Backcountry Bucks

   I could only hunt for a few hours today. On my way in, I could smell where a deer had pissed on its hocks. It stunk badly. Although I could smell him, I had no idea what he had done when in the area. I did know both of us had crossed the same path within minutes in the darkness.    Well, on my way out, I discovered he had rubbed two trees where I smelled him. I came out of the woods at noon, and it was 73 degrees. This weather is beyond unbelievable. I didn't see any critters today, but it was still a good day in the woods. 

   It really warmed up today, but the morning still provided good conditions to sit. I went to a favorite old haunt in the morning, but things were slow at best. I did spot a doe in mid-morning, and she eventually fed past me but nothing followed. Although I was disappointed, I still enjoyed my time. I covered a lot of new ground on my way back to the truck. Unfortunately, I didn't see any sign at all. It was void of deer sign in areas where there is normally a fair amount of it. I'm sure sign will show up, but it just isn't there now.    I made quick work of lunch once I got back to the truck and put my hiking shoes on to explore another old haunt. I knew it would take me the rest of the day to check that place out, as it's almost an impenetrable area.    When I got to the place I wanted to check out, the temperature hung just shy of 80 degrees. However, the scrapes were torn up, and the runways leading to the scrapes appeared to be quite active. I marked an area for J

 It was another chilly morning. When I got out of the truck, the thermometer read 26 degrees. I had a nice walk into the woods this morning. I put new batteries in my light, and it made the walk much easier. It's always easier to find your way through the woods when you can see well.    The wind was a bit of a nuisance today, but I withstood it. I had a doe bed down next to me at about 10:20, but she didn't stay bedded too terribly long before getting up, feeding, and making her way past me. I'm pretty sure it was the same doe the buck chased past me yesterday. He must've been feeling frisky long before she was ready.   I didn't stay in the woods too long today. I needed to get some work done, so I came out at 1:30. However, I found myself back in another piece of woods at 3:30 to finish off the day. I didn't see anything on my evening sit. We have some crappy weather coming in with high temps and big winds. I probably won't be going out too much. I"m s

   Today was raw. It was damp and chilled me to the bone. Although there wasn't much wind, the dampness settled into my core. On my walk in, I got pretty messed up due to having a light that wasn't the brightest. I didn't realize the batteries needed to be changed, so I was aimlessly wandering through the darkness and get off track more than one time.    However, I still made it to where I wanted to be before daylight. I could feel something today that I haven't felt in a while. I felt like I was close to succeeding. I sat on a scrape and figured the buck would visit it in the daylight. When noon rolled into view, I hadn't seen a thing yet, so I decided to do a loop to see if I could find some sign.    I quickly learned that the good buck has a handful of scrapes in the vicinity, and I'm hoping I catch up to him when the timing is right.    After covering the ground, I went to an area for the afternoon sit where I've seen a lot of does in the past. Around 5:

    Today was the best morning we've had so far. It was 25 degrees when I headed into the woods and no wind. At first light, I could hear a deer walking but couldn't locate it. Finally, I saw it in some hemlocks below me. She made her way up the hill and walked within a few feet of the blowdown I was tucked into. Although she was nervous at first, she settled down and continued past me without any interferences.    I was surprised there wasn't any shots this morning. It seemed like the deer should've been moving everywhere. As it turns out, that was the only deer I saw today, but the wind did get up to 29 mph gusts and sustained winds of about 15-20 mph. It didn't make for a very nice day to be in the woods. The calmness only lasted until about 9:00 a.m.    I covered a lot of ground today and found where there's a really big buck working. I'll definitely be back to that area. I saw where he opened a scrape last night or early this morning and pissed in it. H

    Today was opening day of rifle season in northern New York. Before the season started, I made sure to shoot my gun one last time a few days before heading into the woods. I was happy when I put both bullets inside the same hole while shooting freehand. Hopefully, I get a chance to shoot at a deer this year to see if I do the same thing under pressure.    I couldn't have asked for a better day to sit today. When I headed into the woods, it was 30 degrees and calm. I would be able to hear deer coming through the leaves. Around 9:00 a.m., I heard leaves rustling. Then, I spotted a spikehorn trying to sneak past me on the shelf below me. He appeared to be smart for a year-and-half-old deer. Eventually, he made his way past me and disappeared into he maze of trees. Although he was just a spike, my hear rate went into overdrive. The first few deer I see every year have a tendency to give me the same type of reaction. I love the feeling of adrenalin coursing through my veins.    After