wolc123

What is worse, calling them names or killing them off with covid-19 by sending infected patients into nursing homes where they live for "recouperation" ?

It does work well, and it has a very narrow blade. I use an old, made in Finland, Rapala one everywhere else. I leave the Camillus up at the in-laws place in the Adirondacks.

My father in law is very particular about knifes and sharpening. He gave me an old buck 110 that I make sure to use whenever I am hunting at his place. When it gets dull I give it to him and he gets it razor sharp. He also gave me a fancy Callimus fillet knife. I keep that sharp myself with a stone that has a coarse side and a smoother side. It holds a good edge for 4 or 5 fish. I just finished using it on a batch:

Food, glorious food. They started hitting right after the wind picked up and I signed off last time. (4) 12-14" "eaters". Time to clean them, vacuum seal, and try for a 23" "trophy" smallmouth. Starvation is averted for another day or so anyhow.

I was faster when I was young, but I am still pretty quick for an old guy. I put in a lot of time on a stationary bike year-round (while watching old movies on vcr) to keep legs in shape. My younger daughter is the fastest kid on her high school field hockey team. When it comes to eating, only when i can't find any food. I have a high metabolism and eat a lot (as much as the total of the three women in our family). I am trying to catch me some fish right now but not having much luck so far. I need the wind to pick up a bit so I can sneak in on them. Here it comes so I got to go. Goodluck on your diet.

Happy birthday mod.

The 17" rule is no big deal for me, nor is the 2 week season in the southern zone (thankfully they are the best 2 weeks). My $ 250, 300 fps Barnett recruit comes in right at the minimum width and has got the job done every time ( 5 for 5 on deer). My only big issue with the current rules in NY is just having 3 days, up on the northern zone, before the guns (early ML season) open up. Must be that the NYB has more influence up there. Those rules really screw the business up there, that depend on tourism dollars, but those selfish, elitist, NYB sob"s dont give a crap.

I prefer Berkley lightning rods for bass. I use a 6 ft light action spinning rod for smallmouth. 90 percent of the time, I use a 1/4 oz. Bucktail jig on 8 pound test fluorocarbon line with that. It is sensitive enough, that I can almost feel the fish breath on the jig. For largemouth, I use a 7 ft heavy action casting rod. Most of the time with 3/8 oz spinnerbaits, or weedless jig/swimbait combo on 14 pound mono. That works well for quickly winching the fish out of heavy cover. These are very reasonably priced rods that can handle some abuse and provide good feel. I bought the spinning rod new this year after having got about 10 years out of the my old one. When it arrived in the mail, the cardboard shipping tube was broke in the middle but the rod was still good. I also prefer the single piece rods most of the time, but I do have a second, slightly less sensitive, 2 piece light action spinning rod, which is easier to transport in a car or airplane. I take that one along as a spare on most outings. I will be using it as my primary in the next couple minutes up in the Adirondacks.

Happy birthday Tacs.

I always have a Gerber folding saw in my pack for that task, in addition to clearing branches around my stands

I use a Schade sharpfinger at home and a Buck 110 in the Adirondacks, but the butt-out II always gets used first. That is a big time saver and well worth the $ 5.99 I paid for it back in 2016.

You will love that Bush-hog. I had one on my Ford 8n and it worked great, cutting grass and clover nearly as neat as a finish mower. I did have to beef it up a bit with metal and weld when I used it on a larger tractor. For tractors up to 30 PTO hp, it will work fine just like it is.

Here they are. This stand has white oak acorns. Field corn, sweet corn (silver queen), turnips, and soon will have wheat and white clover within 20 yards.

There is a white oak right next to my favorite stand. There are lots of green acorns on it but no ripe ones dropping yet.

Take a look at a red/blue map of the state. It is mostly red, other than "the city" and folks are leaving there at a higher rate than any where else.

This is why Trump has a shot at taking NY state this year. This mass exodus, thanks to the horrible mishandling of covid-19 by the clueless dems in charge, is gutting their power base in this state.

Would it be possible for you to post any hunting pictures ? I see you are interested in grouse. I like them also, but it has been a few years since I killed one. They are one of the few birds that I actually like the flavor of. Also, I am still waiting for an answer on if you are happy with Trump's move of the US embassy in Isreal to Jerusalem. While we're at it, what do you think about the peace treaty between Isreal and UAE that Trump helped pull off. Could these things have happened under Obama/Biden?

Meat

I have that same issue and the squirrel action usually peaks during the two week crossbow season. My plan this year is: if I can fill my buck tag early, I will bring my crossbow and my air rifle up in the stand for the rest of those two weeks. The squirrels ought to eliminate any boredom while I try (usually without success) to fill antlerless tags. The air rifle is quiet enough that it should not spook the deer.

Thos woman is third in line for the the Presidency. Hopefully, actions like this will help the Republicans take back the House.

Interesting story. Hopefully, I can run into papa bear up there.

I am ready but probably won't get out until the upcoming holiday weekend up at my in laws in the Adirondacks. My Ruger 10/22 was hitting right where I like it on the range yesterday (1/2" high at 50 yards). The bigger hole to the right was my test bullet from my early bear rifle (30/30). I also like a shotgun early and my favorite gun for that is my grandad's old 410 single shot Winchester. Maybe I will bring that along also. The advantage of the 22 is better practice for deer hunting, but the scattergun is better before the leaves are down if you really want some meat. We have lots of venison left and a fair amount of fish, so that ain't no big deal yet.

I never liked using expensive hunting ammo on paper but the current ammo shortage and excessive cost has increased that dislike. That said, there is no substitute for lots of practice to sharpen skills and build confidence for shots on game. I like a bb gun for most of that practice. 5000 of those costs $ 5. It is also much quieter than the real thing, and can easily be done off you deck while the neighbors are napping. I like to practice until I can cut a beer can (hanging from a wire on the clip) in half in under 10 minutes and using less than 50 shots. It gets tougher when the can is swinging from the wind or previous impacts, and you get down to the last narrow shard of aluminum. For added challenge, cutting the top half off the clip usually takes many more shots. Putting a bigger bullet in the right spot on a deer or squirrel is a piece of cake after that. I modified my daughter's Red-Ryder with a steel "big loop", and a long stock to match my Marlin 336BL.

I checked the zero on the 30/30 today at 50 yards with the new ammo. 1-1/4" right and 1/4 " low with the open sights off a rest. That ought to be close enough for a bear. I am not wasting any more of that costly ammo on paper targets. I also checked my scoped Ruger 10/22 (that's the 3 smaller holes above the bull).

Glad you are ok, that sounds scary. I never liked heights and all of my stands are less than 8 ft up. It sounds like that is how far you free fell.