-
If you enjoy the forum please consider supporting it by signing up for a NES Membership The benefits pay for the membership many times over.
MA Has some messed up seasons and regs...
- Thread starter ccm75
- Start date
one-eyed Jack
Manufacturer
I just shop at the market where they make the meat and no animals are harmed. Jack.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
OP. Nice rant. And no offense,
But when I became serious about hunting 25 years ago. I did something about it other than bitch and wait for the state, which we all know sucks.
You see, we will have a nice cold frost tomorrow morning and ill be in a tree in CT likely with deer on the ground below me. MA bowhunters will be twiddling their thumbs, maybe scouting, or hunting squirrels.
Back when I started, Archery season started around Nov 1st or something statewide. Yet NH, and CT started Sept 15. I decided, fxck that, im hunting there rather than sit the couch.
I hunted NH for a few years and killed a few deer, then I found that CT was a way better state and killed 3 or 4 deer in Sept and Oct. before any bowhunter in MA was even thinking about dusting off their equipment. Then guess what, with the freezer filled I could concentrate on big bucks only, and passing does and little ones in November proved to be a great way to harvest big deer, because a lot of times, the bigger deer came after the smaller ones. If I had shot a small one, id be down messing with it or polluting my stand area and never see the big buck.
Get this in your head. The deer population sucks in this state. The game management sucks in this state. The season dates suck in this state. The implements you can use in this state (no rifles, no xbows) sucks.
Go elsewhere, sure it cost money, but it beats the alternative of wasting your life waiting.
I have 10 good bucks in the wall, 25 years ago, if id waited and decided to let MA rule my hunting career, id have 2-3. And a hell of a lot less venison in the in the freezer.
Go and hunt. Season is open north or south of us for little more than it costs for a day of golf.
But when I became serious about hunting 25 years ago. I did something about it other than bitch and wait for the state, which we all know sucks.
You see, we will have a nice cold frost tomorrow morning and ill be in a tree in CT likely with deer on the ground below me. MA bowhunters will be twiddling their thumbs, maybe scouting, or hunting squirrels.
Back when I started, Archery season started around Nov 1st or something statewide. Yet NH, and CT started Sept 15. I decided, fxck that, im hunting there rather than sit the couch.
I hunted NH for a few years and killed a few deer, then I found that CT was a way better state and killed 3 or 4 deer in Sept and Oct. before any bowhunter in MA was even thinking about dusting off their equipment. Then guess what, with the freezer filled I could concentrate on big bucks only, and passing does and little ones in November proved to be a great way to harvest big deer, because a lot of times, the bigger deer came after the smaller ones. If I had shot a small one, id be down messing with it or polluting my stand area and never see the big buck.
Get this in your head. The deer population sucks in this state. The game management sucks in this state. The season dates suck in this state. The implements you can use in this state (no rifles, no xbows) sucks.
Go elsewhere, sure it cost money, but it beats the alternative of wasting your life waiting.
I have 10 good bucks in the wall, 25 years ago, if id waited and decided to let MA rule my hunting career, id have 2-3. And a hell of a lot less venison in the in the freezer.
Go and hunt. Season is open north or south of us for little more than it costs for a day of golf.
Last edited:
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
Killing a buck does very little to the herd.
If you let little bucks walk on a large piece of controlled private land they will become big bucks. How big and how trophy are very dependent on genetics of the area herd, food quality, minerals, cover and area weather. The midwest is probably the best place to shoot a huge buck with trophy antlers. But there are exceptions all over the country and canada.
Killing does on the other hand can decimate a large herd in a low quality controlled area in just a few years. Think about they exponentially produce in a controlled area if left alone. If you shoot too many or coyotes eat them they exponentially decline. I believe our game managers highly underestimate coyote predation in the west. They also underestimate the amount of hunters that get tags for the east and kill does in the west.
The quabbin is perfect evidence of this.
As once was loaded with deer after being not hunted for 70 years, it became one of the worst places in the state to hunt after just 6 or 7 seasons of controlled shotgun only hunts. They cant even hunt archery there.
The problem in past zone 9 in the west is multiple. Poor quality land, high predation, a different harsher climate than eastern ma, and poor deer management.
Over my 30 year time theyve added lots of hunting days and tags. Thats fine in the east, but the west, nope.
Last edited:
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Nailed it.
Bob
Bob
Dennis in MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2007
- Messages
- 38,239
- Likes
- 33,156
Years ago (20?) I was in a now-defunct gun store in the area. A guy was in to buy his THIRD hunting lic. of the year (actually his 3rd in 3 days, to be exact) to get ANOTHER doe tag. Eastern Mass. Seemed unsporting to me. He was shooting anything with 4 hooves and a heartbeat. There were cows in danger in the area because of this guy. IIRC, the deer he brought in for check-in was fairly small.
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
Dont think so. It was a paper license you bought at your town hall or walmart. Nothing was on computer and there was no way to check that I know of. Unless LEO called it in maybe.
I might be wrong but ive never even given something like that a thought.
