PackerMenges

Just wanted to let everyone know that there are 6 campgrounds in the Alpine District that will be closed to overnight camping this year. They are mainly campgrounds with horse corrals in unit 27. I'd hate for anyone to get ticketed for something they've been doing for years. This also set's a pretty ridiculous precedent that I would hate to see expanded to other districts and forests in the future. I suggest reaching out to the district office for more details.

If interested in a private ranch cow elk hunt in New Mexico let me know.

That ASU bandwagon must be on fire right now.....

When I pack elk quarters/meat I prefer panniers without lids. To me they're just in the way and serve no real purpose. It's easy to drop the hinds on one horse, the fronts and misc on the other, tie a couple box hitches and roll. I don't think you need to over think it much, just get what is easy and makes sense for you. If you're in the Tucson area and looking for packing equipment I have some panniers and a saddle that aren't getting used much.

I prefer these http://www.outfitterspackstation.com/utahpanniers1.html Simple and tough.

The most important thing you probably said in that was "as long as it's not too rough for my wife's barrel horse." And I say that from experience dating a barrel racer for over 2 years now. We take the horses into that unit but we know exactly where we're headed and I kind of know which trails are "barrel horse...worthy?" Ha. What Alpine said is very accurate. Just be careful, it can not only get steep, it can get narrow, rocky as heck, brushy, spooky, and if there's any weather, boggy up higher..hence bowed tendons and bad news for performance horses (and barrel racing husbands or boyfriends) in most cases. There are some great areas though, thinking beyond the rim and the blue that hold great deer and are friendlier to equine with maybe not as much rock mashing, middle of nowhere experience.

Congratulations on a great tag! As ghost said, they are spread all over the unit. It depends more on where you want to hunt, what kind of vegetation/topography you prefer to hunt in, the type of hunter you are, and your tolerance for other hunters. PM me if you would like. Good luck

Having minimal deer points I put down two hunts as my 4th and 5th choice that had leftovers last year...I came up empty in the draw so I am pretty curious to see what the leftover list looks like this year.

Went out this last weekend and put 14 miles on the boots. Found some great stuff but wanted to share these two sheds. The small is a neat little bladed out forky with eye guard, in some circles considered a micro. The other scores just over 70". Update:3/14/2017 Was able to make it out again this past weekend and found some more sheds. The big mulies are dropping, found a fresh set and 2 large fresh singles. Also found last years shed from the same deer the original post was based around.

no

All I know for sure is that it is a big, unique shed worthy of hauling all day, which we rarely do on older whites. Our mission that day wasn't to seek out sheds as much as it was to get to a particular spot. The primary quest now is pretty much going to be based around that shed and figuring out what is going on in that area in terms of genetics. Hopefully I can add to this story in the near future.

Congratulations on the move! If I were in your shoes I would prioritize my draw choices by where I want to hunt more. Sounds generic, but the 36's and 34B are all possible to draw. There's some time between now and the draw, i would allocate a few days to do some exploring and figure out which unit appeals to you and go from there.

There were 13 rifle hunts in 2016 during the period you've stated you can hunt. My answer assumes you're applying as an out of state resident and have zero bonus points. Based on last year, the odds for this scenario were 100% for 32, 35A, 36A, and 36B. From there, the odds get tougher. So it just depends on what the priorities are. 33 is at 34% draw odds for you. Good luck, pm me if you have any other questions!

Obama locking up over 500 million acres of public land is what bothers me. A state deciding to sell a little piece here and there pales in comparison to the damage done by this President and his pen. There is a huge difference between fear of something happening vs what is actually happening.

Just to add a little wrinkle to the thread here...imo, if g&f wanted to truly micro manage the herd in 27, they could split the unit into 3 or 4 different sub-units. It is also of my opinion that to be consistently successful in unit 27, it takes a lot more than having strategically placed game cameras. Yes they can aid in locating bulls but I would venture to guess that camera finds equate to less than 10% of the big bulls killed on the late hunt with that correlation getting only slightly stronger for the early hunts. My reasoning is that once you start plugging in the x factors that effect an outcome, they simply begin to diminish any strong advantage a camera equates to... especially in this unit.

They were on fire in 4A this morning.

My Top 3 in Tucson Rosa's Mi Nidito Little Mexico

That is really awesome! We're you able to bring them home? Thanks for sharing!

