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Looks like a bruiser. It's hard to make out in the night pix, but does he have broken tines? I can't tell in the pix if they're broken off or shaped that way.. Hope you get a crack at him this year!

I'll tell you what, if I get a shot at that big buck while my son is with me, I think he'll have to calm me down!

Brought my 7yr old with me today to get the cam cards. Put him in his camo and let him carry the binos to get him excited about our scouting trip. I saw more deer today then any other single day i can remember. 81! That was 41 on the property and another 40 while driving. At one point we were walking along the field edge when a young doe nearly walked out of the brush into us. Came within 7 or 8 feet of us! Also saw a bachelor group, and one buck that was by himself that was pretty big. Here's a couple pix from our hike and one from the trail cam.

I look forward to reading this thread every season!

The area I hunt is about an hour drive. I try to swap cards every 2 weeks leading up to the season. Doesn't seem to change deer patterns from what I can tell. I get excited when I take inventory of the deer in the area.

I play the wind as much as I can. Along with that, I store my clothes in a bin full of corn in an effort to mask my scent. No idea if it works, but I've had deer walk downwind of me without getting busted. I don't have much faith in spray on scent concealers. The only one that I faithfully use is Evercalm on the bottom of my boots when I walk in. I've had deer come right in on the same trail I just walked within minutes of me and not catch my scent. I'd love to set a decoy out and put some scent on it to see how that works, but haven't gotten around to it.

Good choice with the Tight Spot. This may be moot at this point, but if I recall, you're in Monroe County, and so is Elite. Might have been worth a drive over to have them check the hardware.

What a stud. Hope you get a crack at him this year!

@Lawdwaz I'm willing to bet it's ok. I don't know how powerful or how strong it really was. Based on what I saw, it was a doozy, but I'm no meteorologist. If you're looking to buy out there with the intent to hunt it, poachers/trepassers have been a nuisance. If you're living on the property though, maybe it won't be as much of an issue. @luberhillthis farm is about 250 acres with about 30ish of that being woods, the rest open fields. The farmer who leases it alternates soy beans and corn every other year. Not my land, but I'm fortunate to know the owners who allow me to stomp around out there. @mowin the past few years, the neighbors have shot a bunch of smaller bucks. I'd love to have a year where bucks get a pass to see what they grow into next year. Don't get me wrong, if I get a shot at a slob, I'm gonna send it! I actually like that weird rack where it looks like a heavy tall 6 point. If I see him, it might be game on. If I shoot a doe early, that'll help me be more selective on shooting or passing on bucks.

Waterport. It looked just like one of those monstrous funnel clouds you see on tv, except there was no swirling. It looked to be close at the time, although that's hard to gauge. On the drive back i saw broken limbs and a few snapped trees.

Drove over to switch cam cards this morning. It turned out to be a really interesting morning. I was going to bring my 7 year old, but he yelled at me when I woke him up at 5. I saw 22 deer total, mostly doe with fawns and 6 or 7 smaller bucks. I saw one doe with really strange coloring. She had some patches of brown, but also large areas that were golden, similar to a yellow lab. I also saw what might have been a tornado move through. Wish I had my phone to get a video of it. I looked north at one point and saw a wall of clouds connecting the clouds in the sky to the ground. It wasn't swirling, but it was moving quickly to the east and had deafening thunder. Anyway, here are some of the pix. Lots of deer, lots of small bucks, one or two decent ones. Might be a doe only year for me.

I looked at cam pix this morning. Had deer on camera 2 hours after i was there cutting lanes. This time of year deer seen to be pretty relaxed.

I think it's partly a generational divide. The older folks didn't have the lure of video games, WiFi, etc keeping them inside. Instead we(they) were out playing and learning in the woods. The younger generation spend so much time inside, and without PROPER role models, that it's really not a surprise that they're unprepared for spending time outdoors (or life, for that matter)...

So there's actually a church in Henrietta (about 30 minutes from my house) that has this great setup. There are 4 or 5 towers, each with platforms at 10, 15, 20 feet (i think), and probably 20 or so total targets at different ranges. Totally free (donations welcome) and open to the public. The only downside for me is that it's only open Thursdays from 5-dusk weather permitting during August and Sept. I try to get out there at least once per year.

Did a little shooting yesterday. I think I'm ready. All the shots were from platforms ranging from 10-20' and at ranges from 14-42 yds. That standing bear was at 42..

I've been saying this for the past 3 years now.. if I get something worthy of mounting, I'm sending it your way! The stuff you've posted looks great so far.

There's an actual plaque? At first i was scared that it was going to be that scary naked bobblehead with the sock over it's johnson from a few years back! I'm in!

Man with this new early season pushing up the season start date (for some), someone needs to start up the 2021 Live from the Woods thread! @Chef - you going to coordinate the regional showdown this year?

Hard no for me. Between Sept. birthday parties and camp, my weekends are booked. Any that aren't, I'm trying to capitalize on early goose...

Just checked the site. I also show it as pending...

Just bought a pressure cooker! picked it up on CL for $20 and it's never been used. If the deer gods smile on me this year, I'm going to try canning a few jars to see how it comes out.

A few years back and before I knew better, I let one hang in the garage with the hide on when the temps dropped to frigid. When I got around to skinning it, it took me way longer than it should have and the carcass was all hacked up. Lesson learned.

In my limited experience.. If you're hitting the point that you're aiming at consistently, then you're good to go. If it aint broke, don't fix it.

no kidding.. it's the best time to get the skin off. I'll rewatch some of these prior to the season to remind myself of good practices so i don't repeat bad habits that i've made before.