wolc123

Doewacker is apparently one of those rare individuals who believes that "something" came from "nothing".

No recorded calls but many years ago, I had a red fox come in to a dying-rabbit mouth call in the late morning (around 10 am). That was before predator hunting was very popular. It got within 15 yards of me. I was not able to get off a shot with my .22 single-shot. It was moving fast and really took off when it caught my sent, never offering a good shot. I was wishing I had a full-choke shotgun loaded with #4's. That is what I have used to kill a few red foxes in the years since then. They also responded to the dying-rabbit mouth call, but were all taken on snowy moonlit nights, usually between 8 pm and 10 pm. I have never visually identified a coyote responding to that call, but I may have heard a few (if they were not foxes). They seem to have a real knack for getting down-wind before exposing themselves. I have had the most luck on coyotes without a call. They respond well to the scent of a deer (or other) carcass. I throw my butchering remains, as well as the occasional road kill, on a pile that is about 100 yards behind my bedroom window. I still have to search that pile for the lower jaw of this year's crossbow buck, so Doewacker can properly age it. There is an untouched (except for a missing tail) semi-frozen road-kill doe out there right now, but the snow has melted and there is not much moon. If she thaws a bit more and starts throwing some scent, and the moon and snow cooperate before the end of June, I might see some action. All this action is in zone 9F

That is a very good guess on the total weight of boneless venison that we ended up with last season from my only two kills. We would have had to start rationing in the early fall, had it not been for the vacuum sealer and a record haul the year before. Next time I get one, if you pm me your address, I will send you the lower jaw.

I am sorry I thew away the lower jaw. The skull on the left is about average for a 3-1/2 in our zone (9F), while that on the right is on the small side for a 2-1/2. The skull in question was just a bit wider and longer than the one on the left. I should have saved the cape, as it would have been nice for someone looking to restore a shoulder mount.

I did think that one was a 2-1/2, until I finished the euro and got a good look at the skull and teeth - definitely 3-1/2. The antlers were certainly not all that impressive though. Sorry about any weight estimate errors. I inquired about a scale availability in the classified section but apparently that post got deleted under the new "thread crapping" clause.

The last aluminum arrow I shot at a deer was more than 5 years ago. I have been using carbons the last (4) years with my crossbow. You did the right thing harvesting that wounded buck. I am thankful he did not offer me a shot on the first weekend of crossbow season last year, or I might have been tempted to punch my tag on him. That would have cost me that stout 3-1/2 year old that is squatting down my wife's minivan in that picture you posted. Thanks again for your "good deed" in our hunting area.

This is not really a nuisance permit situation. Per the NY state DEC website (see note 2 when you go there), a landowner may destroy "damaging" coons without a licence or permit of any kind, but the carcasses must be buried or burned immediately, if this is done prior to the opening of trapping season. That means not just tossing them out in the fields until after October 25. Waiting until October 25 is too late to save much of the corn in my fields and garden and fish in my pond (that stuff is included in the "damage" definition on that same website). As long as I carry a shovel along with my .22 when I am checking traps, full compliance with the regulations is no big deal. Coons are about the easiest fur-bearer that there is to trap. A few box traps, baited with peanut butter coated marshmellows, combined with a couple "dog-proofs" baited with cat food can quickly eliminate most of them in a given area. Tinfoil wrapped around the pan of a leg-hold trap, placed under shallow water near a run is also effective. Growalot never seemed to understand these regulations and came after me a few times on this issue, apparently seeing herself as the protector of those cuddly little nest robbers.

He only posted a photo of a few inches of the front part of a broken arrow and claims to have seen but lost the back half. That would have showed all of us if it really came from a crossbow or a vertical. Aluminum arrows fell out of popularity long before crossbows were legalized in NY, so based on that, my guess is that it came from a vertical bow. We will never know for sure.

