WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 12, 2021 On the 4th of September, Deer Archery period opened in Kentucky, where I hunt. I've been doing visits here and there to get my stand ready, feeders stocked, trail camp checked, cabin organized, etc. Leading up to deer season I get burned up to be there. I don't normally go for archery opener as it's still too warm and the deer aren't moving. I have a SAR course to teach that I stupidly committed to so I won't be going this coming weekend. However, the following weekend .... ah yes that weekend .... I'll be heading to deer camp late Friday night and in a stand early Saturday morning. I won't take any deer unless a monster buck cruised by (it won't) but I'll be making sure the small details are taken care of, I'll get in a good tree stand nap or two, and I'll be watching the deer. I'd like to say I'm watching their patterns and that helps, but in the rut all bets are off and deer are just influenced by patterns. Travel paths are still there, but additional paths are used if bucks are chasing or does are running. I'll go a few times in October (muzzleloader opens then) but rifle opens the 13th of November, where everybody will be there and much hunting will occur. I won't take any bucks unless a trophy walks by but I'll take two does and debone them onsite and let them age in the cooler for a week. How about yourself? What going on hunting-wise for you? 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROV 1,443 Posted September 13, 2021 Bear season is about over here but I didn't do that. We did shack work and mowing/brushing. Ruffed grouse season opens September 18th. That is my main passion and my hunting shack is smack in the middle of the wildest country and best grouse hunting in the continental U.S. My friend was headed to Texas though and I went with since I've never been here. Hoping to wack a few coyotes as I mentioned on another post. Just arrived today and be home on the 20th. Then I'll grouse hunt a couple days when we get back take a couple days to regroup and go back for 15 days straight. That will be a good start. Told my wife I will see her at Thanksgiving. 😁 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 13, 2021 9 hours ago, PROV said: Bear season is about over here but I didn't do that. We did shack work and mowing/brushing. Ruffed grouse season opens September 18th. That is my main passion and my hunting shack is smack in the middle of the wildest country and best grouse hunting in the continental U.S. My friend was headed to Texas though and I went with since I've never been here. Hoping to wack a few coyotes as I mentioned on another post. Just arrived today and be home on the 20th. Then I'll grouse hunt a couple days when we get back take a couple days to regroup and go back for 15 days straight. That will be a good start. Told my wife I will see her at Thanksgiving. 😁 I've never hunted bear or grouse before. I've ALMOST gone dove hunting twice, but something interfered both time. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROV 1,443 Posted September 13, 2021 Grouse flush like they are shot out of a cannon. You need to be pretty fast to be successful. They can run to beat heck too. They are so high strung that they cannot be raised or held in captivity. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 13, 2021 we don't have grouse here, but alot of dove, and dove hunts ... mostly after farmers have harvested there crops.... mighty tasty to for such a small bird. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 13, 2021 1 hour ago, PROV said: Grouse flush like they are shot out of a cannon. You need to be pretty fast to be successful. They can run to beat heck too. They are so high strung that they cannot be raised or held in captivity. How do they taste? And how many do you take when you have a successful hunt? My brother has mentioned that for dove there is very little meat, but a grouse seems to be larger. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 13, 2021 yes very little meat...... but rich tasting...... all the cooks i have been too hunters grill them, but I'm sure there are other methods.... but it takes so many for a meal.. it's rare to have a hunter store enough for a good size cook. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bighanded 1,234 Posted September 13, 2021 I don't currently hunt...so I've not paid attention to the calendar..but it was obvious hunting season had begun by the number of trucks hauling ATVs around this past weekend. You woulda thought there was a convention or something (grin). 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 13, 2021 i didn't even think to post this but traffic on my street has picked up with hunters taking there bikes to LJ's for service.... all getting geared up for a hunting... hm.... someone must have seen a monster buck running around, i just hope there will be no more shots from the road this season..... i can say over the years deer hunting has fallen off some, why i really couldn't say.... because the population is still up, my guess would be most farmers have stopped raising soy beans, and moved over to corn. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bighanded 1,234 Posted September 13, 2021 the deer are crazy this year...solid population...some fawn are still loosing their spots and the others we are familiar with are about 3/4 grown. I can't keep them out of the flowers, even with the motion sensor sprinkler and the smell spray. I have to really watch close driving in and out of the hood, as they are all over the road. I think both of my bow hunter neighbors have moved on...so we won't see any real action locally until gun season starts up. anyway...plenty for them to plink at this season. Just not on my property is all I ask. I will be out back on my range more now that weather has cooled down...so any trespassing hunters might be wary of sneaking onto my property. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 13, 2021 I'm not much of a hunter, used to coon hunt when i was younger, but now i used to enjoy deer and assorted wild game, like dove and, quail.... but here i wouldn't consume deer meat due to the chemicals used on crops.... and the hybrid seeds now used... I'll still take dove, and quail .... even a wild turkey.... but the dillas have moved off, and that might be due to the last years winter season that was more of a flood then a winter... so maybe the deer population have also followed ?? because they sure havent been appearing much, but like i say the population is said to be high.... the best pot of soup i made, i made with deer meat.... lol! maybe times have changed for us here ? who knows. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROV 1,443 Posted September 13, 2021 2 hours ago, WonderMonkey said: How do they taste? And how many do you take when you have a successful hunt? My brother has mentioned that for dove there is very little meat, but a grouse seems to be larger. Ruffed grouse are very tasty. White meat about like chicken. One bird will feed one person. You can shoot five a day and have ten in possession. A large majority of hunters won't do that good. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,719 Posted September 13, 2021 Dove season here has been a bust. Not sure why but just aren't a lot of birds around. Dove hunting is my favorite. Set up in a sunflower field with a stool, lots of shells (average is 7 shots per Dove), and a few beers. You can talk/yell at your neighbors, because the doves don't care. Hard suckers to hit, and in a good field the shooting never stops. Limit is 15 birds, so you get lots of shooting even if you're on that day. Haven't been duck hunting in a couple of years (since the little one was born). Hope to go this year. Finally got the duck hole dry enough to get the tractor in and mow the lilly pad stalks down, and then have some Japanese millet to scatter. It grows/heads out quickly so have plenty of time to get it in this fall. Need to throw together a couple of small blinds as well since my big one floated off when the river flooded a couple of years ago. That's about all I do anymore. Used to squirrel hunt a bit, and have been deer hunting a couple of times. I just like wing shooting most. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 14, 2021 17 hours ago, jeepwm69 said: Finally got the duck hole dry enough to get the tractor in and mow the lilly pad stalks down, and then have some Japanese millet to scatter. just don't forget that dif lock ;) i don't think I've ever heard of Japanese millet, well what I'm saying is used here where i am, is it like a cover crop for one season ? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,719 Posted September 14, 2021 2 hours ago, _Wilson_™ said: just don't forget that dif lock 😉 i don't think I've ever heard of Japanese millet, well what I'm saying is used here where i am, is it like a cover crop for one season ? I honestly don't know that much about it. Regular "wild millet" will shatter and come back every year. Japanese Millet apparently is an annual, so it's one and done. But Japanese Millet grows and heads out very quickly, and the local Co-op had it, so I grabbed some. Figured next spring I can work earlier on the beavers and maybe get planting earlier. Really want to do wild millet and Pennsylvania Smartweed. Both will come back on their own year after year. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 14, 2021 Good day! One of our hunting party just bought a new fridge and will be bringing the old one to the hunt cabin. This means we don't have to keep all of our perishables in coolers. Keeping it in coolers didn't kill us, but it will be more convenient to put it in a fridge. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,719 Posted September 15, 2021 I thought you were going towards “we’re building a kegerator out of the old one” 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 15, 2021 12 hours ago, jeepwm69 said: I thought you were going towards “we’re building a kegerator out of the old one” That is a fair thought, sir. During our work weekends that would be of value. During the normal rifle season I try to limit myself to three (3) a night. With the amount of food we eat it's hard enough to pull my fat ! out of my hammock in the morning get into my stand. With a keg that would be even more difficult. Also since this year I have a fight the Saturday after rifle season, I need to stay in reasonable shape. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,719 Posted September 15, 2021 3 minutes ago, WonderMonkey said: That is a fair thought, sir. During our work weekends that would be of value. During the normal rifle season I try to limit myself to three (3) a night. With the amount of food we eat it's hard enough to pull my fat ! out of my hammock in the morning get into my stand. With a keg that would be even more difficult. Also since this year I have a fight the Saturday after rifle season, I need to stay in reasonable shape. My old boss gave me a 70's era True Kegerator that had a non-working condensor fan. I replaced the fan, POR15'd the inside of it to stop the rust, and bought a keg of Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat (KC microbrewery). The lesson I learned is, microbrew beer starts tasting a little "off" after about a month. Drinking a keg of "porkchop in a glass" beer by yourself in a month is no easy task when you're old with a job and kids. When you finish that keg you will discover that your pants all magically shrank. So, when people ask why I have Michelob Ultra in the kegerator instead of a more exciting "good beer" it's because the mass produced beer can go 3-4 months without the taste changing (so I don't NEED to drink it constantly), and I need LIGHT beer in that thing or I'm going to weigh 250 lbs. 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WonderMonkey 725 Posted September 15, 2021 Good points, @jeepwm69 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
_Wilson_™ 6,591 Posted September 15, 2021 1 hour ago, WonderMonkey said: During the normal rifle season I try to limit myself to three (3) a night. With the amount of food we eat it's hard enough to pull my fat ! out of my hammock in the morning get into my stand. With a keg that would be even more difficult. Also since this year I have a fight the Saturday after rifle season, I need to stay in reasonable shape. uh hu..... i hear you, your most likely in better shape then most of us .... lol!.... if i had to guess your issue might be over work... i recall very well those days of burning the candle at both ends..... and i miss those days, maybe what i have now is a slow steady flame. 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Goober 1,555 Posted September 18, 2021 I scouted out some new spots yesterday. Put the stalk on a small herd of big Mulies and 4 antelope. Good times! now to check calibration on the smokepole 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wheeler 2,527 Posted September 18, 2021 At elk camp now for week & half or more..next five days hunting hard. Have elk on go every day! I have a video of me shooting (at) an Elk on GoPro. Think I need to convert it to YouTube to play here. I missed a perfect opportunity on a nice 4 or 5x5 IMG_0872.MP4 IMG_0872.MP4 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Goober 1,555 Posted September 19, 2021 Do you all eat your black bear? I like it makes great jerky but i don’t wanna bite into a bear that’s been baited with garbage. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROV 1,443 Posted September 19, 2021 I was with my buddy at his hunting land in Texas. Between his land and a nearby friends I mowed trails all over a combined 600 acres. It was in the 90's every day and 97 yesterday. Also put up feeders, cameras and checked deer stands. One afternoon it was 95 and the hitch broke on the mower. Lots of fun welding in those temps. Saw tons of deer, quite a few turkeys and some quall. To bad he had a Piglarus to pull the mower.💩 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites