2015 season trail cam pics

[outrider58]

Nice pics Laddertowr!

 

[j_h_smith]

Very nice pictures.

Good Luck!

 

[wilcam47]

The big white tails are dropping their antlers here already....I'll post a pic later, I got one pic of a nice what was an 8pt with only one antler...kinda neat pic but aggravating at the same time since theres snow up to my knees and no doubt he lost his antler somewhere close by..

 

[j_h_smith]

Dropping antlers while there's still snow on the ground? Does the buck look like he's sick or wounded? That's a first for me.

I'd bet that antler has already been chewed on. That's some prime rib for many animals in the woods.

Looking forward to seeing the picture.

 

[wilcam47]

Dropping antlers while there's still snow on the ground? Does the buck look like he's sick or wounded? That's a first for me.

I'd bet that antler has already been chewed on. That's some prime rib for many animals in the woods.

Looking forward to seeing the picture.

Ive been told thats normal for this time of year and area... The few I find are in the spring, some are chewed on a bit but for the most part seem to hold up. There are a lot of antler hunters here though so finding a few is good IMO...

Porcupines and squirrels like the antlers.

The buck looks healthy to me...I'd have shot him if he would have come out during hunting season....but at least I got a pic

I stand corrected, I got a few pics...looks like a 5pt on the one side...

 

[madmantrapper]

There was one two years ago running around Westminster, had 9 points on left side. I used to see it while checking traps.

 

[j_h_smith]

Yep, that looks like a healthy buck. Look at that belly! Amazing difference in the areas of the country. I would have never thought I'd see a healthy buck drop antlers in the middle of December.

Live and learn.

 

[outrider58]

Yep, that looks like a healthy buck. Look at that belly! Amazing difference in the areas of the country. I would have never thought I'd see a healthy buck drop antlers in the middle of December.

Live and learn.

Their winters start sooner and are more brutal than ours.

 

[j_h_smith]

Their winters start sooner and are more brutal than ours.

But once the velvet dies off, their bodies don't use any more energy to sustain the antlers. I would have thought they'd keep then until the new year.

After all, how's he gonna keep his NEW YEARS eve party hat on?

 

[outrider58]

But once the velvet dies off, their bodies don't use any more energy to sustain the antlers. I would have thought they'd keep then until the new year.

After all, how's he gonna keep his NEW YEARS eve party hat on?

That is true but, it is thought that it is a chemical action that causes the antler to cast. Not sure what brings that to occur but, stress can be a factor.

 

[wilcam47]

That is true but, it is thought that it is a chemical action that causes the antler to cast. Not sure what brings that to occur but, stress can be a factor.

Regional factors maybe? there was a few spikes and a small 8pt that still had both antlers...

Also some say the mature bucks lose antlers first then the others...a little later..

 

[outrider58]

Supposedly, younger deer hold them later. Makes sense.

 

[wilcam47]

If snow wasnt so deep I might go try and look for the antler...theres a neighbor that is antler hunting too but hes doing it for cash...as for me I like collecting them just for me.

 

[outrider58]

If snow wasnt so deep I might go try and look for the antler...theres a neighbor that is antler hunting too but hes doing it for cash...as for me I like collecting them just for me.

It is very addictive. It's like Easter egg hunting.

 

[CSHS]

From the summer. Never seen during hunting season.

 

[wilcam47]

It is very addictive. It's like Easter egg hunting.

Ive stumbled on the few Ive found...Im getting better at finding them though or maybe its them finding me

From the summer. Never seen during hunting season.

typical scenario on my game camera...they didnt get big by being in daylight..

 

[j_h_smith]

If snow wasnt so deep I might go try and look for the antler...theres a neighbor that is antler hunting too but hes doing it for cash...as for me I like collecting them just for me.

If the rain we've gotten in the last 72 hours would have been snow, none of us would be doing much today.

