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Recent content by DedicatedShooter

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    Kids and saddles

    Tagging in for this. My son will be 12 next spring and I've been thinking of ways to get him in the tree with me too. We're fortunate to have a 40 acre permission piece and we do have 3 double ladder stands out there but still, having the flexibility to hop from tree to tree mid-season without...
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    This years mast crops?

    In Northern VA, I have seen lots of Red Oaks and Chestnut Oaks loaded up. I have not yet seen a White Oak with acorns. I have been meaning to do a dedicated survey on a 40 acre permission piece but have not gotten to that yet. From my unaided ground observation though, I haven't found anything...
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    How decent are cheap crossbows?

    FWIW, I bought a "budget" crossbow last year for my son, one of the Sub-$300 models from a big box store . My experience with that crossbow, in my opinion as I saw others did not have this same experience, was that it was an absolute hunk of crap. You get what you pay for however. Here were my...
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    First season in a saddle

    I second that big time. Last year was my first in a saddle and I didn't do enough in the summer to get ready. I made a lot of changes to my system during season, even switching to one stick. If you can, I'd say the best practice would be to pack up your vehicle like you're going hunting, then...
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    Unwanted Stand/Saddle Friends

    Completely agree with safety and sound practices with anything involving working way above ground level. I just don't know what I would do if I was swarmed in the middle of a climb. Fortunately it's only a risk until the first real frost, then you don't have to worry about it anymore.
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    Unwanted Stand/Saddle Friends

    That's actually a helluva idea. Fortunately you can usually see these things flying around the tree, or back and forth to it, like I did yesterday. Picking a tree in the dark if you get bumped out of a spot or have to pull an audible before daybreak might be a good time to switch to the rappel...
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    Unwanted Stand/Saddle Friends

    Snakes and spiders I’m ok with, except the rattler variety. Your FIL is a smart man, I’d do the same. These hornets are massive, never seen anything that big before and when standing under the tree it sounds like a bunch of hummingbirds zipping around up there. It’s a hard pass on that tree...
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    Unwanted Stand/Saddle Friends

    So yesterday I learned about European Hornets. Never had them in Ohio (I’m in VA now) but I noticed some gigantic hornets sucking sap off an oak in the backyard (see picture), googled it, and yea they’re European Hornets. Watched a few videos about them and cringed the entire time. The whole...
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    Another update for those following this…got another good pic of the deer I saw in person yesterday. He’s got a kicker forming and potentially a little palmation on the left side. Guess we’ll see if that goes away but boy he’s nice!
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    Update. Saw the taller racked buck today. Was pulling cards and walked out into a power line cut, there he was feeding on some berries up the way. Poor picture unfortunately. Found his bed too and it’s about 40yds from one of my parking and entrance spots in a big trash pile. Now to rethink my...
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    I am hoping for the same thing, if I get 'em I'll update you all for sure!
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    Started digging through some old pictures and I wonder if the the wide buck is this guy. These pics were taken on a rub about 100yds away from these recent summer pics. Feisty guy though, definitely a fighter.
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    Completely agree on that last point, always fun to try and estimate and see what other folks think. I also noticed his bases and can’t ignore that width. Sweet baby Jesus. Most likely I’ll never see him after 1 Oct haha.
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    Summer Buck Opinion

    Really appreciate the input. These two stood around here for a little bit so I've got several other pictures, I'll post them on here tonight after I'm home. These deer are in Northern VA, where I live/work now. Compared to OH deer (where I am from), these deer are smaller in the body, or so I've...
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    10 year Pa deer study

    What is this sorcery and where has it been all my life? :anguished:
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