How many years have you been hunting ? I ask because you don't seem to know the difference between a crossbow bolt and a short arrow fired from a vertical bow with an overdraw. Hint, not many crossbows use aluminum arrows. I killed three with a vertical bow over the span of 5-13 years ago. I stopped using it when crossbows were legalized 4 years ago. The last jumped the string so far (down and back) that he took the arrow thru the neck and juggular vein. That made for a quick easy recovery anyhow. I think you know the secret of my 100 % recovery over that stretch. If not, it is all based on keeping myself on good terms with He who controls the fate of all living things. After you see the reaction of a few more deer, you will go along with the 25 yard peak string jump theory. You can almost see it from the others who have posted on it on this thread. You sound confused. I did post a picture of a 198 pound buck (approximate per the PA chest girth chart) on the back of my wife's grey van, but I think my doe was only around 126 pounds per the same chart.

Are you sure they were misses ? What "proof" of it do you have ? The reason I ask is that the single biggest mistake I ever made as a hunter was 14 years ago, when I "assumed" I missed a buck with my ML. I followed his tracks for over 300 yards in fresh snow, from where he stood when I shot, without locating a single drop of blood or any hair. It turned out he piled up at 350, but I never found him until a week later. 3/4 eaten, with the help of the crows. Since them I have discovered that fresh snow does not always "prove" that a shot was a miss. Small drops of hot blood often fall right thru fresh snow, not leaving any trace on top. Without an exit wound, the odds of that are very good, as was the case with that ML buck that most likely was single-lunged and struck right at or near my point of aim as he stood quartering away at 175 yards. In the last 13 seasons, I have killed and recovered one buck for sure that I would not have, and recovered another that I might not have, had I not assumed that EVERY shot was a hit until PROVEN otherwise. I hope you realize that every time you pull the trigger, the odds of the bullet striking your point of aim is higher than any other spot.

I struggled a bit with string jump in my early years. I have observed that the trouble from that peaks at a range of 25 yards. Everyone seems to understand that the closer the deer are, the less distance they can cover in the time it takes for the arrow to arrive. Few seem to grasp the fact that the farther the deer are away, the less likely they are to flinch. My experience has been that string jump is a non-issue beyond 40 yards, although I have only shot a single deer over that range with an arrow (technically a "bolt"). That buck was at 59 yards and he never flinched and never had any clue what hit him. There is a lot more to it than distance though, with the biggest factor being the "alert" status of the deer. These days, I really go to extremes to avoid shooting at "alert" deer with archery tackle. That means no rattling or usage of a grunt call, or even a whistle to stop a walking deer. It also is why I no longer hunt with a vertical bow. With a crossbow, I don't have to worry about alerting them as I make the draw. Those measures have paid off in no wounded and non-recovered deer for me in the last 13 years. Aiming for the heart is very a good idea though, because there is no way anyone can know for sure just how alert that deer is when you make the release. Also, the broadhead does not mess up the heart like a bullet does, which might deprive me of my favorite Valantines day treat.

My wife made me up some pickled heart for the special day, like she usually does. Only two deer for me this year, so she threw a beef heart in with one today. She pickled the other one on Thanksgiving with a beef tongue. It is too bad deer tongues were not a little bigger. Pickled moose tongue is the best wild game I have ever sampled. I got her a bag of her favorite candy and a hand-written sticky note with a loving message of thanks.

We probably have some very healthy coons around here because we keep up the trapping pressure, even though the hides are worthless. I figure that a coon trapped around Labor day might save me about 10 bushels of corn. Coons start the chain of destruction on corn, by knocking down the stalks, allowing other species (like birds, mice and squirrels) to finish it off. Folks would understand the value of trapping a lot more if they or their kid/dog/cat got bit by a rabid or distempered coon.

It is amazing to see the coyote carcasses out in the field shrivel and dry out over several months without even a rat bite taken out of them. At the same time, every last piece of flesh is quickly picked clean from deer, coon, rabbit, and woodchuck carcasses that are piled up right next to them, leaving nothing but sun-bleached bones after a couple weeks. Someday, I am going to try some young coon. I bet they would be pretty tasty in the crockpot with some BBQ sauce.

