Gr8 White Jr

Eyepiece included? -Tracy

Exactly my thought. The mount looks great but how would it be possible to repair that? swwildlife, can you clarify if this was a repair or if this was a remount? -Tracy

Anybody lose one? Send me a PM and please be specific about where you lost it. I want to make sure it goes back to the right person. Thanks! -Tracy

Happy birthday Amanda!

What an awesome experience! Thanks for taking the time to write it up and share your story with us. I really enjoyed reading the play by play. HUGE CONGRATS! -Tracy

One more for Casey's!

We had quite a successful Fall/Winter last year in 2012. It seemed like we were just moving from one hunt to the next. It was awesome. I started off well, posting the story and pics of my archery buck in August but fell short keeping up with the rest of our success. Well, we are off to a great start again so I figured I better get caught up on last year before I share this year's success. August 25th, 2012 after a short sit in my stand in the morning dark this beautiful buck came walking down the trail I was sitting over. To read the full story click on the link below. http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/35028-finally-broke-the-100-mark/ October 2012 was Angie's first elk hunt. She drew a rifle cow tag in a unit we didn't know a whole lot about but I figured since it was a cow hunt it shouldn't be too difficult. I was definitely humbled on this hunt. The first two days of the hunt we struggled to find elk. We did have some luck the first evening but were not able to get an elk on the ground. On the third day of the hunt my good friend Ron (ibowhuntaz) came up to help out on the hunt. He was familiar with the unit and his help made a huge difference. The first evening Ron took us to a place to glass that I would have NEVER thought we would find elk at. It looked more like some prime antelope country than elk country. Sure enough as the sun was setting I glassed up some cows EXACTLY where Ron said they would be. I was amazed! Unfortunately they were a little too far away and we were not able to get on them before dark. The next morning again with Ron pointing the way, we headed to an area that Ron knew held elk. After getting busted by one herd we soon spotted another herd out in again some of the most open country I have ever seen elk. Angie, Ron and I crawled into position and waited for the elk to move closer to us. There was about 15 cows and one nice bull in the herd. The bull was pushing the herd back and forth and slowly in our direction. He had the cows rounded up so tight that there was never a clear shot on any single animal. We waited as they closed the distance over the next 10 or so minutes from 250 yards to about 150 yards. Finally the biggest cow in the herd broke off and walked away from the rest of the herd and stopped broadside. Angie took her time and made a great shot on her first cow. Although it was a great shot the cow stayed standing and Angie put two more rounds in her before she finally went down. Finally Angie had her first elk on the ground. It was a great morning and a great experience! I can't thank Ron enough for coming up to hunt with us. It was with his guidance and his knowledge of the unit that we were able to make it happen. Thanks a million Ron! I still owe you one! Angie while we were out hiking around. Angie's beast of a cow elk! November rolled around and my good friend Regan (azwest16) and I had rifle coues tags in NM. Neither of us had hunted in NM before but we just wanted another opportunity to get after the grey ghosts. We really didn't have high expectations for this hunt as the unit that we drew tags in is not known for having a lot of coues or big coues bucks. Our hunt started on a Saturday morning but I had to work on Friday. After getting off work on Friday evening we were loaded up and leaving Phoenix by 7:00 PM. As we were leaving Phoenix I told Regan that we were jinxing ourselves by bringing his Arctic Cat Prowler on a coues hunt when it doesn't have a coueswhitetail.com sticker on it. I knew this was no way to start off on an out of state hunt so I called Amanda and asked if we could stop by and pick up a sticker. Amanda was happy to help solve our problem and agreed to meet us in Globe. Thanks again Amanda! After getting the sticker put on the Prowler we were headed to NM for 5 days of coues hunting. We did not pull into where we planned to camp until around 2:30 AM so after a few hours of sleep in the truck were not exactly rested for our opening morning hunt. We glassed for a few hours with only seeing a couple of does before heading back to the truck to set up camp. We set camp and took a very much needed nap before heading out for the evening hunt. The evening was slow going with only some does being glassed up. The next morning Regan and I were up early and feeling refreshed. We headed out in the dark to glass an area that we picked out on the topo map the night before. As it got lighter outside the first deer to be found was a nice mule deer buck that Regan glassed up. Too bad our tags weren't good for muleys or that buck would have been coming home with us. After about an hours or so of glassing I spotted some deer way out on the furthest ridge we could see. The deer were so far that we could only tell that they were deer but we really couldn't tell if they were bucks or does. The deer were back up in the shadows of a huge cut that ran up the hills we were glassing. We watched the deer for a little while and Regan and I both kept thinking we saw something on the head of one of the deer. Knowing that there were so few coues deer in this unit we decided that we better take what we have and move in closer for a better look. I left first while Regan stayed and watched. I had to cross a big nasty canyon on my way and it was so steep with such loose ground that it was one of the few times I was seriously concerned for my safety while out hunting. It was down right scary coming down off the side of that canyon. It took me an hour and a half to get to our predetermined location. Once I was there Regan dropped off our glassing point and headed toward me while I tried to relocate the deer. They had moved down the last big canyon between us and were getting closer to me. I could see that there were two bucks in the group and one appeared to be a really nice buck. They were over 800 yards away and slowly but surely headed in my