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Everything posted by fisherman21
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1/6 Niagara
fisherman21 replied to whaler1's topic in New York Fishing Reports - Lake Ontario (South Shore)
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Season in review. I have been hunting on and off for the last 10 years, but the last 2 seasons I have really focused on hunting and trying to get my hand on my first wall hanger. I put out 6 cameras in August and started taking inventory. The end of September I had a few really nice bucks showing up which gave me great motivation going into the season. The area I hunt is bow only, so the amount of deer around is amazing. I didn’t start my hunting season October 9th, as I was having to much fun casting for kings on the lake. Early season, I’m not being picky. The only things I will not shoot is an immature buck. Anyway, I hadn’t even been in my stand for an hour and I had a spike, and 2 doe come in, one stood broadside at 37 yards and gave me a shot. It was a small doe, but I have no shame in taking a small one. Veal parm baby! Always feels good to get the first one of the season under your belt. Well a couple weeks went by and I had been keeping an eye on one of the fields on the property every evening to see if the bucks were chasing the does yet. One night driving to check the field, one unlucky doe connected with my unlucky front fender. I had hunted that morning and didn’t have anything in range, and then kill a deer with my car right across from where I hunt with the car. Very minimal meat damage, so I ended up keeping it and cutting it up. Well towards the end of October I saw a giant out bumping the does around. I moved some cameras around and started putting a patterned together. I moved a couple stands around to get into position to get a chance at this guy. Over the last couple weeks, I had two encounters with this buck on stand. One time at 80 yards and another time at 90 yards. Well 7 days later from the last picture I had of him, I got a text that he had been hit by a car. Unfortunate, but it’s part of it. I have another big 8 point, a nice 9 point, and a decent 10 running around as well, but that one hurt lol. I opted out of bow hunting opening day of gun at this spot and decided to try my luck at some public land. I had bought a savage 220 last season, and was able to harvest a deer with it, but wanted to put it work alittle more this season. My brother and I headed down to the finger lakes area extremely early Saturday morning. We decided to divide and conquer and hunted 6 miles away from each other. I decided to go in deep on the area I was hunting, and started my 40 minute hike in all uphill. I took my time and moved nice a slow trying not to get too sweaty. I settled up against a tree right around 5AM. As I was sitting there, a few times before it got light I could hear things walking infront of me, but it was so dark I couldn’t see anything lol. That’s always fun. Anyway, I didn’t see any other lights come up the mountain all morning, so I was feeling pretty good about my chances. As the sun came up and I was sitting there, the wind just wasn’t what I was hoping it to be, and was blowing right to where I thought the deer would be coming through. It was only about 745AM and I really wasn’t want to move so early, but I felt like I didn’t have a choice if I wanted to see something. I opted to leave my pack and a few other things at the base of the original tree and slowly worked my way south. I scratched the leaves as I walked and did turkey yelps and clucks. It was a lot of stop and go, but after I made it about 70 yards south, I felt like my wind would miss the path of the deer if they were going to come in. Well, 15 minutes later I see a deer running down the mountain right to where I was originally sitting. It saw my bag at the original tree and trotted right to where I had moved. As it was running, I could see it was just a spike. Well, my mind was flooded with with the thoughts of the buck that had been hit by a car, I’m hunting public land, the bow season has been a disaster(which I’m not going to get into). The buck stopped 16 yards broadside and I had my crosshairs on his shoulder. Well.......I said screw it, and pulled the trigger. The buck dropped right where he stood. I honestly couldn’t have been more happy with the deer. I didn’t care that it ended up only being a 3 point buck, I was proud to take a deer on public land that I had never been to. I sat until about 1030AM and then decided to go check the deer out, and grab my pack. I sat on my chair and ate a granola bar and had some coffee and water. I then packed all my stuff up and worked further south as I was sitting all day. I found a beautiful thick transition along a pine valley. I set up right on the edge of it and got ready for the long afternoon sit. Well, at 1:45 I could here pretty consistent foot step coming up the mountain from behind me right along the transition. I see the first set of ears coming from behind me. Then 7 more! I put my crosshairs on a nice sized doe, and pulled the trigger. The deer started trotting away, so I racked another one and pulled the trigger again. The deer kept going. About a minute later the deer i shot at comes tearing down the mountain at 100 miles an hour letting out a giant moan. I figured the deer was crashing into the thick stuff about to die. I walked over to where the deer went down the hill. I found blood splattered where the deer crossed the trail. Well, I tracked this deer for an hour and thirty minutes following blood the whole way. I was seeing bright red blood, so I figured it was a decent hit. After an hour and half, I see the doe stand up out of a bed and start trotting away. It was to thick to take a shot, so I just decided to sit tight for a half hour. At 330 I decided I had to keep after her if I had any chance at finding this deer before dark. After it left the bed, I could not pick the trail back up so I just walked in the general direction I thought the deer went. 100 yards of nothing, and just happened to stumble across a drop of blood, and got back on it. I then dropped the trail again but could hear something faintly in the distance walking away slowly. I charge forward busting through brush and would then listen, and