wolc123

One of my most memorable running shots was one that I took offhand, from a range of about 80 yards, on a 10 point buck that was running full tilt thru thick hardwoods. Right at the shot, the buck folded up, just like a pheasant hit with a full pattern. That scene will be forever etched in my mind. The reason that I took that shot, from high up in my treestand, is that I knew it was safe (In case of a miss, the trajectory would take the bullet into the ground on the pancake-flat land), and I could not believe that my first shot had missed. The buck had stepped out into a shooting lane, about 70 yards away. With my gun well-rested on a rail, I calmly placed the crosshairs behind his shoulder, and fired. He wheeled around and bolted. The second shot was perfectly timed with his expiration, but it never touched him. The hair at the site of the first shot, and the side that the entry wound was on, made it clear that it was the first shot that got the job done. Another one that I will never forget, was the first deer I ever killed, 36 years ago. My uncle and I were hunting up a steep hill in Allegheny state park. We heard a shot up on top, and soon two antlerless deer came barreling down. We had a party permit, along with my dad, so I found an opening between the trees, about 60 yards away and pulled the trigger when the first deer reached it. The family still talks about that shot today. Looking back, it might not have been the lead deer that folded up, struck perfectly thru the front shoulders. More likely, it was the twin button-buck following close behind it, and my lead on the first one was about 6 feet short. It would not bother me at all if I never took another running shot at a deer. I will continue to practice them on targets though, because it is more fun and challenging. I have no problem with challenging myself on paper, but I have no need or desire to do it on a living animal.

I can't argue that one, and it was certainly the main theme of the movie. One of the main characters (the little girl's father) must have told his wife "You got to have faith" about half a dozen times or more. I don't think anyone is born with Faith, but it is available to all. If you lack it, you can still act like you have it and someday, when you least expect it, you will be pleasantly surprised when the Holy Spirit gives it to you. The first thing I did to "act like I had it" was to try and get my family to Church on most Sundays. Next, I started some regular Bible reading (I like the NIV best). Over the last five years, at least two deer made it into our freezer as a direct result of that Bible reading, along with (3) more probables. The first "confirmed" kill happened when I "accidently" dropped my Bible from my treestand and went down to get it with just a few minutes of remaining daylight. Immediately a flock of turkeys decended on my position in the bush-patch below my stand (I was wearing blaze orange cammo so they would not have got close had I still been up the tree). A wise old buck was with them, which I was able to kill from point blank range with my slug-gun before he knew what hit him. The second "Bible deer" was my ML doe last fall (see last season's ML harvest thread if you want to see that story). The three probables also happened on days when I took my Bible with me and read it up in the stand. You can even see what was the last verse that I read on last year's crossbow harvest thread. I call them "probables" because they may have happened without the Bible, while the two "confirmed" would have been impossible for me to kill as I did without it. Another, and maybe the most important thing you can do to "act like you have Faith", is to do things for others, expecting nothing in return. There is lots of truth in the saying "it is better to give than to receive" Prayer is another big one, and the more your faith grows, the more of those will be answered. It gets a lot easier to recognize the little miracles around us everyday as that Faith grows. That movie did an excellent job of portraying that in the closing scenes.

I mostly avoid running shots these days, but it does make sense to practice them a bit. Many years ago, down at my buddy's southern-tier camp, we would run a cable down a hill between a couple trees and slide a deer-shaped piece of plywood, hung from a couple eyebolts. Drives were the go-to technique down there, and running shots were common. I practice hitting moving targets a lot these days from our deck with a bb gun, shooting at a beer can hung from a wire attached to the clip. The length of the wire and the speed of the wind mostly controls the speed, as well as the impacts from previous hits. This is about the cheapest way and most convenient way that I have found to get lots of practice. It usually costs less than 10 cents to cut the cans in half, including the loss of the 5 cent deposite, and the cost of the bb's. I modified my daughter's Daisy red-ryder with an adult-sized stock and "big-loop" to make it dimensionally similar to my new Marlin 336 BL. Hopefully all that bb gun practice will pay off in the deer woods this fall. I have also practiced a bit with with the Marlin 30/30, by shooting gallon milk jugs filled with water, and plan to do a bit more from now until deer season. They explode pretty good when hit with 170 grains of lead. Maybe I will hang some of those in front of my big backstop and get them swinging to practice moving shots. It would be cool to cut a seperate supporting string with a still shot (or several) from a rest , then pop the jug as it swings down.

I don't think He would be a liberal, because that would make Him "pro-choice" and we all know that He is "pro-life". I think He would take about 75 % of the popular vote, based on the percentage of American's who identify themselves as Christians today, and most of the electoral votes except maybe NY and CA. The last election showed that there is still a lot of work to do in those states. Things are not so bad upstate in NY, but downstate where you are, I definitely understand what you are hearing.

I am glad that your buddy is doing ok. Have you asked him why he thinks God let him loose those birds ? Turkey is a lot less appealing to me than venison, but that would still hurt for a while if it happened to me. The key is the part where "all things work to the good for those who love Him". The "good" is not always immediate. Fire tempers steel and pain and suffering can make one stronger. He will be a better hunter now. We all learn by making mistakes. Believing in Jesus will not eliminate all bad things from happening, but it will give you more patience to wait for the good. Nothing bothers me more about hunting that the loss of game that I have shot at. I am very thankful that it has been more than 10 years since Jesus Christ has let it happen to me with a deer. A gray squirrel that I lost in a rock wall after dropping it off a limb with my .22, two seasons ago still bothers me. It was right at dusk and I regretted not having my "bloodglow" CSI-type night-time tracking agent with me. Where was the "good" in the loss of that squirrel ? That ugly experience contributed to my holding off on small-antlered, small-bodied bucks last fall with both my crossbow and rifle. The much larger bodied crossbow buck showed up less that 5 minutes after I passed the little guy (Jesus delivered quick that time). The slightly larger rifle buck showed up over a month after I passed the smaller one, but also allowed me to make the only "perfect shot" that I have ever pulled off on a deer. He took his sweet time on that one (almost to the end of the northern zone season) but really used it to prove to me that He calls ALL the shots.

There is enough room in Heaven for everyone, so it would be selfish of me not to spread the word. To answer your question, I believe that the answer would be a negative number, meaning that there would be more wars had no one spread the Word about Jesus Christ. I am extremely thankful to live in a country that identifies as about 75 % Christian and I have no intention on letting up the pressure on that other 25 %. I love them too much for that. They just don't know no better and it is not their fault. Politics does have a special section but I welcome any personal attacks you care to deliver on me about my religion. Every bullet I take for Jesus moves me one notch higher in His Kingdom someday, so thank you very much. I have asked that the moderators let them continue and they have kindly obliged. Carry on my friend and happy hunting this fall. That was not me. Mine involved a head-on collision with a pickup truck. I did not break any bones, but did dislocate a hip and suffer a concussion. The doc said at the time (28 years ago) that I would probably need a hip replacement within 5 years. It has not bothered me at all since that time.

One who may have a lesson to teach. All things work for the good to those who love Him.

You sound like someone who may have shot at a few. Care to answer that question ^ ?

I also don't know how many deer you have hit and lost or failed to hit when you shot at over the last 10 years. How about it ? The world wonders.

It is nice that the moderators have placed no limit on the amount on Jesus Christ that can be brought up here. Also, it is a very a very target-rich environment for locating those, such as yourself and FSW, who could use a little more convincing. How many deer have you fellas hit and lost, or failed to hit when you shot at, over the last ten years ? I have asked that question to several doubters, but none has offered up a reply. My number is zero, unless you count my first two shots on one three years ago, (you gotta hate those unseen, bullet-deflecting branches). I did manage to drop him dead in his tracks with my third shot. Also, one of two doe that I killed last season required a second finishing shot. Those three "non-fatal" errors by me did not prevent the meat from getting into our freezer because The guy in charge decided that He wanted them there. The good news is that Jesus Christ paid for all of us sinner's mistakes up on that cross long ago. If you are able to find a Bible (or google it) you can look up that He knows where every sparrow falls, so you best believe that He knows where the deer end up. I lost several deer in my younger days, before I connected the dots and realized who was running the show. I would feel guilty keeping that a secret when we are all blessed with such an abundant source of fine protein right here in NY state.

I have not but I did hear about it. Maybe I will check it out if I can find it.

I watched this movie (starring Jennifer Garner) with our two girls last night. I encourage anyone, who may be questioning their own faith and the existence of Jesus Christ, to give it a shot. It was not too hard for me to accept Jesus and the miracles that He puts out, because I was blessed with two "world record class ones" myself. That includes fully recovering from the most severe snowmobile wreck (about 28 years ago) and brain tumor (3 years ago) that any human has been known to experience (at least in Western NY). I understand why others, who have not been as fortunate as myself and Annabell Beam (the little girl in the movie), might struggle with their faith. It was a 50 year struggle for me, and it took the second miracle for me to buy the whole deal "lock stock and barrel". The good news is that it is never too late. The movie is based on a true story, which you can easily research and verify on "Youtube" or other internet sources. It is a first-class, Hollywood production with good acting. My wife and teenage daughters loved it. I would have liked to have taken them to see it at the theater, but watching it for the first time with them in the living room was cool. It held their attention better than Star Wars. One little dividend that accepting Jesus Christ can pay is how much better your hunting can get. Missing or loosing deer can easily become a thing of the past. No amount of practice or "magic bullets/arrows" can do that for you, but it is a piece of cake for Christ. I can say with absolute assurance that it is impossible for anyone to prove that Jesus Christ is not the truth. Hopefully this movie will help Him prove to a lot of skeptics that He is. What have you got to loose if He can make your hunting better in the process ? As important as that is to all of us here, it is near the least of what you stand to gain.

I am leaning towards an 8 x 30 Leupold BX-1 for Adirondack still-hunting. Amazon has them for under $ 100. I have not heard of many bad reviews on these. Is anyone using them ?

That is another good suggestion and I also have a surplus of WW (it was only $ 8 a bag at Rineharts in Middleport), so I will definitely have to give that one a try. The good thing about the brassicas or the wheat is that anything above ground that is not eaten off by the deer thru hunting season and winter can be mowed down in the late spring with a bushog. The nitrogen that it sucks out of the ground in the meantime will make it tougher on the grass competition to the clover next year.

