upstate

**EDITED** - I just saw the post above.... which I obviously agree with How does this manage the deer herd better? The deer habitat in this state is very different. Some areas have very few deer and others are loaded. Lumping it all into one season doesn't really work for it all does it? What's your goal with this plan?

Successful and proven model of what? There are areas of this state where there's too many deer and the majority of hunters hunt about 10 days , Down south - 4 Saturday and Sunday's and possibly Thanksgiving and the Friday after. I'm fine with the hunting seasons the way they are and I don't have enough property to hunt "a mature 8 point, with a rack at least 16.5" wide" because they refuse to stay on it. Now, if I see one, I'll hunt it and have been successful the last two years. There's other years I settle. Horn soup is as tasty as tag soup.

Came home last night after we took a doe. Snow was deep (20 inches on level, much more in spots). The deer are not moving very much and we just happened to see an ear sticking up from under some pines that we tracked them to. Was hoping for a buck in the bunch. Me and a buddy crawled through the deep snow to get in position to get a shot. The drag out was miserable. 2 days of hunting in that stuff, sans snowshoes, over 6 miles. I'm too old for that crap. We had a good year, 4 bucks, 3 doe between 2 of us through Bow, gun and muzzle seasons Cameras are out, gear packed in truck, room at chalet emptied. Now I have decisions to make, do I keep the lease and deal with idiot neighbor if we don't find new land? I may just have to hunt some ducks and try and find a spot to help Ithaca area with their deer problem

I'm not sure I understand.

I walked 5 miles on state land today, never saw a hunter or tracks of a hunter. Saw deer all day. They sure can get through 2-3 feet of snow easier than me, but I think they knew their lives depended on it.

I went and sat this morning in almost 2 feet of snow and never cut a track. Started walking around and bumped deer all day, I'm exhausted.

In Cortland County snow is balls deep in spots. Tough walking. Cut two tracks, probably a doe and fawn that kicked out when me and my buddy went in. Time to head out to some pine / conifers and find them. I'm gonna be sore tomorrow

What a handsome woman and good hunter.

Lone Wolf's climbing sticks are incredibly light and easy to use. They're also probably the most expensive on the market.

Great job. I remember when I could run them down like you did. There's nothing like hunting the vast woods of the Adirondacks, swamps of the Tug Hill, etc. You can sit there all hunting season and not see a buck like that (or even a deer in some cases). Hunters like you are few and far between.

Lots of great comments in here: 1. I'm an older hunter and I still get giddy with excitement on the opening days of bow and gun, both zones. When I don't I know a big part of the thrill is gone. 2. I don't hunt like I used to, I'm not physically able to. Problems with hunting deer in NY, in my HUMBLE opinion: 1. Loss of access- places we used to are gone. Gone to development or smaller groups of hunters. 2. Loss of comradery - some of you young guys have no clue but hunters used to help each other. Help drag, help track, share information, etc. Now it's all about ME (too many examples to list here) 3. Television - has us planting food plots, hanging stands, spending thousands on scent control and most of all "growing" trophies and planting our butts in stands from dawn til dusk expecting all those deer we see on our 20 $120 trail cams all summer to come out and feed so we can "harvest" them. Whatever happened to actually hunting? Get down and still hunt. go look. That's what I do. Many of you do all the right things and have bad luck and that's why it's called hunting. I have only been skunked one year since 1988 and that was in 2011 after I was recovering from a traumatic injury to my back (3 fractured vertebrae) and we lost 200 acres of prime land in the Finger Lakes to the almighty $$. No bow hunting and new land made it tough. When I finally did see a deer, I missed. The next 2 years I was successful with all three implements (bow, gun and muzzle). This year I have a 3.5 year old 7 point and a mature doe. I will be hunting Thursday and Friday after this storm. Good luck to all of you.

another thread that smells like self-righteousness It's agreed, using somebody else's tags is illegal.

I started using a sharpie because they're so bad.

The internet option isn't very easy and you must create a new account.

Saw that

It is illegal to carry anyone else's tag UNLESS is a signed consigned DMP tag that is listed as transferred on your license.

bow hunt, muzzleload and DMP's allow you to hunt

My stands that are near property lines are for the reasons described by others, the deer travel those routes AND in one case there's only ONE tree I can get a stand on within 100 yards on my property. The problem I have is that the one guy pissed and moaned to EVERYONE but me. Would not return my call even when I left a note on his door. His son removed market tape and a stand FROM MY LAND! Close to the line but never on his property, facing my property. My woods were logged so the they travel the edges. I had stands further in and watched for an entire season and moved the stand just before gun. Since I never went on his land I had ZERO idea where his stands were but lo and behold, they're real close to mine.... hmmmmm it's ok for him but not me? Why? His posted signs are "ASK FIRST" and I have for 2 years wanted to hit one on my land and have it go there just so he has to talk with me. His antics are tiresome and sneaky. Now that I know what he'll stoop to I can plan accordingly. This guy is law enforcement and his seriously despised by his neighbors and even his own brother said, "He's always been an A$$hole" When you start getting the DEC involved with a harassment program his brother appears to be onto something. If we're breaking the law and he's aware of it he can certainly do exactly what the DEC does and check us out, but no, he makes "confidential tips" and calls someone else. When this guy baits!!! Does DEC charge him? No. They trump up a improperly tagged deer charge that DEC says, "you can just plead not guilty" and my buddy is like THAT'S A $250 ticket! He wont show up in court and it'll get dismissed. I don't take this stuff lightly, the harassment and good neighbor relations. Not sure they're repairable at this point.

People who try and manage the heard Tiresome... I'm tagged out til Monday. Great season for me

What's the air like way up there on your high horse? Everyone has seen the hunters you describe. "can't get deer the hard way naturally." ?? Unless you're running them down and killing them with your bare hands, please knock off the garbage....

I seriously don't care if stands are lined up every 20 feet on the line. Don't hunt my land and we're fine. Hunt my land and I will enforce posted signs. Shoot a deer on your property and it comes on mine, please get it. Do I want someone up my ass when I'm in a tree stand? No. However, I have had much success with people that thought that them being there would be change my hunting tactics. Is it disappointing to have get up at 4 AM opening day and get to your stad at 5:45 so you're all settled in at legal shooting only to have a guy put on a drive to your stand when he comes out at dawn's twilight? Yeah, really disappointing. Put it is what it is.

Why do people that disagree with a hunting tactic call it unethical? some of you all watch entirely too much television. When deer get pressured they become even more nocturnal, especially when it's dark more than it's light out. I watched a spike horn watch me walking through the golden rod for 10 minutes. I almost stepped on him before he took off. No different than the "Moral Police" calling something they disagree with immoral. I've lost friends because they PREACH political, religious and deer hunting righteousness. FACT. Let's just agree to disagree on things and be respectful and we're all good but when the only right opinion is yours, then you're really not a friend, are you?

Well, what an interesting turn of events. I spoke with the leasing company and this guy has been a problem since they bought the property. I told them that the lease is worthless to me. The guy has told the neighbors we were poachers and that we got tickets (one of us did, we had a skinned deer hung up and the tag was not on the deer and while the month was blacked out, the day was not). The ticket will get dismissed according to the DA's office. Funny thing is I can't hear the feeder any more. We got a doe yesterday and like clockwork here comes DEC guy and I told him to tell deputy boy we are getting a reduced rate on the lease for getting a multi-year lease (I lied) and that he did great work tipping off a fellow LEO that we were onto his baiting. I also told DEC guy that this deputy was a special kind of scum bag who thinks he's above the law and that's what gives the general public such a horrible view of the Police. We've got a huge buck that beds either on our property or his we will take (LEGALLY) this week. We've seen him 3 times since last week. I'm certain that softy is in bed today listening to the rain.

Got a nice adult doe yesterday on a drive but I'm suiting up soon as I will be sitting ZERO today, all walking, first my leased property, then state land near it, then a few other small parcels we have tags for, which I am almost out of! Good luck everyone!

When I hunted in the finger lakes the best sound in the world was that combine. Get on it, NOW