RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Hit the woods this morning. What an amazing morning to be out. Cool and clear. Full moon and awsome sunrise. No deer though. Thought for sure I' d at least see something but not to be. Listened to the guys at Woodland and on the Smyrna River pound the teal and resident canadas. I actually had a small flock of snow geese fly over the stand. They werent flight birds either. Low and circling, looking for a cut field. The earliest I' ve ever seen them down. Gonna be a cold winter! [:o]

Probably wont get out again until the weekend of the 20th. Keep the posts coming!

Ron, definately let me know when that fields coming down. Got a great ambush spot in mind for that day. ;)

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Scott we started shelling corn today over on the West lside near Kenton. I saw you this morning about 9:30 going North on Rt 9 just South of Flemings landing bridge I was in the blue fuel truck had been fueling combines and tractors, came back to the white and green buildings and took that tractor sitting there w9ith the batwing mower and went over to Kenton and started mowing stalks behind the combine. Will let you know..

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

i have a acorn tree here where i live and the acorns are as green as a grasshopper....i came across another that had acorn as dark as grape juice?? what types are these>??? the green ones are really large.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Lemond, the best way to identify Oak species is by examining the leaves. Look up Red Oak, Black Oak, and White Oak, all three have distinctive leaves that are easy to tell apart, and make it easy to identiy acorns. Swamp oaks, chestnut oaks, pin oaks are a few others worth knowing. I suspect the dark ones and almost fully encased within the shell? Those would be black oaks, there' s a ton of them falling outside my window. Not high on the preference list of deer, but in a year like this, with few white oaks producing, well, they may be the only game in town, Once the combines roll through, the deer will move into the woods and find them. The other' s are probably chestnut oaks. They are very low on a list of a deer' s preferred foods. They' ll be dark green or brown, very shiny, about 1 1/2" long, and only about 1/4 encased within the shell. It' s a good idea for every bowhunter to learn the various oaks.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

lemond, Check this out:

http://www.vdof.org/mgt/trees/index.shtml

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

thanks guys for the info,,,i will check it out,...i thought the acorns would come into play next month...guess i was wrong

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

debob??? do the deer like the beech as much as the persimmons...they seem to really come to the trees where i hunt. in and out and odd times of the day as the season moves forward. i like to key on them, but that is a few weeks away...nov?? the beech seems to be hard for them to open...what do u know about them

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Hey Bob that Va dept Forestry is an excellent website , I stuck it up on my fav;s for quick ref whenever I might need it even for general knowledgenot invoving hunting , thanks for that heads up.... Jimmy Lee be proud of you..... In two weeks we are having my class reunion, he was my home room teacher. I guess you would call him..... Class of 58....

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

lemond, the beech nuts fall from the casings in about another two weeks or so...makes it real easy on the deer to get to them. Before that, they eat the lower, reachable mast whole. I rarely hunt persimons...don' t have many where I hunt...but I know they love them.

Ron, tough to make Jimmy Lee proud...but I try!

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come on guys...what' s up out there?? where are the monsters being shot???

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Well........not much into hunting with a buddy, but i did so tonite. i faced one way he the other. A 120lb doe came out about 35yds winded us, hissed and ran off, i heard some deer and grunts so i stood and waited. within a few minutes a spike, 6ptr, 4ptr, and other 4ptr, followed by a monster 8 came walking past in a straight line the bad part as i was drawing to shoot the 8 my buddy released and...missed, but thats ok.

ps - i had a really clear shot on him, broadside 30yds. :eek:

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

de hunter..thanks for the story, but the setup didnt sound that great. how many bucks are u seeing in your area??? one month and a few days and they will be runnin around like crazy. i am ready for that...i will hunt on wed...

i bought another mathews...used mq1...and a muzzy drop away. i will set that up in a week or so. 50-60lb....my blk max is a 60-70...set at 68. easton acc' s...muzzy 90gr and some rockets. tru nok...trophy ridge sight(great sight).

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

I spent a very tiring afternoon in the woods. The wind was bad for the leased field so I decide to just check and make sure my stand survived the hurricane and dump some more corn. I' d hunt the public land after. Well, as I' ve said before, the field on the property is in weeds this year. Well, the wind from the storm blew them almost flat. Try pushing a wheelbarrow with 50 Lbs of corn through that sh@t! Not fun. I had to carry it on my shoulder the last 50 yds. The good news is the stand survived. The bad news is, no deer sign. But being only the day after the hurricane, i' m not suprised.

