wolc123

The reason to change things is that the majority should get their way. The poll in the "bowhunting:" section was at nearly 2:1 in favor of full inclusion when it mysteriously disappeared. Obviously someone can't handle the truth. It looks like a majority of bow hunters (myself included) do favor full inclusion, not just gun hunters. Yet there remains a small minority of vocal, selfish, elitist bowhunters who are fighting against it. They will loose and the sooner they give up their pitiful selfish fight the better.

I left for home about noon on opening day of rifle season, from my location in WMU 6C, about 40 mi NW of your location. When I got up there, a week prior on opening day of ML, about 75% of the leaves were still on the trees and it was just past "peak" fall scenery time. By the time I left, the monsoon rains and winds had taken down almost all the leaves, and I did not get to see any snow. I got to see the lake at the lowest level I have ever seen, and the highest, all in one week. The weather the first half of the week was like mid-summer, which had me spending more time fishing than hunting. I tried a lot in deeper water for lake trout, without even a bite, but the smallmouth were very cooperative in the shallow water. I shot a medium sized doe just outside camp with my ML on the warmest morning, and had to run her down to Lowville for processing. I normally cut up my own, but the temperature was supposed to get up to 80 that day so I had to "sub it out" that time. Those folks down at Nolt's did an excellent job at an excellent price (less than $50 skinned, cut, ground and wrapped). We did enjoy the tenderloins with eggs for breakfast up at camp and they were good. I hunted a fair amount over the week and had run-ins with (6) deer, all while still-hunting. I did not see any antlers, except for little buttons on a young one that flushed out of the bushes just outside of camp. Two of them just showed me their tails, but they were bedded about 300 yards apart, were big deer, and may have been bucks. I was going to stay thru Sunday, but Nolt's was on my way home and I did not want to waste the extra time driving back and forth when they said the meat would me cut up by late morning Saturday (they are closed on Sunday's). Thank's again for the great video. I love the look of the snow on the mountain lake shores. Hopefully, we will get to see some this year when we head up again on Thanksgiving weekend. Unless I run across a real monster at home, I plan on saving my buck tag for that trip also. If you can move next years trip a week earlier for ML season, your odds of some better weather would improve a bit. Hopefully they will also make antlerless deer legal again at that time down there, which would multiply your odds of some venison by a factor of 10. That is based on my own observations of the antlerless/antler ratio over the last 10 years.

The last I saw, it was running in favor of full inclusion vs leaving it the way it is now by about a 2:1 margin. I can only assume that did not fit someone's agenda so they made it go away. The truth is a difficult thing to hide but the loosing side is so desperate to hold the line they will try just about anything at this point.

Lots of folks are just naturally restless. You know the type, every time they walk into a bar, they try a different beer. Others have a bad experience with a particular round and decide they need something with more power, or that kicks less, etc.. Others just have to use the latest and greatest. I feel extremely blessed to have 6 weapons right now with which I have killed every deer that I shot at. They ain't perfect and most have blemish or two (second or third shots required several times, one loss to coyotes because I could not find it soon enough, a misfire, and one missed bird). I can see myself adding maybe two more to the collection over the next few years, to provide some redundancy (another crossbow) and optimize performance in some situations (a light weight rifle for still-hunting). I think I could hunt deer in NY, happily ever after, with those two added to my current collection. They would all fit easy in my safe and gun cabinet.

I did not weigh her. Fortunately I had a 5 gallon bucket in the rowboat and I put her in it and ran across the lake, back to the house, with my father in law's 10 hp outboard at wide open throttle. I yelled for them to bring out a camera and a tape measure, then got her right back into the lake. I made sure my hands were wet when I touched her. She definitely used up a lot of energy on the landing, but she swam away real good when I released her. I think her odds of making it are good. The water temperature was in the lower 60's. Years ago, I caught a 23 incher out in lake Erie in that special early May season (also released). That one was probably a good bit heavier (also not weighed), being full of eggs, but did not put up nearly the fight in the cooler water (in the lower 50's). I was fishing for over an hour for lake trout, in deeper water before I tied on the jig and moved into the shoreline for this fall bass. Had she not shot straight up and jumped clear of the waterline, right after the hookset, I would have swore she was a big laker. After that jump, she peeled drag and headed out for deeper water. It took me more than 10 minutes to start pulling her back up. I was pulling as hard as I dared on the 8 pound line the whole time.

