LET EM GROW

If i were to hear the worst deer hunting state, i would think florida along with many other states that would fall well behind NYS rank.. I do agree this state could possibly do better at managing the population. If NY did exactly what ohio or iowa does in managing... we would have the same results, but your only seeing there"good/great" bucks killed. im sure there are a ton of small bucks getting killed as well. i do not know the rules and regs for those states .. but for what NYS deer hunting rules and regs are right now, and people still kill a ton of P&Y and some B&C bucks... doesnt seem all that bad to me.. theres access to land everywhere.. you may have to travel to get there but theres access around...

ive spent the least time in the woods this year compared to any year before as well. Maybe 10-12 sits total between bow and gun season. But its been a success in my eyes. every year is a good year being in the woods.. 2 deer only being a bonus! ill hit the woods Friday afternoon and hopefully Saturday then i will be done for the year. hoping the cooler weather will bring snow and a draw for the soybeans and turnips.. the pressure has been off for a few weeks.. may even bring the Mathews instead of the t/c excited to find some sheds here in a couple months

i will have to read that article. thanks. ive read some stuff from the qdma site and i know theres a ton of info there. poplar trees as far as im aware, have no value standing alive in the deer woods, and they seem to be the first to fall over in good heavy wind storms. i hung a stand in one once before and it just didnt seem like anyother tree ive hung in before... so to me, they can be good ground cover for a few years. ive got some big mature ones to lay down..

I think IR pics make the antlers look smaller than what they are physically in hand, and color photos being more accurate to size from screen to in hand.. ive got a lot of good examples of this with the buck to the far left on my picture to the left of this post here-- <-----

i have roughly a 5 acre wood lot the deer are always in all year long, they just dont use it to bed in... there are apple, chesnut, oak, maple, ash some pine and a TON of poplar trees, my plan was to cut down a lot of the junk poplar trees big and small, and let it lay/rot... to open up more sunlight for the young oak maple and ash coming up through...maybe hinge cut some younger maple trees as well, and hopefully plant a few more apple trees, chesnut and/or oaks.. i was hoping this would create cover for the deer for bedding purposes, since they are typically always in these woods throughout the year anyways Anyone have other suggestion or ideas? new to the (tsi) ideas... Thanks

Ive been wanting to get the HHA optimizer for a year or 2 now, it seems ideal for 3d shooting, but im just to worried about the shots from the stand when your at full draw and the deer moves well away from the yardage your pin is set for, and not being able to let down... i guess you can practice "aiming high or low" but i do not like that idea... might try it this year..

legs look a little lengthy like a 2.5, he has the race horse look to his body, bigger chest not as big in the gut area in the first 2 pics... 3rd pic being pre rut and jacked up a bit, torn between 2.5 & 3,5.... 3.5 final answer

3.5

I've got daytime photos as well, if the deer are bedded. they wont move unless you basically step on them. we walked right up onto several different bucks and does this pass week. 2 dif bucks we got to within 15 yards and we just shared a stare down for a while.. until the deer finally had enough.. both bucks not being shooters, they got the pass, and does getting the pass as well.

i did not get out much this year since i have got a toddler home, but i saw plenty of deer in my less than a dozen sits, harvested a dang good buck and doe. Last year as well, deer were plentiful. saw a lot of deer last year actually. They key is to keep pressure off. dont hunt same spots day in and day out. take a week or 2 off(since nys gun season is so dang stinkin long), or hunt a different property.. Deer will not be where human pressure is present. plain and simple. And if they are, there going to hold up and not move until dark hours or until pushed out of there. Less pressured deer move more... I have a ton of apples and acorns on the ground still in 8P, warm weather must be giving them a lot more options to choose from

I think it all depends on the doe #'s in your area when the rut hits. who's hot who's not.. if a buck has plenty of does to tend and less confrontation with other bucks to stay on a hot doe. i bet he sticks around until every doe is bred, or until they get far and few between, he then may wander to find a last doe or two for sure, as phade said. if doe numbers are down, that buck has to travel way more from the beginning to the end of the rut. i guess thats one good thing about keeping not harvesting a ton of doe... ? .. this buck was one of our local slobs from 2012, since he was a 1.5 yr old, summer fall winter, he was always on cam, not every day but often.. i had the opportunity of releasing an arrow at him, the last weekend of bow season, which sailed right over his back :/ .. ... he was killed about 2 miles from my place the following weekend, which was opening of rifle 2012

id call DEC .. just in case it is cwd or some other disease..