When I was done screwing around with the stand and corn, I went over to Big Woods and hunted there. No one had been in there since Tuesday if the board was right. Alot more people hunting it this year, but no reported kills. Anyhow, I decided to use the portable ground blind for the 1st time and set up an ambush about 20 yds from a main trail bordering the refuge. The deer had always hugged the refuge in years past and there was alot of sign in there in August. Well, imagine how sweaty and tired I was when I finally got set up. It was about a 1/2 mile walk with full pack, ground blind and stool on my back, and carrying the bow. After the corn ordeal. By the time I sat down at 4pm, i was soaked and beat. Sat until 7:15pm. At 6:30pm 2 does came out of the meadow through the woods infront of me but they were on the refuge side and therefore, safe. It was too far anyhow, but I would NEVER shoot into the refuge. Its amazing how they know....;) When I quit, it took me 20 F' ing minutes to get the ground blind folded back up. Its not the blind, its me. I need more practice. That and I was just exhausted and not thinking straight. Got back home at 9pm. It was a long day, but at least I was hunting. :D

I' m going to try and sneak out this week. Maybe take a sick day if the wind and weather cooperate. Keep the updates coming. Only 1 kill report so far. There were about 6 by this time last year. Whats going on!!! [X(]

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

nice story dckmaster. i hunt from a double bull blind and i love the way it packs. it is quick, easy, and very good at fooling deer. i have had them walk by and not look twice. i rattled a 6 pt last yr to 18yds...never looked at it..i was watching him through a screened window. i recommend to t2...2 people can hutn from it...and it is tight...no flapping...sets in 15 sec or less. nice carry bag that your seat fits in too

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Went out last Tues pm, Fri pm, and Sat am/pm...saw a doe and 2 fawns Tues, nothing Friday, a 2.5 year old 5 pt Sat am and a group of does and fawns Sat pm. Deer movement has really subsided...maybe weather...it' s awful hot this year:(! Alot of food on the ground in the woods (acorns, beech nuts, and maple leaves). Should make it tough for a while I think! Cutting a ton of corn down state...might help:)!

Duckmastor, what kind of bling do you have...I' ve been thinking of getting one but tdon' t have the cash for a Double Bull.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Duckmastor, hey Scott I asked today and it will be close to a month before we pick the Ennis farm, where I saw your truck that night I stopped. It will be one of the last because we are not putting wheat in there and ew will be shelling the wheat ground first. If you see my pickup at the grain dryer sometime , stop in it is a 2002 Chev ex cab , pewter C 1570.....say hello

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

DEBob, I have the Doghouse Blind. It has plenty of room to draw a bow and it packs up about 12 lbs. Cost $79 - $99 Bucks. Sets up easy, but like I said, I need to practice taking it down. I like it and plan on using it more often. Esp when the ground cover starts to die out. I just need to use the old fanny pack instead of the back pack and bring less sh@t. Most of the pack weight is water though. Which, as it gets cooler, wont be as big of a problem.

Ron, I plan on stopping by. I didnt see anyone yesterday but since I was feeling next to dead, I probably wouldnt have stopped even if I did. Thanks for the corn cut info. Figured as much. Have been told that the field we lease for geese wont be cut until 10/15 the earliest becuase of the late plant. There wont be a dumb snow goose left by that date. :D We really get it for Canada' s anyways, so its not that big a deal.

Still hoping to get out next week at least once. Bring on the cool weather! Keep the post coming.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

scouted 2day...saw a few does...nothing going on here..i am going to continue to hunt the food sources

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

My father and I headed out for an afternoon hunt at the leased farm. It was cool and the wind was right but all was quiet and not a deer to be seen. [:' (] Might head to Jersey on Saturday if the winds right. Maybe a change of scenary will change my luck.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

hunting wed...oaks and persimmons. both have had mass fall off during storm. it might be a good go. we will see:)

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

anyone hunting with a decoy??? if so, how did it work for u in DE???

