Whew, this is tough!
 

My friend and I hunted all day yesterday and 1/2 of today (rain set in). We were doing little pushes for each other hoping to get a crack at a deer. The woods are completely dead. Not so much as a squirrel. We even tried another area this morning. Looks like we will be heading somewhere else tomorrow.
Except for the rain today, we can't complain about the weather with the temps in the mid 40s. But it gets really frustrating when you don't even see a tail after miles of ground. A little bit of snow would be nice. Maybe Cayugad could send some down to us!

It is trying to snow today.. just light flurries. But I will take that any day over rain. Better luck tomorrow on your hunt.

Sorry to hear you didn't see a deer. I saw no deer today as well. The squirrels were moving pretty well though. It's all part of the game. Better luck next time.

Will someone please post a picture of a deer for those of us who are striking out. :confused0024:

heres one
:fighting0007:

I got this four dear so far, but only have this photo:



I got this one first. She was coming into my area during bow. she was traveling with a nice large spike. I have her hanging in our club cooler. A the end of the week, she went to the meat processor. Amd ended up looking like this:



Hey Semi, is this what you had in mind??? :wave:

Or then again, this is just from our first week of ML season this year. This cooler was full, but didn't have a wide angle lense:



:party::party::party:

OK, now you're just trying to pi$$ me off. :s2::s2:

My bambi from this past November. I had hunted every day with the muzzleloader but the next to last day I decided I probably wouldn't hunt the following day. So I cleaned the rifle thoroughly and put it away. Next afternoon I decided I would go out and sit for a couple of hours, so I just grabbed my 6mm Rem and headed out. With about 2 minutes of legal gun season left, I decided to take this fellow.


That meant no buck during muzzleloader season and since I don't shoot does here, no muzzleloader season for me. None of that matters except that this is the first deer I've taken with a centerfire for a very long time.

Sounds familiar to me lol. hunting public land here in ca for high desert mulies is a lesson in patience/frustration and not seeing any deer happens frequently. this and the fact mulies rarely take the same trail and warmer weather is normal when our season opens..welcome to my wolrld :D

I feel for you bronco, being so close to you we've has exactly the same Weather all Hunting Season long, it started last April and May and June, let up for July and August then it seems like it has Rained ever since.
We had a Snowless Hunting Season this year wich is really unusuall for us along with a GREEN Christmas. As I speak it's raing out, but it's suppos-to change to Snow tonight so mabey, just mabey you'll have it for tomorrow.
I cant remember a December so Mild as this one has been, they say Us Northerners wont even get any real Cold Weather untill mabey mid January. I've saved a-lot on the Wood for the woodstove this year but my yard is like a Lake!
Wish you all the Best for tagging a Deer!
(BP)

Semi
Heres a pic of My wife's Ohio buck she shot back a few weeks ago. I know I sure didn't get one. She's gonna have to start teaching me how to do it.

Nice going rafsob!
Kinda looks like what we did the last 2 days of our gun season this year befor our late ml season started. This is my buddy jim and his nephew hanginf our deer in his barn, we almost ran out of hooks to hang them. We also have a scale above on the pic where we weigh them befor we move them to the hooks.
(BP)

Well I'm getting closer. I found a 4 pt shed today. At least I know where there WAS one!

Hey BP, how long do you guys hang your deer? I have to use a cooler because it is to hot here in Virginia. We try to hang ours for a week and then cut 'em up or take 'em to the butcher. As an aside note, I love seeing when the young ones are involved in our sport. Brings back memories.

They are the future of our way of life!!!

I am forever having to go out and chase the deer away from the burning bush by the front door and the ones a bit farther in the yard.




I feel a food plot that doesn't have a few burning bushes around the edges is a toatal waste.

Having the creek out the living room window is also a plus for seeing deer.







Don't think does are all we have around here either.

:D Al

rafsob - Are you sure you didn't hang that deer next to your bunk bed?

alleyyooper - Those are some great pics. Deer are truly beautiful creatures. And especially delicious!

Bronko - I have had the same issues. I only have public land to hunt, and there are two places I go. Opening day of ML season, I saw three deer. I screwed up though by using an estrous scent, which caused two of them to bolt once they got close (the other I saw from afar). I saw deer on three more occasions during muzzleloader season (one I was able to take, a nice 6 I couldn't shoot b/c my arfing scope lens fogged up on me, and a bunch of does at very close range but I was not allowed to take them).

After muzzleloader season (into the general firearms season), I have not seen jack squat. At least half of my hunts have been stepped on by other hunters (no matter how deep I've gone), and the other half I just have not seen deer. I know the deer are there...there is sign everywhere, but I really do believe the intense pressure combined with the warm weather (no bitter cold forcing the deer on their feet) have caused the deer to become primarily nocturnal.

One positive (mixed with a negative!)...this past Monday I was off work but couldn't get in the woods until LATE due to holiday visitors. I finally got down the forest road to the spot I wanted to hunt about 3pm, and started to cut into the pines. Surprisingly, the deer were already up (of course they were!!), and I heard crashing as I was making my way in and caught a glimpse of a doe vanishing over the ridge (no flag though). Had I gotten in earlier, I believe I would have scored.

So, I think, for this season, the lesson is to get in quietly and early and sit as long as you can. I much, MUCH prefer to still hunt. But with the leaves so dry this year (down here), it is really tough to cover a decent area without making noise. With the deer on edge, it doesn't take much to send them away from the area, even if they don't know what you are.

After this Saturday, we will have a week left. I plan on hunting 3 times, and hunting hard. We will finally be able to take does in the WMA that seems to have more overall deer, so I will be there from sun up to sun down.

P.S. I WANT SOME SNOW TO HUNT IN!!!

Now that is funny NATO MAN.

I hear ya on the cold. I will be back in the woods next week and it is looking to be very cold ( in the teens, am). hopefully that will move those lazy deer and give me a chance at Bullwinkle.

We like to hang em at least that long as long as it's at least 40 degreese or colder out. Hanging them that long lets em break down and tenderize. I know some guys like to get em to the processor right away or cut em up soon after they get em but then the meat is Tough.
If I take one to the butcher I always tell them to let it hang, Im in no hurry. I know I sure can tell the difference in the tenderness of the meat by how long it hung for.
That's my buddys nephew, it was his first deer season this year, he ended up with 3 deer total from bow to late mling, he had a blast. He liked mling so much he's buying his own mler for next year.
(BP)