ive killed a few doe through the years in late season, while warm temps were present during the middle of the day. i agree with 1st n last hour or so, but i like the mid day sits as well if a food source is present..

i save the neck for pulled pork style venison as well! its amazing!

agreed, i like seeing what everyone shoots as well, would like to experiment someday if i ever have the extra $$.. i have 2 setups t/c omega .50 cal 777 209 primers (3) 50gr 777 pellets 250gr shockwaves(black jacket) nikon prostaff 3-9x40 t/c triumph .50 cal 777 209 primers (3) 777 50 gr pellets 250 gr shockwaves(black jacket) nikon prostaff w/bdc 4-12x40 Both shoot 3" groups @ 225 yards

Do it without them if they are opposed to it. You will benefit from them and maybe they can see your results after the fact...

my dad filled his buck tag @ camp in 8P @ 8:30am, 12/5/15, only deer seen that morning.. the buck was cruising nose down, after letting many deer walk this year..he chose him to be tag worthy. he thought he was bigger than what he was when he shot, it happened so fast, he almost regretted shooting him, it took a few minutes and then dad became very happy with his decision .. he will be on the wall from the shoulder up! .. My dads age is starting to catch up with his abilities like he used to.. 1 proud son right here.

no matter what, food plots work! get them in if you have the equipment. clovers, oats, brassicas, turnips it will all benefit you no doubt! not sure of what size and how many plots your talking but like VT said, 10% of your property should be food. 40% in perennials, 60% in annuals. "they say"... you will be glad you did come next fall!

i liver hit my buck this year, and he was alive for at least 2 hrs after i zipped the beman through him(evening of 11/7/15). the buck was skinned, back straps and inner loins removed and quartered the next evening after finding him that afternoon, chilled in the cooler for a day then processed.. back straps and loins were great tasting. also had some steaks from the rear ham a couple nights ago and they weren't gamey tasting, but a little on the tough side. ill just slow cook it or cook the meat in a thicker sauce in the fry pan... i believed him to be a 3.5 yr old.

My next purchase will be a 4' brush hog... my zero turn just isnt enough to mow down fields haha. Tiller is definitely the way to go. I have a 4' king kutter and it works great. You definitely want to rid any big rock from the soil before hand. saves breaking a tine or your pto if the slip clutch is to tight. my slip clutch nuts only have a 1/4 to 1/2 turn on all of them, anymore than this would be way too tight. and the clutch wont slip. i also have a set of disks i pull behind the tractor for the plots with more rock than dirt... with my tiller i set it to only dig 2-3" deep.

I wear bass pro shops, tight base layer, then UA cold gear layer over the top of that. then a looser cold gear layer, next UA cold gear hoody or nice heavy fleece, then my scent blocker outfitter series jacket and pants. Just try not to sweat walking in, tho it doesnt take much to break into a sweat. same lineup for the legs. This keeps me out for longer times

The "2nd" rut is in now i think. my neighbor in 8P shot a beautiful 3.5yr old buck chasing a doe yesterday morning, she also saw an even bigger buck on a doe shortly before that as well. They keep out of the woods, and hunt only a time or 2 during the week. and deer sightings every sit. The key is to keeping pressure off these deer.. Its proven, the #1 thing to push deer away or make them go nocturnal is human pressure. There either gonna hold up until dark and or go somewhere where they are not pressured and feel safe.

id imagine most of this is true. i dont hunt 8n much anymore but i do drive through Bristol,Naples and middlesex nearly everyday to and from work, ill take different routes during the rut just cruising for deer. and i have noticed the deer sightings seem lower in recent years, nothing like what i used to see in my travels. But i think thats everywhere, not just 8N.. I do hunt my buddies place in Potter once in awhile. I also believe and think that a lot of hunters are being more selective in their harvests when it comes to bucks. My place in 8P has been very quiet for few years now on opening weekend, but a bunch of us practice a decent management program across a lot of our surrounding properties and on separate hills around us.

if you dont get the perfect equipment, as long as you break the soil and get some loose dirt on top. youll have good results. youd laugh if you saw the first few things i used to break ground for food plots. but they worked! Clovers, cant go wrong with that. if you want, mix some buckwheat in with it. it will help build the soil, grows super fast and deer love it.

Fill them whenever a legal oppurtunity presents itself! personally id rather fill them early before they are bred. Plus an archery harvest is a great experience in itself. this may make for better rut action as well, depending on your herd #s. But obviously we never know when we are going to fill a tag. so if not filled by gun season, ill tag as many as i have tags for and what my freezer can handle.