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My 2018 Hunting included several firsts for me. I got my first bow and started archery shooting for the first time in September 2017 and my wife got her first bow in October. Feeling like we were shooting well enough to attempt hunting we got OTC Deer tags and on some vacation time the last two weeks of January 2018 picked an area we had seen deer in before while driving through. Since our ability to hike any real distance is limited and so far our stalking abilities suck, we found a water hole to sit to hopefully ambush a buck that might come in within our bow range. We saw quite a few deer come in, some does within 10-11 yrds from us! We both had shot opportunities at nice bucks but our inexperience along with Healthy doses of Buck Fever prevented us from connecting with only clean misses. We practiced all year and went back out to this spot on December 16. We got in and set up under a big oak about 7:15 and waited and watched, my wife just over an arms length to my right. About an hour later I saw a deer moving through the brush and trees about 70 yrds away. When it dropped into the bowl of the water hole at about 40 yrds I thought it was a doe due to limited visibility and not wanting to move enough to use my binos and spook it out in case a buck was following her in. When it went to the right past a big Juniper tree enough my wife saw it was a buck and tried to whisper "Shooter" which of course I couldn't hear but the buck did and stopped and looked straight at her. After a few moments it looked away and continued to the small water puddle back to our left. When it cleared the Juniper tree to my side I realized it was a buck not a doe. He stopped at the waters edge at 21 yrds and I released an arrow at 8:21 am. The sound of the Swhacker broad head hitting him was louder than I would have thought and seemed like it echoed! He jumped, kicked and took off tail tucked over the earthen dam of the water hole and we listened carefully and in a few moments thought we heard him crash. We forced ourselves to sit for 30 minutes before even going down to look for my arrow that I found covered in blood and buried about 6" in the ground. Following the blood trail about half way to where we found the buck down I saw motion to my left and had to run off what was either a coyote or Mexican gray wolf that looked like he was already scent tracking my buck! We found my Couse buck at about 60 yrds in a drainage double lunged. This is my first ever Deer, a Couse Whitetail and first Archery kill. He's not real big, but real Couse deer aren't big anyway!

Here’s a few trail cam pics from 2018

I just do mine online and print it. Easy as can be and no fees. Do the fees also apply to tags or just the licenses?

You can also go straight to G&F and not pay the fees. Sportsmans Warehouse only charges $2.

Price check on the isle 6 Grab the popcorn:)

https://www.buya.com/Item/Details/Honda-EU2000i-2000W-NEW-Inverter-Generator-NEW/lite/d64ef82ef60342348c4085a4c967ce46?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI15LvlIXa3wIVi-NkCh0ZzQoMEAYYBCABEgJNxvD_BwE

My 10-year old son, Evan, took this buck on Saturday 12/29/2018 on the late desert muzzy hunt. The buck was with 10 does and was running a hot one. Evan made 130 yard shot to take this mature buck for his 1st big game kill.

Guess the score on that mother humper

Thanks Kev! I would not have believed that I could have done this (getting within 500 yrds of a buck during a hunt season with a tag in my pocket!) 1 1/2 years ago! But got talked into trying archery by a guy I used to work with years ago. I'm glad I did try it! He's glad too as I shared some venison with him! Surprised the heck out of my Dad, I hadn't told him we were into archery until I sent him a picture of me and my buck. I even one upped the old man by one point bigger than the Couse buck he got a couple months before I was born 60 years ago! As to my wife of 36 1/2 years, I can't even think about trying to go hunting without her and not expect to get in hot water! Got ourselves a jeep a few years ago that helps a lot in getting closer to the areas we can't hike to. She is the one that does the hide tanning and did the skull that I have on the wall now.

SOLD

I’ve grown up hunting unit 1 and 27. Have probably honestly been on 50 bull kills in those units over the years. I am in love with them and know them very well. That being said, i wouldn’t burn 22bp’s in either unit anymore. The G&F has decimated the age class since the wallow fire exposed the population. The genetics in those units are incredible and it’s really a shame what has happened. Unit 1 is trophy managed and 27 is supposed to be opportunity managed. The problem with that is a big percentage of unit 1 bulls winter in 27, where they get slaughtered in the late hunt

Perfect way to kick off the new year! Got to our hunting spot by 9am, had two down by 11am and made it back home on time to catch some college football! This was my first Javelina kill, I've hunted them for 3 years now and was finally able to close the deal.

Thanks man. That first one has a lot good stuff. I appreciate it

Pics from last night.. I find it difficult to believe that it could be a house cat, but that's what the video is looking like. Here's some stills. Getting an arlo on the property, I hear they have great night vision. I can't tell with this camera.

Again!?!? All of your previous post are still here to see for those interested.

All, Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers- my son is home and doing ok. We're starting some follow ups next week with the Mayo Clinic and hopefully we'll find a balance.

Pick the unit you can scout the most not the one someone else likes unless they are scouting for you and telling you where to go. If you can spend a lot of time in the unit you will find deer and hopefully figure out the best places to get a shot.

theyre all road huntable to me

By a used outdoorsman. Still going to be pricey but it’s the last tripod you will need. Hunting season is only another month for the most part and you have a long period after that to save for your swaro’s.

