have them in the same places..I have always removed them on woodchucks but have had squirrels with them present and with them removed, and I can't tell the difference. I usually remove them anyway, just because my Old Fat Father told me too....

Apple is good..Hickory is good...In Alaska and Canada, alder is favored, but I have never tried it..However the coho salmon I had smoked after my last couple of Alaska fishing trips was excellent. Unlike Culver, I like to leave the skin on...I think it results in a more moist product, and I prefer it flakey/ moist rather than dry... It is very important after the brining process to rinse the fish well and then set it out in the open air to dry for a couple of hours before smoking..That results in a glaze on the surface that helps keep the moisture in and makes for a much more attractive product. Just be careful you don't burn your house down....

I never ate a hippie...OOPS there was that time back in the mid sixties when I met that long legged flower child and..Never mind... As far as woodchucks go, I have eaten them several times... The young of the year taken in July or August ( having been born in April or May) are tender and very tasty..I would compare them to squirrel or cottontail rabbit.. The adults are edible, but somewhat stronger tasting and more gristley.. They would be best stewed or crockpotted or some other long, moist cooking method.

Good luck, Rev...Shoot a couple of limbhangers..

Yaeh, Doc...Roy had Trigger mounted and also his German Shepherd, Bullet.. I don't know about Dale Evans... I read just yesterday that they auctioned off all of Roy's stuff, including Trigger, Bullet, Pat Brady's jeep Nellybelle, clothes, guitars,guns, etc. Trigger went for over a quarter million bucks, if I remember right.

<<BLUSH>>... My old age showing through, Teebug...Somehow I had the impression that your gun was a 20.. 12 gauge is more better...I probably still have some shells I could send you..I'll check out my supply and PM you.

I'll check my ammo supply...A friend just gave me a bunch of assorted 20 gauge shells, and if there are any heavy # 6 loads, I'll send you a few to try..

I know Charlie's sister....She never turned ANYONE down... Actually, I think Charlie preferred the sheep...Her name was Lola the Wonder Ewe...

Can't say that I have, Dom... However, I read in the newspaper police log a couple of years ago that Old Charlie Wackdoodle, who lives over on the Booger Ridge Road, got arrested for mounting his pet sheep.. I don't know of there was a taxidermist involved or not...

Flitecontrol wads have worked well for me in my 12 gauge Kick's .665 , which is a relatively tight superfull choke. A few years back I was set up by a cedar tree in Ontario, while my buddy was working his slate call a few yards behind me...Instead of a gobbler, a big coyote came in and I shot him at about 10 yards.. When I went to drag the coyote into the bush, I saw my flitecontrol wad stuck right behind his right ear !!...

As long as you have the discipline to pass up any shots over 20 yards, nearly any shot load within reason will do the job...Even a .410... My ex-wife had an Ithaca M37 20 gauge 2 3/4" with an IC barrel that she killed a couple of big gobblers with.... I patterned it and got the best patterns with 2 3/4" magnum loads of buffered, copper plated #6 shot ( 1 1/8 oz.). It was deadly out to 30 yards.. Conventional wisdom would tell us that with an open choked 20 gauge gun, using heavy loads of smaller shot sizes will produce a denser pattern..

Yes, it is very cool... I remember one time in my misspent youth, when I spent many days prowling the woods near my home with my .22.. I found a dead tree with many hollows in it..I found a rugged stick and started hammering on it, because sometimes I had done this and had a grey squirrel pop out of a hollow tree cavity, and then I would POP the grey squirrel with my .22.. This time, 2 or 3 flying squirrels came sailing out... Unique experience...

They are smaller than a red squirrel...Closer to a chipmunk.. Ain't much MEAT on one... They are neither uncommon nor rare, but are seldom seen because they are nocturnal..I had a co-worker who had a bird feeder in his backyard in a wooded area. He would illuminate it at night and often see flying squirrels eating the bird seed..One night he saw a flying squirrel glide over and land on the side of a tree, and an owl came sailing in and pinned it to the tree...End of Rocky.. Poor Bullwinkle must have been crushed to lose his little buddy.

Thank all of you for the kind regards ! I spent my Birthday down at my sister's new place in South Carolina..Just got home this evening.. I DID feast on corned beef, but also had some shrimp, crablegs, and fried oysters... Kind of an Irish/Seafood birthday feast.. I don't think I'll need to eat for a WEEK...<< burp>>....

One thing to consider..If you have personalized engraving, like your name, initials, etc. it may adversly affect the resale value of the firearm, unless you happen to be Teddy Roosevelt or Jack O'Connor...

The answer to your question is "NO"....I don't have a dog in this fight, since I no longer hunt with archery gear of any description. However, I have hunted in several states plus a couple of provinces where Xbows are legal, and crowded woods due to xbows were not a problem... It's similar to the alarm voiced by many people when rifles became legal a few years back in parts of the Southern Zone that had always been shotguns only.. Lots of fretting and worrying and wringing of hands and rending of hair beforehand, and after it happened, it became a "non-issue".

I hunted with a bow for quite a few years...Killed 6 whitetails and an elk with it... However, I never really warmed up to the stick and string... Something about that walnut and blued steel of a quality firearm...Not to mention that lovely smell of burnt powder after the shot... I decided a few years back, that if it doesn't BURN POWDER, I am not interested in using it.. No offense to all of you bowhunters..I respect your skill and your dedication, and I have done enough bowhunting to appreciate it. I just find firearms much more interesting than archery tackle..Personal choice only.

PERFECT...!!... I am proud to say I know a few salty old farmers like that...