garrymny

How do I get a ticket, other than being one of the first to sign up at AA pro shop booth? Or is that the only way? I won't be there until Sunday.

Ok, I ended up buying an iTroll. Hooked it up, but never got to try it.

yeah, they have a chart, it gets progressively later as you go west. As you know visibility can depend on many factors, cloud cover, snow cover, etc. Usually those factors weigh in similar to time of day.

This year was my 41st year of deer hunting. I missed one year, back in 1985 when I joined the Air Force. Every other year I have hunted Pennsylvania deer (where I was raised) with my Dad, and my "people". For the last 15 years my best friend has come from Idaho to hunt with us. We hunt both PA and NY. I live near Buffalo. In NY, the only place we have to hunt is the Alabama Swamps. Very tough place to hunt. The cover is extremely thick, and plentiful. Deer numbers are only fair, not abundant, in my experienced opinion. We don't do real well in the swamps, but opportunities and sightings are frequent enough to keep it interesting....usually. Unless they become nocturnal, then forget it. This year, I got 2 doe in the swamp. No buck. In PA, my friend got a really nice 8 point the first day. My Dad, who is 80, was afraid to shoot the rifle this year. Last year he had a vertebrae in his neck replaced, and it did not heal. At his age, he opted not to have another operation. So, I loaded up some reduced loads for his Savage 99, in 250/3000. I told him there will be very little recoil. He missed a big doe, and said he didn't even notice the kick. This made him less afraid. So, a few days later, 3 doe came blazing across the field and he shot, once. I came out to the field, it was close to quitting time, getting darker, and he said he hit one, and saw it fall. We looked and looked. Could not find it. My buddy and I went back out with lights. Could not find it. Dad was very disappointed, and was saying his hunting days were over, he couldn't shoot anymore, the rifle with the reduced loads may not be enough to kill them etc. Next day was pouring rain. We took a long road trip with Dad, and he showed us the sites around Tidioute PA. Big circle. At 330, I went back out to his Deer Shanty. I looked out the window with the binos, and there, 75 yards out, was a dead deer. Perfect Lung shot. Complete pass through. We must have went past it at least once or twice. When I showed my Dad the picture of the deer, he was saddened we could not find it, but elated that he could still shoot, and the reduced loads would work. It was too warm to salvage the meat. The coyotes are now having a feast, Dad says, he heard them yipping out there. But, to return to the story, My Dad is the best rifle shot I have ever known, and I have known many. I have put countless deer out to him, and other unknown hunters have as well. Deer running full blast, loping, whatever. It almost ALWAYS ended up with a dead deer on the ground. He is truly one of a very few with this level of expertise. Anyways, on the last day, he was in the shanty, took one last look out the window, and a big doe was standing 40 yards away. He dropped it in its tracks. Needless to say, he was very happy, and now he is excited and can't wait for another season to come around. I told him I will be coming down to hunt Deer with the Flintlock in PA's late season, which opens day after Christmas. This is a fun hunt. Flintlock is an entirely different ball game than an inline or percussion rifle. I call them Flinch-locks. But, I was sad to see my season come to a close, as I absolutely love to hunt deer in the snow, my favorite way to hunt is called stillhunting, where you slowly creep along, stopping often. For ideal stillhunting conditions, that means snow, and lately that means Muzzleloading, if we are lucky. Plus I would like to take a Buck. So, my season is not over yet!

I use brown sugar and salt. Good video on YouTube smokehouse products. Tastes great. Sent from my XT1030 using Lake Ontario United mobile app

Wow! And I thought lake Erie was the place to go for perch! Sent from my XT1030 using Lake Ontario United mobile app

Nice report, I enjoyed reading it. It's common I guess when you take young ones fishing, to get nervous when they aren't catching and they are losing interest. It is for me anyways. It's great when you have a good day, the fishing bug is planted. Sent from my XT1030 using Lake Ontario United mobile app

I bought a kicker for my new boat, and unfortunately it does not have a charging system. It's a 2015 tohatsu 9.8. but, my boat has two deep cycle batteries that can be selected in parallel via a switch. I have trolled with my autopilot for 6 hours many times with no problems yet. I always charge both batteries the night before. Solar may be a good option, but so far not necessary. Sent from my XT1030 using Lake Ontario United mobile app