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

hunted this evening...saw a doe on my exit at 25-30yds...i dropped down and nocked up...as i peeked up, i realized that it was just a yearly...we just had a " how r u doing" stare down. i didnt shoot it. that is the second deer i have seen on it' s own in the past 2 weeks...what do u think???

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Hunted last night (Thurs). Had eight in and out of a secluded clover/lespadiza patch my Dad planted last spring. Three yearling bucks and the rest does and fawns. Passed up all shots hoping for Mr. Big who never showed! :(

Fun night with cool temps...you can almost smell the rut coming:D!!!!

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

I hear that DeBob! I' m heading out tomorrow morning but what I' m really looking forward to is next week. Taking Tuesday afternoon off. Temps dropping into the 40' s at night. Might even catch a cold for Wed. ;) This cool pattern is just like last year. The bucks started moving early then. I hope the same happens this year as well.

I just threw the grunt call and rattle bag into the pack. Probably wont use them tomorrow, but next week,,,,,,,,, might have to brush off the dust and give them a try. :D

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

good luck to everyone this weekend and coming week. b careful too.

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Headed out this morning. What a Fiasco. Here' s a slightly edited version of an Email I sent to my dad. I dont feel like typing the story all over again, but you all will get the drift.

" After thinking about it all day yesterday, I decided to go with Plan B, Hunt the leased farm on the other side of the bottom against the Blown Down Tree. One of these years, I' m finally going to realize that its not a good idea to try something for the 1st time in the dark.

I was down there plenty early. Actually sat in the truck until 5am. Got organized and headed out. Right as I got to the point in the field that the woods begin, I kept thinking something was hitting the back of my leg while I was walking. I stopped 2x but didnt see anything. About another 50 yds down I heard something fall behind me. It was my rattle bag. I then realized that my pack had somehow completely unzipped. I did a quick check and found I had lost half my gear. This included my cell phone, Binoc' s, grunt call, spare water and arm guard. I looked around quick and found the arm guard and water. I had what I needed to hunt so I figured I' d just look more when I left.

Got to the stand. Checked the bait pile. Its been hit but not much. I get the angle I believe I need to head and start out across the bottom. For a woods thats been thinned almost clean by the hurricane, its still mighty dark in there. I figure I got 60 yds before I lost my barrings. Its still pretty soft in there too. So im stumbling around, making enough noise to wake the dead looking for this blow down. Finally I think I see it. Its across an open fern patch which I figured it would be. I start to head across the fern patch. The first couple steps are OK, then soft, softer, then down I go. Right legs in up to the crotch. Boot fills with water and I cant move. Now Im PISSED. But, I stayed calm. Took the stool off my shoulder, used it as a crutch with my right arm and with one thrust with the left leg (still on semi solid ground) and pushing on the stool at the same time, I was out. I would have gone home if I i knew which way was out. But since I didnt, I headed back the way I came about 10 yds, found some higher ground and sat down. It was 40 mins to shooting time.

After calming down, I looked around and listened. Heard cars moving on Rt 6 and by feeling the wind I was able to tell I was at least facing the right direction. As the sun began to rise, I realized I was in a pretty good spot. I was in the open but had good cover to my back and if anything came by it should pass infront of me, so I decided to just stay. I was wet, but not cold. I also needed good light to look for my stuff anyway. Sat until 8:45am. Didnt see anything. All in all I was only about 10 yds from where I wanted to be. I actually passed the blow down I wanted to be at. It didnt matter anyhow, because I couldnt have sat there. Its a pool of muck where the roots used to be. But 10 yds to the left of it is a perfect spot to be on a S or SW wind. Its in the memory now. For an AFTERNOON Hunt.... :)

I checked the entire woods. Not much sign. One deer had moved past where I hunted today within the last couple days. There was 2 sets of really fresh (less than 12 hours old) tracks leading by where you set up Tuesday. No fresh sign by my stand. But, by where we had the ground blind on opening day, the mysterious Big Boy had been through within the last 48 hrs or so. Flies were still conregating on his crap pile and his tracks are HUGH. He' d only been through once though. Man I hope we get to see him this year.

While walking out, I found everything but my grunt call. I' ll shop for one later tonight. Thats probably what I was dragging along with my foot on the way in.

