Opening Day.. who's going? (1 Viewer)

[SUGrad03]

Rifle season here in MO opens tomorrow, I think LA too. Forecast here is 18 degrees & snow.

 

[Semper]

I already got my deer for the season, but rifle season does open on the 22nd... And this morning I just bought a new Browning 7mm-08 so... Well I could be tempted lol.

 

[0rion]

well??? Any luck? Saturday is our youth gun season. I'll be going with my 11 year old to see if we can't get him his first deer. Weather isn't going to be that great....mid 30's to low 40's and raining. We'll see though. I've shot many a deer in the rain.
So far bow season hasn't been that good to me. I just got back from a 9 day stretch camping and hunting. Saw a ton of deer and had probably a dozen under my stand. No bucks bigger than an 8 and most of the doe were yearling doe. I did take a long shot at a nice size doe late in the week and shot under her. Sometimes you're the dog and sometimes you're the hydrant. A bad day for me was a good day for the doe.

 

[SUGrad03]

Saw lots of deer before the opener, haven't seen one since. Hear lots of shooting around me, so folks are seeing deer. I'm finding new rubs within feet of my stand, like I'm being toyed with. Season ends Tuesday, I hope something comes my way.

 

[SUGrad03]

Got skunked this year..... Was busted walking into the stand at 0530, later saw a doe too far away to shoot with my 30/30, let a tiny yearling spike walk.

Maybe 2015 will be better.

 

[0rion]

I just noticed you're in Rolla. I grew up in the bootheel (Caruthersville) and got my first deer in Mark Twain. We hunted in the Van Buren area.

Gun season here opens next Monday. I took my son out for youth last weekend but that was a frustrating trip to say the least. I had the perfect spot picked out. I had sat in it during bow season and every evening had deer under my stand. I didn't hunt it the last 2 weeks to let it sit for him so he could get his first deer. We went out opening day of youth gun and in the morning I wanted to sit somewhere else since the hot spot was more of an evening spot. Didn't see anything in the morning and then at lunch he started whining about his stomache hurting and wanted to go home so we didn't get to hunt the hot spot. I was 2 levels above ****** off. There's some other guys that hunt that area for gun so that's that. If I had known that I would've started taking doe out of that spot weeks ago.

 

[SUGrad03]

Yep, been to Van Buren a lot, love the rivers in that area. Yeah gun season on the forest is absolutely nuts, you need to get in deep away from any road to not have someone on top of you. Luckily I've had permission to hunt a farm that had turned out well until this year.

 

[0rion]

I killed my first deer down there outside of Van Buren. Good story too. I was 16 and it was my first year of deer hunting. I did a lot of small game but no deer. No one in my family hunted but a buddy's dad and uncles took me with them. Since it was my first time deer hunting they had the whole safety talk around the fire the night before and were basically just scared I'd kill them or myself the next day haha.
Next morning they drop me off and tell me where to go which was way way away from any of them haha. Also tell me the truck is at the top of the hill if I get cold. First year going I didn't even have boots or coveralls. I was in a pair of sneakers and jeans. I got cold in like 10 minutes. Walked up the hill but warmed up before I got to the truck and decided to hunt more. Dropped 30 yards off the old logging road and sat in the middle of this fallen down tree so it would help block some wind. 5 minutes later I killed my first deer.....130" 9 point. Those guys to this day still give me a ration of crap when I see them. I got about 3 nicknames that weekend.

 

[Semper]

I killed my first deer down there outside of Van Buren. Good story too. I was 16 and it was my first year of deer hunting. I did a lot of small game but no deer. No one in my family hunted but a buddy's dad and uncles took me with them. Since it was my first time deer hunting they had the whole safety talk around the fire the night before and were basically just scared I'd kill them or myself the next day haha.
Next morning they drop me off and tell me where to go which was way way away from any of them haha. Also tell me the truck is at the top of the hill if I get cold. First year going I didn't even have boots or coveralls. I was in a pair of sneakers and jeans. I got cold in like 10 minutes. Walked up the hill but warmed up before I got to the truck and decided to hunt more. Dropped 30 yards off the old logging road and sat in the middle of this fallen down tree so it would help block some wind. 5 minutes later I killed my first deer.....130" 9 point. Those guys to this day still give me a ration of crap when I see them. I got about 3 nicknames that weekend.

Awesome. A friend of mine has struggled this year with deer. He wounded a couple with his bow and just basically gave up. He took his girlfriend out for her first hunt and she got her first deer ever. It's been a lot of fun messing with him since then. We ask her for advice in front of him etc...

 

[0rion]

nice first deer.....she'll be hooked now.


Had opening day of gun here yesterday. My crappy luck this year just hit another gear. haha Long story so I'll try to shorten it as much as I can.

Carried my old shotgun.....one mom and dad got me when I was 15. It's a jc higgins model 20. I worked on it last winter and fixed it and got it shooting for my son. He killed a squirrel with it but had it misfire a time or two on him so I swapped out the hammer spring with one I had here in an old trigger assembly I replaced. Shot 10-15 shells and it fired everytime. Go out yesterday with it for old times sake and it cost me 3 deer due to misfires. One was a 130's eight point.

 

[SUGrad03]

So is Ohio a shotgun /muzzle loader state? That's just bad luck to have that happen. I decided not to replace ol' glory (my 30/30) this year because it's always been enough gun. Although where I hunt shots out to 300 are probable, and just my luck the only legal deer I saw was too far for it.

 

[0rion]

This year Ohio started letting people carry straight walled rifles....basically a pistol round shot through a rifle. I'm not a fan of it really. I've heard all the arguments about how muzzle loaders shoot just as flat and far. My concern is more of the yahoo that's taking shots at running deer.....with a muzzle loader you get 1. Ohio kept it to a 3 shell limit but it's kind of the honor system. Rifles aren't required to have plugs....the law just says you can't have more than 3 total shells in the gun. They also removed the plug law for shotguns. I heard multiple 5 shot groups Monday morning so evidently some people don't do well with the honor system. haha

 

[SUGrad03]

Straight walled huh? 45/70 sounds like the ticket.

 

[0rion]

that seems to be what most guys are using