BUCKANDAQUARTER

So I was able to get to my parking spot at about 3PM today after work. Immediately I could see tire tracks heading through the gate. There is a fellow that has 3500 maples tapped on the 100 acres. I typically hunt the 50 acres on the other side of the property. Yesterday while on a Red Bull fueled "still" hunt I walked to the top of the mountain. There is a narrow strip of land (150-200 yards wide) that jogs way up on the top of the mountain. There is a roadway, from the bottom where I park, that winds up through to the center of this narrow strip. Right on top I found an absolutely gorgeous feeding area. Every leaf was overturned littered with scat and dotted with old scrapes and rubs. There was Hickory, Beech, Chestnut Oak, and some Red and White Oak. One side as small pond,brush and some hardwoods, pines on the other side, and a dropoff at the property line. The guy had driven all he way to the top to start repairing and stringing new lines and cutting blow downs up. This is the first year I have had permission to hunt this 100 acres, and I recently discovered that my original assessment the boundary was off by about 1000 feet (and on that 1000 ft is where this feeding mecca is). Now I know this man is trying to make a living, and has a lot of hard work ahead of him, but man this sucks for me! The surrounding properies get hunted hard and this spot has the coverage, doe, food, water, and escape routes that a buck would need to hunker down and stay put at. I guess I'll just stay on that 50 acre and hope he gets pushed my way. Oh well, just had to vent and cry alittle bit.

Got outta work early and went for the woods. The guy who taps the trees started repairing and replacing lines starting with a promising spot. Agrivated but doing my best to be understanding. I gotta start a new thread for this one. Bummed.

Congrats on your first!

a thick bed of moss laid from my parking spot to my treestand

LOL. Well the swiss is already full of holes...

I figured that's what you meant. I know lots of guys that say "oh I got a big doe", and clearly it is a 1.5yo. Not bashing them by any means, just some people don't know the traits of an older deer.

That might have been too much...

Fromunda!

maybe, just maybe it was a bologna sandwich.

Personally I consider a 1.5 yro doe to be an average doe. I consider a mature doe to be one of those fat slobs that weigh 160+ with the snout that is a mile long. I have seen several this year, had a DMP and I am regretting passing them up. And they were pretty darn wary.

Yep, out skip out on the morning hunt. Saturday I had a real nice doe pop out of the bushes at 8:30ish. Kept looking back, eventually another doe cam out but I still think there was a wise one lurking in the pine and avoided the more open scrub brush area.

just returned from afternoon hunt. went out at 1:30. Felt tired so i grabbed a can of redbull (medium sized) BIG MISTAKE. I haven't had one in two years. Did a still hunt, kinda. Saw a doe and three skippers. Sat in thestand for the final hour and saw a hunter. No tracks near stand.

went ot this AM. it was nice and calm until i got in my stand... then it sleeted like crazy. left at 9. headed out now for the afternoon.

I belive it was a crap sandwich he had.... with corn.

Don't forget about finding does, there are always some in estrous, the secondary rut. If you are about to take a doe make darn sure there is nothing in tow. I almost made the mistake of pulling the trigger on a doe on the last day of muzzleloader. finger on the trigger and safety off and about to shoot when I heard crunch, crunch, crunch. i looked over and there was a bruiser. i relocated him to my freezer shortly after.

Haha! My main thing when looking for a house to buy is whether or not I can wizz of the back porch and not have to worry about neighbors.

It has been a 50-50 here. Nothing during reg. Very hit and miss on success stories around here. No real slammers though. .

Along with the cougars....

I too have sleep apnea. I have a CPAP as well... Basically a carbon copy of what eddie said.

Just back from a nice AM hunt. Parked at about 6:20ish, and a trruck whips over and a hunter gets out. I have met him before hunting up there. He said he has seen the big one three times. He saw it Tuesday heading down towards my stand. He said it has a 24"+ spread and is absolutely enormous! Sat this AM and had a big doe come in looking over shoulder in the bushes. She wandered around and eventually a smaller doe came out. I was hoping he was dogging her but no luck. He's still out there! I gotta finish getting my muzzleloading gear in order so I can get out this afternoon.

Congrats to both of you!

I have shot all but two of my deer in the afternoon. The other 2 were at 10 AM. The small bucks I have passed up have all been around 8AM. I am always in the woods a half hour or so before legal sunrise, just to get comfy. I used to settle in even earlier, but seeing as how that never paid off the half hour seems fine. Now in regards to the original post: My opening morning this year: Passed up a 4pt only to be shot moments later by a 70 yr old. I got out of my stand to give the man a hand gutting it and dragging it.... and guess what? That has been one of the greatest opening mornings I have ever had.

nice one!

arg... went to the usual evening spot (where all the pressure was last week). Nobody hunted there this AM, I wish I did. Upon walking in this afternoon I discovered some huge tracks coming from where I usually set up my climber. Decided to follow them towards where I believe they bed down and wait and ambush them if they decided to come back. no dice. Pondering on where to sit tomorrow.

Just got home so I can watch the boys. We have about 1" of heavy snow, real nice for quiet walking and a good backdrop. Saw no deer. Did see a nice red fox carrying a snack. He disappeared for about an hour then came back through, this time with nothng in his mouth. Stopped and scratched for about a minute in front of me. Oh well. I hope this afternoon offers some deer.