From now until mid-February I'll be hunting ..... deer, elk, fall turkey, late doves, rabbits, squirrels and maybe work in time for ruffed grouse. A few seasons have already opened, but I don't really get serious until mid-October.

I've spent the last week making sure my Bow is tuned in, my rifles and muzzleloader are zeroed, camper ready, generator OK, chainsaw ready, truck and atv up and going, etc.......

Who else is already hunting or getting ready??


Don

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Laus Deo! <><

I HEAR YA SON! We've been at it for a month now,but like you say,October is SERIOUS huntin' time!
f.t.

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South Carolina-God's country

Don,
I been getting ready for about 3 weeks now. Sighting in
Muzz, rifle, putting up new stands and cutting shooting
lanes. My favorite time of the year. My buddies who i always
hunt with invested in crossbows this year and are hunting
as of Oct. 1st
I will wait until next fall to get me one as the "fun money"
or sporting goods fund is a little low right now.
I really don't have enough vacation time saved to hunt
archery and gun season anyways. So i'll be after them
come Mid-November.
Good Luck in your pursuits.

Chuck

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They hold no Quarter

Been bowhunting for a week now.

So far I've put 2 meat deer in the freezer - a decent doe and a young buck.

Was sick, got to hunt black powder for 2 days. Got some birds.

Going to deer hunt Mo in Nov and KS in DEC.

Retired this year, can't afford ELK....

I've been cutting brush, chainsaw is good to go, ATV is good to go, Will have to fill the propane tanks for the RV. I'm close.

Best of luck to you. Great plan......

Feral pig hunt is on the agenda, over near the Texas border. Can't have them Texas pigs polluting New Mexico!

I'm more than ready, have had the bow tuned up since June. The clover and buck oats are still looking great. According to the trail cameras nothing bigger than 120" so im waiting for the weather to change.

Other than today, rain and 57*, we've had a heat wave for October.

I can't sit in the stand as a mosquito magnet with an 89* heat index.
If this cold front changes things by Tuesday I will be in the stand.

I want to try my hand this year at deer and/or squirrel hunting. I plan to use my Marlin model 60 for the squirrels and my as-issued Mosin Nagant M91/30 for deer.

This past Sat. was opening day for archery deer in PA. Since it was going to be hot, with rain, I decided to hunt the state forest that is only about 5 miles from my house rather then drive the hour to a farm I usually hunt. Ended up staying in the woods all day. Seen one tree rat.

Cant hunt on Sunday in PA, so its football. The local station on cable was not showing the Giants game I wanted to see, so I decided to drive up the mountain in the state forest, and try my portable TV with rabbit ears to see if I could get the game. No dice, but figured I stay and watch the game that was on. Parked the same spot I usually do when hunting. Window down in my truck, TV blaring, a beautiful 10 point buck walks out of the woods, and just stands there and starts at my truck. Maybe 15 yards away. 5 minutes later, he ambles off back into the woods.

I think I might sit in the bed of my truck Monday morning in the same spot, maybe with the TV hooked up....

Larry

Man, does this post ever take me back in time. When I was a little younger I was an avid hunter. My motto when in the woods was "Never go home until everything out here is DEAD". That of course is an exaggeration but not too much of one.

It gave me stress every fall since that is some of the best fishing (another life long passion of mine) around here as well. Do I go huntin' or do I go fishin'. No matter which I decided to do I enjoyed it but I was also miserable because i wasn't doing the other.

My wife finally got sick of me whining about this every fall and made the suggestion that (for her peace of mind and my own continued good health) I decide which it was I loved the most and let the other go. Not too long after that conversation I finally let the hunting go. Most men, if they live long enough, will reach the age when the most important thing in life is a warm bathroom on a frosty morning. that was the turning point for me on hunting.