 

[CaptChaos]

So I spent significant portions of my weekends in November and early December tearing apart my ATV, which wouldn't run properly. Of course, I took most of it apart only to find zero problems, put it back together again and it mostly runs well, with occasional misfiring. I'm thinking dirty carb at this point, but this is a story for another time.

Since we lost our hunting lease a few years ago, I've been hunting family land. I don't see much except in bow season and early muzzleloader, but the proximity to my house has really spoiled me. I still enjoy getting out in the woods and taking it all in and pretending like I'm an American [with firearm rights] on private land. There are plenty of deer here, but they always seem to be passing through and mostly at night. The neighbor, who owns a rectangular piece of property bordering this land seems to have a great year every year for some reason. For example, they shot five bucks last season. I saw zero.

Since my ATV is mostly running, I decided I would head down the trail on a Sunday and drop some corn since I hadn't in a few weeks. I spent probably 25 minutes unloading it from my trailer, washing it off with the hose, loading up the corn, etc. So I take off across the field to head down to the entrance of the trail, and what do I see? Two damn deer feeding 25 yards away from my truck. Just before I shot this video, the one on the left looked straight at me, stopped, and then put its head back down and kept coming. WTF? The one on the right, just decided it should keep on eating until I got a little closer. Towards the end of the video, I had actually gotten off of the ATV and probably could've killed this thing with a long spear. The worst part? After I scared them off and went down the trail and came back, the damned things were back in the same spot again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s48gNea0-Hk

 

[outrider58]

So I spent significant portions of my weekends in November and early December tearing apart my ATV, which wouldn't run properly. Of course, I took most of it apart only to find zero problems, put it back together again and it mostly runs well, with occasional misfiring. I'm thinking dirty carb at this point, but this is a story for another time.

Since we lost our hunting lease a few years ago, I've been hunting family land. I don't see much except in bow season and early muzzleloader, but the proximity to my house has really spoiled me. I still enjoy getting out in the woods and taking it all in and pretending like I'm an American [with firearm rights] on private land. There are plenty of deer here, but they always seem to be passing through and mostly at night. The neighbor, who owns a rectangular piece of property bordering this land seems to have a great year every year for some reason. For example, they shot five bucks last season. I saw zero.

Since my ATV is mostly running, I decided I would head down the trail on a Sunday and drop some corn since I hadn't in a few weeks. I spent probably 25 minutes unloading it from my trailer, washing it off with the hose, loading up the corn, etc. So I take off across the field to head down to the entrance of the trail, and what do I see? Two damn deer feeding 25 yards away from my truck. Just before I shot this video, the one on the left looked straight at me, stopped, and then put its head back down and kept coming. WTF? The one on the right, just decided it should keep on eating until I got a little closer. Towards the end of the video, I had actually gotten off of the ATV and probably could've killed this thing with a long spear. The worst part? After I scared them off and went down the trail and came back, the damned things were back in the same spot again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s48gNea0-Hk

The ethanol in fuels now corrode the inner workings of carburetors, especially in the fuel reservoirs. I've been battling this same problem with mine for the last couple of years. Rebuild kits are cheap if you can do the work yourself. The best cure for this is ALWAYS shut your fuel of before storage and let the remainder of the fuel in the carb burn off. That should end the problem.

That video was amazing! I was looking for a lost deer I had shot with my bow a couple years ago when I came across a flock of about 20 turkeys. It was really windy out and the turkeys wouldn't take flight. I just walked amongst them for a good 15 minutes. I wished I had videoed that encounter. It was unbelievable!

 

[CaptChaos]

Yes, I am aware of the ethanol causing problems. I know it caused a lot of problems in personal watercraft. This ATV is a 2006, so you would think that the lines would be ethanol safe. That said, I only use 93 octane in hopes to alleviate this problem. Also, there is no fuel shutoff on this ATV as it has a mechanical fuel pump. Thanks for the suggestions. I put some Seafoam in the tank so we'll see how that goes. It does sit most of the time so you are probably right.