Good luck NY bowhunters - 2016

[drewsbow]

been seeing some dandy bucks but no tags are getting filled

[Mint]

Well Saturday I couldn't hunt do to prior plans but was able to hunt all day Sunday. The wind was going to be coming from the west all day and I thought it would be perfect to hunt an old stand site. I use to hunt this area on public ground but a couple of other hunters moved in on me so I went else where. I haven't seen there trucks parked there so far this season so I figured I would give it a try. Got to the spot at 5:00am and no one was there. Went in a found my tree and set up my wedgelock. West of me is a house with a deer fence around it, to the south of me is a bowl that forces the deer to walk on either side of it giving me a 15 yard shot on once side of the bowl. On the far side of the bowl is a big patch of laurels. To the north is a funnel between the two houses. East of me is open woods and then a big patch of laurels. While sitting in my stand I'm facing west and the bowl trail is to my left, in front of me it two runs going from north to south and to my right is two trails, one nw/se and another e/w.  

Sunrise comes and the woods are beautiful. Suddenly I see a nice eight point with his nose to the ground moving fast on the trail 20 yards in front of me. I get ready to draw when he comes to a shooting lane but let down, didn't feel comfortable taking the shot. I like to hold for a second or two and then release and he was moving too fast for me. About an hour later I hear some chasing behind me and see a spike running around.

I'm hunting long island where we can shoot basically unlimited does so I'm passing on all small bucks.

About 15 minutes later I see some deer coming from the NW. A see a yearling in the lead and then a doe and another yearling. They will pass on my right on a trail that will veer less than three yards from my stand. Not the best but I can take the shot as they pass my stand and veer away for a quartering away shot at ten yards. Well the yearling goes by but the doe puts on the breaks almost under my stand. She is looking around and then looks up but I've got branches around me and I freeze. She stares for awhile and then backs off ten yards and stomps her foot. she calms down after five minutes but her vitals are behind a tree. The spike sees her a starts walking over. She starts to walk away and at twenty yards I get a quartering away shot. The shot is off and hits her perfectly, they all bust out of there and they are gone. I finish hunting the morning and then get down to find my arrow that disappeared at the shot.

I find blood right away.

   

Then I found the arrow stuck in the ground about 20 yards from the shot.
 

The arrow is covered with blood and I continue blood trailing another 30 yards and see this.

   
 

[glenbo]

Nice work Mint

[Shinnecockfly]

Congrats Jeff!!!!!! Beautiful doe

[huntmaster70]

[nashoba]

[crotch horn]

Way to go Mint! Congrats

[2nocks]

congrats Mint!

[Kopper1013]

Congrats

[wetfeathers]

Way to go Mint!

[kat]

OK Mint. Congratulations.

[drewsbow]

congrats Jeff

[LittleBen]

Well, that wraps up the southern zone bow season for now.

Hunted a few days, had a good shot on an 8pt which I still can't believe I missed at ~15yds due to deflection off a small branch. I guess back to it in December, or maybe just bowhunt straight through the regular season.

[glenbo]

I got out this morning for a few hours. Saw a raccoon, 9 turkeys and a spike at 50 yards. Had a close encounter with a doe I walked up to on the walk back home. She fed up to twenty yards before she noticed the big blob kneeling with a bow in hand. That was that. No close shots or human encounters. Nice morning

[Mint]

Got out Saturday and had a doe with two yearlings come by my stand but it was too dark to shoot. Five minutes later and it would have been perfect. Sat for the evening where I shot my doe but nothing was seen. Figure they must be in lockdown. On Thursday I got a nice picture at 10:03am of a real nice 8 pt following a doe 10 yards from my stand.

[ron w]

I think my get up go.......got up and left. Just very hard to get motivated after seeing so little for so long. I'll start planning for next year, maybe by then my desire will return.

[Mint]

Ron, I think you need another hunter to check out where you are setting up. If you are in a good area you should be seeing deer. Are you hunting edge habitat? Are you alerting deer as you walk in? I know I was hunting a spot on LI that looked like it was perfect, lots of runs, a lot of rubs etc but I never saw anything. I was blinded by the sign and when my friend took a look at it he thought they were coming thru the area at night and it was too open. Moved my stand to an edge where the open woods and thick laurels met and I saw deer everyday. I had forgotten the cardinal rule, deer follow edge habitat.

[ron w]

MINT.......I sent you a PM.

[Mint]

Got it Ron and answered. If you are ever on Long Island contact me and I'll put you in a stand where you should see deer. Nothing is a guarantee though. My last five sits, some evening and some morning I've seen 14 different deer. Just very puzzling that you aren't seeing them in the rut. If you go to the Muzzy shoot let's meet up since I go every year.

[ron w]

Hey....we are on the second page, nobody out hunting..........???