Cabin Fever

Very nice!! I used the elevator brackets also. Did you anchor it to the ground? I used cables from the stand and attached to long ground anchors. It's not going anywhere!

He's a dandy!

Neat pics!! Is that buck really just a spike?? WOW!!

Nice bucks! Wish I could find a few like that!

Great bird and a beautiful mount!

Nice job John!

Cabelas must have liked the idea, as they are now selling one that looks like it's made out of something similar to a shepards hook! LOL http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunting/Scouting-Feeders/Trail-Cameras-Accessories%7C/pc/104791680/c/104767380/sc/103867380/Cabelas-Complete-Universal-Camera-Mount-Kit/1325724.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fhunting-scouting-feeders-trail-cameras-accessories%2F_%2FN-1100176%2FNo-96%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104791680%26WTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP%26recordsPerPage%3D48&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104791680%3Bcat103867380

Nice!! I could certainly use one of these!

I was out scouting 2 days ago and couldn't believe the leaf drop already! I have a lot of poplar trees on the property and most leaves have either turned yellow and/or dropped already! Some trees were completely bare!! I sat in one stand for a bit, admiring the view, and thought it was looking like early/mid October with all the leaves falling! I guess the trees are drought stressed. I also have a lot of crabapple and pear trees around. I didn't see any fruit!

Yep, used the mesh tops. Most of my tubes are vented, so there are many "slits" on the sides. The yellow jackets either get in through the vents/slits, sneak in up through the bottom, or get in through the holes that the raccoons made. Very frustrating! I invested so much money and labor into planting all those trees myself, trying to benefit the habitat, then to have it all destroyed by stupid raccoons!

There's no hard mast on my property or the surrounding properties. I planted 60-70 gobbler sawtooth oaks and chinese chestnuts 3-4 years ago. (Chose them, because they are much quicker producing than other varieties) I was told to put them in tree tubes, as this would protect them from deer browsing, protect against harsh winter weather, and it would extend their growing season, as they act as mini-greenhouses. I spent a small fortune, between the trees and tubes! I ran out of tree tubes, so the ones that went without indeed ended up browsed to death, as the deer ate every bud and twig, killing the small trees (3-4'). Every year since planting, yellow jackets get inside the tree tubes, one way or another, and build nests. The raccoons see the tree tubes as their personal "yellow jacket larvae feeders"! They just destroy them to get to the larvae, and the process, kill the young trees! They use those needle like teeth to pierce the plastic and tear a hole to get to the nests/larvae! If I'm quick enough to respond, the trees may survive, until the next attack! For one reason or another, I may have ~8 trees that have survived! I just made my rounds today and I bet the raccoons tore down another ~15 tubes and killed another 12 or so trees! I am sick, thinking about all the money and labor that I've invested, only to have these &^%$#@* raccoons destroy everything! I have officially put them on my shit-list and hope to recoup some of my lost $$$ from their hides this fall! I removed the remaining tree tubes today...

You gotta get pics of that buck!!! I keep checking in to see if ya got him yet! He must be a monster!!!

He's a dandy!!

That link says its for Key West Fla?

That's in Phelps? Geez, that's only ~10 miles from me.

He is a nice one, that's for sure. He is in velvet.

Geez, what a huge bear!!

This is my tower stand. It's up 16' and has a 6'x8' platform. I used those elevator brackets to make. I think I would like to enclose it.... maybe next year....

I've always shot smooth bore.

OMG!!! Quite a crop you have there!! What do you have planted in there?

I guess this will be the thought of the day...... hmmmmmmmm......

Great pics!

Great buck!!! I'd say you got your moneys worth out of that cam already!

When you don't have one, or have to pay for one, a pool sure sounds great! It's been the 90's and humid for the past week and the pool has been used 1x!! The wife and kids pester me to open it, then it gets used a VERY few times all summer long! It would be a hell of a lot cheaper for me to buy them season tickets to the waterpark ~25 minutes away! I honestly despise that pool!! It would be a lot easier if it was an aboveground, but I bet it would get used a lot less too! They mainly use the diving board and slide when they actually do get into the pool. When my son (17) brings friends over to swim, he gets in for ~5min to cool off, then he just sits out, bored with the pool!

I've had an 18'x32' inground for 15 years now, as it was here when I bought the house... Never hated anything anymore than I do that thing! It's a freeking money pit! ALL last summer, my daughter was in it 7x, my son was in it 2x, and my wife 3x! Yet, ya still gotta skim, vaccuum, add water, run the pump/filter, and add chemicals! As hot as this summer has been, my daughter has only been in it 5x and my son 2x! My wife hasn't even gotten in at all! I haven't been in it in 3 years now!! No one wants to help clean it, but they expect it to be clean when they do want to use it! I'm in the process of putting my house on the market now and the next house will NOT have a pool!! John, you've only had that pool for 2 weeks, so you're still in the honeymoon phase! But, being that size, it won't be anywhere near as bad as maintaining a big inground, where every leaf and piece of debris blows across the ground and into the pool!