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Every year near the end of the hunt I force myself to make peace with the fact it's not going to happen. It's not something I relish but time is running out so it's really just a coping mechanism. By the beginning of week 3 the forecast is looking sketchy so I decide there's only 2 days left to hunt to avoid bad weather on the way home. My neighbors and I have also been debating if it's better sitting in one stand the entire time or keep moving. Now that we have game cams it's frustrating to know you were in one stand and deer walked by another which is what happens too many times, so I've been waiting it out in the stand with all the action this year (now called the coati stand) under the theory one will walk by eventually. However I'm bored to death looking at the same scenery so I break with my new strategy and decide to try the other stand for the last few sits despite low deer activity. On Monday morning 1/18 (day 15) I'm back in the other stand not expecting much so my mind turns to the trip home. I took a javi this year which was a goal but coues will have to wait yet again. I'm looking at the weather forecast trying to figure out if I want to leave tomorrow night or Wed morning when I hear something. I slip the phone into my pocket and grab my bow. And just like that it's a buck and he's headed right down the primary trail that will be a 12 yard chip shot. I get to full draw right before he hits the shooting lane and not sure if he heard me or decides to change course but he stops, and then makes a hard right turn. I have to ease down to 1/4 draw trying not to spook him then he starts walking at a good clip so I'm back to full draw. But now he's moving too fast to try and hit a gap between the trees so I bleat to stop him. This is a very risky move, but for some reason he doesn't look at me, he just stops. Oh yeah, he's in rut mode. It's a 15 yd shot and based on past experience I aim low, but he doesn't duck so it looks like low hit in the chest, just behind the heart. He trots off like nothing happened. I know it's fatal, but I'm not taking any chances so I get down and look at the arrow which is stuck in the ground. White hairs confirm a low hit likely just 1 lung, which can make tracking difficult. I force myself to get back in the tree and wait an hour, which feels like the longest hour in my life. After that I take down the stand, realizing either he's dead or I'm done. Then I nervously take up the track. I don't see any blood but I'm not sure of the exact path as it's been almost 90 minutes. I went about 30 yards still not seeing any blood when I'm started by movement as he tries to get up 20 yards further away. Another arrow and it's all over. I hate less than perfect shots but waiting ensured it wasn't prolonged any further and a potential loss. Holy crap I finally did it, one of the biggest coues I've seen, a wall hanger for sure! Everything I hoped for! Funny how success after that much effort can be almost anti-climatic, but I was happy and the work ahead was satisfying. I want to sincerely thank everyone here who help me figure this out, and those who offered words of encouragement. This was by far the most challenging critter I've hunted, and will be my most cherished trophy. I can chase much bigger bucks back home anytime, but you guys have something way more special to hunt. Only those who have experienced it will really know just how special these little deer are.

You were born in 2048?

Last 3 times out chasing bucks with the bow seen yotes chasing deer. So since i suck at bow hunting we decided to try some yotes. My 16 yr old got em.

They put that on there so you can be assured of being drawn for bighorn before your license expires.

Well after about 2 days of nonstop snow we’re up to about 25-30” on our property at around 6000’ elevation in the mountains south of Prescott. im no expert on the subject, but from what I’ve read winter snow does more good than later rains, as the slow melt of the snow allows for much more of the snow to be soaked up into the ground and stored by plants. Not to mention the melt from the higher snow on the peaks will keep creeks running and riparian areas green for far longer than a little rain will. Sure rain is always a good thing (at least in Az), but this snow is the best thing that could’ve happened to us after a couple long dry summers. at least that’s what I’m telling myself now so I don’t get too PO’d while digging out my truck to go to work.

