Deer Hunting Season

[beenthere]

I will agree with Hayseed. Never have detected a difference between a doe or a buck when the carefully prepared meat was on the table. Years ago I started butchering my own deer, and cutting the meat off the bone, and removing ALL fat and "white" from the meat. Then I grill the meat to medium rare over a hot charcoal or gas grill, and it just doesn't get any better than that. Prefer it over beef anyday.

My son-in-law showed up with a nice buck Monday morning for some help and lessons (I hope!) getting it skinned, cut-up, and wrapped. We put the quality cuts (loin, rump) into packaged meat for the grill, diced the other good muscle meat into 3/4" cubes for stew meat, and the remainder gets cleaned up for grinding into sausage. Pic attached.

Tossing a package of thawed stew meat into a crockpot with a can of tomato or mushroom soup and let it cook for several hours will provide some mighty fine eating.
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[Hayseed]

I never tried venison medium rare on the grill but it sounds good. That is how I like my beef steaks cooked.

I usually cook the back strap and tenderloins a la chicken fried steak and have the rest processed into sausage or jerky. Occasionally I will debone a shoulder and my wife will tie it together with cotton string, stuff it with garlic cloves, vinegar and cajun spices and cook it as a roast on the stove top. Roast venison au jus served over a bed of rice... ah, it just doesn't get any better! [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[pbenven]

My favorite is a venison filet cut into 1/2" steaks fried in olive oil for about 15 seconds on each side in a searing hot, cast iron pan. Add some cooked greens like spinach or beet tops on the side, a big piece of crusty bread and a glass of dry, red wine and you've got a pretty good lunch.

[Argee]

Well we're pretty close to ending the firearm season. There has been a few big bucks taken, but dam few. The most gunfire I heard was the day before the season opened up. [img]/forums/images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] All the flatlanders had to get their rifles sighted in at their hunting sights moments before they headed in the woods. [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img] Go figure.

The weather has been pretty mild so the deer have plenty of food everywhere. They haven't hit any of the bait piles that have been put out on the property. Seen plenty of sign (bedding areas, poop piles, rubs) but nary a deer, except in the bed of some of the more fortunate hunters pickups and at the local buck poles. Seen two in the bed of one truck the other day that had a pretty good spread, other than that it's been pretty quiet.

It's snowing today and the temps are dropping, maybe that will get them moving. How's the season going in your neck of the woods?

[pbenven]

The season is over up here. The only deer I saw was a doe that crossed the road in front of my truck as I was heading home from the deer stand (good defintion for "frustration").

It was cold here this year. Opening day was 10 degrees. The weekend after it rained steadily, and the last weekend we had about a foot of snow. Not the most enjoyable season I've had.

There'll be deer in the freezer, though. My dad plays butcher for his group of hunters. Deal is that he keeps the sausage meat. They got 7 this year. Also, he's off to PA on Saturday where I'm sure he'll fill his tags.

My rifles are clean and oiled and are waiting for next season. All that's left for me is some late season grouse hunting and perhaps rabbit if the urge strikes me.

[I_am_the_walrus]

generally speaking...where I live a doe is more tender than an older buck(at least a lot of other people feel that way)...now a youger buck is more tender than an older buck..anyway that is something each individual decides for him or her self. We have a 2 week buck/doe season which we can harvest a total of 4.Then we have a week long anterless season only, after the 2 week buck/doe season then a week long muzzleloader hunt and then starting Christmas day a 3 day anterless season.
Lots of deer around here,I had 17 run out of my woods in one bunch Tuesday..It is easy to put deer meat on the table where I live.In WVa

[Hayseed]

Unfortunately it has not been so easy for me to get one. This makes two years in a row that I have been skunked. The deer sign was there but I saw very few deer this year. I found only one huge set of tracks and I never saw the owner. I know the deer are there because I found fresh scrapes all over but they just refused to show themselves to me. Oh, well. I enjoyed being in the woods immensely and that to me is a lot of what hunting is about. Besides, that is why they call it deer hunting and not deer shooting! [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Maybe next year...

[Bayrat]

Tim,

Since when is it illegal to carry a gun on your own property? I have one with me or nearby due to the number of animals in the area and the potential for one of them to be rabid.

It really is too bad that some "hunters" abuse the privilege of using private property and spoil it for the rest. It segues into the topic of lack of respect and entitlements along with poor upbringing but I won't go there.

We have deer all over the place, both large buck and doe. I have one at the butcher now [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] that a friend shot and did not want (has plenty). We have so many car deer accidents in my area I really think the season should be open longer to thin them out. My wife and I have both hit one in the last several months, no damage to her vehicle but mine was extensive.

[TimSullivan]

Bayrat,

You are right that it is not illegal to carry a gun on your own property. The trespasser told the Conservation Officer I was hunting and using a rifle.

All the time that my neighbors and I spent checking the shared wooded acreage has paid off. The snow also has made it easy to see if we have unwanted visitors in the woods. The last week of gun hunting season there were no trespassers in the two hundred acre woods. The word is out that you will be tracked down. I was away for ten days and my neighbors watched and walked the woods. They were all happy to see the dogs and me back last week. This hunting season has been a lot safer and we now control our land.

A Sheriff Deputy stopped me today as I was walking the dirt road in front of our home. He wanted to meet the dogs he had been hearing about. He got a kick out of their orange jackets and was very surprised at how friendly they were. I guess that is not what he had heard.