The Deer Lick

A Note from Wayne --

Wow! I'm loving this retirement (from my "real" job). And they didn't think I would adjust! Actually I've always felt that guiding people in the great outdoors; and helping landowners and deer hunters with their deer management needs, was my real job. And now I'm doing it full-time!

As I look ahead through 2009 I want to offer our clients as many opportunities as possible. And those events fill the calendar nicely. Starting in April the rainbow run in the Finger Lakes tributaries will be the highlight of the month and there are plenty of opportunities to book with us for some exciting fishing. Grout Brook (Skaneateles Lake) and Dutch Hollow Brook (Owasco Lake) are my favorites and I have special holes I would like to take you to for those fat lake-run rainbows!

Of course we set aside most of the month of May for wild turkey hunting; a Deer Lick specialty. Those cool early mornings, with turkeys gobbling in the half-light before dawn, turn into warm late mornings when the woods are at their prettiest and those big toms are really "showing off". There are always multiple gobblers on every ridge. Don't be surprised if we stand in one spot and hear gobblers in six different directions! That happens every year! Whether you are a novice or a veteran, you are sure to enjoy a hunt in some of the most beautiful countryside New York State has to offer. Two or three day hunts are suggested to up your enjoyment and odds of success.

And it's not too early to book a canoe drift trip on West Canada Creek or the Black River for trout; or the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers for smallmouth bass. June and July are usually a good time for the trout floats; with August and September being the best months for smallmouth. Eager fishermen and women are already signing up for these drift trips!

The Deer Lick finishes the year with a couple of weeks of fall turkey hunting, starting October 1st. Fall (flock) hunting is so much different than spring gobbler hunting, but can be just as much fun. We locate and scatter large flocks and then call the young birds and hens back to us.

Deer management seminars and presentations continue to keep me busy. Call us if you have thought about managing your property for bigger bucks and a better deer herd.

Enjoy the woods and water. And be safe!

Wayne