Day 4. Great faith in day 4. the Golden Child(T's daughter who has more luck than any 1 human being should have) showed up last night. Today will be good. Morning- right off we spot 1 ram and 3 ewes. of course they are on a sky island at 1600 yds. HARD pass. Afternoon- wind STILL SUCKS!!!!!! So maybe she's not all that goldden after all. We start heading back down the mountain. Over a little rise at teh bottom of the ridge and "STOP!" T yells there's barbary ram at that water hole! We BAIL out of the sxs (I grab my gun) and T is down off the side prone. I yell out 530yds and he says "on it!". Fires. HIT!(sort of) and off the dang thing runs... This time I don't just watch though. I shoot and mr barbary takes a flop. Jumps up and flops back and rolls off the hill a bit. I was certian I missed and the ram was down from T's shot. We gather everything up and head down. He calls me over to have a look and tells me we need to figure out who's ram it is. I said, "well it's yours". It was a no brainer. He saw it, he shot it first and it was his. He disagreed. We ran back through the shot sequence and he AND his daughter made a very persuasive argument that it was MY ram. The Ram was shot twice. Turns out T shot it in the lower front lip and busted its lower jaw and front lower teeth. T is actually a VERY good shot but just had a monkey on this trip for some reason. I had NEVER seen him miss before this trip. Based on how the second shot completely disabled him, they convinced me I should have the ram. I graciously accepted and quite honestly almost cried at his selflessness. Yes, my friend just GAVE me a 30 inch ram that he could have rightfully claimed and NOBODY would have been upset. This entire experience was amazing and truly a TEAM effort. easiest pack out EVER the team

Funny but they kinda ripped off this guys video from the start of the pandemic

OK, back to the hunting. My new friends and I discussed the real challenge with hunting coues out of tree stands is burn out. It's hard to keep a positive attitude when you haven't seen a deer in days, then to be ready when one appears is another ballgame. In the past I only had 7-8 days to hunt so felt compelled to grind it out no matter what. My hope was to shoot one early then explore new country but that never happened. Most days I'd come back for lunch then go back out, which is a lot of work. Otherwise I'd pull an all dayer. But now I had 3 weeks, no need to push that hard. So at the end of the first week I decide to go check out new country and refresh my spirits. Besides, I also had a javelina tag so I took the afternoon off and went to an area that might have them. I went up a hill to glass and saw 8 coues does come out of a creek bottom. Despite the date (1/11) no bucks ever materialized so where's the rut? But that gave me the idea to go check it out. It was about an hour till dark and on the way back to the truck so off I went. When I got down there I got a whiff of skunk, hey that brings back memories. But then I thought, why would a skunk spray here, and now? Then the light bulb went off, this could be javis. So I worked my way upwind. I found it fascinating to be stalking by smell like a coyote. Suddenly I hit a wall of stink. Man, I don't think they smell this bad. Three steps later I round a bush and jump a big boar. He runs about 10 yards then stops and woofs at me. I know they have bad eyesight but this was ridiculous. I'm in the open. So I take a few steps, his head pops up and woof! I stand still for 30 seconds and he goes back to shredding some plant. I move closer draw and try to shoot several times, but he never gave me a clear shot. Eventually he walks further away. Since I was on the opposite side of the creek I jumped down and started rock hopping. As I tried to get further downwind I came across one bedded, which turned into a stare off. Eventually it got up and wandered away and then it turned into shooting gallery. Javis were moving up and down the far bank so I got the the edge and waited. Two little ones run by and all I can see over the bank are floppy ears, that made me laugh. Too low, need more height. I found a rock that would give me more elevation and a decent sized javi comes by. It's not the boar but the light is fading. As I drew it turned quartering towards me but I know what my setup is capable of. To me I was shooting giant woodchuck so put my aim right on it's front shoulder. The arrow flew true and it piles up after 10 yards, by the time I got there it was stone dead. Wohoo, my first javi! Broke the front leg going in and poked out just behind the last off side rib. Perfect! That attests to the power of EFOC weighted arrows. So now the fun starts, what was that I read about field dressing these things? I really wanted to get one to eat it, just like shooting a recurve I enjoy a challenge in the kitchen. What was odd is this sow didn't stink at all, so was it the boar that reeked? I took my time with the gutless method. When I got done and looked at what I had for meat I was like wow, these really are a big woodchuck. The next day I fried up a piece of backstrap. It smelled normal and it tasted great. If anything it was very mild. I was happy, and my hunting mojo was back to 100%. The story continues...