500 acres in zone 6C, 100 acres in zone 9F, 20 acres in zone 9A

My two favorite pursuits are whitetail deer and smallmouth bass and the warm weather made me go for the fish first on my trip to my in-laws place in the Adirondacks last week. This 22" was my largest in many years, and definitely the hardest fighter, taking 12 minutes to land on 8 pound test. She hit a 1/8 oz bucktail jig, in 5 feet of water, on opening day afternoon of NZ ML deer season. My father in law complained a bit when I released her (he wants to decorate his place with "native" mounts). She was just so healthy looking and in good shape that I had to put her back. I told him that I will mount a 23" if I ever get one, at least I have something to aim for now.

If I had one, I would set the thermostat to about 35 F. That is where the old fridge out in my garage usually runs, and I use that, with all the racks removed, to hang skinned deer halfs in, if it is too warm for hide-on, inside the garage aging. I have a big old doe hanging in my garage now, that a neighbor kid shot with his bow out back on Sunday morning. The thermometer I have stuck in the arrow hole, in the front shoulder, has been running at slightly below 40 F, since yesterday evening. I will process her this Saturday, when the temperature is predicted to rise above 50. I would age a 1.5 year old deer for one week at 35, a 2.5 year old for 10 days and older deer about 2 weeks. The rigermortice will break down quicker at higher temps. You don't have to worry much about the meat rotting if you keep it below 50 degrees. You will probably want to stop raising the beef when you see how good the aged venison is (I know we did). It does not get more "organic" than that, and surely it is a lot better for your heart. It is also nice that the deer take care of feeding themselves and I sure don't miss things like dealing with vets, frozen water supplies in the winter, and trying to get the hay in before the rain. Also, killing the wild deer don't bother me as much as killing the tame steers and heffers that we raised from birth.

I killed this medium sized doe on Tuesday morning, 10/18 up in DMU 6C with my T/C Omega 50 cal. The temperature was predicted to get up close to 80 F later that day, so I ran her down to Lowville for processing. After I shot, she ran back towards my in-laws house, making for an easy recovery. The tenderloins were very good with breakfast the next morning. Our girls were happy that now they can start having venison tacos again (we had used our last pack of grind from last year a few days before I left for my ML hunting trip). I have to score another one for the Bible with this one. I headed out that morning a bit before sunrise (with my ML uncapped), but I turned back when I remembered that I had forgot my normal weekday routine of reading a couple pages. I went back and did that, plus assembled and read the instructions for my new tree umbrella (which I had also forgotten and rain was in the forecast). By the time I finished those two tasks, it was past sunrise, so I capped my ML for the walk back to my intended spot, near a swamp where I had spooked a couple unidentified deer the prior morning. The leaves were quiet, thanks to an overnight soaking rain, and I was headed into the wind. I had not gone far, when I noticed the doe off to my left, standing broadside, unobstructed, about 25 yards away. My father in law, who does not hunt but had been up for a while, heard the shot and went outside. I heard him yell "did you get one?" and I replied "I think so". While I was looking where she had stood for hair or blood, I heard him yell "Over here" He found her piled up in a little clearing behind his barn. As I was gutting her, another doe ran across the back of the clearing. I did not see any antlers over the week, other than little buttons on one I flushed out a few days later while still hunting. His momma, a slightly larger doe, offered me a nice 40 yard, unobstructed, quartering away shot but I am saving my "either/or" tag for Southern zone crossbow season, or late ML.

If I were in the market today, I would take a good look at the Centerpoint Sniper 370. I see Amazon has them for $300, and I have not read any bad reviews on them. They are a compound, but that seems like a great price for a 370 fps crossbow package which includes a decent scope, quiver and 3 bolts. If NY state gives us "full inclusion" prior to next season, I will be buying one. Otherwise I am sticking with my $250, 300 fps Barnett recruit for at least one more year. I was able to kill the only deer I shot at with it, at a range of 59 yards (heart shot), with that but penetration was marginal at only 8". That extra 70 fps should provide plenty of energy for a pass thru at 60 yards. I will not be taking any shots with my current crossbow over 50 yards, and I bought a laser range-finder to help be sure of that.