Except for the warm dry days, I used them thru the last three deer seasons. They are the best cold weather boots that I have used. They are extremely warm, waterpoof, comfortable and provide great traction. The only thing that kept me from trying them earlier is that they are so goofy looking.

Coyotes are the only carcasses I know of that even the crows will not touch. I saw a hunting show once where some guy's tasted a little but they really struggled to to choke it down. From the looks on their faces, it had to be horrible tasting. I would put the coyote dead last when it comes to food choices and I would have to be very close to starvation before I would try any no matter how fancy it was cooked.

Mud is where R4's struggle the most. They just do not have the profile for self-cleaning like the R1's do. Loaded tires will help you in the snow but not so much in the mud.

If you get a new CUT for foodplotting, make sure to order it with AG (R1) tires, not the Industrials (R4) that 90 % of them are supplied with. That way you will be able to develop much more traction force on soft ground. R4's become slicks after one revolution in mud and do nearly as much damage to turf as R1's do. Their only advantage is slightly better puncture resistance. For foodplot usage, that no where near makes up for the sacrifice in traction. A 4wd tractor with R4's can only develop traction force about equal to an equal weight 2wd tractor with R1's. That is a pretty big waste of a very expensive front drive system.

I am sure things have changed in the many years since my last elk hunt, when a CO elk tag could be purchased over the counter at a grocery store for $275 and a mule deer tag was $125. One thing that has probably not changed is the way that the weather affects them. When it is warm, they will be up high in the "dark timber", and difficult to get to and to retrieve when you kill one. When the cold weather sets in, they move down lower and are easier to find. A good outfitter will adjust for this based on the current conditions when you are there. Weather conditions are a bigger concern for the do-it-yourselfers. I had to settle for a foul-tasting mule deer on my last do-it-yourself hunt because it was too warm for the elk to come down over the week we were out there (mule deer come down quicker than the elk). It tasted so bad, compared to a NY whitetail, that I would never consider killing another. By contrast, all of the CO elk that I have eaten over the years has been equal to or better tasting than an average NY whitetail (a corn-fed whitetail button buck still trumps it though). If you want to hunt CO, you may still need your original hunter safety training certificate, and not just an old out of state licence, in order to purchase your tags. We all needed ours back then. My buddy could not locate his and had to jump thru some hoops to get a replacement. We found relatively cheap lodging, getting "pre-season" rates at a Steamboat Springs ski resort. There was lots of public land around there. We did have to be careful on borders because they do not use posted signs out there like they do here in NY. You had to know where you were when you were hunting. Also, it is very important to be in very good physical condition, if you do it yourself. That is something you and your dad should start working on now, even if you do not plan on hunting for a few more years. Getting to where the elk are is tough, but getting the meat out is tougher still. There is some very nice scenery out there, almost equal to what we have up in the Adirondacks. Once I figured out how to kill whitetail consistently up there, I lost all my desire for another western hunt.

I am not sure about what sounds like a "conspiracy theory" but I am thankful that "scarcity" occurred. It forced me to rediscover the BB-gun. I put a "big-loop" and adult-sized stock on my daughter's Daisy Red-ryder last summer. Ammo for that is cheap (5000 for $5.00), and never has been hard to find. It is also very quiet and does not disturb people or animals who may be nearby. Thousands of practice shots last summer, most at moving targets, made it a lot easier for me to cleanly kill two moving deer last fall. That included a large buck at a moderate walk with my crossbow and a medium doe at a slow run with my slug gun. We rely heavily on the meat, and I do not get a lot of shot opportunities, so I need all the help I can get. Lots of shooting practice is a good way for me to help myself. Thanks to the BB-gun, that practice is cheap, quiet, and convenient. I can't say that about the .22 anymore. Going forward, I will save .22 ammo for coons, crows, rabbits, and coyotes. In the past, I used some on squirrels, but I will probably start using a pellet gun for that this year. That might be more effective than the .22 rimfire due to the silent report. It will not take the woods as long to "settle down" after each shot.