A fronts coming through tonight and it' ll be nice and cool all week. I' m taking Tues or Wed afternoon off depending on the wind. I' ll let you know. Good luck if you go on Monday. Its looking like a great day to be out. The Pre Rut should be starting any day now. Keep me posted and call if you need help with a drag."

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

I went both yesterday morning and afternoon. Stumbled in the pre-dawn darkness to a spot I had only observed from an aerial photo. Fortunately, it went a lot smoother than Duckmastors endeavors! Found the spot OK, set-up and only had a doe and 2 fawns pass by. Could see numerous scrapes and rubs from the tree though and that was encouraging:D!

Set-up a stand for my Dad in the clover patch I hunted Thurs...he can see the spot from his kitchen window and 5 were feeding around the stand by evening! He should do well;)!

In the afternoon, I hunted a oak ridge way back behind a corn field. Saw a bunch moving to me but the swirling winds gave me away and they retreated back into a clear-cut:(! Had a button buck come in just at dark...I lowered my bow almost to his head before he figured out something was wrong[>:]! Them little dingbats sure are silly:D!!

I did some mid-day scouting and can find no real concentrations of deer! There is a little hear, a little there, but nothing really focused on any particular food source. I think the rains of this summer have provided such a huge diversity of food, the deer are moving less than normal and are really spread out! Could make an interesting rut as the bucks will have to ramble farther to find the does...maybe I' m just being optimistic[:-]!!

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

debob u may be right. i hunted last night and didnt see a thing on a pretty good setup. i hunt a single oak tree, but nothing came. i rattle lightly a little and thought that i had movement coming at me. probably was a rabbit with my luck. i have only seen one scrape and no rubs. where are u seeing rubs??? what kind of areas. mayb i am looking wrong

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Well, couldn' t resist all the backstraps passing by while waiting for a buck, and finally decided to pop a 90lb doe. Hit her behind the shoulder, and through the far shoulder. 10 yard shot, she went about 50 yards. Saw a ton of deer this weekend, all heading to the corn fields.

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Nice Job 6pt! [:-]

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Excellent Adam...Good Job:D!

Lemond, the buck sign all led to a thick pine patch jutting out into a hardwood section. Most rubs were within 100 yards of the pines. I could here him working over some rubs Sat.

Calling for a possible frost Fri or Sat:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

debob..i will have to scout better.:) 6pt if u are hunting the hamilton square area, i think there are a ton of deer up there???

guys, let' s keep this going and the first sign of bucks chasing does in DE...let everyone know.

thanks

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

I was chopping cornstalks all day along rt 9 in front of the Allee house and saw several deer. A small forked buck came out into the field and watched me was about20 yards away and walked alongside the tractor, when I came back around he was still there and jogged across in front of me on the tractor of course then walked off into some tall grass. Duckmastor we might be getting that corn earlier than I said, I will let you know possibly a day or 2 ahead if possible. Maybe early next week.

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Thanks Ron, that would be great! The boss is off all next week so my work schedule is a little more flexible. If you all start early in the morning, I can easily catch the 24 hour flu for the day! :D

I' m heading down this afternoon. The wind sucks for pretty much all my spots but its the only day I can get off this week. Better than sitting in the office. ;)

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Scott if you get down again I am chopping stalks along rt 9 by the Allee house stop and ride a couple rounds with me, saw a few deer today about 5 or so, they are not chasing does yet, but with this little cool spell I would expect it at any time...

RE: DE Archery Season Opener
 

Ron, I should have cut corn with you, I' d have been more productive. The leased farm has gone cold. Very little sign and the deer arent hitting the corn I put out. Guess they are just hanging closer to fields that actually have food in them. The woods I hunt there doesnt have many Mast producing trees so it cant draw deer away from fields with crop. Its basically a transition sight between food sources. If they stay at the food sources all day, its VERY slow. Now once the smoke pole guys get out and then the rut kicks in, the deer move more through the area. I dont think i' ll be hunting that spot for a while. At least 2 week and maybe even after muzzle loader. Thats when I saw the most action last year.

I have the perfect ambush spot planned for when the corn comes down at the Ennis Tract. But the way things have been going for me this year, I' ll either have to work or it' ll rain like a b@stard that day...... [X(]