Localqdm

Yes, but prob shouldn't be

just currious dave, not trying to promote an argument, but do you believe you can 'reactivate' those suites in the dryer?

The difference is the bloodhounds life isn't at stake and he still finds the person easily. A whitetail lives and dies by their nose. its proof to me. but I agree w/you that those products may help some deer believe you are not as close or been walking there that recently.

Alsheimer has documented some pretty incredible eyewitness accounts of the whitetail's smelling abilities. If they can wiff a doe a 1/4 mile away they can smell my breath, b/o, and everything else if downwind. Look up the mythbusters experiments with bloodhounds and scent 'control'. You can't beat these animals noses.

I think downwind deer will smell you no matter what you wear or do, and will smell your tracks even with washed, scrubbed, and bagged 'scent free' boots. Everyone has had an experience of a 'downwind' deer not scenting them, but honestly i think those experiences are actually cases of swirling wind, thermals, or structure affecting your stream, or the deer was young or didn't care (preoccupied). just my .02. Not doubting that those products don't help mask your scent, But those carbon suites, cover sprays, and stuff sure make someone a lot of $$$

Nice work. How often to you check your cams? Do you use any extra scent control? Seems to be working for you.

IDK, some backyards in the suburbs of Buffalo prob have deer grossing over 200.

I would put the camera near a food source (apple tree) in a 'safe' location if you just want to see some bucks. Do NOT put it anywhere near your bedding areas on your property or anywhere near your stands.

Burt, just currious is your area under heavy pressure?

Read about it, now thought about it. How many of you have witnessed most of your mature buck movement between the hours of 10 and 2, or particularly during the rut? I think most of my mature buck sightings do fall in this time period in the heavy pressured areas I hunt. In fact I once saw a huge buck enter a wood lot that minutes later I drove around the other side to see a hunter leaving. he had a stand right down from where that buck went in. I think they often have us pegged and pattern us.

What do you guys do or use to allow you to shoot 360 degrees in your stand. The harnesses I have all come with a strap that is too short to really shoot to my right (being right handed which would put me facing the tree), so I tied on a short piece of rope to give me that wiggle room. I know its for safety as you are suppose to not have slack in the strap so you can't really fall below the height of the platform, but you have to be able to shoot either direction. What do you use/do?

Am I going to take a big buck, or is a big buck taking me? It would be silly if it wasn't true at times. And that kinda puts it in perspective. Hunting is great fun and I have great admiration for big bucks, but in the end of things when I'm dead and gone, I don't want my kids to remember that I loved to chase deer in the woods and that was all I thought about. Kind of meaningless. Hunting can bring on that addiction for me, but like any fix it's not real LIFE. i'm thankful for the opportunities and experiences the Lord has given me, but have seen that its wrong for me to love ANYTHING more than the LORD, and fun times and experiences can never replace true LIFE, and that only comes from HIM. So my goal this season is to enjoy every minute I'm given and be thankful for everything. Meat is kinda important, relationships very important, and a big buck is a blessing, not a god.

That is one of the best bucks i have ever seen on this sight, if you look at the total package. He has a nice set of antlers, but also a HUGE body, a very mature buck. Hope you can tag him. Yeah prob 140 maybe a touch higher, hard to beat that with only 8 pts.

Was an hour n/e of Columbus OH for job training and I felt it pretty good. Watched a matchbox truck sitting on this coworkers monitor roll, thats when I knew I wasn't just dizzy! And just to throw this off topic since I mentioned OH :D that coworker showed me pics of his 240 gross nontypical (I didn't think it would actually go that high though) and said how he has often passed up 120-130 8 pts cause he knows bigger ones are out there.

Ohio's program works well for them.. I think it would be great here... I'm not sure NYers would really like the one buck rule or having to pay $15 for a doe permit... plus $24 for a license.. $19 for deer permit... and if you're a turkey hunter you have to by a permit for spring and fall at $24 a piece... throw in fishing and you're paying more than the super sportsman here...All that would go over like a lead balloon... As for the before season ratio.. it is theoretically possible... because of the average ratio buck to doe fawns born(51% bucks: 49%does) if you ended the season with 12:1... you would be very close to that same number come hunting season the following year. No its still impossible. If you had 100 does and NO, 0, bucks left after season, next year you would have say (just for example of 1 fawn recruited per doe) 50 yearling bucks and 50 yearling does (from this yrs fawns)= a new ratio for next yr of 150 does to 50 antlered 1.5 bucks, or 3:1. You can repeat this for 100 yrs and it won't change much, unless you discriminately kill buttons or if you have a serious fawn recruitment problem where your herd is drastically shrinking, and then you have bigger issues than buck/doe ratio. Sure you have to account that some bucks will be hit by cars etc, but you see the point. Sometimes observed ratios are not accurate. Often we count fawns as 'does' in observation, and if you are not in the area the batchlor groups are, you are going to miss all the bucks, squewing your ratios.

count my vote for adopting Ohio's management system. just passing bucks would IMPROVE ratio, though it wouldn't even it if no more does were shot. I'm all for passing young ones, but don't believe anywhere in this country (outside of a fence) has 12:1 ratio's before season. Its theoretically impossible unless everyone intentionally shot all the button bucks last yr. After opening day, well thats another story. :'(

I may have to check with the local courthouse. thanks phade. Sure it isn't a complete study and you won't know how many bucks hit are mature, but I would have to think that the peak date for total collision #'s would HAVE to at least point to a peak in chasing activity. After all, the rut is the reason for the increase in Nov accidents to begin with. And I would imagine it would be somewhat different from county to county, town to town, but it would be interesting to see if a pattern emerges.

With all the theories and science being discussed in the hunting world, (including some pretty BIG predictions that I would have to say failed last yr) does anyone have or know where to get info on deer/car collisions. I would think this data would have to be as informative as any study out there, and would show any real deviation yr to yr. I'm interested in # of accidents in a particular area (county or statewide) and the date they peaked. There did seam to be a narrow spike last yr of a few days when deer were getting slaughtered in the roads, just from my own observation, but I don't have any real data to go by.

How did you know about him if you didn't have him on camera yet? Did you see him feeding from a distance? Great buck!

I was thinking about 4.

maybe spar isn't really the word, but he was trying to display dominance w/his antlers, kind of push him around; and I haven't seen them do that until this time of yr when they are hardened up. Seems like they try to protect their antlers until they are done, this guys must be done.

I was watching a buck last night try to spar w/another. don't know the 2nd was really ready/willing.

You must be right somehow, there's the proof. but hundreds of acres of high protein alfalfa and soy beans vs 1/4 acre of fescue and blue grass? Winter wheat and corn vs. bushes? Still amazes me.

You know what amazes me is some areas around Buffalo, there isn't even real high quality food sources like where I hunt. There aren't the fields of hay and corn around, but they STILL grow monsters.

NYantler, have you heard of any huge bucks from Cuba a couple yrs ago?