My mother in law put a trail camera on the gut pile from a doe I shot last Tuesday up in the NZ (DMU 6C) with my ML. Nothing touched it from then until Sunday when they had to come home. The doe expired right behind their barn so maybe that is what kept the critters away. Every last scrap of another doe I killed up there a few years prior, at the same time of year but about a half mile from the cabin, was cleaned up by the following day. Oddly enough, I did see a lot of eagles around that year.

Does are more territorial than bucks, and control the "best" feeding and bedding areas. I always put in corn plots, which provide both of those and they are usually dominated by does. The key to holding more does on a property seems to be making the corn plots smaller, and more numerous, otherwise a cranky old doe will just take over the whole big plot for her group. Less dominant does and bucks get shoved off to the "lesser" areas. I like corn plots between 1/2 and 1-1/2 acres in size, and lots of them. If you want more does on your area, look into putting in some food plots and better cover (corn does both). My favorite time to hunt is the rut and keeping lots of does around makes that a lot better. The more does you have around, the greater the odds that some will be in heat. You might have a lot of bucks around now, but when the rut kicks off in a couple week, they will be somewhere else - after those hot does. One of the reasons I like hunting the rut is that it is usually colder then and I am primarily a meat hunter. Dealing with buck or doe carcasses, and aging them properly before processing, is a lot easier for me when it is cold out. Speaking of that, I am really enjoying the prolonged cold snap we are getting into now, with a nice fat corn-fed doe out hanging in my garage. She should be aged perfect for processing by this Saturday. The stainless steel probed thermometer that I stuck in the arrow hole in her front shoulder has been reading a constant 40 degrees since yesterday evening and it is not supposed to break 50 until Saturday. I love not having to skin them right away and place the half's in an old refrigerator for a week to age.

Good luck on your next trip up there rac. I will be heading up again on Thanksgiving weekend with my rifle. A neighbor dropped of another big doe for us yesterday, so I will save my buck tag for that trip unless a real bruiser shows up down here in the Southern zone on opening weekend. As far as the bears go, I would shoot one any size. Those under 200 pounds are real good eating and my father in law really wants a rug for his new place up there (and would pay for it I hope). A 199 pounder would be perfect.

I am very thankful for a wife and two daughters who love venison. That is the main reason meat comes first with me. At this point, 3.5 average sized deer gets us thru a year. Some years, I kill all we need myself but friends usually give us one or two every year (a neighbor dropped off a big doe today). I also pick up road kills if they are in good condition. I definitely get more selective early in the seasons or when the meat supply is good. With about 3 average sized deer in our supply now (two fresh ones, and a leftover-just roasts and chops from last year), all 1.5 year bucks will get a pass from me until the end of the seasons (crossbow, gun and late ML). I have only used my own antlerless ML tag up in the NZ so far this season, and I still have two DMP's for the SZ DMU that includes our farm and that of my folks. It is not easy filling those DMP's around here as they seem to go nocturnal after a few weeks of archery season. I will take any opportunity I get on antlerless deer, regardless of size, but wont start hunting again until crossbow opens a week from Saturday. I have never been selective with my DMP's, always going for the largest bodied deer that presents a good shot. That has resulted in 25% button bucks and those are definitely my wife's favorite. Since we are well stocked now, I will probably target the BB's before their mother's this year. We have been going up the my in-laws Adirondack camp for the long Thanksgiving weekend the last few years and that has made me a bit more selective with my gun season buck tag at home. Two years ago, if I had killed the scrawny little four pointer that walked under my stand on opening weekend, I would not have been able to take my largest bodied buck ever up there in the Adirondacks, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I probably would have shot that little four pointer, if I did not already have my own Archery buck and another from a friend in the freezer that year. Last season, I passed up a small, 1-1/2 year buck while still-hunting on my early ML season trip to the NZ. That turned out to be the only chance I had on any deer that year. Fortunately, friends came thru with 3. Still, we would not have ran out of grind a week ago had I killed that little buck when I had the chance, so yes there was some regret. There is definitely more excitement going into a hunt with my buck tag unfilled, and for that I am willing to accept a little regret, and eat a tag every few years.

The neighbor kid was hunting out back this morning in WNY. He saw two 1-1/2 year old bucks (a 6 and a small 8 pt) but is saving his buck tag for something bigger. He did arrow "doezilla" when she came by with a set of twins. He also saw another old doe with twins. His family raises beef cattle and don't care for venison, so he just dropped her off for us. We should be all set now with ground venison for the year, with that and a bit smaller one that I killed up in the NZ on Tuesday with my ML. It looks like good, inside the garage, hide-on, hanging weather in the long range forecast this week, so I guess I have some butchering to do on Saturday. With all that meat in or headed to the freezer already, I am going to be selective with my own remaining tags and I am not going to bother getting more when they come out on Nov 1.

