WampusCat

Good for you! Hope its not another 20 yrs before you do it again.

What a great looking deer!

Post some pics and your review. I hve been looking at that or the 7200 for a while now.

Found this and a host of other wild colored ones from greens and blues to reds on my 2012 Coues hunt.

Awesome post! Thanks for sharing. There something be said for a rifle taking a spill into the Frisco and holding zero. I enjoyed the photos , especially that spike and rifle. I am used to carrying everything on my back. Those mules look like the only way to do it. Makes me think how far a guy could get back in the Blue.

A cat will have the tell tale "W" in the back of the main pad. That picture looks like a domestic dog. Maybe another bird hunter was there?

I think I see it, but can't get a clear enough image. Mt Graham is a great place.

The trophy is the memory of that hunt. That good lookin mount is a great reminder of that memory. Glad you got it done. Looks like a trophy from here.

Keep an eye out for quality used stuff on here in the classified after hunting season. Lots of good people going different routes on optics and sellling to make room for something else. Those 10x Vipers are plenty capable until then!

Thats awesome buddy. I think those Vipers are great glass at that price point. Mine never left the truck. They dont get the "Im too scared to scratch my Swaros" treatment as my other pair, and they have held up great the last few seasons. Even when "friends" borrowed them. Glad you got some nice glass. I never had to use their warranty, but Ive heard its the best there is.

Great read! A Wyoming goat trip is on the list when I get back. Good on you for hiking in DIY and for helping those fellas out. I enjoyed the pictures as well.

Anybody out there shooting one? Would like to know your thoughts on it. Cant find much on the net about them. I have always admired the Savannah and the stealth is supposed to be a "glare free" version for hunting.

Awesome. Good for him. You are lucky to have a man like that in your family. When guys like him talk, I listen. They are literally leaking at the seams with experience and knowledge.

I'll add one more thing to the list. Once you have flipped your coin or thrown your dart and arrive out in that unit, dont write it off so quickly. Just because you dont see anything right away doesn't mean they are not there. Arizona is a tricky place and hides its animals well. Once you know what to look for you will see animals appearing out of nowhere. You have been given some freebies that I would recommend you capitalize on. Don't throw in the towel too early as that is what sets apart most of the successful hunters. All units mentioned match your description of what you are looking for. Now you just have to go get it. If you dont see anything in those units its because you quit looking.

It's a toss up between this one and the hoyt buffalo takedown. I want them for different reasons but only gonna get one.

On the original topic, for me, shot placement is a big factor in the animal dropping or running a bit. And to that, there are factors that effect where I aim. What I mean is my aiming point is different for specific situations. I grew up hunting whitetails in Kansas. There, my normal point of aim is just behind the front leg. I am hoping to puncture both lungs and maybe get a piece of heart while messing up the smallest amount of delicious corn fed venison. A mortal wound no doubt but if he doesn't do the flop, it is likely the deer will run somewhere inside of 150 yds (maybe more, almost always less). This is no worry to me as it will normally be easy to drag him a short distance to a place where I can access him in a vehicle. Minimum meat wasted, and ease of recovery are deciding factors. On the other hand, in beautiful AZ I seam to always find myself in an extremely rugged locale, an incredible distance from my truck. Here the order of the day is to drop the animal where he stands in order to prevent him from running up over the ridge, or off the edge in some cases. Essentially aiming for a high shoulder shot. These hard hitting shots seem to transfer a lot more shock/energy to the animal resulting in the proverbial "sack-o-potatoes" drop. I am willing to sacrifice a bit of shoulder meat with a different aiming point in hopes that I will not have have to chase him down into the next canyon and carry him back out that much further or risk a tumble down a slope that could damage antlers. When the terrain is cooperating the first option is the preferred. That is the biggest difference in animals running after the shot when talk east vs west for me. Not saying this is what everyone does or what anyone must do. Just my observations and your mileage may vary.

I find that turning necks, or just touching them up will reduce your Extreme Spread and Standard Deviation numbers. Normally that means less vertical in your groups and distance. I usually sort batches by neck thickness and then just barely trim enough off to make them uniform. I only remove the minimum amount needed. Doing this will help ensure consistant neck tension which is a big deal to me.

wdenike hit the nail on the head. Just convert your actual drops into mils so you can hold over accordingly at the designated madnification. I prefer aimimg center mass and will spin a turret before holding over. Being familiar with your gear (reticle in the case) just gives you an extra option if you needed to glance and your drop chart and make a quick shot without spinning turrets. Making a drop chart from actual range time will help you. Different conditions (weather, altitude, humidity, temperature) all change the point of impact. Especially at longer ranges. That is the downfall of range marked turrets and something guys like huskemaw and gunwerx dont mention when selling you a turret that seems so simple. A good ballistic program will help you but it is important to confirm those numbers with rounds on target. I prefer knowing the conditions and dialing accordingly with a normal turret. Example- My range cards for ringing steel in Yuma all summer at 200' elev. and chasing Coues in the fall at 6,000' elev for the same rifle are very different past 400-500 yds. Bottom line is be familiar with your system, whatever way you choose to go.

Great pictures and a cool spot you found. Which covert cam are you using?

Thanks for the reviews Joe. I sold my old 15x Swaros in order to fund a pair of 12x EL I bought used. This was right before the new HD 15x came out. The 12x are awesome but I am constantly wondering if I would be better off with the new 15x for pickin apart those far off ridges. I wont be hunting in the states this year so I cant get a fair comparison at the same places I used my old 15x. I have heard great things about the Zeiss including their mounting design and the quality of glass at that price point. One thing is for sure though. If you take care of your Swaros they will hold their resale value if you decide on a different route later.

Wow, great bull, great story, and great job on the video!

Not Guard but half way to retirement in the Corps. BOTTOM LINE: If serving his country is what he wants to do then do it. He should see the recruiter as a way to facilitate what he wants. Recruiters are good folks but they have a mission too and will try to fit him in where "they" need him. It needs to be his decisions for his reasons. He will get out of it what he puts in. Keep an open mind and make the best of what or where happens to him. He'll learn a lot about himself and meet some great guys that will literally go to war with you. Lots of disgruntled types out there, but there is likely a different tale then the one they like to tell. There are two sides to a story and most trouble makers I've seen come and go never had great things to say when they left. Sure I've had a couple bad experiences, a few bad jobs, and some real knuckleheads for bosses but I could say the same thing if I worked at Circle K. In my experience the good far outweigh the bad. I commend him for considering serving in any capacity.

Two statements. Both very true.

Runninfool, I was just stationed in Yuma and wore out a couple sets of boots in the AZ hills chasing Coues. If you are looking for specifics send me a PM. I have some questions for you so I can set you up better. You will find the Coues doesnt give up his hide as as easily as his cousins to the north and east but you will be hard pressed to find a hunt that yields a better outdoor "whole experience"