Hardawaypoints

I am looking to get some feedback on lighted nocks from those who have experience shooting them from a crossbow.  Do you have a favorite brand or have you had troubles with any?  Thanks for the reply.

Jim

I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed this year's hunting contest & getting to know some other forum members better.  Our season went out on 1-1-12, but due to being out of town, I didn't get the chance to hunt since mid-December.  I finished the season with 4 does and no bucks because I was being very selective.  Passing up a lot of young bucks waiting on a mature buck will probably help the areas I hunt in the future.  

I saw a sure enough shooter buck that was about 80 yards away in some heavy cover, but I finally figured out where the main travel route through that area is thanks to being patient and watching the area for an entire day. I'll be going in there during the off season and trimming a few trees & cutting some shooting lanes before the leaves grow out. I should have a much better chance of tagging a big buck in there next Fall.  No matter what happens, I'll have fun trying. Thanks again everybody.  I hope your season was as good or better than mine.

Jim

It rained here Friday night (our friends North of here got snow from the same storm), which carried over into mid-morning on Saturday.  I got in the woods in rain gear before it quit to make sure I could be there when everything started moving.  The rain eased off about 11:15 AM and a gusty wind picked up by noon. I didn't think I'd see a deer because it was so windy.  At 3:45, a lone doe working her way along the ridge eating acorns passed down wind out of range.  At 4:15, a doe & fawn trotted right under my stand from behind me.  The wind was so strong, I never heard them. They were looking uphill and I was sure a buck might be following.  The pair moved into heavier cover out of range and another doe came galloping along the same trail.  Five seconds behind her was a young 8 point buck with his head stretched out moving in that stiff-legged gait they use when trailing a doe.  As soon as he crossed the plume of buck lure I had out, he started grunting, which made the two does and fawn take off running back the way they came.  He looped around following them so fast that I doubt I could have shot him with a shotgun.  I would have let him pass anyway, as he has some growing up to do first.  It sure did have my heart pumping though. I saw nothing else and left after dark.

Sunday evening, I was watching a group of does and fawns feed towards me. A few of the adult does threw their heads up and a small 5 point buck crossed the creek and scattered the lot of 'em.  He came back along the creek and ran the rest of them back over the ridge to the south. I was hoping to tag a doe out of the group and really thought he might just be a big buck by the way they all acted. No deer got within range.

I have yet to see a mature buck out there, but I know they're around.  As much as I want to get in the woods to hunt, people keep scheduling work for me.  I need the work, but I am more compelled to hunt.

Good luck to everyone when you get the chance to go.

Jim

I hunted a new stand location yesterday.  It looked really good from the first time I ever saw it.  Trouble is that there aren't a lot of good trees there for a climbing stand.  I went with the best tree to climb and not with the the tree that gave me the best opportunity at getting a quality shot. Deer walked & fed on acorns near me much of the morning.  I got the stand site @ 6:30 and was ready to go by 6:37 AM. By 6:44, there was a deer walking under me that I couldn't see even with the bright moonlight.  From just after daylight until 11:00 AM, I saw 18 antlerless deer, and the only ones in range were behind me.  There was no possible way I could turn around for a shot without getting busted.  I was hoping to see at least some of the bucks on that property, but they were somewhere else. Once the rut kicks in, that should be a good spot.

Jim

I hunted one of my best stands for the first time yesterday afternoon.  Twenty minutes after settling into the stand, a wide-racked 8 point and an average 6 point buck walked by too far to shoot. Sround 6 PM an tall tines six point buck walked by behind a heavy tree canopy.  He wasn't a shooter anyway.  The wind shifted and I got busted by a doe walking along the pasture fence.  I decided to get out of there before I stirred things up more.  As soon as my feet hit the ground, a doe about 40 yards away snorted once and bounded off back where she came from.  She didn't smell me, but didn't like the movement.

It will be Thursday before I can hunt there again.

Jim