There are lot's of Guinea pigs down there and they are supposed to be good eating. I am looking at my kid's pet right now as I type, and it appears to be halfway between a grey squirrel and cottontail rabbit in size. A friend went down to Mexico on a pigeon hunt a few years back and it was basically non-stop shooting with buckets full of birds and sore shoulders. None of that sounds very appealing to me, nor do the African "zoo" animals. It is tough to beat the Adirondack whitetail hunting we have right here in NY state.

I skipped opening Saturday and Sunday morning (I did not know how I would have dealt with a carcass up there in those warm conditions), but was out a bit on all the other mornings and afternoons of the week long season. I also hunted a bit in the morning of opening day of rifle season with my 30/06. The deer were not moving much on their own, probably due to the warm temps. In many hours of sitting, I did not see or hear any. Still-hunting between spots was definitely more productive. Monday morning a couple must have winded me, down in a trickling creek-bottom, as I walked the ridge up above. They snorted and crashed thru the brush, but it was to thick for me to get more that a glimpse of their white flags. Tuesday morning, I initially started out a little early (ML uncapped) and headed for a spot out back where I intended to rattle. This spot was down-wind of the creek bottom where I had spooked the two unidentified deer the day prior. I quickly realized that I had forgotten a couple things (including my tree umbrella). There was rain in the forecast again that day. By the time I got the umbrella, read the directions, and assembled it, it was past sunrise, so I capped my ML for the walk. The leaves were wet from an overnight soaking rain, so I was not making any noise as I still-hunted towards my ratting spot. When I was about 200 yards from the cabin, I looked to my left and noticed a mature doe, standing broadside and unobstructed, just 25 yards away. I brought the 50 cal to my shoulder, centered the cross-hairs behind her shoulder, and fired. She turned tail and bolted right back towards the cabin. My father in law (who does not hunt) had been awake for a while went outside when he heard the shot. He yelled "did you get one" . I relpied. "I think so". A few seconds later, he yelled: "over here", when he saw the doe piled up in a clearing, right behind his barn. While I was gutting her, another doe ran across the back of the clearing. After hanging the carcass for a short while, from a tree by the barn, we ran her down to Lowelville for processing. They had about 30 deer stacked up there at 11:00, about half bucks and half does, and one small bear. My kids had finished up our last pack of last season's ground venison the week prior, so I was very thankful for the 115 pound field-dressed doe. I had them grind the whole thing, except for the back-straps. I also saved the tenderloins for breakfast, along with the heart and tongue for pickling. I helped a guy at the processor's, stack his decent sized, 2-1/2 year old buck on the pile in the skinning shop. He said that it was the largest of a group of four that came in that morning while his son was rattling. It was about 75 degrees by 11:00, so business was booming at the processors. The two skinners estimated that they could have that whole pile skinned and in the cooler within two hours. They were definitely knocking them off fast. Over the rest of the week, I tried rattling multiple times, mostly in the rain, with no response. While walking to my spot Friday morning, I flushed a button buck and slightly larger doe from a bush-patch, again very close to the cabin. Momma stopped in the power-line cut, offering me an unobstructed, 40 yard, quartering away shot. I left the hammer down, put the crosshairs in the sweet-spot, and touched the trigger. The hammer would have been back were there not two nice bucks at home that I am saving my "either/or" tag for during our Southern zone crossbow season. It would have been nice to see some antlers, while hunting up there, but I am very thankful for that doe. There seemed to be no shortage of them up there this year, probably due to last winter's total absence. The country was gorgeous as usual, especially early in the week, before the wind and rain knocked down all the leaves. I probably gained a few pounds from eating my mother-in-law's fine cooking all week.

I just got back from a 1 week Adirondack whitetail muzzleloader hunt at my in-laws camp in zone 6C. My total expense for the week came to $100. Butchering cost $47 (for 45 pounds of boneless meat from a 115 pound field-dressed doe) and gas, to get me there and back, was $53. They provided the food (my mother in law is a superb cook) and lodging and I helped them get the place ready for winter (boats and patio furniture hauled in, pipes drained, etc). That also included some great fishing, including my second largest smallmouth bass ever (22"), and 20 more in the 12 - 18" range. That big one hit on opening day of muzzleloader season (it was too warm to hunt that day).

