bow season opener on oct 1?

[defrazzle]

Hunting is hunting...no matter what the temperature. My son and I hunted on a private preserve in Kentucky in July. Talk about hot! But you know the game we hunted did not care. Let's hunt!

[deerpassion]

For all those guys/gals that do get lucky and kill one earlier than usual in the heat of early October, field care and processing will need a little more attention.

Get that hide off FAST, cool the meat ASAP. You'll need to think ahead of time about the logistics if your used to killing later in October!

i've never had a problem as long as you gut em as soon as possible, once you do that it buys you at least an hour or so to get em on ice, as long as you pack the cavity your good for the ride home.... bow hunting in august/september is not the most ideal but i ate every bit of that buck i shot in the 95 degree august heat n it was two plus hours before i had em skinned and boned out... no meat spoilage what so ever...

[fasteddie]

I have shot deer in July - August with Crop Damage Permits and never had a problem . If it was really hot , I just stopped and bought a bag of ice to put in the cavity .

[erussell]

Got people around here that skin them and hang them out for a week cold weather or not. They turn almost black then they cut them up. They say it tenderizes them, I think its nasty.

Edited June 1, 2012 by erussell

[deerpassion]

Got people around here that skin them and hang them out for a week cold weather or not. They turn almost black then they cut them up. They say it tenderizes them, I think its nasty.

hell i would only do that in cold weather in the garage... but ya its like dry aging beef... let the bacteria break down the tissue n a thick layer forms on the outside, trim that layer off and the rest is prime meat... do some research on it n you might change your mind, not that skinned n boned in less than a day or two aint bad at all , its an option...

[Doc]

I truly love the summer. With all the activities of fishing, camping, hiking, vacationing, outdoor photography, yard and gardening activities, and a million other things that there are to do, I hate to see it all come to an end. I'm the sort that has a pretty ordered life, and have taken each season of the year as offering certain things that need to be taken advantage of at a specific time of year. Generally, the early part of October still finds me heavily engaged in summer activities, as well as taking care of some last minute scouting and ironing out any bow shooting difficulties. Add to all that the necessity of getting summer equipment winterized and put away and it turns out to be the most busy time of the year. I'm not sure I am ready to chop 2 weeks off of that part of the year to actually begin hunting.

[Cabin Fever]

I'm not sure I am ready to chop 2 weeks off of that part of the year to actually begin hunting.

Then don't hunt! No one is telling you that you HAVE to start on Oct.1st.

[Chevy]

Do you guys understand WHY the Dec is opening archery season Oct 1st?

It's not because it makes sense or for better/greater archery opportunities. It comes at a cost which will be a rifle season, muzzleloader season, and possibly xguns during archery season. Not a trade off I welcome with open arms.

[bubba]

life is full of trade offs. Oh well

[Lawdwaz]

Then don't hunt! No one is telling you that you HAVE to start on Oct.1st.

I know that this was directed at Doc's post but.........Plenty of years I don't even get a crack at the woods until halloween weekend. The serious stuff start THEN, IMO.

Will I hunt early? Maybe, if things line up right. I have a spot in East Aurora that is close to home and easy to get in & out of. Perfect for a quick hitter...........

[Cabin Fever]

I have much better luck filling my tags, especially doe tags, in October! Bring on the Oct. 1st opener!!

[fasteddie]

The October 1st opener would mean my wife would be a Hunting Widow for 2 extra weeks . No vacation trips October thru December . Those Time Share weeks have 9 months to get used ...........

[bubba]

very true Ed priorities

[nyslowhand]

The October 1st opener would mean my wife would be a Hunting Widow for 2 extra weeks .

You're assuming she'll miss you those 2 xtra weeks...........?? LOL

[landtracdeerhunter]

Just broke the news to the misses, bow's starting October 1st. Hey 9 months for you, 3 months for me. Somehow, that didn't seem even to her? Now, don't know how that new bow idea gona fly. Right out the window, lol. Guess better wait and let this digest for a while.

