Deer Hunting

Black rifles are called black rifles because most of them black. (Duh!) Most of the time, if you are looking at a black rifle, it will be chambered for .223 caliber. I would rather have a .308, but a .223 can be used for deer hunting. Although a little light for deer, this caliber is legal to hunt with and will dispatch a deer easily if the shot is on the mark. The only stipulation is that if you are going to hunt with one of these rifles you must have no more than a 10-round magazine.

It looks like deer hunting weather has finally arrived. Now you don't have to worry too much about trying to harvest an animal in the evening. The only real concern now is the abundance of coyotes that might find the carcass before you do. If we get that first hard frost in the near future, the hemorraghic fever, or blue tongue, problem will end. I still hear stories about folks finding deer that have succumbed to this disease....

Deer season has been open for two weeks, and I haven't been hunting yet. I have been to the woods with permission to hunt the spot I was looking at and placed my blind. However, I haven't sat in it to see what would come by. There are quite a few hardwoods in that spot, and not many more in that particular area. To my mind, that means that I will be hunting in the cafeteria. One reason I haven't hunted, of course, is the heat. I always have a problem when I'm thinking, 'Now if I shoot this deer, how am I going to get it taken care of so as not to spoil the meat?

The youth-only firearms deer hunting weekend is Oct. 10-11, and I'm kind of looking forward to it. If everything goes right, I will have my grandson in the blind just waiting for his first deer. However, there is some range work that will have to be done before that weekend. Everyone should check the zero on their firearms to be sure that the rifle or shotgun with slugs will hit where it is aimed. So far my grandson has yet to fire his deer rifle, but it will be done before the youth season opens.

FRANKFORT - The 2005-06 deer hunting seasons and zones have been set by the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission. The commission also expanded equipment use to allow crossbows during the full archery season at its quarterly meeting last week. The seasons: Archery/crossbow: Sept. 3-Jan. 16. Early muzzleloader: Zones 1-3 (either sex) and Zone 4 (antlered only), Oct. 15-16. Late muzzleloader: Either sex, Dec. 10-18. Modern firearms: Zones 1-2 (either sex)

BUENA VISTA - Investigation continues after authorities dicovered an indoor marijuana growing operation Saturday in Garrard County. Sheriff Ronnie Wardrip said officers from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources were checking on a game violation related to deer hunting at 410 High Bridge Road. Wardrip said as they knocked on the door, officers looked down and saw a large bag of marijuana on the front porch. Deputy Sheriffs Willie Skeen and Dave Amon responded.

LIBERTY -Authorities are investigating a shooting that caused the death of a teenager Monday night on Hurricane Ridge Road, 14 miles east of here. Joshua Mullins, 18, of Yosemite was pronounced dead at 11:15 p.m. at the scene by Casey Coroner Tommy Clark. Mullins apparently died of a gunshot wound to the lower back and hip area, according to Clark. The death was caused by a .306-caliber rifle, used for deer hunting, that apparently went off as Mullins attempted to get out of a car driven by Chris Carman of Danville, according to state police Detective George Atwood.

LIBERTY - A Yosemite man has been indicted in the shooting death of a Casey County teenager, court records show. Troy S. Carman, 37, was indicted by a grand jury Monday on a reckless homicide charge in the Nov. 24 shooting death of 18-year-old Joshua A. Mullins of Yosemite. Mullins died of a gunshot wound to the lower back and hip area, according to Casey County Coroner Tommy Clark. The death was caused by a .306-caliber rifle, used for deer hunting. The gun reportedly went off when Mullins attempted to get out of a car driven by Chris Carman of Danville, according to a report by state police Detective George Atwood.

LIBERTY — The body of a Casey County man was discovered by his friends Thursday after his gun apparently accidentally discharged while he was hunting deer. Casey County Coroner Tommy Clark was called to 249 Sharp Road, about six miles northwest of Liberty off Ky. 49, at 12:45 p.m. and later pronounced Antonio Hernandez, 19, dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. According to Kentucky State Police, Hernandez left the residence Wednesday evening to go deer hunting and did not return home.

