What have you done to prep for deer season?

bfh_auto said:

The fact that you have to lock your camera is sad. I love your stand.

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Lock boxes for cameras is more for my peace of mind, have never lost one...and don't want too either.

Use to build tree stands out of wood, last 3-to-5 years then you had to rebuild because the wood deteriorated. Replaced all of them with homemade steel units, swivel seats, expanded metal floors let snow and rain pass through. Ladders and stands are permanently lagged into the tree. Have ten stands on the property, most have been up for over 25 years. After a couple years, the rust blends right in with the tree bark color.

I mounted scopes on two single shot 243 rifles to test out and see if I want to use one of them for this coming deer season.

The 25th I fly back to Upstate New York with my grandson to do some squirrel hunting, scouting and set up trail cams. Tomorrow maybe load up two ladder loads for these two 243 rifles.

I loaded up 243 laddder load for the 243, 100 grain soft point boat tail.with IMR4831.
I will test them out next weekend.

Slinging arrows. The opener was Saturday. I did not go to the timber because it was 90 degrees and humid as heck.

Two scouting trips and been to the range sighting in several rifles.

Well my hand is healing pretty good and I scoured, trimmed lanes and even climbed my 30ft hang on tonight. Couple more scouting trips to go and sept 28th is opening day.

My brother set out bird feeders where we will be ditting on first day and afterwards between huntingbother spots.
They will attrack birds and squirels to look at so it will help pass the time away. Plus when the squirrels see deer aproaching the generally sound the alarm.

He also set out mineral blocks.

I bought my license for gun deer and bow season and a bonus tag for where i will be hunting this year.
I am starting to think about going to the range to check zero. I plan on using copper bullets this year
in 30 06 and .308.

Well my thumb has scabbed over and quit hurting when I move or close my hand so I took a ride with a buddy to one of the properties I hunt. I have a hang on in an Osage orange tree that sits in a fence row and is usually covered in poison ivy. Well somehow I have poison ivy or at least I think it is on the side of my head, eyebrow, right nostril, right ear inside and behind it. I now think I have it somewhere else where no man should ever have poison ivy. Its odd because its not bumpy anywhere its just a red, itchy rash. Usually when I get it there is several small bumps and it doesn't spread or bother me too much. This is just terrible so maybe oak or sumac?

We got the monkey ball tree trimmed and de poison ivied. Found out the small acre field that sits behind the tree is almost 6ft tall grass they are bedding in. I checked a set of ladder sticks and a millennium treestand received that's been up for 2yrs now and everything seems legit with it. I will probably put 2 cameras up this weekend and leave them until Sept 28 which is opening day.

The other day I paid for the shuttle bus for me & my grand son to take us to the Seattle airport on the 25th.
We will be hanging a new meat pole a little higher between the two trees so we can raise the deer up higjercwhen we skin them and quarter them up.
We process our deer we harvest.
My oldest son got a video of a black bear in his trail cam behind his house yesterday.

Practiced with crossbow, fine tuned the scope. Got it dialed in for 50 yards, think that's where it will stay for now.

I sighted in the H&R 243 Saturday. The Rossi 243 is a recent aquire and it has an issue with the fireing pin. I really don't care for the quality of it anyways.


I picked up a good size cardboard box to take more hunting cloths back to Upstate New York to leave there for the up coming deer season.

I had a set of camo cloths for my grandson to wear while we go squirrel hunting Thursday morningcand can not find them so it is off to Cabelas after work tomorrow for a new set to pack for our trip back to New York on Wed.

I did buy him a new set of hiking boots.

This will be his first hinting trip. In a coiple of years I will take him.back there to go deer hunting..
I will not waste any money of a State of Washington hunting license.

Stands are aired out, clothes washed, crossbow sighted in, boots airing out, truck bed cleaned, one stand hung. Still need to shoot compound, hang two cameras, sharpen knives and buy a tag and season starts Saturday. I wont go until temps are in the 70's.

I don't bother with camo, so that was easy.
I don't bother with cameras... watch my backyard and whatever shows up, I'll probably see more later.
I don't climb trees, so no stands to hang... when I go to the woods, I find a tree to lean on where I can watch down a hillside... see a lot of deer that way.

I already sharpened my pocketknife, so I'm that much closer to ready. All I really gotta do now is get my GA deer harvest record, aka "tags", and use "checking zero" as an excuse to shoot my rifle... as if I really needed an excuse.

Got cameras out last Sunday. Got a new rifle today. Getting zeroes checked this Sunday. It’s still 90+ degrees outside. Hard to get into the spirit just yet.

Was out changing cards in a couple trailcams on a friends land and checked my ladder stand and a blind that's out there. Everything looking good. The ladder stand still needs the seat cushion and back cushion put back on along with a small umbrella type deal that goes above the seating area as a rain shelter. Also needs the wrap around blind kit put back on. Stand is still solid as a rock and has been on that tree 2 years next month. Plan on putting everything else back up there in a week or so although gun season won't open until Nov. 16th. Got some pix here on the computer of it last year during the season and just today when I was out there. Things do change after the leaves fall.

Just hung two cameras and scouted a new farm. Jumped a spike buck bedded in beans that would dress 150+lbs. jumped a few more at the new farm.

I went back to Upstate New York the last week of September to October 6th. I took my eigjt year old granddon with me to do some squirrel hunting and scouting for deer. We seen a bunch of them.

I just picked up my airline ticket for deer season. I leave Seattle on November 13th. Deer season opens on the 16. I will have two days to sight in the rifles and go out for chicken wings.
We process our deer and vacum seal the meat before we freeze it. I pick up a ice chest and load it up to 49 pounds and bring it back with my as a check in luggage.

I will be loading up some 243 cartridges to take back East to use.
I bought some 100 grain soft point boatail bullets to use.

Pocketknife's still sharp. Checked zero three days ago. I may or may not pick up a bag of wallyworld's deer corn tomorrow. Opener's the 19th... day after tomorrow.

I deep cleaned my .270, took it to the range to make sure it's still on and wasted three rounds.

Also working on finishing up what's still in the freezer from last year.

14 MPH winds today, so I stepped out back to get some practice prone off my backpack at 405 and 547 yards:





It's nice to live in the country! I've now got my 3 primary deer rifles "dialed in" with new loads.

Got corn three days ago... put a little out last night and they cleaned it up overnight... put out a little more today about 4:15p.m. and the first two deer out were the two biggest bucks out of maybe 20 deer I watched over the next 3hrs... bunch of 'em in and out, repeatedly till just before dark. And no, I didn't shoot this evening... just sat back and watched the show... got to see a couple of fights.

I contacted the land owner that has 61 acres across the street where i will be sitting where the deer cross the road. Gained acess there. A great day.

Highland Lofts said:

I played the Camden Rod & Gun Clubs month of June New York Daily Numbers raffle and hit # 428 on June 11th for a $500 gift certificate at Franks Shooting Supply or what ever it's called

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I'm a Camden member and shop at Franks. Nice people at both places. Thanks for supporting the club!

I have been supporting the Camden gun club for a few years now. I like the month long dailey numbers drawings.
My brother found another gun club that does the numbers for the month of Febuary.

I'd like to do the month long daily numbers for every month of the year with different gun clubs.