23. No doubt. U1 is not what it used to be. Lots of late rifle tags have hurt the quality of bulls. You'll still have a fun hunt in gorgeous country, but if you're after a giant, 23.

Thank you- all of you. I have a great update too! Hes out of the seizure and resting. It turns out his fantastic nurse is married to a member of this forum, and I have no doubt that god put her there for us. Truly a blessing. This community is awesome.

A little delayed in posting this but I've been busy since getting back. Just spend a week hunting northern Wyoming with a general deer tag and any antelope tag. Having ran out of last year's Wyoming whitetail doe, this hunt was more about filling the freezer than finding a monster, but I was still aiming at taking a personal best mule deer and my first antelope buck. I drove from Colorado Springs through the night of October 4th-5th after working my three night shifts at the hospital, and on my way encountered unseasonably cold weather and a snowstorm that actually deposited a few inches on the Wyoming landscape. My first afternoon was a short one, taking time to sight in the 25-06 while getting covered in heavy, wet snow flakes before getting my hunt underway. I was expecting a friend and excellent hunter to come up and join me in a few days who had the same antelope tag that I did. Though our antelope unit was within my region for hunting mule deer, my friend did not have a deer tag and the antelope terrain was not the best for mule deer, so I focused my attention on finding a deer. Hundreds of deer filled the private fields as the shadows grew long, including a few nice whitetail bucks I would have gladly taken had they been on public land, but no mature deer showed itself on public land. I did spot two small 3 pointers on public land but decided to pass in hopes of a more mature deer. The next day was the last warm, sunny day before rain and snow were forecast to move back in. I began the day working small chunks of overlooked BLM, finding relative solitude as others road hunted and crowded into the very front of the larger sections of public land. I saw plenty of does but no bucks. I decided to walk into a chunk of public land that had two creek bottoms, one shallow and covered in cottonwoods, the other screaming buck habitat with steep hill sides covered sparsely in juniper. The original plan was to walk up the steeper bottom first, but the wind was not favorable so I opted for a long loop up the shallow creek bottom and then into and down the steeper section. After seeing seven does in the first drainage but nothing with antlers, I couldn't resist a short nap on top of the rim as it was a beautiful, mid 50 to 60 degree bluebird day. I begrudgingly awoke from my slumber, suddenly remembering I had two big game tags to fill. As I walked down the creek, I began to contemplate what my next move would be when I did a double take, seeing a deer's outline on the opposite slope of the creek bottom. Bingo. He had antlers I could identify from around 150 yards away, and a closer look through the binos told me all I needed to know- he was a shooter, monster or not. I dropped to a sitting position and touched off a shot. The buck dropped in his tracks, twitching momentarily but becoming completely still in a matter of seconds. As I walked up on my buck I was immediately thankful for the opportunity to fill my tag in good weather on a mature, healthy deer. The layer of fat on this buck was unreal. He was no monster, lacking width and depth of forks, but he was beautiful, a personal best, and would eat nicely. Two trips back to the jeep and I headed back to the motel. Our first day hunting antelope was tough. One to two inches of snow overnight left the Wyoming landscape blanketed in white- hardly ideal for spotting antelope. The high was in the mid 30s, so just enough snow melted to leave the prairie a sea of white pockets against brown. The melting snow turned the dust into a thick mud that stuck to our boots and weighed them down further with each step. Complete removal was impossible as the dead grass intertwined in our boot tread to form an adobe-like mixture of mud that might as well have been a brick on each foot. By the time we were back to the trucks, my hips hurt from carrying around cement slippers all day long and I was discouraged from the paucity of antelope on public land. The next day brought more snow, but little stuck where we chose to hunt. We consistently saw hundreds of antelope on private land, but being the second week in the season they had been shot at and pressured enough to be pushed off public parcels. Our game plan was to hoof it back into a huge chunk of BLM and state trust, hoping to find unpressed antelope in the back. Just as we crested the first major ridge away from the road and the parked trucks, Andy turned to me and said "Antelope. Crossing the road forty feet from our trucks onto public land from the private bottom." I rolled my eyes. Typical goats. A fast dip into the bottom and attempt to close the distance didnt work as two other bucks crossed the fence onto public and had us pegged. As we attempted to stay out of sight, we looked back up on the ridge we had just came from to see the first group of antelope had circled around and were now just a hundred yards from where we stood as we spotted them. They were moving but not spooked. Cutting the distance, I snuck up on the bank and rested my bipod. "330 yards" Andy whispered. I waited for the buck to clear the does. Rock steady, I squeezed the trigger and saw the buck kick as he began his run. I was confident in the shot, and he fell over less than fifty yards later. cu My first antelope was a fine, representative specimen of a mature Wyoming public land goat. I was thrilled to have punched both of my big game tags in five days and taken my first antelope, despite their contrary nature and the constant game of tag. The snow capped mountains served as a magnificent backdrop to a wonderful hunting trip and vacation from the stresses of working in an ICU. Most importantly, I had secured some prime game meat to share with family and friends and to eat over the coming months. A personal best deer and first antelope on hard pressured public land all in five days, with two well placed, clean shots. Not too shabby. Next up, a return to Arizona to chase coues deer in November. Hope you all are having an awesome hunting season!

LOL!!! Enjoy those Coots!!!