This Tom won the last race we had with him , but today we came out on top. My pup in the first picture at the tree did phenomenal and Dogs in general kicked butt! Pack out was the best we have ever had and the best part about it is bc777 fines are about paid off. Got to give a shout out to Tyler and my crew for always going hard and making it happen. Thanks guys !

This is long overdue, but I wanted to share some adventures we had this last year in the Elk woods. My father in law and my buddy both had tags in different units so I put together a 2 part series of the days I was able to get out with them. We had a blast and it is fun to archive these memories by making these videos. It was a TOUGH HUNT!!! Poor rut activity, hot, dry! But, against the odds, my Father-in-law ended up getting it done with his Benjamin Air Bow at about 45 yards on the second week of the hunt. He didn't realize this bull was broken up but was very pleased nonetheless! Those airbows are unbelievable for those with a cross bow tag!!!

No, you can not buy tags online as of now. I heard that Az might venture into digital tags. It's nice to buy your license online so that it automatically populates your license info on your apps. The portal system I have 0 problems with but do agree it could be streamlined significantly. Sidenote* Anyone else remember the days of calling 602-942-3000 over and over and over trying to get thru to see if you were drawn. I can remember as a kid dialing and dialing and dialing.

So were we. The shot was about as perfect as could be (no shortage of humility here 🤣). Took out the heart cleanly. Draysen, my son, bought me a pack of Vortex mechanicals (Steve Ward's broadheads) for Christmas. I had heard great things and had been wanting to try them for a while. Extremely impressed so far! I've shot two animals now with them, the lion and a javelina a few weeks ago. The javelina died crazy fast! I saw the herd on a ridge and did a circle around them to get in front of the slow moving herd, and to get the wind perfect. I had this really old boar walk into 5 yards before he cleared a bush and I shot him. He took about a half step backwards after the hit and fell over dead within 6 inches of where I hit him, Crazy! Exit hole on the lion.

LOL, you've got me! I've still got more pictures, a longer video, and some cool skull cleaning pictures using a new technique suggested by Heather of Wild Heritage Taxidermy fame. They are doing my mount. So keep the votes coming...

Elk feed on these a lot after the monsoon in late August, but didn't see many last year with the lack of rain. BTW, the leaves on this plant can be used to insulate your shoes or even added for padding if you have a boot blowout in the woods.

+1 on winter snow/rain!! For me, one of the primary drivers of my interest in 2-3 good winter/spring storms each year is QUAIL! A couple of well timed 'soakers' like we have received in the past few days will absolutely make a direct impact on the Gambel's population next fall. With only a couple of weekends left in this year's season, I'm still seeing lots of birds and big coveys in my usual honey holes. With this storm (and hopefully 1-2 more in the coming months), next year's Gambel's quail season should be another great one! S.

Snow is always the best for winter moisture! It sure has been good to see this storm hit. We sure need it.i just hope we get a few more storms of something..ill take any moisture at this point.

So all that fun was just the first week! I started seeing a few deer again so I dropped by my neighbor to find out how he was doing - his response was 2 does and 12 illegals! He was not happy. The illegals walked 30 yds behind his tree stand all wearing cheap Walmart camo, but they never saw him. I thought they mainly moved at night but this was around 1 in the afternoon. He figured since they were different sizes and not all were carrying backpacks they weren't drug importers, but they were still moving like they had some place to be. He tried to call border patrol but never was able to find a live person. I also found this recently occupied site near where I shot the javi. I'm guessing a pickup was nearby. Pretty sure I didn't scare them off as I would have heard something. When I first came here 5 years ago there was a lot of illegal activity in the Santa Ritas, then it seemed to wane but the locals tell me there's a lot more now. I remember the first time I found this killer deer trail, only to realize it was an illegal trail. I finally saw my first buck, a little 3x3. He came in to check out 2 does and and I almost made it to full draw before he decided to follow the does that he just ran off. This was a positive sign and the first indication of the rut. The next day I had a spork (1x2) come by and give me every possible shot opportunity, but I respectfully declined. Didn't think it was possible but that was one ugly coues. While spork is off to my left still trying to tempt me a big coati walks up to my stand, nose in the air. He's looking my direction which had me baffled, then it got even more interesting when he decided to join me in the tree. So here I am waving my right hand by my hip to keep the coati from coming up the last 2 feet while trying not to spook the spork on my other side. The coati is looking at me like why are you not following the program? Then I realized yesterday I put the crust of my PB&J sandwich in a hollow, rather than toss on the ground under the impression I was feeding the birds. It was cleaned out this morning so I put in a refill. Turns out coati love PB&J as much as I do for breakfast. Great, now the coati associates me with food. Eventually the spork walks off leaving just me and the coati to fight it out, who's now back on the ground staring at me. Figuring it best I tossed the crust down to him, which he happily ate. Then he tried a different approach to climb the tree again. Some stern arm waving on my part convinced it the feast was over. Dang, I'm like Dr Doolittle with everything living out there. Hold on it's not over yet...

