wolc123

My enthusiasm increases as our venison supply decreases. The grind has been going especially fast lately, and I hope it lasts until mid-October when northern zone crossbow and ML season open up. The first deer this year will all go into grind, except the backstraps and tenderloins. I have been ramping up the target practice, on the back deck with the BB gun, and hope to have the zero checked on all the real guns and crossbow by Labor day weekend.

What ML/load are you using ? I have a 2-7X Redfield low-profile widefield on my T/C Omega 50 cal, shooting 100 grains of triple 7. That combination has been deadly on deer every time (about a dozen total) out to about 200 yards. The energy gets a little marginal out that far, but the accuracy is still very good. Quite a few years ago, I Iearned a hard lesson when I gave up tracking a deer I thought I had missed at that range a little too soon. Now I limit my range to about 150 with it, only use it during ML season, and assume EVERY shot is a hit until PROVEN otherwise. Fortunately, I have not struggled to find a deer that I shot at with any weapon, in the dozen or so years since that mishap.

We also got plenty on this side of Tonawanda creek from that one. It had to be well over an inch, because our pool overflowed. I have to get back and see how much it brought our pond level up. It was down to about 4 feet deep at the end of the this summer's drought a couple weeks ago. It holds about 8 feet when full. I dug it 6 foot deep, 25 years ago, and it dried up for the first time, in early October of 2016, after the big drought that year. The drought that year lasted a lot longer than the one this year. I used the opportunity to scrape out all the sediment accumulation and I went a couple feet of deeper into the clay bottom. I put some fresh Lake Ontario bluegills and largemouth bass in there last fall. Maybe I will take the kids back and see if we can catch any now that recent rains have given them a bit more room. The deer sure have been using that pond through the drought based on all the tracks in the mud. Hopefully, that last rain gets the turnips I plated last Sunday going good. My nephew brought me a big bag of leftover soybeans, so I am all set now on seed for a few wheat/soybean/white clover plots. Those will go in after Labor day on my remaining buckwheat ground.

Have you ever canned venison ? My mother use to do it when I was a kid, and it was always pretty good. My buddy killed a moose, that the taxidermist estimated to be 8-1/2 years old, a few years ago. The roasts that he had in the freezer were pretty tough. Those that he chopped up and canned (using a pressure cooker) were tender and excellent tasting. Eventually, he thawed out the rest of the roasts and canned them too, which made them all good and tender. That canned old-moose stroganoff over noodles is one of the finer meals that I ever remember at a hunting camp. I am sorry but canned vegetables just don't do much for me, so it is hard for me to get excited about that. To me, vegetables are what food eats.

There are a lot of good crossbows out there these days. With the trouble in your left shoulder, it will be important to have a good shooting rail on your stands. Some crossbows are awkward and front-heavy. A shooting rail eliminates that issue. Some of the compact models actually handle pretty good for offhand shots, and are not so front heavy. The Barnett Recruit that I purchased for $ 250, four years ago, falls into that category. It has also held up very well and has got the job done all three times that I shot it at deer. Each of them dropped dead within 40 yard from where they stood when they took the bolt. I probably will not purchase another crossbow until full inclusion happens. When and if it does, I may upgrade slightly, to something with a little more speed, such as the Centerpoint sniper 370 (the Recruit is only 300 fps). The Sniper looks a little more front heavy, but that should not be an issue for me since most of my blinds and stands have shooting rails. The accuracy of these crossbows is spectacular, especially when fired from a rest. Energy still limits their range however, and my 300 fps Recruit is really only effective on deer to about 50 yards. Penetration was marginal beyond that. The one time I went a bit further, I never would have found the buck within 40 yards, had the bolt not struck where it did (heart). 370 fps should make an effective 60 yard deer killer. One other advantage of the light-weight, entry-level Barnett Recruit is that it has low draw weight and is easy to draw. In the excitement after killing a heavy buck with it last fall, I lost the rope-pulley draw device. I was able to draw it without it on my next few hunts, but doing it hurt my fingers a little. I made up a couple of t-handles with short pieces of chain and hooks, which eliminated all the finger pain. I can reload the crossbow a lot faster with those, than I could with the factory rope-pulley draw device. That would be a big advantage if there ever was a need for a second shot.

