colescott1

Had mine for 2 years now I think....its starting to freeze up on me when I blow it now. Don't have much faith that when I blow into it, it won't squeak like a mouse. I prefer the HS True Talker.

Target!

"buck jam" Never used ANYTHING before, but got a cheap trail camera and was tired of seeing blank pics and deer butts..... bought a thing of Buck jam from Wally World, and man....the deer have dug a hole coming back to it.

North-Central part of MD. So...what would you say? A young monster in the making? I've got a bunch of other similar size / age looking deer. Here is another one from this week.

Hmmm... maybe 2.5, cause the neck still looks seperate. But, maybe just the pose, but do I see the beginning of sway in the back... thinking could be 3.5 as well.

Geez... couldn't imagine using them for hunting... the squirrels already seem like they weigh 150 lbs without any hearing magnification. Now...find a way to eliminate all "non-deer sounds" and we'd be onto something!!

Wow...seems early to be outta velvet already. He must be a prolific breeder. (Always read that the more they breed, the quicker the drop their antlers in the winter, and sooner they grow/finish and lose velvet). Those are both nice bucks!

I'm guessing this to be a two year old? Decent rack, but looks like a long nose, thin neck, no sway back He'd be my best bow buck, but thinking if I let him go, and he lucks through all the neighbors, he'd start to be a hammer next year. Thoughts?

What a fool! Doesn't that cougar know he's ruining the cape??? How will his taxidermist EVER get that damage fixed? :-)

I wouldn't turn down either, but lean towards the venison. ESPECIALLY when cooking with ground meat. It's so nice to not have to drain the fat when browning the ground. Same with the roasts....not a lot of waste....just pure yummy meat.

97 Dodge Ram has 99,000 miles. (Helps to telecommute since 99!) 2002 Saturn View 130,000 miles. (Hurts wife doesn't, and we also drive that to vacations, and pretty much anwhere we go as a family)

I still say the "sad" part of all this...is that its caused by the bravado that lights up inside when there are big antlers involved. No matter if your walking for miles and miles, or getting dropped off by a friend on an ATV to climb into a ladder stand wearing AP.....its still a heck of a lot more fair chase than the beef / chicken / turkey / farm raised and killed venison you can buy at the grocery store. Mans fascination with antlers on the head has caused this push for bigger, better, faster, more. Would I shot a 10 pt "monster" over a doe if standing side by side? Sure...get the meat and a bonus. But...since I hunt for meat, it doesn't make much sense to me. All this "competition"...whose the better hunter? The guy who spent 6 years patterning an 8pt buck....or the 12 year old who borrowed a rifle, stepped in the woods and dropped a 12pt, 240" typical 10 minutes into the hunt? My answer... WHO CARES!!! Go have fun...doing what you like to do (as long as its legal by state / local laws).

Pope and Young is only for "Record" animals....has nothing to do with managing the herd for acceptable levels... Ie, does, young bucks, etc. Hunting is what you make it. If you only want trophy animals, that are regarded by certain people based on being taken by certain rules, then so be it. If you hunt for the enjoyment, meat, etc, and aren't in it for the horn porn.... that road is always open as well.

I don't compete with anyone...but I do get frustrated when I spend several hours in a stand without seeing anything interesting. My mind tends to slip back to what I "could have" been doing... playing with my son or daughter, etc. They will sometimes accompany me, but not late season when it gets too cold. Its a bad habit, I know.... but I value my time with them a great deal. Show me a fox, or a black squirrel, and all is ok....even if not a deer. But, show me empty woods, and I wonder why I bothered.

You can also figure it this way....2 acres of corn, at just say 120 bushel per acre.... 240 bushel at $4.00 a bushel. If its left, the deer will eat it, so you're looking at several days worth of picking (and then human scent spread throughout every square foot of that 2 acres), or about $1,000 investment to fairly pay the farmer....

All comes down to "why do you hunt"...either in view of that entire season, or perhaps just for that hunt itself. A lot say, "I won't shoot a small buck for meat...can take a doe for that"...true, if you have the time to spend to get a doe in range / herd to support taking out does. I hunt mainly for meat, with a touch of wall decor in mind. I have let small bucks walk, waiting on does, only to have the season end without getting a doe in range. So, no meat that year, but maybe a chance at an older buck the following year. Did I win the game? Not sure. Missed having meat in the freezer, and not sure if those bucks made it past the neighbor.