I remember the first time my buddy and I stepped foot into this unit we walked up a ridge and found just under 20 sheds on it in two days of prowling around. From that moment on I knew this place was something special and I had a new place to hunt. The better news is that it is in a unit that has about a 50% draw rate so I wouldn't have to play the odds for long. I was fortunate enough to pull the tag this year, second year of putting in for it 1st choice. In my mind, "Any Elk" meant "Any Elk with Antlers" right from the get go. I knew there were bulls in this area and while there are some giants, they are few and far between. I just wanted a bull and knew I had to do some homework to pull it off. My finace' and I hiked into the area this summer to do our little bit of scouting and research. I ranged all my points, getting potential yardages and finding the best vantage points. Finding water sources was key in figuring out patterns and why these bulls did what they did. The area is nothing but a boulder pile with extreme cover and deep pockets, elk paradise. I figured the potential longest shot would be just under 850 yards, better have a gun to handle it. As the hunt was getting closer I decided to utilize a Western Precision Rifle built by Brent Jacob out of southeast AZ. I have been around the rifles for a few years, working with DC Outfitters on their late bull hunts. I knew the capabilities of the guns and I knew they would not let me down if I did in fact end up having to take a long range shot. We did no other scouting besides that one trip in during the summer, either the elk would be there or they would not. I was a bit nervous leading up to the hunt as the weather had been pretty warm and a ranch near there had shut down all hunting for the year, so there was no pressure to push those bulls into their winter range, which this was. The other thing I was paying attention to was the moon, full while I would be there...not really desireable. Despite the fact that this hunt lasts a month, I had to get in early due to work schedules and what not so I was at the mercy of the elk gods on this one. With the hunt starting Friday I decided I would leave home on Wednesday morning, this would give me that evening plus Thursday to do some scouting. On my way in I stopped at an intersection to stretch and I look up and boom!! There is an bull elk bedded in the rd! This is a great sign and after a long day of driving I am pumped to get into the "good stuff" just a ways away. I arrive at about 3:30 pm and hike to the top of a small knoll facing south to glass for the rest of the evening. I see no elk, bummer. But, I did glass a deadhead...it was so late when I spotted it I decided I would get it midday Thursday. Time to get back to camp and get it set up. My hunting buddy showed up that night and we knew where we would be glassing from in the morning and also made it a point to plan our day around the deadhead. We awoke Thursday morning at 4 am and trudged our way through boulders, brush, and cactus to get to our first glassing point. The moon helped light the path and we made it just on time...to glass, and glass, and glass, and see nothing. About 10 am we decided to rim around and see if we could cut any sign in what I thought would be the best area within this range. One track, big..but only one fresh track. We decide at this point to go get the deadhead and head back to camp and regroup. Turns out to be a heck of a deadhead, old heavy 8x6. His right is chewed up but all in all I am jacked to find this. We took turns hauling it back the 3 miles to camp. That is my buddy taking his turn packing it, he is 6'1'', gives you some idea of how big it is. That afternoon we decided to drive down to a spring in a canyon we had glassed from up high. On our way down we notice there are elk tracks in the road so things are looking up. We get to the spring and there are some elk tracks, fresh elk tracks at that. We decided to go a round about way back to the 4 wheeler. We get about 50 yards from the water and sure enough a bull elk jumps out not 10 yds in front us! Perfect, this is what we need. We hastily back our way out of there and hope we didnt disturb it enough to push that elk or any others that might of been there out. We spend the rest of the day checking a few other things out but at this point we know where and how we are going to hunt opening morning the next day. Opening morning, alarm goes off at 3am, time to roll. We have a heck of jaunt up a steep face to get to a bluff overlooking the spring. We get there at 5 am under moonlight and as quietly as possible. We settle in and wait for first light, listening and taking in the majesty of big country under a full moon. First light comes and we are hearing a rock roll under us to the left every so often. Neither of us can get eyes on anything. It starts to get cold, my buddy is shivering like crazy and I am getting frustrated cause we are not seeing anything. Finally, there is an elk...a good elk...a one horned elk! Dangit! Not the one for me. Keep glassing, there has to be more, we hope. 10 minutes go by and sure enough my buddy glasses two bulls under us on the same slope! They are rag horns though, opening morning I can be a little picky! These little bulls head straight for the one horned bull across the canyon. Nothing happens for awhile, we are watching those elk and glassing for others. At one point I am watching the bigger one horned bull and he stops and looks south down the canyon...hmmm. I pan to the left and not a 1/4 mile down here comes two more bulls! Another small 3 pt and a decent 6x7...I try not to get too excited. He is palmated on the right, isnt a monster, but he is a good bull. He is just under 900 yds away when I spot him and they are moving to the other bulls we were watching. We decide to be patient, the elk arent nervous and we are in a great spot to keep watching and hopefully bed them...this gives me time to make up my mind. Shoot a bull on opening day, or try to hold out for a bigger one? This is a limited opp hunt so there aren't supposed to be options like this, especially on the first morning! Well, I decide he is exactly what I am after and I would be proud to harvest him if my rifle functions, if I dont flinch, and if I hit him. He beds at 748 yds, the Western Precision Rifle will have no problems at that range. But, the bush in front of the bull will cause some problems so I have to wait. Well we waited a long time on opening day but I ended up punching him at the 750 yd range and a final round at 300 yds. The rifle performed perfectly and everything came together nicely. It was a great hunt and I am blessed to have great friends and a great fiance' that helped make this all come together. Thanks for taking the time and best of luck in the woods and all your other paths!

In honor of the regs coming out today I thought I would share this gem I found a couple weeks ago while up scouting in eastern az. Decent Buck, eye guards chewed off. Good luck, everyone!

I'm one for my last sixteen but this year is unusually epic since I not only got drawn but seven of my friends pulled tags as well. I'm a b of a guy and though I know this bank sucks for many reasons it has never done me wrong. I wish everyone the best and I hope we are all as successful as the draw has been.

haha, glad to hear it m77. I completely agree. Crazy world we live in right now. Good luck to you, sir! Thanks for a great post that really got the juices flowing..ha.

This is almost insulting. From your first post to your follow up comments of us not being open minded enough and there not being economics in it for the hunter. Surely you are being sarcastic... No one in their right mind can say there are no economics in hunting. There are vast amounts of money, budgeting, investing, and other practices that all fall under the realm of economics in hunting. From the hunter who hunts the game, to the agency who "manages" the game, economics is a major driving force that either allows us to hunt, or not. Open Minded enough? You have to be either ignorant or not live here to see the effects of getting the federal govt involved with not only managing species of animals but managing the lands. The negative results are astounding and numerous. Many threads before this point out reasons not to get the federal govt involved. Bottom line, this idea is horrible. Either you don't know what you are saying or you are enjoying watching the thread light up. I really hope for your sake, it is the latter. Way to get the fire started though. I do believe those of us that love the outdoors need to continue to be vigilant in making sure this particular scenario is never even close to becoming a reality. The ESA is bad enough and in my personal opinion, needs to be scrapped, based on "economics."

Yes, thanks a bunch.