phade

Been pretty slow this week in terms of activity both in stand and on cam. We have a three year old that is something special with palmation and splits that has daylighted a few times on cam. We'd really like to see him get to four so we're avoiding that spot for time being. There is a hunter to the North bordering property so we're treading lightly on pressure there. It'll eventually be our best late season spot as the food sources come more into play, and we'll be forced to pressure him. Hopefully the neighboring pressure subsides by then. Short of him, it's crickets since the weekend. I might go out this PM if I cut out of the office early. Probably going to hunt Ohio PM with the bow on Saturday for more of a final scouting mission and be ready for the regular gun opener there on Monday. One of our trashy bucks that has been around looks like he had a rough go of it during rut. Someone took a chunk out of him high. He has had a messed up antler side for two years now. Wonder what the shot does, if anything to his growth or survival.

Shed hunters there have a bad rap. I lost more cams to shed hunters there than I have in nearly any other situation. I lost on average one/year. I barely missed one, one year, because I could still recognize the branding logo of the boot imprint in the snow. Dang guy stole my Browning. Shed hunters have no fear there of crossing over onto private from the park, even when well posted. They would walk hundreds of yards past them lines too in some cases. I started pulling cams there as the season wound down due to the theft. I guess there is one good thing about not hunting along that place any longer, lol.

Learn bedding first. Terrain use is dictated by how where and why they bed. That said most hunters underestimate terrain impact. Even flat land - people in this thread have discounted it. Elevation changes of a foot in flat land actually matter and can lead to how deer use or bed in a location.

I can't kill them from this office, that is for dang sure. Blah! Three days in the office and no hunting has me ready to quit work forever LOL! Getting out tomorrow for the first 90 min - two hours at least in AM.

Whomever posts that in CL is dedicated. I recall seeing that post nearly 10 years ago.

I have a 336W 3030 that I do not use. Ran 10 round through it. Safe queen. Also have the laminate/stainless Mossberg 3030. Maybe 15 rounds through it. Safe queen. I just can’t get use to the action in a hunting scenario. For me, if I needed a light mountain rifle for 150 yard or less shots, it’d be a CVA Scout in a favorable chambering or a Kimber Hunter.

I don't see anything about it online, but I guess the DEC/MCS issued violations to 19 people in some sort of semi-organized ring that was doing illegal hunting in and around Mendon Ponds Park here in Monroe County. Some of the cases are being shifted to nearby districts because the judge in the original area knows some of the alleged offenders. Sounds like they were hunting in the park, around the edges and doing so at night sometimes via spotlighting, and had been a ring that was going on for a few years...supposedly. What is weird is that nothing appears online about it. You'd think that this would be more public on a blotter page or something.

Name him Billy Corgan after the Smashing Pumpkins.

Cool story to weave in. Look at his daylight dates....alot of people here in NY choose to be off work early November. No doubt getting that first estrous doe or one of the first can make things wild but the most amount of daylighting I see by the older bucks (not the 2/3s), seems to be later than when people take time off. Part of the reason why I start taking time off at the tail end of the first week and through mid Nov. now is because of this.

Probably a hill.

View for this PM. Slightly warm in the mid 50s. Gonna be high 60s tomorrow but then drop to 40 the next day.

Midwest ruins it. It just does IMO. Hard to explain. Have fun.

Hardcore…

The trees will defend themselves here.

Relegated to the old barn/livestock pen on our property. Can watch from afar that last ridge and see if anything drops up and over to my partner. Also have some does bedding down in the coolies as they call them here. Doubt I’ll shoot one despite having a tag. Neighbor in our camp shot a 160” this AM in the wind. Beauty of a buck. The wind has been relentless here since we arrived Friday.