If you're hunting for meat, certainly. If you're hunting for 2 wallhangers, then probably not. All depends on what your goals are. If you think about it, there really isn't a "perfect" time to kill a doe, although we all know we need to in order to control the herd. Early season...they are likely still milkin' their fawns. Mid-Oct thru end...know where the does are, the bucks will follow. November...best thing to bring in a buck is a hot doe... December/January....they're now pregnant...do you want to kill a fetus as well? Me? I'm gonna smoke the next doe that presents itself. Got firewood for the winter....now I just to stock the freezer.

3rd pic down, broadside, looks like he's been shot before....or am I seeing something thats not there?

Close, but a little different from above.... 1 roast, 1 can cream of mushroom, 1 packet of Onion Soup Mix in the crockpot. Put the roast in, dump the other stuff on top. Put it on low in the AM, and come back in to eat at dark...YUM.

Best bet is to buy a how-to video...LEM products sells them. That gives you your basics of what you need to get started.

A buddy stand may work, if you can always hunt from that buddy stand. I can say from experience, you can get spoiled real quick with all that extra room, and now sitting in a regular ladder stand is somewhat hair raising. I didn't have a real fear of heights, but bought a buddy stand so I could take my kids every now and then. Its got a large platform, and has a folding gunrest all the way around. Thats great to help....its like sitting in your livingroom.

Maybe you answered your own question..... you're putting out all this easy food, likely leaving scent while doing so, so they are coming at night, knowing they are safe....only to be gone by AM when you arrive. What if you didn't put out the bait for a few weeks and see if normal patterns returned???

Not sure why, but I have more limits on how I hunt, rather than what I hunt. I have no interest in bait, mineral licks, etc. Although I'd love to have some out to watch deer in my backyard, I'd feel it would lessen the "hunt" when I actually went out into the woods...they are there because I am providing them food. I have no interest in some of the "houses" people hunt from, or even covered box blinds. Not sure why, but I like to think of the hunt as almost a test of endurance. Besides my own boredom and schedule, what is to keep me from comfortably sitting in a heated blind all day, almost knowing that sooner or later, a deer will walk by. I dont hunt over food plots, however have no problem hunting over an existing agricultural field. (It's there for a completely different reason then to aid in the hunt). I do like to play with calls, and every so often, do use a drag-rag. All this being said, as long as its legal in one's area, I have no issues with any of this being done by hunters...just for some reason, I'm rather quirky.

Guess the main question would be....how remote are you hunting...how big is the area / how close to humans does this deer get usually? In a lot of the Eastern states, "backyard bucks" don't always change their patterns much when spooked... certainly don't always leave an area...otherwise, they'd have no place to live. Nocturnal, maybe. but that would be until his urge to breed outweighs his desire to play it 100% safe. If it were me... I'd give the field a rest for a week or so...ensure your scent was as reduced as much as possible, and give it another try. There might just be a 170 back there that you haven't seen, nor has seen you yet.

Had mine done 2 years ago. Funniest part of the story... I go in for the pre-op so the urologist can see what he's dealing with. He comes in, shuts the door, and tells me to drop the pants. No sooner does he start his "inspection", then my cell phone starts ringing, hooked to my belt on my pants that are now around my ankles. He looks up and says.."wanna get that?". So I do....and its my wife. I was like.. "Um..honey...nows not the best time to talk." She asks how the appt went, and I had to tell her that, well...it was directly underway. Anyway.. I'll give a different approach to the surgery.... I guess my tubes were a little challenging...so I was put completely under. Woke up feeling fine. Main issue...as said above.. DO NOT DO ANYTHING for a couple days. All the horror stories the doctor told me had to do with people who felt great and lifted, exerted, worked, etc too soon. Now, I did get a little "sore" after a day or two, and wearing jeans was a little uncomfortable for about a week. But other than that.....no issues. You'll have to go back and submit a "sample" about 6 months after your surgery to ensure it worked. When the nurse called with results, she said... "you're free and clear...have fun!".