Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Wildlife Management Opening Day!!

RAH on the topic of safety harnesses - I went 15 years without EVER wearing one...but a few years back I came to the realization that 'better safe than sorry' was an appropriate mantra given my age and responsibilities - namely the 8 and 9 year olds that rely on me.

I would feel naked on stand without the 5 point harness today.

One button buck in an area is not going to hurt any management plan...

As for safety harnesses, yep I wear one...Wife and boys bought it for me for my birthday years ago...Has it cost me any deer, probably, but falling from a tree and dying or worse is not even a thought I want to think about with a family...

Sitting here this morning chomping at the bit because I have a few things I want to get finished up before tomorrows youth season...

I went out into the stand last year after there was no more left to lose from food poisoning. I got dizzy in the stand and was afraid that I might lose consciousness. I got part way down the ladder and recovered, so I went back up and finished out the evening. Thought I'd invest in a harness this year.

A few years back, I broke my foot during bow. My wife drove me to the stand and I pulled myself up. I shot a deer and my wife picked us both up. She did inform me that I had crossed the line!

In addition to the safety harness, get a fall line with a prussic knot as well. That way you can clip in at ground level and climb into the stand without ever being unhooked... I have one on every stand I have whether it be a two man ladder or a small lock on.

If you get a Muddy or other similar smaller harness, they add almost no weight and they fit under your jacket so they won't interfere with any movement.

I have ladder stands, so I think I can manage the in and out part (famous last words). I have been hunting in a tee-shirt, but my current harness fits under a seat shirt. Its just not quite the same as without it. BTW - Finding dark camo, without white in it, is almost impossible anymore. I hunt against tree trunks that are dark.

Here's my ladder stands and I still use a harness all the way up. You can see the white rope running down the side of the ladder. And I wrap the top of the rope around the tree not the stand in case the ratchet strap holding the stand were to fail. 36" wide platform and 20' tall to the platform. Don't want to fall from there...

You are a brave man. My highest it 16' to the seat, but the seat is very small. Only $35 at the end of the season at Manards last year!

Most of my stands are 20' to the platform or a bit more. I usually use a 20' climbing stick and the stand is one step further than the top of the stick if I can get it set the way I want. I have a couple of 16' stands but I don't feel as confident. Over the years I've proven in my own mind that you can make a lot more mistakes in movement and also errant scents if you're way up high. I like the extra forgiveness that height allows me.

But like I said - that would also be with a safety harness on.

This probably ties into using binoculars also. I shot my biggest archery buck from a stand 10' up, and my biggest gun buck from the ground (walking slowly up on a bedded buck). I'm too chicken for a 20' stand. But the archery buck was 154 gross, and the gun back was 167, so different strategies work (or its all luck).

RAH, my best buck stand is also no more than 10' off the ground... I can hunt the crap out of it and not disrupt the deer movement, but that is more attributed to my access in and out than it is anything else.

There is no question that being higher allows you to get away with more movement and scent, but it definitely isn't required to kill a mature buck regardless of score.

This evening, I saw a buck that will be nice next year. Love this time of year!

I have heard.. and willing to try it this year if My goat is taken running.

Running puts tanins in the blood which is in the meat giving it the tough texture and flavor.

The rules of osmosis come into play, and the tanins need to be sucked out of the meat cells. I am told soaking meat in milk will do this. and soaking them in water will help a little too. I will let you know how it works.

Well I've seen 2 shooter bucks so far...one driving to the property, about 1/8 mile from my driveway, and one on a trail cam on the north end of the property. So far the only bucks I've seen on stand have been dinks...a button, a forkie and a small 6.

But is sure is nice to get out there again!!!

I'm driving home from Parent Teacher conferences last night and I'm about 40 yards from my driveway when I see this guy standing in the middle of the road...



I've got a couple of shots of him about 1/4 mile from the house. I don't HAVE any cameras in my back yard, but maybe I should.

So I'm watching him walk off the roadbed, looking a bit bedraggled, and I think to myself "he looks like he's been in a fight"...which is promptly confirmed as there's also a big 8 point standing about 10 feet further down the road that I almost hit with the car!

They must've been sparring right in the middle of the road or real close to it.

I was awake this morning really early thinking that it'd have been about a 55 yard shot...out of my bedroom window...

That's what I call a heated blind!

Deer Ticks

This morning I ran into a problem I've not worried about before. We have one of our special antlerless seasons that started yesterday morning and goes through tomorrow evening.

I took a real nice mature doe this morning out of my garden.

After I field dressed her, I found that I had a number of tiny deer ticks on me. We have quite a problem around here with Lyme disease. Obviously, I was rather concerned. After that, I found a number of big ticks on her. I stripped down outside, left my clothes out there, and came in for a shower. I found three more tiny ticks.

Normally I skin and butcher soon after field dressing.

This time, after hanging her from my tractor loader bucket, I pressure washed her.

It is supposed to get down to freezing tonight, and it only got to about 40F today, so I'm not concerned about the meat.

But, I'm wondering what others do to protect themselves from deer ticks and the possibility of Lyme Disease.

I normally don't see any ticks on the deer. Maybe because I'm hunting in colder weather? Or maybe it's that I don't usually skin them when they are warm?

In any case, after hunting I'm usually in the shower and haven't had any show up yet. I have more problems with ticks during spring mushroom and turkey season than in the fall/early winter.

Congrats on the doe!

I have a set of clothes that are dedicated for situations such as this. I treat them with permethrin every 3-4 washes. After an encounter with Turkey Mites while squirrel hunting a few years ago, I started doing this. I haven't had a problem with ticks or chiggers since...at least, not when I wore the clothes.

Tony, when did turkey mites start affecting your area? My brother got into them this year and it took him a long time to recover. When we were growing up in Ky. We never used repellent(could not afford it) and never got anything worse then chiggers and a few ticks. Take care.

Same here. Growing up, chiggers was as bad as it got. Now we have the mites, and they make chiggers seem no worse than a brush up against some nettles. Normally, if someone were to tell you to douse your anatomy with bleach, or gasoline, you might give that person a wide berth. After enduring the mites for a couple of days however, you're only interested in what octane rating gasoline works the best, and would it provide relief any faster if you ignited it after application.

I know folks who spent time in the hospital, due to complications (infections) traced back to the mites. We started seeing them about 5-6 years ago.

Awesome hunt Saturday morning. My first double! Here is a link to their pics.

http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Jacob_Foote/media/P1010862_zps0758febb.jpg.html

Congrats!! I would have whacked the buck and doe too.

Nice bulkly midwest cornfed deer! Congrats!

Good job!

We used to be loaded with ticks and chiggers but continuing drought has just about taken care of that problem.

I don't even see them when skinning a deer.