About


PAT SALERNO SR.

I have worked for Grand Union as a Produce Manager for over thirty years. I'm now employed seasonally at the Basin Harbor Club in Vergennes, Vermont. I really enjoy my part-time job as a Greenskeeper and get done early enough to enjoy the Adirondack Mountains with my boys.

I was signed right out of high school by the Brooklyn Dodgers organization and played Class B ball for the first few seasons. I ended my career playing Class A ball all over the country. I also served two years with the Army during the Korean War.

I started hunting after World War II with my brother Paul Sr., making the drive to our hunting grounds in the Adirondacks. My first buck taken was 232 lbs. and had 10 points. I still remember it like it was yesterday. I have taken many good bucks from the Adirondacks and have passed the legacy to my sons who pursue whitetail hunting with a great passion.

I really enjoy seeing them instill all that they have learned from years of hunting experience into their hunting seasons each fall, for I have explained to them, “Do it while you’re young boys…the hills only get steeper with age!”

I feel our successes have to do with sheer determination and the will to shoot big bucks consistently each year. My sons and I really enjoy the great outdoors. I hope you enjoy our site.

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PAT SALERNO JR.

I am currently a Union Bricklayer and Tile setter, Local 2, Albany. I began hunting whitetails at the age of 12, shooting my first buck. While maturing as a whitetail hunter, I started setting my goals higher. When I became a Trophy Hunter, I passed up several bucks over the years, videoing them with a Mini-DV Digital Handycam by Sony.

Now averaging dressed weights over 200 lbs. consistently every year has become common to me. I go after only large bucks in the Adirondacks, enjoying the challenge. I hunt with a Remington 30-06 model 700 mountain rifle that has helped me bring down twenty one 200 lb+ dressed bucks in the big woods of the Adirondacks.

In the early morning, while drinking a cup of coffee, my brothers ask me, “Where can we go see a monster today?” I smile, get out a topographic map and show them. I only have to show and tell them once because I have a good track record for large bucks. I love the woods…some days, I would rather be “lost in the woods than found at home!”

The most important things I stress to young hunters are to practice shooting, look and pay attention to detail in the woods such as big rubs, scrapes, tracks and beds. Those signs can reveal if you have a “monster” in your hunting area. Get out and enjoy the outdoors. Happy hunting to all my fellow hunters!

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TONY SALERNO

I graduated from The State University of New York at Delhi with an Associates Degree in Occupational Studies. I went on to Devry Institute of Technology, Phoenix, Arizona and graduated with an Engineering Degree in Electronics. I was employed by Teledyne MEC of Silicon Valley, Palo Alto, CA – a sub contractor to the United States Govt. I worked on electronic counter measure devices for Air Force and Navy fighter jets but eventually moved back to the Adirondacks for the slower lifestyle. Now a self-employed contractor, I reside in NY State with my daughter Whitney (who will hunt someday!)

I hunt the Adirondacks of NY for predominately large mature whitetail deer. I have learned to mix the old style of hunting with the new. My father and uncle started hunting right after WW2 – before I was old enough to carry a rifle.

I was in the woods tagging along, trying to understand where the enjoyment was. It wasn’t until I was 16 that I understood what it was all about. Standing behind a tree with a 308 Remington and having a buck running directly at me, I remember stepping out from behind the large pine and eyeball-to-eyeball with a buck as scared as I was. The buck was so surprised to see me it actually started to slip in the snow putting its breaks on. I thought it was going to hit the tree!

I remembered my father always telling me to pick an opening in front of the deer and wait till it entered my sights, and at that moment squeeze the trigger. I shot that deer and 31 years later it’s still a rush.

The new style of hunting for me is using technology such as trail cameras, GPS (global positioning satellite navigation) and internet topo mapping. I’m also very fond of doe bleat cans which can make for interesting encounters with whitetail deer. All of these can help in your pursuit of big game, but the real secret of success comes down to putting one foot in front of the other and walking large tracts of land. This gives you the experience and the room to find the big bucks we all hope to see. It can be a very demanding way to hunt but necessary.

“Still-hunting” (a style of hunting slowly) with family helps to move bedded bucks that would ordinarily just wait for darkness to become active. To me, hunting with family just makes the outdoors that much more enjoyable and successful!

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