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Hadn’t seen much rut activity this Jan until a week ago. After a few days of rain I found 14 bucks all w does. Too many deer on the Mnt to even get in there and hunt one of them. Came back a week later and saw a buck stand up at 8Am w 3 does. Range was 1500 yards. Got the spotter out to check the details. 3x3=go time. Made a plan to get half way and try to relocate. From that spot I couldn’t see into the cut he was working down. I glassed one of his does and decided to close the distance to see if I would be able to see into that cut and maybe make a play. Got to the skyline of that cut with perfect wind and some cover I was able to see the buck behind an ocotillo. Range was 82 yards. I knocked an arrow and dialed the slider to 82. If he steps out I will get a chance. 1 well placed arrow and he ran for 2 seconds. Made a trip to the truck to drop all my gear and hiked back to process him and pack out. I could not be happier. I’ve been trying to do a solo spot and stalk Coues for 10 years now.

Buck scored 127 7/8

Everybody has a Rzr, Can-Am or other utv now days and the desert is covered with people. We used to have the area we hunt pretty much to ourselves and the hunting was great. This last rifle hunt, there was a camp with 15 or 16 tags and they were like cockroaches out there. Just running all over the place. Not one of them saw a deer but we found one area that looked like the Baja ran through there and found deer tracks bouncing where they had clearly jumped some bucks and didn’t see them. I know people hunting the 45 units that are notorious for avoiding people and the road hunters are out in full force this archery season. I wish we could go back to times before Covid where all these people used to be indoors 🤣

Not that simple. I think this case was wrongly decided, partially due to some poorly written law, and partially due to Nick Debaca being ratted out by the hunter. The hunter was the one who squeezed the trigger, and should have manned up and done the right thing. By the way, Marsha Petrie Sue voted against the revocation, so it was not unanimous. That should tell us something. 1. I agree, the terrain along some of the roads in 34a is such that it would be very difficult to shoot off the edge of the road unless you had practiced with shooting sticks; 2. On this hunt, Mr. Adams was apparently the guide of record, although the signed contract was probably with the company, so any of the licensed guides could have been the "official" guide; 3. There were 4 citations issued, 1- to Mr. Adams (possession of meat), 1- to Mr. Olieto (possession of meat), 1- to the hunter (shooting from a road) and 1- to Mr. Debaca (possession of scalp and antlers of unlawfully taken deer). The charges against the first two guides were dropped because the officer who issued the citation was away on military duty and therefore unable to testify. The charge against the raffle tag winner Mr. Best, was dropped or reduced as he pled guilty, but through the practice known as "diversion" implicated one of the guides, Mr. Debaca, as being partially responsible for his taking the shot from the location he did. As Mr. Debaca stated, he was not anywhere near the hunter Mr. Best, as he set up for the shot, rather he was glassing the deer from another location in anticipation of the shot. And finally, Mr. Debaca who was not the guide of record, and was primarily along to watch how the hunt would play out with an opportunity for a rifle harvest of a quality Coues buck, was issued a citation for possession. Due to "strict liability" the citation for possession had to go to someone. Additionally, Mr. Debaca got some bad advice with respect to the 180 day timeframe with respect to affirmation that AZGFD was going notify whether or not they would assume jurisdiction. He never heard one way or the other and therefor assumed there would be no revocation hearing and he would just have the misdemeanor conviction, and could continue guiding after the "1 year penalty period" which as stated by the investigator Mr. Foley, was actually a 5 year window for a prior conviction. We all know sometimes life does crappy things to us. This whole thing looks to me like a perfect storm of being in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong people, and in the gray area of the law. I have hunted with Nick Debaca. He is an excellent guide and a good man. It is shameful that got caught up and railroaded which is exactly what happened, and will result in him being unfairly penalized in numerous ways. If any of the folks involved walk away with a clear conscience, maybe they are fooling themselves. That little nagging voice might be there for a long time. Hopefully Nick Debaca can bounce back and continue with his guiding business at some point in the future, but in the meantime, let this be a word to the wise for all of us.

Smoked a tri tip then did a reverse sear. Smoked baked potatoes.