16 ga shotgun, (3) different 12 gauge shotguns, 30/06, 50 Cal ML, (2) different compound bows, crossbow, dull Buck 110 knife, and a sharp Buck key-chain knife (1-1/4" blade length). The small, sharp knife worked a lot better for slitting the throat than the big dull one. These days I always carry a pocketknife with the second blade ground down to about 1" long and always kept razor sharp. Most of my kills have been with the shotguns (I live in a shotgun/ML only zone), but there were a few years when I was able to take at least one deer with shotgun, bow (or crossbow), rifle and ML. The rifle kills have increased since the in-laws moved up to the northern zone a few years ago, gaining me access to a sweet spot up there. I have to drive thru a town that does not allow hunting and is infested with deer to get to and from work every weekday, so it takes some very careful defensive driving for me to avoid killing any with a vehicle myself. The two that I dispatched with knifes had been struck by hit-and-run motorists.

I am not sure if you can handle the truth, but as far as your question about the innocent little children: Sometimes He has more important work for them to do upstairs. There is no pain or suffering up there (for those who accept Jesus Christ as their savior). No strings attached, it is as easy as that.

We only got a few drops from that one. I am hoping for more now. I found a small bag of leftover turnip seed down in the basement today. I used some of our winnings from a bass tournament that we fished yesterday to buy fertilizer. I managed to get a small plot in on some of the ground that was buckwheat. I love turnips for ML season. I worked a lot of 10-10-10 into the ground with the drag prior to broadcasting and cultipacking, so there should be some good growth if we get a little more rain. They say maybe Tuesday.

I am sorry that you are lost Rob. I will pray for you. Think about picking up a Bible and reading it a bit. What could that hurt ? I am glad that this website places no limits on "Jesus" talk. It sure is a target rich environment for "lost souls" such as yourself. Remember, that it was Storm that brought Him up this time, but I am glad you took the bait.

The Guy upstairs watches everybody's back, along with every other living thing. When He say's your time is up, it don't matter what you carry. That is why it pays to stay on good terms with Him.

We have got about an inch and a half over the last two weeks, on the other side of Tonawanda creek, in zone 9F. The corn is looking good now and is starting to tassle. That rain also woke the grass up around the house, so I had to mow it again. Not needing to mow the lawn is the best thing about a drought. I cut the white clover plots one last time after the 1" rain on the 25 of July. Those are also looking good now, especially since the additional 1/2" of rain that we got last Saturday afternoon. I will not have time to get any turnips in this year, but I do plan on putting in a couple small plots (maybe 1.5 acres total) of wheat/white clover/ soybean mix sometime in September. The buckwheat is looking real good in those spots now after those couple rains - lots of pretty white flowers. Hopefully, I get my $30 for that seed back in venison this fall. I have some leftover clover from last year, about a bushel of wheat, and my nephew thinks he can come up with some "free" soybeans.

It is kind of refreshing to read about the snow-folks during mid-summer when it is so hot outside. Thanks for posting.

My long range rifle experience is extremely limited. My 30/06 bolt-action with a 3-9X scope got the job done one time at little past 300 yards with a 150 gr bullet, but it took (3) shots to hit that deer. I am about 90 % certain that it was a branch strike that caused my first miss from a good rest. My second shot was rushed offhand, when the buck was moving (slow), so it is no wonder that one missed. Fortunately, that one got his attention, and he stopped walking just as I reached a tree to rest the heavy rifle on. The third, well-rested shot struck right on the mark, dropping him dead in his tracks. That experience has taught me to only take a shot, at that kind of range, at a standing deer, on a calm day, from a good rest, and across an open field. The deer moving when the super-sonic bullet is in the air is of absolutely no concern to me. As long as it was still when the shot was fired, there is minimal chance of that deer getting out of the way before it strikes. I definitely have to thank the good Lord that those two misses did not cost me any venison, just a couple little pieces of lead. I am also thankful that I learned, a long time ago, to assume every shot is a hit until PROVEN otherwise. Without that lesson, I would have never taken the second and third shot at my first and largest Adirondack buck.

It depends on how many days you are planning to hunt. If your only plan on getting out a few times, then two spots might be ok. My best hunt from any stand is very often my first one, each season. The reason for that is: each time you hunt a spot, you leave scent behind. Deer are mostly nocturnal, so even if you see nothing by day, they will smell the scent you left behind, when they visit the area at night. That is also one of the reasons why I don't use trail cameras. I am the only one who hunts on about 100 acres total in the southern zone, between my folks place and our place, and I currently have (10) stands and blinds on those two farms. That gives me coverage for various wind conditions. Each season, I tweak the location of stands a little, mostly based on what happened and what I saw on the previous season. This afternoon, I located a good tree to move a stand to over at my folks place. I am also very short of free time this year, so that move, and lowering a high tree stand to a more comfortable elevation at home, will probably be my only "tweaks" this year. Less pressure means better hunting, and my hunting at home in the southern zone has got a lot better the last 5 years, since my in-laws moved up to the northern zone. Now I hunt half as much at home, but still average about the same number of deer here as I did when I hunted twice as much. We have been eating real good when you throw in those "bonus" deer from up north. The deer are fewer and further between up there, but the scenery is many times better and the hunting pressure is many times less. Up there, I mostly hunt from a seat on the ground, always picking an optimum spot based on the wind. I also still hunt between spots, but have only taken one deer that way, compared to (3) from the seat. With 500 acres of private land up there, adjoining 6.5 million acres of public, there is no reason to hunt the same spot more than once a season, or at least not more than one on a long weekend.