Mark Anthony Snyder, 21, of Waynesburg, passed away Monday, May 22, in Danville.   Born June 30, 1990, in Stanford, Mark was the son of Tony and Jeanna Ann Douglas Snyder of Waynesburg. He was a graduate of Lincoln County High School, an employee of Deco Art in Stanford and a member of Mt. Hebron Baptist Church. Mark enjoyed fishing, four wheeling, deer hunting and working on his old truck. Other survivors include his maternal grandmother, Frances Brown of Stanford; maternal grandfather, Johnny Douglas of Stanford; paternal grandmother, Bessie Snyder; aunt, Lisa (Jerry)

LEXINGTON - A Lincoln County man is in critical condition again after two weeks of steady progress recovering from injuries suffered in a fall from a tree stand while deer hunting. Rita Noe said her husband, Kinney, underwent two surgeries this weekend at University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center in Lexington because his abdominal wounds were not healing correctly. The doctors are now trying to prevent intestinal complications and more surgeries likely will be necessary in the future.

LIBERTY — The body of a Casey County man was discovered by his friends Thursday after his gun apparently accidentally discharged while he was hunting deer. Casey County Coroner Tommy Clark was called to 249 Sharp Road, about six miles northwest of Liberty off Ky. 49, at 12:45 p.m. and later pronounced Antonio Hernandez, 19, dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. According to Kentucky State Police, Hernandez left the residence Wednesday evening to go deer hunting and did not return home.

The winter muzzleloader season started Dec. 11. Those that are willing to brave the colder weather should get their smoke poles ready and get out there. The lull between center-fire and muzzleloader season should have let the deer relax a little bit from the encroachment on their living area by we bunch of gun hunters. Anyway, that is what most of us are hoping anyway.  I was invited back to a friend’s farm to hunt yesterday. I won’t be able to tell you whether I went or not until next week.

Last Saturday, I decided to try deer hunting for the first time. I’m not joking. Me, camouflage gear, the great outdoors: it’s all true, so you can stop laughing now. I really don't know what came over me, but when my boyfriend Brandon said he wanted to spend the day hunting, I had visions of beautiful scenery and crisp fall air. The next thing I knew, I said I was going, too. Brandon: “You really don't have...

If you are a dedicated gun hunter for deer, your last chance with a center-fire rifle is today. There is a week of muzzleloader season left Dec. 11-19, but this is the last day of modern gun season. For those of us who still hunt with a bow, the season goes well into the new year, ending Jan. 17. I’m being told by several people that they are not seeing any deer, but they are seeing all kinds of turkeys. I also heard some turkeys the last time I went deer hunting. It seems our feathered friends are multiplying at a rapid rate.

I did venture forth last Saturday to go deer hunting at the invitation of a friend. This friend has a farm in Lincoln County, and I told him that I might take a doe if one presented itself. As luck would have it, I didn’t see anything that morning, but since I was not the only person hunting, I went back to the trailer my friend owns and waited for the others to come back in. I met one man coming down the hill on the way back to the trailer, and we then waited at the trailer for others to show up. I had heard several shots that seemed close, so I was anticipating that someone had gotten something.

I would like to thank the young men who helped me with a deer I had downed last weekend. They took care of the animal for me, and I really didn’t have to do anything. I just can’t thank them enough. One of these men “somewhat” volunteered to field-dress the animal for me, so I handed him a knife. He and the other one even tossed the animal up onto the bed of my utility-terrain vehicle when the field-dressing chore was done. While I could have field-dressed the animal myself with some difficulty, getting it onto the UTV would have been a real challenge.

Black rifles are called black rifles because most of them black. (Duh!) Most of the time, if you are looking at a black rifle, it will be chambered for .223 caliber. I would rather have a .308, but a .223 can be used for deer hunting. Although a little light for deer, this caliber is legal to hunt with and will dispatch a deer easily if the shot is on the mark. The only stipulation is that if you are going to hunt with one of these rifles you must have no more than a 10-round magazine.

The muzzleloading weekend for deer passed me by. I had intended to go on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 17), but my grandson opted to not go so I decided to let it go on by, too. I guess I could have hunted Sunday morning, but because I had to work that afternoon I also let that day go by. A friend had offered to let me take my grandson to his place and hunt out of a blind, but things didn't turn out the way I wanted them to. Besides, it was...