and now....the REST of the story.... DAAAAAY 1... Beautiful day. Off and on rain with nominal wind right off the bat we find 4 sheep(3 ewes and a small ram) at 650yds. T asks if I want them and I say "heck ya I'll shoot a small ram". I wander back to the sxs to get my rifle and take a leak so I can set up for the shot and "They're gone!" says T. They saw us at 650 at RAN. Lesson 1 learned. These are NOT coues deer. If anywhere within 800 yds they can see you, they run. FOREVER. You WILL NOT FIND THEM if you chase(had to learn this MANY times). Noon- another group of 7 ewes this time down in the canyon moving. They don't see us. Ran like mad to get in front of them. 250yds and heading over the last ridge. Can't find them in the scope and T does not want to shoot a ewe. They see and run. They're gone. Evening. Driving back to a nice little canyon that nobody else has been in. We jump a HUGE( HUUUUUGE) ram. T jumps out and sets up. I range at 280 yds. T is prone and ready . SHOT.......... miss. He friggin MISSED. Ram moves 15 more yds and stands there. T is all discombobulated and can't get back on him. My rifle is still in the sxs(lesson #2 learned). He runs. FOREVER We chase and bump TWO more rams and 2 ewes. Over the ridge and they are GONE. Very "educational" day

No point in applying for elk. Save your points . I’ll take the bullet and apply and hopefully get any “crummy year”tags so no one else has to hunt weak antlered animals. No need to thank me.

This is from my Berger manual. Mine is dated 2012, so not sure if there's more recent data or not.

H4350 works really really well in the 300WSM.

I purchased two Silencer Co Harvesters last year. Both are .308 cans with two direct thread adapters that the wife and I use on everything from .223 ARs all the way up. I threaded everything but a few rifles that I just don't want to ruin the aesthetics of. What I did was re-zero everything with the suppressor on it, that way I know I am ready to go, just have to screw the suppressor on whatever I am shooting at the time. Since getting the suppressors I haven't shot anything without it and neither will you. They just make shooting much more pleasant. I know there are probably better ones out there but I have been very happy with the Harvesters. Here is the wife and I doubling up on Coyotes last weekend. First one came in at about the 5 min mark and the 2nd at about 7 min. Shot one and just kept calling. 2nd one had no idea a gun had even been fired.

Brothers Garon and Cole both drew the Late Bull tag and decided to hunt with the AZ Ground Pounders Outfitters. The first morning the decision paid off for the first time. Cash glassed a giant non typical triple brow bull. Cole waited for the bull to stand up and when the bull did Cole made his shot count. The bull scores 402 inches and has almost 70 inches of mass!! Congrats to Cole on an absolute stud bull! Two days later the Ground Pounders struck again this time for Garon. Levi glassed a giant typical bull with a huge drop tine front. Garon made an incredible shot on the bull. Garon's bull scores 397 inches and has a 26 plus inch front. What a weekend of Late Bull hunting! The AZ Ground Pounders Outfitters want to thank Garon Sr for choosing the Ground Pounders Crew for Garon and Cole's hunt. We look forward to hunting with you guys again! View the full article