Edited June 1, 2012 by landtracdeerhunter

[Doc]

Then don't hunt! No one is telling you that you HAVE to start on Oct.1st.

I think that's pretty much what I said.

[Larry]

To me the opener of bow regardless what date it is opener is not as important as the days in November up to the start of the gun season. I won’t hunt till that weekend unless there is a good hs. Football game on Saturday.

[fasteddie]

Before I retired , I had 6 weeks vacation each year . Two were for me ( 1 week bow / 1 week gun ) . The other 4 were whenever my fife wanted to do something / go somewhere .

[wdswtr]

We been bow hunting up here in the north country on Sept27th for many years. Its different but still enjoyable. Most days its with a thin long sleeved shirt to keep the bugs off and thin hunting pants. There advantages to the earlier season and that more patternable deer, water and food sources especially apples up here as most are gone mid october around my place. The only problem I have with it and its just a personal one is deciding to go to camp or stay home to hunt. I have a hard enough time deciding what stand to sit in now I got to add a whole nother county in the equation. LOL good problem to have I think. Once you guys get out there in early Oct. you will love being in the woods and hunting 3 different weather patterns and when your freezing your butts off in late november and early December you will be longing for the the next Oct 1 hunt again.

[defrazzle]

Same here in the "North Country" 5F - Bloomingdale, NY -- September bow has been my starting date for years. LOL - not really that good, too many leaves still up, too many bugs, cold in the early AM, sweating by 10! But, opening day is opening day...still gets my adrenalin going.

[WNYBuckHunter]

Do you guys understand WHY the Dec is opening archery season Oct 1st?

It's not because it makes sense or for better/greater archery opportunities. It comes at a cost which will be a rifle season, muzzleloader season, and possibly xguns during archery season. Not a trade off I welcome with open arms.

Oh good lord you sure try to twist things dont you?

1. The "rifle season" you speak of is a 2 day youth only hunt that is most likely going to occur on days that are currently not an open season in the SZ.

2. The ML season you speak of will be in very limited areas where the current DMP/DMAP/DDP system is not doing a good job at getting the local herd in check , and it will only be for a short amount of time. BTW, you can currently use rifles, pistols, MLs, or whatever weapon you want between Oct 1 and opening day of deer season if you are filling damage or nuisance permits.

3. There are no such things as xguns unless its something you recently invented.

[G-Man]

I think the reason they want an early bow opener is to haevest more deer, period. we are all guilty of passing deer with bow in hopes for a good one. makes our harvest stats look bad as a group. so increase season and weapon choices(perhaps allowing crossbow) to get a larger harvest. As for the youth hunt... its a good thing and it won't wreck bowseason cause every "seasonal" landowner goes out scouting and sighting in guns all during bow and the deer are still there.

[WNYBuckHunter]

Also G-Man, dont forget that waterfowl and small game hunters are already out there blasting up the woods at that time as well.

[G-Man]

yep, i think the biggest "pressure" comes from seasonal , atv scouting trips, and all the wood smoke in the air 3-4 weeks before season. they get use to it if you live there but not when it pops up over night... seems everyone else is the pressure problem, it about high time we take alook at ourselves and out scouting/preperation rutuals... I say let the kids have a great hunt and maybe they wont get hooked on video games and such and learn to enjoy the ooutdoors a little..

[Doc]

I'm still trying to figure out why hunters seem to feel that the only way to introduce new people to hunting has to be some special weekend hunt. Is there something wrong with volunteering to take a kid hunting during the regular season so they can get the whole experience of what hunting is all about? Is there something wonderful about introducing a kid to hunting without the rest of their family and friends participating? Is there something wrong with introducing them to a traditional hunt camp, during a traditional hunting season, with the traditional hunting environment? Are we really so darn busy that we cannot use part of our regular hunting season to introduce youngsters to the sport? It sounds like if we don't get this introduction out of the way before the season really starts that it simply is not going to get done at all. Honestly, it really doesn't hurt to take a kid hunting while you are trying to harvest your deer.