rybohunter

WooHoo, my baby is back. Just picked her up and put all the accessories back on. I'll shoot this evening, if I can wait that long. Hopefully it won't take much tweaking to have things the way they were before it broke.

Quick,
you are loaded down that area, I bet that gets the blood pumping for the opener. I'll have to get down there a night and spot with ya before the season.

quiksilver

We've been slow lately, so I figured I'd drop you guys some updates.

I just got the last of my new climbing gear in the mail - new Buckingham tree gaffs, a Klein climbing belt, the whole nine yards. So, I guess that means I'm ready to go out and hang up some stands and clear some lanes.

On the scouting front, we've been doing a good bit of spotting with very good results. I've seen the huge buck quite a few times now, and the cat's out of the bag. I was wrong with my first impression. He's not a 6x6, he's a HUGE 4x4 with main beams that curl up to look like G-4's. I'm not sure why I thought he had 6 on each side, but man, what a buck. Everybody around now knows he's there, and there are multiple cars driving through there each night looking at him. He is without a doubt the biggest 8 pointer that I've ever seen, dead or alive. I'll be shocked if he survives until bow season - there are a lot of real degenerates out that way.

We have about 20-25 minutes of (non-digital) video of 20-30 shooter bucks in the general areas where we hunt. A few of them are real hogs. My buddy is supposed to get some digital screen captures and get them online for me. Hopefully he does that, and I'll put them on here. I've been nagging him, but no action so far. Rybo, the spotting action in Greene County is off-the-hook! Sunday night, we saw 240 deer, with no less than 60 buck. We'll say that at least 10 of those were wall-hanging material.

What do you guys know about cutting lanes in corn? If I were to set a few stands around the cornfields, then cut lanes through the corn, would the deer adopt them as their primary travel routes? I've heard that they will, but I wanted some additional input before I go out there whacking down cornstalks.

buttonbuckmaster

Around here if we cut paths in the corn,the farmerswouldgive youa vasectomy with a hacksaw. Some farmers don't even let us walk in the bean fields until they have been cut.

quiksilver

I told the farmer that I'd throw him $40 if he let me cut a couple lanes. He says he doesn't care what I do, as long as I shoot some of those wretched fleabags that chew on his crops. I've never met an individual who hates animals as much as this guy.

One day, according to the neighbor, he was out in the fields trying to burn out groundhogs with some kind of burning tar/napalm concoction. LOL

You'd think that if he hated deer that bad, he'd start hunting, but he doesn't. I'll never understand.

IL Rancher

LOL.. "Excuse Mr. Farmer, may I cut down 100 corn plants please?"

And Anthony was never heard from again... Nah, we don't cut lanes in the corn field but if you did they would probably use them.. I would imagine with corn being as worthless as it is going to be in about 2 months if you really wanted to do this offer to pay a little bit for it if they balk at it. Corn firleds are a real pain in the arse to be hones.. I know a lot of guys who still hunt them, more talent than I have but I know every fall it is about waiting for the farmers to get that corn out.


Been seeing a LOT of fawns and does around this year.. Lots more than last year and our rain situation as been worse for most of the year but these last 4 weeks we have gotten all of the water holes filled back up so I think the deer will be more "normal" this year. Need to go check the trail cams one of these days and see what is walking out there.

IL Rancher

40 bucks is about 20 bushels of corn so you could knock out a few dozen plants. I think they basically say an ear of corn is worth 4 cents or something like that. Not kidding by the way. A pound is woth all off 4 cents so and ear is probably more like a penny. So figure 2 pennies a plant, lol.

My neighbor took up hunting (Gun only) because he got tired of paying repairs on his trucks that kept hitting the deer crossing the road. Hi passion is killing coyotes and I don't really understand it. As a grain farmer I think you would tlike the things as they 1) keep the deer down 2) kill a lot of varmits.. Oh well, I think he is just bored in the winter.

SumHunter

I went out and got my pictures off my scouting camera the other day. I had it out for four days and got 45 pictures. Only one was of nothing. I have been seeing some really nice bucks but haven't managed to get one on the camera yet - just on my binos while scouting with my five year old daughter. Boy does she ever love going out with me. There isn't anything better than a child begging you (as their father) to take them out to the woods. I LOVE IT!!!

Well, I will post a few of the better pics I got. My wife really loves the one with the mother and her fawns.

SumHunter

If you look close you can see that there are two fawns - twins.

SumHunter

Hey, about a month ago you all were talking about receiving a package of stuff for winning last year. I had to send my address to someone and did so but I never received anything. Has anyone else not received their package of stuff?

quiksilver

SH - Good to hear your little girl likes going out to check the camera with you. It's gotta be nice to have a youngster that wants to go do that kind of stuff with the old man. It won't be long, she'll be into boys, Ipods, Coach bags and formal dances, so get as much of that quality time as you can.

Those days will be some of your (and her) fondest memories. Soak it up man.

By the way, it looks like you won't have a hard time finding a tree to climb in that area - they all look like telephone poles! So, will that six (eight?)pointer be in trouble if he shows up at 7:15 on opening day?