Early Bow 2011

The early season started off this year with warm temperatures and wet humid conditions. making it a chore for NJ hunters to take to the woods to fill their first tags. After the first morning hunt on September 10th there was a mad rush at every local retail store of hunters trying to buy a thermocell machine. I know I wasted at least 4 hours driving around trying to get one. A few days later the weather cooled down and the bugs subsided. By the following weekend many hunters were able to fill thier Earn-A-Buck doe tag and begin hunting for a buck.

After tagging out on his EAB on the evening of September 17th, Steve went out the following evening (9-18) and killed this 2 year old 8 pointer. After sitting in the stand for about an hour, Steve decided to let out a few bleats and a couple of immature buck grunts. Shortly after, in came this deer which steve put a nice pass through shot with his crossbow just missing the heart and crushing through the opposite shoulder blade.

Steve got it done using a Horton and 100 grain Swhacker broadheads.

This buck was on the ground within 20 yards of the shot.

Steve's deer dressed out at 104 lbs.

Pre-Season 11

Today is the opening day of deer hunting for NJ. Hunters in most zones in south jersey are able to hunt an early season with the bow and/or crossbow with the stipulation that you "earn a buck" by killing and antler less deer first. With all of the rainfall we've had in the last few weeks (nearly30 inches), it feels more like you are the hunted and the mosquitoes are taking advantage of the early season.

Chances are its gonna be at least a few days before we have any bow kill posts. So in the mean time, I am posting up some August trail camera pictures of a real nice 10 pointer that my dad had captured locally.

Usually through the course of the summer I will run across a nice buck or two that gets clobbered by a motor vehicle an I will do a roadkill post. I prefer to use all original content but due to extenuating circumstances I plucked this thread from New Jersey Hunter. Reportedly this slammer was killed via automobile in August of 2011 in Sparta, NJ.