I could still hear the foot steps. They then stopped, but I kept pushing forward. Suddenly I catch movement with my eye and look up, and the doe is laying on the ground 20 yards in front of me. She looked at me and went to get up, but it was to late. I put the crosshairs on here and pulled the trigger and watched her expire. Unfortunately it was a terrible first shot. I must have flinched when I pulled the trigger, and hit the deer in the back leg. I felt horribly about the shot, but learned a lot from it. It was quite the experience hunting public land for the first time, and I would count it very successful day. Hauling them both out wasn’t very fun though lol. My brother didn’t end up getting one, but we needed up going again the following morning. We sat about 200 yards apart, and I had given him my gun to use. At about 9AM, I hear him shoot and almost fell out of my stand. It always make ya jump when you hear a shot right next to you lol. I called him right away, and he told me he dropped a buck. I was really out there for him, as I already have four deer in the freezer and don’t really have a need to anymore. So I told him I would slowly work over to him. He ended up with a nice basket rack 8, and couldn’t be more excited and neither could I. It was his first deer! I got to show him the gutting process and all that fun stuff. All in all it was a great season, and it ended on Tuesday morning for me. I got out on the last day for a quick morning sit. It was nice and quiet, the sun was out, saw a few deer. The quest continues! Maybe next year I will get that wall hanger. In the meantime, I will be chasing yotes! Hope everyone had a great Christmas, and I already know many of you had a successful season in the woods! Until next season! Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app
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Had the pleasure of being with my brother this morning for his first ever deer. I let him use my savage 220. He had a little window at 40 yards, and dropped him in its tracks. He was pumped, and so was I! Good luck to everyone else out there today. Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app
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Well, ventured to state land yesterday morning with my brother for opening day. We were unsure how the day would unfold, as you hear many horror stories of state land hunting on opening day of gun with bullets flying by and guys being everywhere. My brother and I hunted different locations within 5 miles of each other. We figured divide and conquer. We got in early to try and beat the crowd as we both started our trek in around 4:20AM. The leaves were crunchy, and it took me 40 minutes to get to the area I wanted to hunt. Got settled in and just sat in the pitch black until the sun came up. I never saw any lights coming in where I was hunting, but my brother had seen a couple others. The wind ended up being no good for the spot I was sitting in, as I felt like it was blowing right to where the deer would be coming from. I decided at 7:40 that if I wanted to see deer, I had to move alittle further south to get my wind blowing in a manageable direction. While it sucked to have to move so early, I made the move very slow scratching the ground with my feet letting out turkey yelps and clucks. I made it about 60 yards south, and felt like that would be better than where I was at. Well, about 30 minutes later I see a good sized deer running through the woods. It ran directly to the tree I had originally set up at, and I could tell it was just a small buck. When it hit that tree, it must have caught my scent, turned to the south and ran right at me. It stopped broadside at 16 yards. At this moment, so many thoughts were running through my mind (your target buck back home 140” to 150” buck got hit last week by a car, you just hiked up a mountain, it’s state land). I’m not going to get into my season prior to this, but it’s been a disaster. All that added up in the quick decision to settle on the deer and pull the trigger. It was no where near some of the bucks I have on camera this season In fact this buck probably scores 13” [emoji23]. But to tell you guys the truth, I couldn’t be happier with this little buck, and it really is just a great representation of my 2020 season lol. I later got a call from my brother saying that he shot one. Long story short he ended up not being able to find it, which was a real bummer as it would have been a first deer. We were hunting the whole day, so I told him to just sit right as he could have another chance. Another chance did not come for him, but he had a great experience and took some knowledge away to learn from. At about noon, I decided to move again further south and found a nice funnel along a thick transition. At about 1:30, 8 or 9 doe came in at 30 yards right up the funnel along the transition. I settled on a nice mature doe, and shot. I don’t know what happened, but I made a terrible shot that lead to me tracking this deer for 2 hours and ended up having to make a followup shot around 4pm. It was devastating to me that the deer was running around that long injured, bu I was glad it all worked out, and was a pretty cool experience on state land. My brother didn’t end up having anymore luck. It was a heck of a job dragging them both out, and my whole boy is sore today. Those two deer make four in the freezer for me this year, so I will be done for now. I may get out for late season to try for a could of the other good bucks I have on camera back home. Good luck everybody! Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app
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My brother and I are going to do state land opening day for the first time. We are thinking of doing Hemlock Canadice state forests but have never been there before. Have any of you hunted it? If so, anyone willing to share any info on it. Feel free to pm me, as any info would be appreciated. I could care less if I shoot anything as I will just enjoy a day in the woods, but I’m try to get my brother an opportunity at his first ever. Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app
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[emoji23] Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app
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