This state has no shortage of brown its down cheaters, at least in my area. Thats why my group does not shoot does even if we get permits. Also, its tough to shoot something you rarely see.
I might be wrong but ive never even given something like that a thought.
This state has no shortage of brown its down cheaters, at least in my area. Thats why my group does not shoot does even if we get permits. Also, its tough to shoot something you rarely see.
Last edited:
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
It’s so much easier today with the technology. Just wait until the any zone surplus tags go on sale and you are set for the season.[/sarcasm]
Bob
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
This. Lol.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
You can thank the NYB for that:
OTHER LEGISLATIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS
- Established numerous contacts with state legislators, acting as their resource on bow issues. Meeting with them on a regular basis.
- Established a working relationship with the DEC. Meeting with them on a regular basis.
- Kept the crossbow out of the archery-only seasons & areas of the state.
- Promoted the harvest of antler-less deer to assist the DEC in management objectives.
- Established urban deer management archery hunts in various parts of the state – Irondequoit, Painted Post and Albany, NY; while preserving and promoting other programs in Westchester & Suffolk Counties.
- Established legislative E-Mail Alert System.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
smokey-seven
NES Member
Third license or third doe tag? MA has had multiple doe tags for years dependent on area. Tag, check and repeat.
MA has had their hunting licenses computerized for a long time. 20 years is inside of my frame of reference and most likely 30. Unless he had multiple addresses, I find fault with this.
smokey-seven
NES Member
Does not necessarily mean they do their due diligence, just that they had the capability, like checking RMV revoked licenses for out of state DUI.
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
This. Anyone can make an adress up buying the paper lisc years ago.
The real question is if your going to poach deer, why check them? Because the checking process is what could have bagged you.
smokey-seven
NES Member
The Tag is for transporting poached deer from the field to the slaughter.
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
Retardedly proud of it. Yet they are ok with a 90 percent letoff bow.
My dad had severe shoulder injuries and tried hard to shoot a regular bow for years and it cost him not inly his confidence but game. One day pulling back on a deer he jerked so weird that he unstrung the string of the wheel of his Mathews. That was the day he picked up his xbow.
He shot a huge buck not soon after and I posted it on a very popular archery website. They pulled the post cause it didnt count as a bow kill. I pulled my membership and never posted or went there again.
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
Understood. But ive brought home at least 100 deer from CT. Yes they were legally tagged and reported. Yes I left pieces and portions of the deer open to view when transporting. Every one of them.
But ive never been checked en route once, ever. Same thing with the 20 deer ive shot in MA that ive legally checked in, Not once was I checked on the road, even though i always leave a hoof or at times antlers stickjng out of the bed. Drive truck right into my garage, hang and butcher deer. Done.
My point being. If your going poach odds of getting stopped are so low, even lower if you just fully conceal that your crazy to stop or interact with anyone. And checking a lot of times ends up being the poachers downfall.
A corrections officer and his father we poaching bear out in my area, with birdseed buckets and got bagged because they wanted to brag in the local paper about the bear. So they checked it in to make everything look legal.
Except someone found the bait and kill site and reported it, and wardens checked records, got warrants and found all sorts of stuff that proved the case, including DNA of the gutpile to their bear. Had they just STFU about it, doubtful the wardens would have known where to start.
Last edited:
I dont claim to know that much about managing large populations of deer, but it seems to me that something should change in MA to improve things for all hunters. In the east (where ive never hunted) additional doe tags seem like a good idea. In the west where i live limiting doe tags a little more and allowing 1 antlered tag seems reasonable. Ive only spent two days total actually hunting deer so take what i say with a grain of salt.
Coyote season should definitely be opened at least while squirrel is open.
Coyote season should definitely be opened at least while squirrel is open.
smokey-seven
NES Member
Coyote should be opened year round till the population is close to being controlled.
In the 50's tbrough 70's there were hardly a one to be seen. 80's and 90's they were plentiful. In the recent years, the are vermin.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Good for hm.
Bowsite is an elitist, self serving, click that is brutal to others that don’t do it “the right way” (read their way).
Exactly, they kill a lot of fawns. You could kill everyone you see and still not make a dent.
Bob
Mark from MA
NES Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11,640
- Likes
- 11,857
There are some nice deer in the west if you live 2 hunt and put in gobs of time scouting and gaining access. (Being lucky taken out of the equation) But you will hunt/scout and work harder than more populated states.
Id rather see more deer and only harvest one than see a bunch of nothing.
Coyote should be open year round lights allowed any weapon any method.
Ive seen some big deer, just out of season. There are also a few pretty good sized herds nearby to me, but they gravitate to areas between houses that are off limits and some nonhuntable conservation lands. A few winters ago there was a field close by between some neighborhoods where id see 15, 20 deer at a time. Mostly does but a handful of bucks in there. The other herd was maybe 5-10 strong, with 2 definite bucks. Ive seen two bucks id consider “mature” in my life - easy 8 pointers and nothing but meat all over.