I figured I would check in. It’s been a grind of a season let alone our rutcation trip. A lot of our NY and OH ground have had issues, from dog walkers to crazy lady coming out along her border daily, to an Amish guy with a centerfire rifle in bow season in the middle of one of our farms. Cows getting out of their pastures and into the apple groves. You name it. After the first two weeks in NY and one 50 yard encounter in Ohio finding a good buck in daylight had been hard. Ohio was 68-73 this past week and we had to leave for MO. As we left, the cold front came in opening things up. We drove through a horrible storm line and by Illinois the pics were rolling in from Ohio of bucks on their feet in light. My back has also been acting up fierce. I generally tolerate it but have had to resort to “taking it easy” at times. Going to be spending time with the doc soon. We rolled into MO Friday Midday in a snowstorm, no snow accumulated but it was snowing sideways in 30-40mph winds. We slammed two stands together got them hung and made it back to camp. Windchill of 15 degrees. Saturday was dry but same 30mph winds. Sun rose and I could barely pay attention with everything blowing and moving around. I heard a grunt ahead of me in a down wind moment and then it picked back up blowing things sideways. Well, after five minutes I realized the grunt wasn’t ahead of me but to my left and the wind was carrying the sound. A buck snuck in within 20 yards and was moving by quick. Shoot or don’t shoot. Assessed the first good buck in close range in daylight in a while in a millisecond. I let the weight of the season go when I rang his bell. He never missed a stride but I hit him hard with his front left leg locked up and he disappeared over a knoll. 15 min go by and I start to contemplate the choice. Good buck, yes. Should have I taken him? Things you think about in the stand I guess. Then the wind died and left us with a bluebird morning and the light switch turned on…bucks everywhere. Including a 150” that came within 30 yards. Ended up seeing 9 bucks during the morning. I was a bit bummed yesterday but I’m happy with the choice with some time elapsed and content that at the end of the day, we got on deer quickly in an area we have little history with. Now I’m in support mode as my partner gets the good spots lol. Missouri is a special place, I’m sure he will punch one. Good luck all.

I really like the CVA Scout. I have the 243 and the 350 L. The 243 has performed well for me. It has taken many deer now in the 3-4 years I’ve used it. The Legend is new just this past month.

Day 2 in Ohio. Mornings great, cold and deer moving. PMs, hot as balls and we’ve been adjusting to try to get on deer in in daylight. Temp hit 64 yesterday and today truck read 69 degrees at 1. Mornings have had hard frosts that last til 9ish. This morning I had a great chase sequence but I pretty much was a spectator. It was the mad dash and nothing going to stop them. Really nice buck, about 40 yards out. Heard him in thick brush and got ready. Saw what looked like a one year old doe head into that thicket from opposite direction and she shot out of there with him in tow. He ran up by my partner and he could hear the deer but never laid eyes on him. Several other does this AM but none acted rutty. I think it’s still early here. We are both in a bottom of a valley bowl this PM. It definitely is cooler down here but scent will be an issue. With PMs being so hot and slow for us we are gambling. Temps look phenomenal…after we leave. Had to put phone in pocket. A two year old 8 just came by going uphill at an angle. By the other tree we picked but didn’t put a stand in. At least I’ve seen a deer now in the PM.

Had to delay Ohio start a day. We will head out this evening. Partner still sick but getting better and he is packing so that’s the sign lol. I got out this AM. Had the release loaded on the d-loop with a nice four year old. Needed 15 more yards but an ill timed doe spun him 180 degrees and he was after her. Lucky him. Saw him by chance a good ways away and he worked into me and I really didn’t think he’d come my way, veering away from some other does he appeared to be following. The first pic is him on the berm where I saw him first. Longgg ways away and could tell he was a good buck without glass on him. Was able to catch a video of him as he turned and started after the doe. We will hunt there this PM and then get going to Ohio.

From the office still... Had a giant go by a NY cam/stand that I likely would have been in this AM given the conditions. Argh.... Giant went by at 9, a 3 year old went by at 11.

Deer can literally smell time, like dogs. I can't fathom sound being more important to a deer's defense mechanism than smell. I try to be open to other perspectives but this general scenario, I just can't even get close to thinking sound is more important.

Last day of work for a bit....Pretty sure I'll be out at 2 to get finished packing and house stuff. Then go time, hopefully. Partner is still feeling down sick. I got anitbiotics and bingo....I'm on day five of them and feeling 75% better. Partner got on them Wednesday, but still feeling sick and not turned the corner yet. Not sure whatever we caught but it has/is whooping our butts. Not Covid, four tests between us. It’s really crushed our hunting so far. Hoping we at least timed the rutcation right, both in health and activity. Had a daywalker once each day so far this week on cams, but haven't seen that "explosion" yet. Cams in areas where I let them run all summer and haven't moved - activity fell off a cliff this week, so certainly a shift. Good luck to all out there.

Well done, and nice job letting cams be a tool and not rushing in.

Smell - deer actually hear almost exactly the same as humans with the only difference being that they can more directionally locate the sound based on their ears acting like satellite dishes. Also a little more higher frequency, but for the most part, if a person can hear it, so can a deer and vice versa. Smell is their weapon of survival.

UA is about as close to being anti as they can get while still offering some applicable gear. I view them like I do DKS.