Curious what you NY guys are doing for the first two weeks of bow. I personally am not hunting, I have better things to do than hunt doe only, and would rather not tip the bucks off to my stand sites. Other guys I've spoken to have stated that they will hunt, and if they happen to see a trophy buck they will not pass it up. So now hunting is like the cell phone law, if you don't agree with the rules, just break them!?!? I am just so fed up with people! So, are you hunting, obeying the rules or shooting a trophy buck if you see one, or just waiting till the 15th?
I am shooting a buck if it suits my liking at the time....as will most of NYS as they can shoot bucks ...you are in a smaller faction of zones that can't, I take it. In YOUR case, I would still hunt, kill a doe or two and scout while out there.
I live on the border of 2 counties, both with different rules. Obviously westchester aka 3s is no bucks till the 15. I will be bowhunting Putnam until then. If I agree or disagree with the laws is irrelevant, I follow them. Poaching deer outside of legal season is not for me. Most guys won't care. But most guys around here hunt on roads with spotlights. DEC is constantly changing regulations over the last few years for the good of the sport and the Health of the herds. Everyone is verbally hating on them. But I havnt heard a logical reason for the hate. beleive me I dislike all new laws and am tired of getting things taken away as well. But I'm also tired of sitting on stand and not seeing a damn deer/wondering where the mature bucks are ? Shorter season, less tags, antler restrictions, thin the insanely over populated doe herd are the only ways I can think of. Seems to me that's what they are doing. Sorry for the rant but I'm getting fed up with hearing things like "I'll do what suits my needs. And I'm killing whatever I want and will just tag it for a different county.
Im gonna focus on getting a doe first and then after that focus on filling my buck tag, if a buck walks by first u definitely am releasing an arrow tho! I don't mind cutting my season short Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
That is the other thing, I hunt a property that is part in Westchester, and part in Putnam, and I actually hunt from a tree that I think may be exactly on the line, so what, from that tree I can shoot a buck to the north, but not south? Different rules for so many different areas is becoming too hard to follow! I hate to be negative here, but IMO nothing will work to increase big buck numbers, there are just too many poachers and rule breakers out there, especially close to NYC. Even if they made it one buck tag per hunter, guys would just use other people's tags. I know of a guy who has his wife and kids buy licenses so he can shoot more bucks, and the guy shoots almost every buck he sees. Another guy dumps corn and apples and has a huge salt block in his backyard in Westchester. He flips on a floodlight at night and "hunts" from his bedroom window. Then got all offended when I called him a poacher, it almost came to blows!
Pretty sure its not doe only here Ill be hunting (Near Elmira). I will be behind the ghostblind hopefully over some apple trees (if they are still dropping fruit). Otherwise I will be on the edge of some bedding between there and food. Its a new property to me and Im excited to get out there.