I bought a new John Deere 4120, 10 years ago. Back then that line went from 43 hp for the 4120 to 56 hp with the 4720. They were all the same basic tractor and engine, with the fuel pressure adjusted to achieve different hp's. I got a better deal then on the JD when comparing hp, specs and cost than I could get on comparable Kubota's, and New Hollands. The 40-20 series had Tier III, John Deere Powertech, American-made engines back then. Currently, John Deere is using foreign (Yanmar) engines in their smaller Tier IV engines, to meet emission requirements. If I were to buy a new, Tier IV tractor today, in the size range you are looking at, I would lean towards Mahindra, but that would be mostly due to the fact that I have good relationships with two local dealers of that brand. If you are interested in, and can locate a slightly used tractor (I think they stopped making them in around 2014), the JD 40-20 series would be a good pick. My 4120 has held up fairly well, needing only oil filters, a new starter (at 4 years), a new battery (at 8 years), and new front tires (at 10 years). Those stock R1 Titan front tires are junk and I hope the new Carlisles I put on will last a lot longer. Other than the factory Bosh starter that failed much earlier than it should have (I replaced it with an aftermarket Powerstrike), that tractor has been bulletproof. With the front loader and a rear blade, my 4120 works great for clearing snow. My tires are R1 tread, and the rears are calcium loaded. That 4 wheel drive tractor can easily move mountains of snow, without tire chains (that is great for blacktop driveways). Make sure you get a block heater, as most engine wear occurs in cold weather from cold starts because it takes the thickened oil a long time to get to the bearings. I keep it plugged into an extension cord, on a switch that I can turn on from in the house. If I turn that switch on for an hour, the tractor starts as smooth as it does on a hot summer day, even when it is below zero outside. The rear blade/ front loader combo works well with my open station tractor because I can push back the snowbanks with the loader when they get too high. I can see where a cab would be nice to deal with the blowing snow if you go with a blower, but for a blade, open station works fine. I would not want a cab on my tractor mostly because I work in an office every weekday and I love getting outside after work and on weekends. I made a simple, large canopy for summer use that does a great job of blocking out the hot sun. On an open station tractor, you get a nice breeze whenever you move so staying cool in the summer is no problem under that canopy here in NY state at least. Cabs also are a pain in the woods and that fancy curved glass costs a lot of money to replace when you break it. Good luck with your purchase.

I am impressed Core. You are the first anti-crossbow guy who I have seen admit his selfishness and acknowledge that crossbows are far more effective at killing doe's than vertical bows. I would be happy if the state would just let us use them at the start of archery season (even if it is for "antlerless only"), but only in the zones where they are currently struggling to get numbers under control. The crossbow would be more effective than a ML, if allowed then, due to it's silent report. Letting ML's in would backfire by making the deer go nocturnal in those zones even faster than they do now.

For me, it is really only 3 days cross-bow up there, then ML opens this Saturday for a week prior to rifle opening the following Saturday. They call it a 10 day crossbow season, because you can still use it thru ML (and even thru the end of gun season if you wish). I was hoping to get up there for those first three days, but I had to stay down south due to a vacation conflict at work. The delay was ok with me, because now I can stay up there thru the opening weekend of gun season. I will still take my crossbow for backup, but without any breakdowns I will hunt with the most lethal, legal weapon available, with the longest effective range. It looks like it will be warm up there this weekend. Does anyone know of any decent processors with refrigeration near zones 6C or 6F?