God did not create any "useless vermin". I would rather not have coyotes on the lands where I hunt. I do appreciate them in the adjacent town. I have to drive thru it each weekday, on my way to and from work. Hunting is not allowed over there, and the coyote helps keep deer numbers in check. I also appreciate how the coyotes kill the weakest deer first, because that provides some benefit to that species which you love for the antlers and I love for the meat. I also enjoy the challenge they offer. For me, that usually involves trying to get my bedroom window open quietly on a moon-lit snowy night, and placing a .22 rimfire bullet where it needs to go. Because I would rather not have coyotes on the lands that I hunt, I would like to see a year-round open season on them. It sounds like you have that now. How does one go about getting permission for that, or do you not worry about it ? It would be much easier shooting the pups out on the cut hay fields in the summer, before they learn the tricks of survival.

That video makes it pretty easy to see the reason for that. There are several large, complicated machines involved in the process. They are quite specialized, and certainly must be very expensive. It would not make much sense to have more of those machines than is necessary to handle the "normal" demand for the product. When consumers "panic-buy", as happened a few years ago, the problem you describe is the logical result.

I like hearing the "yip" they make at night, when they come in to feed on a carcass pile and a .22 rimfire bullet passes thru their ribcage. They never go more than 50 yards when I hear that. Most are mangy and I just leave them out in the field to be plowed under in the spring. I did skin a big, clean-furred male a few years ago and my cousin tanned it for me. I don't think the hides are worth the time to skin them these days. Coyotes are the only carcasses that even the crows will not eat. I freshened the carcass pile yesterday, with a fat road-kill doe that I found at the end of our driveway when I got home from work. It was nice to get another tail for jig-tying. She was minimally damaged with no broken bones and not yet frozen. I would have butchered her for our own consumption if our freezer was not already adequately stocked. Hopefully, I will get to hear that "yip" a few times before the end of March. If not, at least the crow shooting should last for quite a while now. I don't think the coyotes will show up until it warms up a bit and the carcass thaws out and starts to smell. Rigth now it is burried under about 6" of fresh snow. Next week Tuesday looks promising according to the weather forecast. I will be ready for them if they do show up, knowing that a yellow jacket from my Ruger 10/22 hits 2" low at the carcass pile 100 yards away, based on the last crow that I killed there on New years day. When I killed that big male a few years ago, there was a smaller one with him. He got a standing broadside shot, and I fired two or three at her as she ran off. I do not think any of those connected, because I did not find any blood on her tracks the next morning. The next time a pair shows up, I will definitely target the smaller one first, because that will usually be the female. I would encourage anyone else to do likewise, if you want to reduce their numbers.

Thanks for clearing that up. That is right up there with the PA chest girth chart for handy info from this site. I just checked my Barnett Recruit which measures 17-1/16" tip to tip. All three bucks I hit with it moved less than 40 yards after taking the bolts. These were the only shots that I have taken at deer with it, from ranges of 59, 15, and 30 yards. I would say I have got my $ 250 worth. It is not perfect though, because prior to shooting it at a deer, I missed a grouse.

An older friend brought a SuperRedhawk 44 mag over last summer, that he just got a smoking deal on. He asked me to check and see if the scope was on. He had recently suffered a detached retina and his doctor advised against firing any gun. I had never fired any pistol above a .357 mag, and was a bit intimidated at first. My first shot from 50 yards completely missed the paper. He seemed satisfied that the gun fired, and being very thrifty, was reluctant to part with another bullet. These were magnum, hollow-point hunting rounds, and were apparently very expensive. The recoil was no where near what I was expecting. I assured him that now that I knew how "tame" that gun was, I would make a better attempt if he gave me a second bullet. He reluctantly parted with a another and that shot struck the edge of the bull. Taking into consideration the weight of the gun and the feel of the recoil, I would estimate the energy of that round to be about 1/2 that of a magnum, 2-3/4" 12 gauge foster slug. I would be very comfortable using it on a deer at up to 50 yards offhand, or 75 from a rest.