I tried it when I was a lot younger with my first archery kill (a button buck of about 85 pounds field dressed). It was no problem the first hundred or so yards (going down hill or on level ground), but as soon as I had to go uphill, it was a no-go and I switched to dragging the normal way, with a rope with a stick for a handle.

I think we have evolved past the peak of antler worship, and more folks are again getting into hunting for meat. I am glad to see that fad finally passing. Last fall, one of the "big two" outdoor mags (Field & Stream or Outdoor life) ran an article on all the different extra meats you can get from deer and I think a few covers in the fall did not even show a huge-racked deer. Now, if only we can get over this hoppy and/or fruity "craft" beer phase, then all might be right with the world again.

I think growalot overseeds brassica in situations like that. I never tried it but might this year because I have a surplus of purple-top turnip seed and lots of old weedy clover acreage. Brassicas are very tasty to deer after a hard frost, when clover looses most of its attraction. That might make for some good late season kill-plots. The brassicas should do well with all the nitrogen that is banked in the ground from the clover.

It wont be too long until he is ready to start shooting it with some light target loads. Make sure he holds the stock close to his shoulder and leans into it a bit. Is the Ruger 10/22 his also? He don't look as happy with that one, but would probably enjoy shooting it sooner. He definitely looks happy with the Bear compound.

It gives you a pretty good point of aim for an arrow with a quartering away deer, but I am not sure that I would want to eat that one. Since gathering food is my primary reason for hunting, I would probably give him a pass, unless it was near the end of the season and I still had my buck tag. I would just trim around the warts and eat the rest in that case.

Sorry I left off the biological explanation for the drag on previous post. Maybe you will "get it" now.

It sounds like you might have missed this part, which sums up my "other" reason for that drag. Did you ever here the saying "kill two birds with one stone" That there was saving a fish, and getting a picture with one rope.

Taking a large fish on light tackle puts considerable stress on them. In this case, the lake was dead calm, so an immediate release would have probably lowered her odds of survival. Have you ever saw any video footage of folks "reviving" big muskies or pike by pushing them back and forth to move oxygenated water across their gills ? A slow drag across a calm lake does the same thing. In this case, that big old bass just floated on her side at first, but by the time I reached the opposite shore, she was strong enough to pull that canoe around in circles. The fact that my wife was able to catch a "live action" photo of the release was just an added bonus. I definitely appreciate you fella's concern for the fish, which I consider to be food gifts from God. I always go to great lengths to insure the survival of released fish and would encourage others to do likewise. That includes wetting my hands before touching them, handling them and removing hooks gently, and running my boat's livewell pump often. I will sometimes hold a larger than optimum fish or two in my livewell and only release them if I am not able to catch a smaller one in the time available. I did keep a 20 inch smallmouth out on Lake Erie last week, but that fish looked to be relatively young and was very healthy looking. The growth rate on bass out there is as good as I have ever saw it. 15 years ago, before all those round-gobies, a bass of that age would probably have been less than 15 inches long. The best way to insure the health of the fishery is to not catch them in the first place. I no longer fish the "special early season" for bass on Lake Erie, since they changed the rules to only allow the keeping of bass over 20". Those fellas that often brag of dragging 50-100 bass a day up off the spawning beds are doing a lot more harm than I am by dragging a single bass across a small inland lake in the middle of the summer.

It was actually a short length of braided line, not a rope and her odds of making it were pretty good. I never was one for catch and release fishing though, and the only legal fish I usually release are those that are too big to eat. All of that "senseless maiming" of a fine food source never made much sense to me.

It is definitely easier for them to run down mature deer in the deep snow than it is without. Those big padded paws are almost like snowshoes, while the narrow hoofs on a deer sink right thru, wasting tons of energy and making for an easy run-down. Nothing is easier for them to catch than an old rutted-out buck in the deep snow. While the fat does and yearlings leave him behind in the loose powder, he quickly becomes coyote food. After spring fawning season, that is the second "happy time" each year for the coyotes up in the north country.

I use a big, old GE household fridge that is from the 1950's. They don't seem to build them to last like that now days. It does use a little more electricity than the new ones, but I only plug it in when it is warm out and I have deer carcasses to hang. With all the racks and drawers removed, it will hold two average-sized deer, cut in half behind the rib cage. I hang the rear halfs from hooks on the top and rest the fronts on the necks on the bottom. It gets a little tight with two in there, but normally I only need to worry about one at a time. Aging those deer at 35 degrees (that's where the old fridge holds them) for about a week (longer for older deer) allows the rigor mortis to work its way out, making the steaks, chops, and roasts a lot more palatable. Keeping the door closed over that time allows the skinned carcasses to stay fairly moist. I prefer to hang and age the carcasses with the skins on (that insulates and keeps them from drying out to much on the outside) in our insulated garage, but "climate change" is forcing me to use that old fridge more and more it seems, especially early in the season. Hopefully I can get another 50 or so years out of it. It would be cool to age deer in a hundred year old fridge.