They taste the same as those killed with guns, and bows. Broken legs are a bad sign, leave them or use as coyote bait. Many break their neck or just knock themselves out when they run into the side of a vehicle, and those are the best. Often there is not a bruise on the carcass anywhere. When a small deer gets broadsided by a vehicle, there will be some minor bruising on the impact side shoulders, but the other side will be good. Heavier deer get bruised up more when they get broadsided. When it comes to tagging them, I have always just hauled the ones struck near my house home, gutted them quick, hung them up in my garage, then called the local police for a tag. It is not high on their priority list but usually they show up with the tag in less than 24 hours. One time I picked up a big doe in the next town, that woke up when I tried to cut it's tail (I use them for making jigs). It turned out to be a lot fresher than I thought it was. Since I had the knife handy, I hopped on it's back, put it in a hammer lock, and slit it's throat. I threw it in the back of my truck a drove straight to the town police station, still dripping with blood. When the desk officer asked "did the deer have to be shot", I replied, no, I killed it with my knife. His reply was "that would be no", He then gave me a carcass tag, with no further questions. I only pick them up to eat when I know they are fresh, close to home, and not heavily damaged. Those that are close by and heavily damaged, I scoop into the loader bucket of my tractor and dump on my carcass pile for coyote bait (I don't bother getting tags for those). I just clip the tails on those that are far away. Before I settled down and got married, I scored several from the same barstool at a local tavern. One time a young fella came in all upset because he had just hit one with his brand new truck. When I asked where, he said "up the road by the bridge, which is right between my house and the tavern. I bought him a beer to help drown his sorrows and said "see ya later". That fat button buck was one of the finest tasting deer I can remember. It was late when I called, but the cops showed up the next morning with my carcass tag. There is nothing wrong with saving a few bullets or arrows.

I only had it happen one time with an arrow, in the daylight. I used another arrow, thru the lungs. The buck had lost a lot of blood, from a high front leg hit. The arrow had struck forward and below the vitals, and the broadhead and front half stayed in. We had pushed him for several miles (that's a good plan for a arrow in muscle hit). Each time we lost blood, the other guy would circle until we picked it up again. When we finally caught up, he seemed too weak to get up After taking the second arrow, he did manage to get up, and stumble about 10 yards, before going down for good. It is amazing how much blood they can loose and keep going. I have finished off a couple, that had been struck by vehicles, with a knife. That is risky, and I took a hard hoof kick to the leg from one big doe. There was some pain and swelling, but it was worth it, and did not stop me from doing it again ( a little more carefully). Stay clear of those rear hoofs if you try it, and use a sharp knife. If I had to finish another one after dark, I would go with a very sharp knife to the throat.

For a shot taken earlier in the day, I would stay in my stand for a half hour after the shot, unless I saw the deer fall (I would go to it immediately in that case). After the half hour, I would go put down some orange biodegradable tracking tape where the deer stood at the shot and find my arrow. If the evidence pointed to a heart/lung shot, I would follow the blood trail right away, putting down more tape at the last blood found each time along the way. If the evidence (after finding the arrow) indicated the hit was behind the diaphram, I would back out for 3 more hours, then return to my last tape marker and continue the search. If the shot was taken near dusk, I would wait 15 minutes in the stand, then go find the arrow. If the evidence indicated a heart/lung hit I would get right on the blood trail with my flashlight. If the evidence indicated a hit behind the diaphram, I would go back to to my truck/house/cabin and mix up a batch of bloodglow in a sprayer bottle and return to the trail about 2 hours later. They say liver and gut hits are easy to find with that stuff. I can't say for sure from personal experience, because the three deer I have killed since getting it 2 years ago have dropped dead on the spot or within 40 yards. Even though I have not got to use it, having it available has given me the confidence to hunt right up to legal sunset every time, and should also eliminate the possibility of a coyote ever getting some good venison from me. That alone was well worth the $20 purchase price. It is mostly about the meat to me, so I have never and would never back out and wait until the next day. I reluctantly accepted a doe one time from a friend who had left it overnight (when the temps were in the mid 30's). She hit it in the late afternoon, and recovered it just after daybreak the next morning. I could taste that the flavor of the meat was off a bit. I will decline such an offer again, even if my freezer is empty. If I can't get the guts out in a few hours, the coyotes can have it. I am very fussy, when it comes to venison, and if it does not taste as good or better than fine beef, I don't want it. That "overnight doe" was the only one, out of about 100 that I have prepared and tasted, that fell into that category.

I am planning on all 7 days with my TC Omega 50 cal in zone 6C where antlerless are still fair game, then the first 2 days of Rifle in zone 6F with my Ruger M77 30/06. It is looking a little warm early in the long range forecast, so I probably won't hit the woods too hard until Tuesday afternoon. I will probably be spending more time chasing lake trout on Saturday thru Monday, and maybe a little grouse hunting. I am prepared for rain with balloons and/or electric tape to go over the muzzle (thanks Stone and 7600), gore-tex jacket and bibs, and a tree umbrella. I have had good luck rattling in the rain before so I am actually hoping for some this time. Good luck up there.