Once I made the decision I never looked back and I've been happy with it ever since. Still every year about this time, especially after the first blue norther blows in, I start getting thick around the neck and rubbin' up against trees. October and early November are usually the best weather we have here and it is still fairly common to find me at my favorite outdoor shooting range during that time......but just a little later in the day than I used to hit the stand.

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Real men love cats!

Hillbilly, nice little buck......just the right age and size for great tasting venison.

Don

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Laus Deo! <><

I can't tell you how this thread makes me yearn for the days when I could still hunt. Nowadays I have to do it vicariously through my son and you folks.

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Oh well, what the hell.

Take me with ya? Bow opened the end of Sept. but too warm for me. Need a good cold front to come through. Stands are up, have been pulling the bow, but the camera is not showing anything to get excited about. Potted a squirrel last week while checking a stand. Thanks for mentioning the muzzle loader. I forgot that I changed the scope. I need to shoot it in. We have a three day center fire doe season coming up in a couple of weeks. Didn't go early goose hunting. I can't figure out how to eat those nasty things.

I'm hoping to repeat these scenes before long.

Good on you and luck with the hunting.

I had recent back surgery and am sitting out bow season for now which opened Oct 1. I had to put my Brittany down two years ago and haven't pheasant hunted since and miss it.

Once my back is better I hope to do some deer hunting even if I need to use the quad to get out to my stands. I love having the property here to hunt on but sad my hunting buddies have died or moved away now. I still get out when I'm able and had to give up the compound bow for a crossbow though.

Been out clearing a few loggin trails this week myself.
Not much on the game cams except pigs.
Take my camper in next week.

This is the time of year that I live for.WhenI can no longer get out and hunt I'll be ready to cash it in.I have been truly blessed in my life in spite of a few rough bumps in the road.I was brought up to keep charging ahead.I have had many wonderful experiences,and met many unforgettable as a pilot,pharmacist and physician.I am retired now and pushing 80.10 days ago I could barely walk,but after a back injection I have hunted every day for a week climbing in tripods and ladder stands and plan to use a climber in a special place.I hunt with my young cousins and grandson and their friends.All of my old friends are dead or might as well be.And by the way,hunting is as big a thrill as ever proven by my missing a buck yesterday because I let my excitement overtake my hunting skills.When the thrill is gone,so will everything else.

Let the chase begin!

Duck season jut started yesterday for us southern Michigan residents. I plan to be out in about five hours waiting for the sun to come up, and enjoying nature at its best.

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Shall not be infringed.

Utah's grouse season and doves opened Sept. 2 this year. I got out on the 2nd with some friends for what turned out to be very successful dove shot.

I've had the pups out grouse hunting a few times a week since then. We've moved birds almost every time out. Grouse numbers are still on the low end of their natural cycle here in our mountains. So far I've shot more trees than birds.

These photos are from last Sunday. I'm headed out in a bit hoping to have a repeat.

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Bill Bates

Great pictures, Mr. Bates!

Dove season is going pretty good down this way. Going this week to a place with dove weed and two tanks. A small norther is on its way, so the bay fishing is flounder time. Keep a man busy, all this.

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Halfway and one more step

VERY nice pictures! That bottom one is a work of art. Not that I don't like the top one mind you.

In my opinion both of those pics are of top magazine quality and at the very least should be framed and displayed in a high traffic area. Love those dogs!!!

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Real men love cats!

Have the stand up just waiting for a bit of rain to plant and Nov. 5th. for gun season.......Only my second season and i just can't wait!! Why the hell did I wait to 52 to start hunting????

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I waited until I was 29 to start hunting, and I feel the same way.
If I had only known....

My first huntin' trip was at the age of 12 (first deer hunt was at 20) but by the time I was 52 it was all but over for me. As I posted earlier it was my ever growing love for a warm bathroom in the morning that eventually got me.

But I hope you have many happy year of freezing yer keester off in a deer blind/stand. I wouldn't trade anything for my memories of my deer hunting years. I'm just glad I got around to it while I was young and strong and impervious to the elements.

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Real men love cats!