alfred NY
 

Hi,

I have never been over there before but my 60 year old dad and I are coming over 10-30 until 11-9 bow hunting. Talked to some people in the area and they said 90% 1.5 yo bucks but tons of deer. What are the odds at a good 3.5 yo buck? Yes we will be hunting all state land. I will be over to scout and cover tons of ground in a few weeks but just wanted your input....

Thanks

I have hunted near there (had an aunt and uncle who once lived in Almond) and I still hunt in southeastern Steuben. I think your original info is correct... most bucks are 1.5-2.5 year old teenagers. Some older bruisers are around, but they are the exception and not the rule. Probably the largest I ever saw came from around Prattsburg (a bit to the east of Alfred).He was a typical 10, dressed at 205 lbs. and scored in the high 160's. His age was estimated at 4.5 years by the local warden.

Nice.......at this point I am looking northeast in Steuben....from what I hear the potential for a bigger deer is there

I hunted up there when my son was going to Alfred state. There is some nice deer on the state land right by the college.Something like 13,000 acres if not more.

In nys what are the chances any where of a 3.5 yr old buck or more?

I saw a beauty when I was scouting laying in an area that the state cut white Pine out of. Then the first morning I hunted I saw two small bucks and eleven doe.

The next time I went up I moved my stand location and had a 130 ish 9pt at 25-30 yards and saw another decent 8 about 20 minutes later. Shoot me an e-mail and I'll let you know the area I was in and a couple other spots I found. He graduated last year and might not be going back up this year.