Cabin Fever

I'll be taking my daughter out. The weather isn't looking too great for Saturday, windy and 40% chance of showers (Right now anyway). Hopefully we can get a couple good hours after daylight, before it starts though. Sunday is looking better! Been going out listening at camp for the past 2-3 weekends. Went out this afternoon and picked out a place to put up the pop up blind and decoys. Good luck!

I can't believe the price of some decoys!! $150+!!! WTH!?!?

Just got this Rag Bag field point target. http://www.thirdhand...ct.asp?PRODID=9 (Check out the video.) Did a lot of reading on different archery forums and the Rag Bag target was probably the most popular and came highly recommended. Don't think I came across any negative reviews! You just buy the bag ($18-$25 depending on where you buy from) and stuff it full of old clothes, coats, blankets, whatever. BTW, the bag is made of some kind of funky material and has a "lifetime" warranty. Think the strands separate, but don't break. People say they have been using theirs for 8 years and it's still going strong! Super easy arrow removal too!! I went to a local House of Concern yesterday, where they take in and sell used clothing donations, and asked if they had any clothing that wasn't worth selling that I could get and told her why I wanted them (showed her the target bag too). She handed me 3 garbage bags of clothes and was happy to get rid of them! I was happy to get them and gave her a $20 donation. I got home and stuffed the Rag Bag as tight as I could. It has velcro across the top to hold it shut. Shot the crossbow from 10' away and it stopped the arrows with NO problem! Arrows slide out with no effort! NICE!! This was an important feature for me, so my daughter could easily do it herself. I read if one spot starts getting soft, you just shuffle and repack the rags inside, and it'll be as good as new!! Some guys hang theirs and cover with garbage bags to keep dry and out of the sun. Others make a wooden or PVC pipe frame. Some stuff in plastic totes, then just replace the lid when done shooting to protect from the weather. As cheap as they are, I'm thinking I'll get another one. That way I can keep one at the cabin and also have one in the basement.

Cool video! On the broadside shots, it almost looks like you could draw a line back into the body from where the beard protrudes and aim for there, as a reference.

Man that's gotta sting.... That sucks.

Too Funny!! Thanks, I needed a good laugh!!

Kills me how some people are so quick to jump on things and point fingers! God forbid they would post a coyote or deer hunting video now, since season is closed right??

Here's the Growing Deer TV video, that pav2704 mentioned, that shows them testing out the Longbeard XR. Very Impressive! http://www.growingdeer.tv/archive/#/turkey-hunting-70-yard-turkey-load

Good God!!

Been at camp listening for the past 2 weekends at daylight. There's been a LOT of gobbling coming from one particular spot. It's only ~150 yards from the cabin. All the gobbling has been coming from one very small (but typical) area, so I wasn't sure if it was the same bird or multiple birds roosting VERY close together (within ~30 yards). Couldn't believe that one bird would/could gobble so much, so I was thinking/hoping it was multiple birds. Plus, the gobbling has been stopping right after flydown, so I wasn't sure which way he/they normally headed afterwards. Decided to put on the camo and get a little closer this morning, so I could see the entire hillside, to see how many gobblers there were making all the racket and see which way they headed after flydown. Right at 5:30 on the button, as if it were an alarm clock, I heard the first gobble ~90 yards in front of me, on the hillside. Believe it or not, he gobbled 127x total from the roost, before flying down at 6:10. Once he flew down, he only gobbled 1x!! (Sore throat? ) He was the only gobbler there and I had his tree pinpointed on the hillside, so I am 100% sure he was making all the racket himself!! He had 2-3 hens nearby, as I later heard them flydown. Never in my life have I heard such vocal gobbler!! BTW, just a 2 year old with a 7-8" beard. Was nice to be able to see which way they headed after fly down too. It was nice to get in there to get some "intel", rather than just standing at camp, listening, and wondering what was going on back there. Hopefully it'll help next weekend, during the youth season!

Love it! Man, I bet that had the ole heart thumpin'!!

That is one sweet lookin' mount! The taxidermist did a great job! Super realistic!

Went to camp this morning before daylight to listen. Between 5:53-6:03, I counted 48 gobbles!! In 10 freekin' minutes!! They were fired up!! Don't know how many different gobblers were in there, as all the gobbling seemed to be coming from a very small area (~75yards) about 150-200 yards behind the cabin. They gobbled until 6:25. I had to head home at 6:40, so I don't know if they continued late morning or not. Youth season is 2 weeks away!

Love it! Great bird too!

Very Cool! Love the pics!

Looks great!

Took my daughter out last year. The pop up blind worked out perfectly for us. You can whisper, move around a bit, and we had swivel stools, which is a hell of a lot more comfortable than sitting on the ground on tree roots and rocks! You don't have to keep telling them to "stop moving" so much. On those mornings when there's nothing going on, my daughter stretched out on the ground and napped! Sure makes it nice when it's raining and/or windy too. You have to be courteous and understanding, realizing that they won't have that same drive that you do at their age, to keep at it all morning. It's tough getting up that early, especially for kids at that age! Encourage them, give them pep talks, tell stories of your previous hunts, etc... When they're ready, and you can't stall them any longer, just pack up and leave. Don't want to force them to stay and make them not want to go out again. I usually take my kids out to breakfast after an early morning hunt and that sometimes energizes them to want to go out afterwards for a late morning hunt. My daughter took her first turkey and deer last year! I was one proud Dad!! Oh yeah, and take a thermacell! Enjoy being out there with your son and good luck! It's been a long time coming.... trust me, I know! We've been thinking about this since the day they were born!

Freekin' Awesome! My heart was racing, like I was there with you! Have you guys considered doing a "How to video" for our NY coyotes, maybe during the off season? Like what works best for you guys, tricks that you've learned, best places to call, etc... I must suck, as I've gone out many times over the years, but have only called in 1 coyote (that I know of). I've only gone out during daylight hours, but you guys seem to have no problem calling them in during the day!

I think Costanzas are done accepting any more venison, until archery season opens up this fall. They usually wrap up all venison processing, before re-opening for retail sales. They opened last week (March 26th) for retail sales.

Looks like they're selling for $850, which is in line with many other crossbows. http://www.thecrossbowstore.com/Hickory-Creek-18-Inch-Right-Hand-In-line-Vertical-p/hc-ilbrvc.htm

Great pic! Aren't you afraid of the cam getting submerged in rising water? LOL

Maybe this post should be called "Do A Little Dance - Part II"?? (Here's Part 1 http://huntingny.com/forums/topic/15437-do-a-little-dance/ ) Guess those deer are dancing for the NYCC this time!! Thanks for all your work and efforts Rick and the NYCC!

Wow! That's pretty cool! There's a lot of crossbows that cost well over $1,000, so the price of this one really isn't that outrageous.

+1 I live 5 miles from Tarjac and have seen some amazing stuff come out of there!

Another quality video from Downwind Outdoors! Thanks for posting!