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A little late but it's been a busy stretch. My daughter turned 10 this year and drew a few tags for the fall break. A lot of built up excitement (mostly my own) over the years and it came and went in the blink of an eye. We started off with a southern deer and javelina hunt. Fortunate enough to have the help of my Dad and friend Nate. Opening morning started with a close call on a good buck but after watching Marissa handle the pressure and miss like a champ I knew she was going to do just fine as a young hunter. Later opening morning we had pigs bedded and the stalk was on! We closed the distance and patience paid off with a perfect heart shot that dropped her first kill ever! Watching her reaction afterwards was priceless and easily one of the greatest experiences I have ever had! We headed back to camp with her confidence sky high. It was already a successful hunt and my Mom's birthday was on Sunday in a couple days so the plan was to head home early for that. Little did I know that Saturday morning she wasn't done. We had some other close encounters and as the morning hunt dwindled, Nate spotted a spike across a canyon. We made a stalk and got above the buck who was bedded deep inside a juniper. The wind was blowing pretty strong and Marissa struggled identifying the buck. After some more patience she finally was able to pin point him. The buck was now on to us and once again, under pressure as a first time hunter, she executed a great shot and the buck went 10 yards! Another priceless moment! Fast-forward to the following weekend and we are now on her final hunt for the fall, junior cow elk. Opening morning we had some bulls talking but nothing coming in. We decided to head back to the same canyon for the evening. As we hiked in with Nate we spotted some elk moving away below us. I tried getting them to slow down by calling when Nate whispered to us to look up. Coming in to the call was a young antlerless bull. We hurried and get her setup and she was a seasoned vet at this point. The young elk dropped in it's tracks! More excitement, hugs, celebration, and the trifecta was complete. Marissa was a bit skeptical going into the season but grew confidence in abundance and learned to trust herself and appreciate the sport. From campfire talks, quad rides, watching wildlife, seeing the diversity and beauty of the outdoors, to all aspects of the actual hunt, I could see her enjoy something I've been so passionate about my whole life. Passing this on and building a future with her as hunting buddies is about the greatest feeling there is. It has been a great start and I can't wait for the memories to come.

Aurora will be after her 2nd deer this year. Wants to hold out for a nice muley most likely. Caliche will be on his first big game hunt this year. Just passed his Hunter ed course and had his first hunt 2 weeks ago killing doves. He's a natural, I'm expecting a cow down on opening morning. Got a silencer through member "Rancillio" (Matt, quiet time sports) and it has really tamed down the kids rifles. Today caliche shot a great group with his sister's 6.5 CM. Here's a few pics. The one pic of Caliche holding grass was at the field day when the instructor said "pick up the BRASS"!

The only pic I got. Time was of the essence. I'll have a cool Euro mount done by Authentic and a buffalo rug. That is the entrance wound on this side. See the horn that's broomed off. Not so easy to see, but she is laying in a nest of cats claw. I have a few new scratches.

Thanks. I would love buy the Kimber myself, but I just put that kind of $$ in a 25-06.

After my little Kembria drew tag number 100 of 100 tags for her first choice deer hunt this fall, I felt that luck was on our side. We, her big brother Draysen and I, spent a fair amount of time with her over the past few months working on target acquisition in the scope, trigger control, etc. But I would be lying if I didn't admit to being a little nervous about her first big game hunt. Desire wasn't an issue, she has been chomping at the bit for years. But unlike her big brother, I just wasn't sure how she would do. Well, yesterday we loaded up the truck and headed up north. We had a good opening morning plan to head into an area where I have consistently found bucks over the years. For her first hunt I wasn't looking for a big buck, just a decent one that would be within her range. As we rolled into camp (actually my brother-in-law’s family cabin), I got a message from a new buddy letting me know he and a friend were on a tank of a buck, but with no tag themselves, they wanted a kid to shoot it. He sent me some pictures, and my jaw dropped! We made plans to meet up very early this morning to see if we could relocate him. Within the first minutes of glassable light, we got a glimps of him just as he and his buddies were topping out and disappearing over the ridge across from us. Draysen was the first to see why they were fleeing. A group of hunters were walking up the same ridge the bucks were on right in their direction. We made a quick plan to try and get ahead of the bucks, as they were still unaware of our presence. Within 30 minutes we were ahead of them and had them feeding out in front of us at 350 yards. I got Kembria set up on the Claw/Ruger Precision 6.5 Creedmoor combo (the Claw is the original version of the Triclawps) and we continued to watch them feeding in and out of the trees waiting for a good shot. There were five bucks in the group, all well above our original expectations for the hunt. The second biggest buck in the group stepped into the opening broadside, and all of a sudden a group of deer (estimate maybe ten) busted out of the thick trees about 30 yards to our right and bolted. This caught the attention of our bachelor group of deer and I quickly became concerned they were likewise going to bolt. I said to Kembria "See that big buck in the open?" She replied "Yes!" I said, "Shoot him!" Maybe one second later, BOOM!!! Perfect 350 yard lung shot. He wasn't the biggest boy of the group (the bigger one was similar in length to the one she shot, but more mass). Nonetheless, the five of us were beside ourselves with excitement. Not a half bad opening morning buck for a little girl who just turned 10 years old two weeks ago. Pretty great day for this proud pappa! Can't thank our friends G.R. and Tanner enough for the huge assist!

