eaglemountainman

This is sweet my girl, Nalla. She was 1/2 Golden 1/2 Yellow Lab. We lost her to cancer three years ago this Christmas. She was 12.

Yes and no. Let me preface this by saying that I am a slightly right leaning Republican and just because something is not right for me, that I would never pass judgement if you feel it is right for you. Here's how I see it. A bait pile is a temporary source of limited and unsustained nutrition, placed with the express intent to alter game behavior and position it in an exact location to be harvested. In most cases, when tags are filled, the feeding stops until late summer the following year. NY State says this is illegal. A food plot is a planted crop. Its express intent, like the bait pile, is also designed to alter game behavior and position it in a small general area to facilitate harvest. A food plot, however, supplies sustained nutrition from early summer till hard frost/freeze and sometimes beyond. NY State says they are legal. Would I hunt over one? No. Refer to preface. An Ag crop is planted with the intent to provide nutrition for livestock or human consumption and is either directly or indirectly a source of income. Naturally, they are legal to hunt over in NY State. Would I stillhunt 50 yards or so inside a wood line from an Ag crop? Sure. Hypocrite you say? I don't think so. And the reason is very simply that, although they do attract game and other wildlife, it is consequential and not the primary reason for planting. If you still feel that I'm a hypocrite, I would ask you the reread the preface and extend to me the same courtesy. Forest Gump would say, " And that's all I have to say about that."

I say to each his own. If a guy wants to sit and stare all day at a pile of apples or corn or sugar beets, whether it's legal in his state or not, it's no hair off my ass. I won't presume to preach about the ethics of such a thing. If that's what defines hunting for them, that's fine with me.That is not how my dad or grandfather hunted and it's not how they taught me. I hunt with a small group of guys who feel the same as I do. We live all year for the peace and solitude we experience while still hunting in the cold quiet woods or following a fresh track in newly fallen snow and shooting a deer whose track ends where he lays after our shot. There are few things during the course of the year that give me that same sense of accomplishment. I've been doing it this way for 47 years and, with opening day about 5 weeks away, I'm as excited now as I was when I was 15. If all I had was the prospect of keeping guard over a bait pile to look forward to for 47 years, I probably would have given it up decades ago and taken up golf.

Congratulations, 132 eight pointer! Sounds like you did everything right.

It's becoming very pervasive. Even guys in my own club are saying, " Why not? All our neighbors are baiting and sucking all the deer off our hill." Then invariably, we'll see a picture of one of these neighbors in the local paper posing with their trophy that they've been scouting/feeding since July. We've even called DEC to check a club that borders us and they say they can't do anything without probable cause. It's very frustrating.

Never heard of the club, but Methol is a few miles east of us. We're Eagle Mountain Hunting club surrounded by Orlean Swamp club and Timber Ridge club.

I know it's not whiskey or bourbon but, Flor De Cana Rum 18. Neat

Huh?

I know this thread is a little old, but this post reminded me of a guy I used to work with. He was about average height, and was dating a very tall, long legged beauty of a woman. One day at coffee break he blurted out that when they got intimate , " Nose to nose, my toes would be in it, and, toe to toe, my nose would be in it."

I've been processing my own since I was in my 20's. That way I know it's done right and I am consuming meat that I took great care with from shot to freezer. My buddies have a guy on the NY/NJ border that turns theirs into fantastic breakfast sausage, snack stix , hot dogs and kielbasa. We always share meat back and forth and they are very generous, but if I fill a second tag this year, i think I might have them take it to this guy. I don't know what he charges and I don't care. This organic free range protein that we harvest would be worth a fortune if you could even buy it retail.

We have never had a problem with the two that we have owned since the early 70's. There is a condition that arises between the bolt and the receiver on some of these guns, where over time, the bolt lugs cut chatter grooves into the receiver as the action cycles. When these grooves become bad enough, the gun starts to jam. I've heard different theories on why this happens, but can't speak with authority if any are true. I won't get into any of those theories, but I can say this, both of ours are kept immaculately clean and are run with very, very little oil. Mine is 47 years old and my dad's is a few years younger. Both have in excess of 1800 rounds through them. The receivers have some blueing missing and normal wear at bolt contact points, but neither one has even a hint of a chatter groove. I believe if they're properly maintained and used as intended, there won't be any problems.