We are in pretty good shape right now, with about 20 packs of grind left. There were only two deer for me last year, but the first one was big and yielded about 2 times the average. We get most of our protein from venison and it usually takes (4) average sized deer to make it thru a year. I had a very good year the before, so we went into last season with about a deer and a half, vacuum-sealed in the freezer including lots of grind. We still have many roasts and even a little back-strap left. Our kids just love venison tacos, so the grind is almost always the first thing we run out of. (2) years ago, we ran out of grind the first week in October, but still had a lot of roasts left. I was ready to thaw and grind a few, but fortunately I was able to take a Northern zone doe with my ML, the following week. The fine folks at Nolt's in Lowville ground the whole thing, except for the back-straps and tenderloins. The grind we have now should get us thru till mid-October, when hopefully the new stuff starts coming in. I don't like grinding roasts. I am really hoping for a button buck this year as it has been a few years since we were blessed with one of those special treats. The last two were given to us by others. I have not shot one myself since 2012, so I am way overdue.

The southern zone ain't too bad, the way it is now, since those 2 weeks includes all of the rut. I don't mind having October available for small game hunting and stuff and it is usually too warm to deal comfortably with that much meat at that time anyhow. It would be nice if the nothern zone got (2) weeks, prior to muzzleloader, rather than just the (3) days they have had for the last (4) years. Time marches on, and as it continues to take it's toll on the anti's, more and more of them will come out in support of full-inclusion.

Camera angle, looks like some of the fish pictures we see posted on here.

I am thankful that NY state has been letting us get out there with a crossbow for the best two weeks of southern-zone archery season for the last few years. That weapon is a lot easier on the shoulders. Hopefully, they will open up the whole season soon as that would make filling DMP tags much easier for me.

Our 15' diameter pool has a 1" grid pattern on the inner liner. The water level looks like it is up an inch from today's rain. The 5:30 local news just showed our town got close to an inch, so I guess I can use that as a rain gauge. One thing is for sure anyhow, rain makes corn and corn makes venison. Just in the nick of time with that storm, as my corn was starting to look pretty thirsty. We should be eating good next year, thanks to that inch we got today. It sounds like there is more on the way. Even if we don't get that, I am very thankful to the Good Lord, for the inch He just gave us. That should be plenty to result in an adequate meat supply next year.

The green screamers go good with the silver ones ^ Whoever is up for the next silver screamer on my boat gets to wear a belt with a big plastic plate to keep their belly from getting bruised by the rod butt. Didn't your charter captain offer you one of those ? I remember some sore bellies along with the sore arms after reeling in a few like that. v

Walleyes, from lake Erie at least, taste a lot better when they are caught early in the season. The size of the fish is less important than the time of year they were caught. I ate a very good flavored 7 pounder this spring. Later in the summer, when they suspend under the zoo-plankton, the meat takes on an algea-like flavor, that I do not care for. From about July 1 thru early fall there are lots of better fishing options. It makes perfect sense that Stone will soon move the boat to Ontario. If you are going to catch something not worth eating, it might as well put up a good fight like the kings and steelhead out on Ontario do. Also, Like Rob said up above, walleyes are a lot more fun taken on light casting tackle than they are on heavier trolling gear. All that is just side-shows when it comes to fishing. Only the smallmouth bass has it all, great eating (after you figure out how to care for the meat) and better fight pound per pound than anything that swims.

I hope we get some rain to soften up the ground a little bit. I think you would have trouble pulling one section down two notches in the dry, concrete-hard ground we have out there right now. Good luck with it. I pulled a two-section one around ok, a couple notches down, with my dad's Polaris Ranger last fall when the ground was much softer after lots of rain.

An ATV is not really designed for ground-engaging work, like an Ag tractor. You would really be taxing the drive-train of your machine, if you tied to go deeper than about two notches on the depth settings on both sides. If you removed one side, you would have the ablility to work the soil a lot deeper.

Rye might stand up to browse pressure better than wheat, on a very small plot, since deer do not like it as much.

That would probably work a lot better on an ATV if you could split it in half and just use one section.