Jeff, I could shoot two in PA this year and give you credit for one of 'em, if ya send me your info?

:arms:

You don't know me so I will forgive your aspersions.

I suspect I spend more time hunting and kill more deer than all but a few here. I can say this not because I an exceptional hunter. I am not one of the Benoits. I say this because apart from the regular hunting season I hunt as a part of a crop damage program. My season is extended and I have no limits on the number of tags I can fill. Whether or not I kill a specific deer does not depend of whether or not it has horns to impress my friends but rather whether or not I can do it safely and humanely, have a use for its meat (much of which is given away) or another specific reason to kill it. As often than not I choose not to shoot.

There is nothing mystical about hunting. I do it, we do it because we enjoy it. It is a chance to spend time in the woods and most of us enjoy the meat. As for communing with our inner predator or whatever, that is pure sentimentality, a form of tree hugging. As for the antler fetishists, let them live in their fantasy world. From a predator's perspective, there is no difference between a buck and a doe. In fact, I'd rather not eat the former if it is taken after the beginning of November.

At least 5 here in NY.

My point being, if I set my goals as you stated yours were, hunting would be more like getting a gallon of milk at the market than spending a day in the woods,to see a deer and kill would take me less than an hour on any particular day.
I enjoy it far more than to end so simplistically.But to each their own.:s1:

Im from the B zone in Ohio and I will shoot one doe. Have to regulate the amount of does in the area or they might end up eating everything and your property will go to heck.

I normally get two or three before I even think about a buck. I like the taste of the doe meat better. Then once my freezer is full, I focus on filling my wall;-)

With a little luck I'll get at least one DMP but I'd take a doe with either my ML or bow if the opportunity presents itself.

i got 2 1A tags...and will buy a 2B or maybe 2..just incase...

only season im likely to hunt is flintlock..MAYBE rifle...slim chance i'll get to bow hunt...VERY slim...gotta see what happens with work(im in NC...season either ends at the end of sept or nov/early dec..we'll see..)

i have a honey hole in 1A...im only allowed to flintlock hunt there...so i do plan on taking a doe or 2 there with the ole rock lock...

and possibly a doe in 2B...see how the crop looks this year...i took one in 2B last year...you might find it funny i say i gotta see how the herd looks in 2B but my area is HEAVILY hunted and its all pretty much open land so the herd is VERY thinned out...i wont take does from areas that are lacking in numbers....im selective about where i take them...

There is where you are wrong. Unlike you I do not worship at the alter of big antlers. I am repelled by the t.v. shows where some one sits in a stand and pops a a baited buck from a few hundred yards and pretends that it is a big accomplishment.

I do not romanticize the killing of deer. Killing deer, or killing anything for that matter, is a pretty mundane thing. Any 10 year old with a gun can do it. While I take deer, that is not why I hunt. I hunt even when I have real intention of taking a deer. Indeed I would argue that I hunt all year, though for much of the year I don't carry a rifle.

Funny I don't recall antlers as being mentioned in this thread, except by you.
I just find "The brown its down" mentality as juvenile or some what lacking as a perspective or reason to hunt.

I relish the site of a red fox mousing or a flock of chickadees foraging through fresh snow it gives me reason to be in the woods.
I do recall mentioning a post or so ago how simplistic the actual killing of a deer really can be, so myself I prefer to enjoy a more fulfilling day afield than killing the first deer I see.
But once again, to each their own, if a fawn floats your boat have at it.:p