stubborn1VT

I agree with Moog. Beans would be my first choice- IF they could stand up to your deer herd. They are easier to plant and grow, as well as easier on the soil. I would plant 3-5 acres and fence half. Corn would be my second choice, especially if you could just hire someone to plant it for you. I have had success broadcasting it's not ideal. Third choice would be WI clover. Fourth choice would be brassicas. Some places they are awesome. It took me 4 years to get the deer here to use them before February. Back home they had them chewed down before bow season. Last, I would suggest a blend of winter rye, clover, soybeans and brassicas. Even better is some variation of this planted in strips. There is no "right" answer. Good luck. I enjoy the thinking, researching and planning. Good winter passtime!

Some nice looking bucks still out there! I believe there are some nice ones near where I hunt, but I don't have any pictures of them after the start of rifle. Maybe they will show back up after a week's break. We had venison cheesesteaks last night from my xbow buck. Now THAT is areal incentive to get out there with the smokepole!

"Whose boat is this boat?"

Not "Live" at all. Vermont rifle season wrapped up yesterday. One of the tougher seasons I have had in awhile. Over 15 days (I didn't hunt on Thanksgiving) I put in around 80 hours and saw 34 deer. The only legal buck I saw was behind the neighbor's posters. Almost no chasing or rut activity. I saw a 75lb spike chasing and cruising, as well as the big buck on the neighbor's. I guess I did see a buck cruising while I was driving. It was a smaller 6 point between some houses. On top of this, I didn't see any buck tracks on the 200+ acre part of the farm that I hunt. I saw plenty of activity the 2 weeks before gun season. I guess it all comes down to how the season fell on the calendar. I never want to start rifle hunting this late again. We had snow for the entire season, which is great. The only drawback was that it was crunchy. I'm not much of a still hunter or tracker, but I give it a go when we have decent conditions. I tried crunching around some, but it wasn't working on the "smaller" areas that I have to hunt. It wasn't all bad. I got to see and hear the woods. It was single digit cold opening day and I saw a pair of great blue herons fly over. Friday it was cold and blowing 20mph and I had a flock of geese fly over. I got to watch the chickadees and the ravens. One day I heard a pack of coyotes at about noon. The highlight was the 3.5 year old 8 point that was across the posters. The second time I saw him he was coming down the power line toward me. He was still 40 yards behind the posters when he put his nose down and turned onto a cross trail, then disappeared into the goldenrod. In theory, I will be muzzleloader hunting in a week. In theory, I could shoot another good buck. Unless the 2nd rut kicks in, or we get some fluffy snow, I imagine it will be more of the same. At least I got to see a nice buck from the stand, and got some nice pics from before the season on my cameras. (My cameras have never been so dead during rifle season.) Time to clean the rifle and prep the smokepole. I plan on doing some stomping around with one of my buddies next week, as long as he can get the time off. Good luck to everyone out there still trying to fill a tag or a freezer. I'm trying to convince myself that it ain't over yet!

I spent 4 days there with the muzzleloader. It was after my deployment. I went mostly because our seasons were closed. Saw a few deer and only one set of human tracks. It was nice country. It took me a day to get slowed down, and one day it rained from dark to dark. I never saw a buck or a big buck track, but plenty of does. I know a couple guys that have shot nice bucks down there. Bears too. Good luck.

Leaving in about 15 minutes to drive 1+ hours to look for buck tracks in new snow. We got a half inch here, so I am hoping for at least that. Hunted every day since the opener, until Turkey Day. I have seen plenty of deer, but no legal bucks on our land. I blame the late start. Doesn't seem like the bucks are moving, but I will give a shot until the closing bell.

It would for 1 shot! That's all you need.

I would seriously consider borrowing your daughter's rifle.

Didn't venture out this morning due to steady freezing rain. I've spent the day watching hunting videos on the Youtube and looking out the window. I've seen 4 does so far, and the rain just changed to great big snowflakes. I will gear up in a bit and head out. (Why does the thought of sitting in the rain bother me more than wet snow?) Hope the neighborhood does attract a buck.

Spooky!

Crossbows for everyone, all season, next year in Vermont.

Nice! Glad you guys got him. That's a beauty.

Hope you are too busy dragging to post pictures. I would have tried to wait 3 hours and then checked the blood trail. Don't think I could've waited any longer. Just watched a Hunting Beast video that stressed leaving any deer that isn't hit in the lungs. Hope it all works out!

How about the NZ. Is anyone hunting in the NZ right now? Or are ALL of you hunting in the target rich environment down south?

Also got on inch here in the Champlain Valley (VT). I was surprised it stuck, as the ground isn't frozen. 2" at the farm in Central VT. I think they are calling for quite a bit more before next Saturday, which is our rifle opener.

Live from the recliner. Up and animals fed, wood stove crackling, coffee made. No deer hunting for adults in Vermont today. I did just watch a big one-horned spike run around in all kinds of directions, then head out across the hay field out front. He was on the move, nose to the ground. 20 degrees even here. I may head over to the farm to check cams and Posters, and to look at the deer tracks in the snow. One more week!

I haven't hunted since October 20th and Vermont's rifle season doesn't start for another week. I am thinking about crossing the lake to hunt with my rifle in the NZ next week. Anyone hunting near Moriah? That's about an hour or so from me, so I thought I might give it a try. Any thoughts, input or advice would be great!

First he drops his hand warmer, now he drops his crossbow bolt? Clumsy. Kidding. Details?

You do know it's November, right?

It wicks to a point. For walking/hiking I don't imagine it's ideal. I wore a polypro top all day while running a wood splitter and loading a cord on a trailer. It was the perfect base layer. I get in trouble if I hike too far or too fast. Maybe I'm wrong, but I was always under the impression that wool base layers were very pricey. I have lots of polypro for work, hunting and ice fishing and it's not that expensive. It sounds like wool may be superior, but until I turn into a long distance, big woods, buck tracker, I will probably stick with polypro.

I wear polypro as a base layer. I do a lot of sitting. The stuff is no good when it's wet, so I carry a spare top in a quart ziplock bag in my pack. It isn't perfect, but it's the best I've found.

What a relief!

Live from my kitchen. VT rifle season doesn't start for another 10 days... Been watching 5 doe and 2 buck. The does came out to feed in a small strip of brassicas that I planted. Bucks followed and scattered them, then wandered around and fed before following. A one horned spike and 2.5 year old 6 point. Hope my camera picked them up. Trying to get my FIL to hunt here, since I will be hunting back home on the family farm.

It was just a matter of time. Good for you Dan. Now that you caught it, are you going to eat it? Seriously, I hear that cats are tasty. I have a buddy that puts his in stir fry.

I would go back in 4 hours and carefully look at what there is for blood. If the blood looks promising, I would track him up. If your entrance looked good, I would expect he has been dead for 3+ hours already. It could be really helpful to have a second person to look ahead for the deer while you track blood. Good luck!