G-Man

Bubba, that would be smart baiting! lol!! as long as you put the same type of acorns under not red under a white or vise versa, or red apples under a yellow apple tree, and not in a big 2 ft tall pile.. unless some one saw you do it it would be tough to prove. I 've never placed apples under a tree but have shaken a limb or two when hunting under them...swear deer can hear em hit the ground! now you have me wondering about shaking limbs.....

Nothing for me... haven't changed that much since i got a new one 2 years ago...but if i was looking i would be trying out a pse x-force, a friend bought one last year and it made my top of line mathews look like an old bear whitetail II. quiet about the same... but it is fast!!!

Becoming a bowhunter will make you a much better gun hunter, although it takes parctice the real test learning process is getting close enough to the game for a shot! As for popularity by numbers there are less than gun but the truth is you can be 50 yards from another bow hunter and be hunting a different trail/deer and not be bothered by his/her presence. Its a lot different than gun in that you need to learn about your quarry not just see it 100yrds away and pull the trigger on a gun.

nice!

Nice! did you train the dog as a shed hunter or is it just in the pictures?

Well.. My best hunting experiance was the first year i was allowed out to deer camp. I was 15 and could only hunt small game. the owner of the camp "gramps"was in his 70's and insisted that you come out a year early to learn propertylines,the guys that hunt,ect. I was having fun shooting red squirrels when gramps asked me if i though i could get a grouse, i told him i never saw one and didn't kknow what they looked like. After looking thru an ancient guide book i went out and actually saw one! I was just walking under a cranberry bush i shot it and picked it up and ran the whole way back to camp to show gramps! He was impressed and told me there were a few rabbits around and i should go get one. Well wouldn't you know that i bumped right into one behind the cabin! As gramp and i cleaned and cooked up the grouse and rabbit for dinner, the other 6 members that were deerhunting came in as the sunset. As everone commented how good the the dinner was,gramps told how he had put in his order for dinner and i went out and got it which was good for a chuckel or two! As the guys tallked about the deer missed/seen. gramps stood up put his had on my shoulder looked at me and then pointed and looked at the others and said "If i told you there was a big buck out there do you think you could get it cause these guys can't hit anything!!" Which was followed by a lot of chocking sounds as the guys were trying to laugh and eat at the same time. My second is my first deer a big doe in 1988! and third would be my biggest buck to date that i was able to track down and get a shot in 5' of snow while wearing snowshoes in 2000'.

Well i would say you have the better sanctuary or that the neighbors really isn't a sanctuary, thats pretty common deer can figure out prety quick if the dog is kenneled or tied up, thats what so many "new" hunters get big deer go where no one else will, next to barns, old trailers,in old barns buildings. Point is the deer will find a quite undisturbed area to stay in(even right next to busy railroad tracks or highway as long as they aren't pushed out of their bed(ground traffic,atv's riding thru,still hunters) the noise(barking,passing cars/trains) doesn't bother them. A true sanctuary must be undisturbed well before/during and after the season or better yet all year!

Welcome! Glad your willing to go door to door a lot of people are afraid to do that,but the worst they can tell you is no.. Have got some great spots to hunt by asking,was turned down a bunch of time s too. Best of luck this year and enjoy the site!

Shed hunting on hold again 12in of new snow..and still falling

not sure which i am happier to see you get the doe or the yotes' good job!!

I really think this is more important than food plots, or passing sm bucks. If you leave a sanctuary alone and its big enough,thick enough the deer will find it and stay there!! If you pass small bucks and drive the property you hunt the deer will leave and find a quiet place to lay. The same is true for bigger buck they don't want to be disturbed .....if you have the only quiet/thick place you most likely will have the big buck!

sheds are most likely in bedding area or feeding areas... but you have to see them after the season to know where therse areas are not where you saw them in december...

Whewww, thought it was just my idiot computer skills showing themselves again :

do you mean bear creek off rt16 in machias?

http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/34531.html list of state forests in region 9

IN olean? near would be hanging bog,cranberry hollow,bush hill,lots of smaller parcells in lyndon,franklinville, then there is logging property in humphery that allows acess. Don't know of anything right in olean..

out of my mossberg 835 3 and 1/2 in winchester xx nos. 5 or 6

lol!

Welcome!!

Good melt today most south facing slopes are melted off, the herd should cope well the crust on the snow is gone and easy to move and get to open fields..i expect to see lots of deer in the fields the next few days..

Well 6hrs is probably long enough on 90% of most deer the problem with big bucks are that the body usually matches, bigger body means more blood must be lost....Have seen big bucks travel very far 1/2 to 3/4 with good hits, much farther than an average buck or doe would of been able to go. The bigger the buck the longer the wait is a good rule of thumb to follow for iffy hits.

took a walk today, way to much snow in woods still though fields are melting off well, finally got to check my cameras and they are still showing bucks with horns on feb 14th.. well they have to drop sometime...

Some recent pics,

Use to keep a small 3d range behind the house untill the bear decided my 3d targets were some kind of food..or training for food... destroyed 2 3d deer and a turkey, went to a block and they chewed that up as well and dragged it off into the woods.. As for your bow go to a pro shop and shoot them before you buy..don't worry about the brandname buy what fits you... all the companys that are out there build good bows now if they didn't they would be out of buisness! And i release will help your accuracy a lot.

Glad to hear your side of the story! Like i said before your a guy that has a lot of determination and pride!! If you didn't find it and some one else did you would of been lumped into what a lazy hunter by most people but there are always 2 sides to a story glad you got to put yours out here for everyone to read!!