So, I didn't post my sons success last year but figured now would be a good time. He's the only one that seems to be putting meat in the freezer these days. Last year with 2 points, he was lucky enough to draw an antelope tag in 30A. My wife who had 16 points was ready to kick him out of the house at that point. It took us til the last day of the hunt for him to be successful with that hunt at 200 yards away. Then the following month he took his first cow on opening day with about 30 minutes of hunting light left in the day. This years elk hunt I could see the change in him and how much he matured with this hunt over last year. We only had 2 hours in our hunting schedule left, but he was successful again. Him and I never hunted a day in our lives until I met my wife and father-in-law 8 years ago who hunted all the time. They are very big into giving thanks and respecting the animals when they're harvested which is awesome and has taught me and my son a lot. Last week when my son took his second elk of his hunting career we were walking up to her and I said make sure you give thanks. He says, "I already did before I took the shot". Made me proud. Any way, just thought I'd share the pics.

Hey there, I was up there with a friend for the antlerless hunt and can also comment on not seeing a ton of elk or sign. We had a few rough days off I think it was Rd # 7 just North of the 124. The last night we were up there we took a drive through the Perrin Ranch (part of the ranch-access program) and thought there were some good areas to glass, so we headed back in there for our last morning. We ended up seeing a herd at first light and after being in tight with them for a few hours, finally got a shot at a cow. It was tough, but we got it done on the last day! I wouldn't say where we found these elk was a real obvious spot by the looks of it, but there were a few bulls in the herd. If you're not looking for a monster, message me and I can point you to where we came across these elk.

Hi! I'm new to the forum and wanted to brag a little about my daughter's first hunt. Got herself a cute little Coues deer.

Unfortunately I do not frequent this site as much as I use to and some of you are not on social media so I thought I would share my daughters youth buck from this year with you. It is an amazing deer. If any of you are ever considering an AZ or MX outfitter I would highly recommend Steven Ward with Ward's Outfitters. This buck was the largest in a herd of 14 he put us on. It was an incredible day for a very deserving young lady. Thanks Steven!!!

Can't run cameras, can't sit water, no ATV's, gotta pay money... It sucks... And thats exactly why a lot of big bulls reside there.. And the rez just 1 fence hop away doesn't hurt either.. I was dead set against EVER paying that stupid fee. Then some buddies paid my fees to help them on their early archery hunt that they drew with 0 points.... Guess where I'm headed when I eventually draw my tag....

I hope he puts 10,000 troops down there.... Those ranges are trashed because of the illegals and we need to stop it....

Thanks for your comments and taking time to look. ctracingraptor- if you are interested in purchasing a print, there is a "buy" button in the lower right corner of these images in the Fall on the Peaks gallery on my website. https://www.plateaulightphotography.com/Landscapes/Arizona-Landscapes/Fall-on-the-Peaks-2018/

All the troops to be deployed will be support troops either way. Unfortunately that’s part of hunting near the border. Had we not had so many enemies within(liberal democrats, Rino republicans), our border wouldn’t be an issue ever. Thank them for your troubles, not Trump.

Do your part as any descent American would do. Go about on your hunt and report any illegal activities you see.

Do what ever it takes. If i had to give up a hunt for border security so be it.

Do you think 5000 troops are going to disrupt your hunt more that 14000 illegal immigrants trotting through?

God Bless him. Hoping he sends many more and halts all cross-border traffic. Plenty of other areas to hunt in 36B than just Ruby Rd.

I’m hoping for 50000 troops!

You mean the one that’s trying to make it a safer place to be?

After the fog cost her a shot! Face says it all. Saving her dog from the 5 mile hike. All in all I had still had a blast with my little girl. I love this kids tenacity.

Caliche first big game animal! Proud mom and sis! Got ber packed up and on the way to pitchfork unlimeted just in time to beat the rains. Roxy got in on the fun. Got our first taste of real rim weather.

Here is the underside of the base on the mount above. Kind of did it like it was the ceiling of a cave or something...

A custom form we built and mounted a few years ago...

Best thing I ever did with a javalina...

One my son shot years ago.