WNYBuckHunter

It could be that your camera just isnt in the right area for daytime activity. I have tons of pics from the last two weeks of daytime activity, including mature bucks. Their patterns shift throughout the year.

Livestock qualifies it. http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/28182.html

Thanks guys, it was a great hunt. I green scored the buck at 109 3/4. I thought he would go higher than that, but knew the short tines would keep the score down. Inside spread is 19 1/2.

Went put this morning a bit late. Met up with my hunting partner Mark and I decided we should stalk a creek bed that the deer typically lay up in on windy days. Mark was skeptical but went along anyhow. He told me how much he doesn't like to still hunt as we went along. Right off the bat we bumped 4 does, which took off out of range. We figured they were gone so we continued on, despite thinking the place we were stalking on was now ruined. Half way up, the 4 does were doubling back and we almost had shots at them. We got back to the spot we were stalking on and stood there making a game plan to do a small drive. I saw some funny looking brush and after looking at it 5 or 6 times I grabbed my binos and took a peek. I said to Mark "hey there's a shooter buck right there" and proceeded to get down and move to the fence where I could get a good rest. I got the buck in my scope and held just over the top of his back, as he was bedded down, and squeezed the trigger. I saw the dirt flu right behind him and he looked right at us. I had misjudged the distance and blew it. Mark took the shot, dropping the buck immediately. After high fives and a hug we headed over to see his deer. It turned out to be a deer I had named Yardstick. We got up to him and noticed he wasn't an 8, as we thought, but a 10 with triple brows on one side and a 20" inside spread. Big congrats to Mark on his biggest deer of his life and his first deer on a still hunt. This buck had an arrow hanging out of his rear quarter and had gotten clipped in the rear leg during a drive last evening. We were glad to put him down. We both agreed that this was the most fun hunt of our lives and would be one that we would both remember forever. This is why I hunt! Off to the afternoon hunt!

Lol yeah kinda cool huh. Not my buck though.

Opening day was an ok one for me. Got into my stand at around 5:45 and settled in. First i saw a few does cross the cut corn and head for the standing corn at around 120 yards. Would have been an easy shot on any of them, but i was out for antlers. A little while later, a small 1/2 rack crotch horn came down the lane at less than 10 yards and stopped to freshen up the scrape 20 yards in front of my set. About 15 minutes later a high and tight racked 6 came along and hit the same scrape. Just after that i heard a shot from on the farm and got a text that one of the guys had a nice buck on the ground. I was excited to see if it was one of the deer we had been keeping tabs on. I didnt see anything else and got down just after 9:15 and headed back to help with the buck. I took a slow walk back and jumped a doe fawn on the way. I got back there and saw that the buck was indeed, one of the deer i had been watching, my daughter had named him Mr Crabs, as he had 2 odd extra brow tines, one looked like a crab claw. He was a 2 1/2 year old that I had passed a couple of times, and had hoped would make it through, but no such luck. Congrats to the guy that took him, lots of people would love to have him on the wall. In velvet... Harvested... The evening sit was the first sit i have been skunked this year. Nothing but tree rats, but i did have great company. Had to take today off of hunting, but I have the day tomorrow to get back at it.

I dont have a huge problem with people that choose to shoot small deer. Ive done it in the past, always by mistake, and just choose not to any longer, but if someone wants to punch their tag on a small one, more power to them. Not tagging the deer is the biggest issue that i read here. If it was me, id find other people to hunt with.

I have company for the evening hunt!

6:32 second shot.

First shot 6:29

In my stand ready to go!

lol paint rulz

Staying in the low 50s here tomorrow, or so they say. Bow season attire with a blaze vest and hat for me.

Good luck to all of you, stay safe and shoot straight!

Heres another good read that sheds more light on the subject. http://www.qdma.com/articles/what-triggers-the-whitetail-rut

Nice! Congrats!

Well at least hes sighting in. Some people head out without ever shooting their run to check it.

Thats a gorgeous buck! Congrats! Patience pays off.

Not even a property I hunt, though I may need to start trying for permission lol.

Whats classic about it? If you cant see that deer after I outlined it, I dont know what to tell ya. You can clearly see the G2/3s sticking up on either side, then just below and to the left, the light streak is his tail. I wish I had gotten a pic when he was closer, but that was the best I could do.

I outlined the buck to make it easier to see in this pic

If you are referring to the map I posted, its based on total license sales IIRC, so it takes bow and gun hunters into account.

No problem. The more I read up on the GPS location studies, the less I believe in most of the popular theories about moon phases, lockdown, bucks going strictly nocturnal, etc. Its more of knowing the right places to be and being there at the right time. There are lots of things you can do to increase your chances, but most of it seems to be seat time in the woods.

This morning on the way to drop my son off at the sitter, I looked out at a field as we went by and right there, 30 yards from the road was a big buck. I stopped and pulled a U turn and parked by the field. There stood a 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 year old heavy 9 point. His mouth was wide open, no doe around, just standing there without a care in the world. We watched him for 5 minutes before I thought to snap a pic. He had wandered off a bit, but you can make him out in the center if you look. That really got me pumped for tomorrow morning!

Id be looking at escape routes from the state land for the morning.