Exactly! I too have other deer rifles that are a joy to carry. Win 70 featherweight in 7mm-08, Ruger RSI 250 Savage, Ruger Ultra lite 257 Rob. But, when it starts to feel like time is getting short and it's crunch time, then I head to the bull pen and grab Ole Reliable. As others have stated many times before, confidence goes a long way in determining our luck. With my beat up old friend in my hands, (actually, I gave it a face lift over the winter), my confidence level increases exponentially.

I agree with all the advice Buckmaster7600 has given the OP. I have hunted with my Rem 742 since my dad gave it to me for Christmas when I was 15. I'm now 62. I have dumped a lot of deer with Ole Reliable in all that time. I am strictly a still hunter, or tracker when snow conditions are right. To that end, my gun wears a Leupold 1.5-5 mounted as low as possible for the cheek weld and pointability. It is set around 2.5x for a wide field of view and I ditched the factory irons so they are not visible through the scope. When it's raining or snowing hard, I switch to my dad's 742 carbine onto which I installed a Williams peep sight. I took out the aperture and painted the base ring with fluorescent green nail polish. Now it's like a ghost ring with a big field of view. It is really slick to use in thick woods. Regarding slings, my guns never wear one. When I was a much younger man, I missed the opportunity at a very large buck while walking out to meet my dad with the gun on my shoulder. There just wasn't enough time to get the gun into position before he set his ears and took off. That was a very hard lesson learned. Since that day I carry a lite black nylon sling in my coat that doesn't go on until I'm ready to drag my deer. My gun is always in front of me ready to go. We have always kept our 742's very clean and run them almost dry except for the slightest hint of oil on the action bars. We have never had any problems with either gun, in all these years, maintained this way. OP, take and use your dad's 742. The weight is not that bad. You'll get used to it. An added bonus is the connection you'll have to your dad. Believe me when I tell you, that becomes huge when he's gone.

Yep. He got me.

A tin knocker on my job told me his buddy shot it on Long Island. I had no reason to doubt him. The banner in the lower right of the picture says something about Long Island. Do you have a reason for your doubts?

Another Long Island deer from a few years ago.

WNYBuckHunter, I know the feeling. I use my dad's peep sighted 742 or 336 on days when it's raining or snowing too hard to keep cleaning scope lenses. Every year I get to hunt at least a few days with one of his guns in his honor. It's comforting.

Very sorry to hear this sad news. Be careful out there, guys. Tragedy can strike at any time. Gods speed, Tim.

The deer in Canada, as a whole, are are much bigger because they live in the northernmost part of their range. They've evolved huge body mass to withstand the winters up there. Plus, outfitters up there have massive ranges to hunt so there's little hunting pressure. The deer get to live longer and grow antlers to match their body size. The prices I've been seeing in Ontario are running around $2,400 for 5-6 days American plan as opposed to twice that in Alberta, Manitoba or Saskatchewan. Plus, if hunt up there the first or second week in November, I can be back in time for NY Southern zone opening day.

That was pretty much my experience. Condescending snobs.

"Just as an aside, If President Trump had nominated Merrick Garland the outcome would be the same. Venom, vitriol and hatred." Yep.

PLEASE, get out and vote the midterms!

I use two pair of binos for different situations. When hunting more open terrain such as out west or up north, on the tundra in a spot and stalk scenario, I use a pair of Cabelas Alaskan Guide 10X42. I find for me 10X is about as high a magnification as I can hand hold steadily. Also, for me, 10X is too much power while still hunting for deer in the Catskills. For that, I carry a pair of Vortex Diamondback Classic 8X32. Both have extremely clear glass and, for me, work very well. There's a lot of good glass out there in you price point. I would strongly suggest however that you compare your options outdoors as opposed to inside a store. Good luck in your search.

Good luck on your hunt. When you get back, post your impressions of the operation and the hunt. I hunted Quebec a couple of times in the 80's and didn't care for their attitude towards Americans. I'm hoping I won't have the same experience if I book in Ontario. Again, good luck. Be safe.

Christ, I feel like I'm debating my 8 year old grandson. Okay, since you want to clear this up, let me see if I can help you out. Of course, more public land is a good thing. That's so obvious that it doesn't require statement. I merely pointed out the horrible financial aspect of the transaction. I wasn't looking for an argument. But, that's when you decided that you had the authority to dictate what people should or shouldn't post. So, you initiated an argument, not me. Again, so you're clear, I will post whatever I see fit on this forum, within forum rules, without concern for your sensibilities.