Had a good December hunt! After a couple years of tag soup we were overdue. Between work, travel, and family schedules our time was pretty limited to get out. Had a few good days with some good bucks spotted that didn’t present any shot opportunities and the warm weather didn’t help. These two had read the script and showed up at first light exactly where we had hoped to find deer. After we figured out our play and were moving closer, the herd of at least 12-15 topped out and moved onto the next ridge. Sneaking to the top to begin searching for the bucks, the herd had really spread out and all we could find were does everywhere. Finally spotted one of the bucks way down low and started setting up for the 260yd shot. My buddy spotted the other buck and we decided which one looked better and presented the best shot. Boom…dropped right there. The second buck didn’t even move after the shot and gave us time to get set up for another shot. Boom…dropped right there within about 25 yards of each other. Radioed our friends who had been helping spot for us to bring the packs and knives! They even brought a couple of cold brews from the truck to help celebrate. Nice having a youngster in the group with a strong back to help pack out too! The two of us have been hunting together for over 10 years and have had some great times and quite a few misses and servings of tag soup. First time we’ve ever even had a chance for a double together so it was really special.

heck of a shot placement for 82 yards!

I’ll take any Kaibab hunt anytime…however, I quit putting in for it as it takes too flipping long to draw even an early tag anymore. I can’t leave bonus points in my will, so I’m using them as fast as I can get them , lol

It was a tough year to be a coues hunter... managed to scrape out a decent buck, thought I would share.

It's also very unlikely that he got caught cheating the rules the very first time he did it. Quite likely there was a ton of other shady stuff happening. Same with the Wards that show up here every so often to defend their corrupt operation.

Do you know how many assholes now live in this state ?? Especially the Phx metro area. Explaines alot

The screen shot thing worked. Here’s the pics.

Rifle is in great shape, less than 100 rounds fired. Shoots sub moa with factory 143 eldx. 22" barrel threaded 5/8x24. Will come as pictured + accessories that came with the KRG Bravo. I also have a couple muzzle brakes I'll throw in if wanted. I have the original Bergara stock as well. $800 located in Flagstaff.

Hello all, I’m headed to South Africa most of the month of June 2027. I have camp completely booked the last 2 weeks of June, but I have availability’s the first 2 weeks still. If you have any interest in partaking on a safari of your own please reach out and let me know.

I'm just glad the G&F are starting to crack down on these guides.

Just throwing it out there that when a non resident applies with a resident (in this case your son is treated as a resident for cap purposes) it does NOT suck the resident into the non resident cap. There simply must be enough tags to give to both. If there is one non res tag available as well as a resident tag available when their app is pulled it will give them tags. Same thing with a non resident with a lifetime license applying with a non res without a lifetime license. The lifetime license guys is treated as a resident for cap purposes but pays non resident prices for the tag if drawn. The only thing that combines in either scenario is their bonus points averaging. Not that helps your odds much but figured I would clear up some confusion from prior posts.

Dwayne sold the business a few years ago to Richard Debaca his son-in-law. I guess Dwayne taught his son-in-law well lol

Seller is solid guy. Bought a few from him before.

Every once in a while Tombstone has Aero lowers for really cheap, stocked up on a bunch a while back. As an added bonus you get a tour of one of the worst neighborhoods in Phoenix!

If you are in the west valley I have new palmetto stripped lowers available. $40

I'm seriously thinking about north east Tennessee hopefully on a lake. You can get two deer and two turkeys every year along with the other critters. And big fish! Will see how it plays out. Good luck on the next move!

We drew the early Nov tag in southern AZ and were very fortunate to get perfect weather. Opening morning was supposed to be 25*. We made a plan to hike up and in to an area we have wanted to explore before. Without knowing how ruff this hike would be we finally made it 2 miles into where we wanted to be. We found a few deer but we were still 700+ yards from how high deer were feeding. We decided to make that climb too and get to the elevation we needed. All that work and no shooters. After considering staying put for the evening hunt we finally agreed to back out and not risk a very hard hike out in the dark that night. Turned out to be 5+ miles round trip and a ton of elevation. Sucked. Our legs were cooked for the day so for the evening hunt we decided to “take it easy” and glass closer to the truck. Go figure….That worked. My son found a decent buck at 1200 yards and we made a move to go get a closer look. That hike turned out to be just as nasty as the morning. We got to 525 yards and sat and watched him and decided I would try to take a shot. Getting settled in on the rifle my son said “wait!” There’s a better buck right there too. I located that buck and got another “wait!” Dad there’s a giant right there. I was not able to find that deer and wasted no time turning the rifle over to him. Ranged him at 535, dialed to that, Perfect shot! Unreal. So happy for him. He deserves it. He found that buck and found my buck on Sunday too. Mine went 91” and is my best buck, 715 yards. Super fun hunt. We ended up hiking 10 miles opening day. So worth it. We’ve never had an opportunity on a buck like his before. Any score guesses?

Inflation

It’s alright, when you screw up one day there will be some forum written on your petty mistake where guys are picking you apart. These are good guys, that have helped a lot of people learn and experience the outdoors. This is a petty mistake that really doesn’t matter in the grande scheme of life.

Pictures Added