Started off this morning sitting for the second half of the PA bar exam... After I finished up at 5:00 - I really needed to clear my head, so I beat it home, changed clothes, grabbed my groundhog gun, camera,and headed toward myfave haunts.

First order of business was knocking on doors - had 2-3 areas mapped out that I wanted to get into for weeknight bowhunting. Went 2-for-2. I may actually be the only guy bowhunting in the one area - the second place, I'll have some company (but probably not on weekdays - the other hunters are weekend warriors). I knew that going in, so no surprises.

Had enough daylight left to go glass the beanfields at my usual haunt. Last year, I was glassing it once-a-week in August, and was seeing 4-8 bucks/night, but no size. Mostly all 1.5's.

This year, big change. Tonight, I saw no less than 15 separate bucks in the adjoining bean & hay fields. There was one bachelor group that was out when I first got there, and I had enough light to take pics.

This group has 3-4 legit shooters, the biggest being a mainframe 4x4 with a split brow tine. The pics are crappy, b/c my Sony digital cam apparently doesn't like my scope very much. I got a crystal-clear look at them (as close as 300 yards) before I slinked back over the bank and went to glass the other fields.

This makes me sad, really - I've always said that this farm would reallybe like a real-lifeBuckmasters if the pressure just stayed off. But, it gets poached heavily, hunted to death, and a deer in this area rarely sees its third birthday. Great feed and great genetics - if these deer lived to 4, 5 - they would be HAMMERS. Just too much pressure.

But, here's an example of what the area is capable of, when the deer are undisturbed...

DANG COOL!!!

Fran, that looks like a heluva place you got there. That third pic down looks to be a real solid buck. Of course I know what your talking about when it comes to the nice buck not lasting. It seems as though every year I have more and more people in my hip pockets come archery. It's just like trout season. You find a nice spot that produces and everyone and their brother wants to jump in the same hole. At least we don't have the poaching issue here (just one occassion) because it's so populated. Good luck tagging one of them this year.

you're the lawyer.....but could anyone get the wrong idea bsed on the equipment you have on you???.....lol

Hey man, I'm wayyy too broke for a goodspotting scope...it wasn't loaded, if that makes anyone feel any better.

In a perfect world, I'd have one of these...



I am taking up a collection, if anyone is interested. Christmas is right around the corner. LOL

By the way - I'm kinda chapped... There were 4 nice bucks that I took pictures of... A mainframe 4x4 w/split brow, a 4x5 and two 4x4's - all would be definite shooters.... and I think I only got 2 good pics of the big boys. All the other ones, their heads were down (I couldn't tell on the tiny camera screen). Hmph.

Binoculars are cool too you know.....nice bucks though