direction. That was a good thing because I was as close as we were going to get being that another big canyon separated us. After Regan made the hour and a half long hike to where I was the deer were now within shooting distance. The smaller of the two bucks had bedded down but the big buck was still up standing. We decided I better get set up for the shot while there was no wind so I quickly set up my pack and proned out on the edge of the canyon. We did not have a lot of room on the rocks where we were so we decided that I would shoot the first buck and then Regan and I would switch positoins and Regan would just shoot the second buck with my rifle since it would already be set up. I ranged the buck at 528 yards and dialed my turret for the distance. After getting my breathing under control I prepared to make the shot as Regan watch over my shoulder through his 15's. I slowly applied pressure to the trigger until the report of my rifle broke the dead silence throughout the canyon. BOOM! Immediately Regan calls out my shot, “Missed left 8 inches! Reload and give him 8 inches of wind, aim right!” Although it felt as if there was absolutely no wind where we were there was a crosswind in the canyon we were shooting across. I racked in another round and was back on the buck in less than 2 seconds. With no time to adjust the turret for windage I just held right, settled in again and eased the trigger once more. BOOM! Regan calls out again, “You hammered him! He's still up, moving to the right but he is hit good!” I rack in another round and as soon and as I look through the scope the buck was walking into my cross hairs. BOOM! That shot dropped the buck and sent him rolling down the side of the mountain. When the buck stop rolling although unnecessary, with all the excitement I put one more round in him because his head was still up. The buck was down for good! Regan and I had no time to celebrate as we quickly swapped positions so Regan could shoot the other buck. I jumped behind the 15's and searched for the second buck as Regan settled in behind my gun. I searched and searched but could not find the second buck. I was feeling pretty bad as a good 5 minutes passed without seeing the other buck. I was starting to think that with all the commotion of me shooting that the second buck must have slipped out without us seeing. Just when I thought it was over the second buck stepped out from his bed at just over 500 yards. Regan was already behind the gun and settled in as I watched through the 15's. BOOM! “Perfect shot!” I called out. The buck rolled down the hill and into some brush. We could not see the bucks body but I could see his rack moving in the brush. I couldn't believe he was still alive after the hit. He tried to stand and Regan let him have it with another shot. The buck went down in the brush again and we could not see him at all. We moved 15 yards to the left for a clear window on the downed buck and Regan put one more shot in the buck to seal the deal. Then the celebration was on! It was a great morning as we had just exceeded our expectations on this hunt. We hiked down in and crossed the big canyon to retrieve our trophies. Regan's buck was way bigger than we thought. He has some really neat forward hooking eye gaurds and a whitish color to his hide. Definitely an old buck. He is the biggest bodied coues deer I have ever seen. My buck was the opposite. His body was so small that it made his rack look bigger. He was thin and and without eye guards. Although not what we thought he was he is still a nice buck. It was a great morning! We glassed these bucks up about an hour after day light and at 1:00 in the afternoon we had both bucks on the ground. From that point on the real work began. We had our bucks quartered and packed out right at last light. This was one of the most adventurous hunts I have ever been on. We had very low expectations, didn't really know where we were going and went out there and got it done wit two respectable bucks. Good times with a great friend! Our NM coues camp. Some of the country we were hunting. Our NM bucks! The pack out. Bucks back at the Arctic Cat with the good luck sticker on it! Back at camp. You can see the cool eye guards and the lighter color hide on Regan's buck. Later in December we were back out chasing coues again. This time Angie had a December rifle tag that we all want so bad. My buddy Justin was helping out on this hunt and we hunted for the first four days of the hunt with only seeing on shooter buck. We never had an opportunity on that buck as he was so far we could not get on him. The rut activity was nonexistent during the first weekend. We glassed out tails off and even had a 90+ doe day without seeing a single buck. It was pretty disappointing. We headed back home Monday night as Angie and I both had to work Tuesday through Thursday. Unfortunately my truck had a major mechanical problem when we headed back down to hunt the second weekend and we never made it out. We were down to the last 4 days of the hunt when we were finally able to make it out again. Angie, Justin and I headed out to one of my “go to” spots and within the first minute of glassing I found a nice buck pushing does around a canyon side. After looking him over in the spotting scope we decided this would be a good deer for Angie to put her tag on. After a long morning stalk to within 350 yards of the group of deer we watched them for quite some time and the buck was no where to be found. The wind kept shifting on us and it wasn't long before it was at our backs and the deer were blowing out of the canyon. We headed back to the truck and tried another area for some midday glassing. As the day was getting later we discussed our options for the evening hunt and decided to head back to the same area we were in earlier that morning. We would be glassing the same canyon but from a different angle. Within minutes of setting up to glass Justin and I both, at almost the same exact time, picked up the same buck that we stalked in the moring. The buck was only a couple of hundred yards from where he was in the morning. We gathered our gear and head off to cut the distance between us and the buck. We got as close as we could to the buck and had to make a decision. We could drop down into the canyon and try to shave some distance off the shot but Angie would have to shoot from a sitting position as we would be on the steep canyon side. Or she could take a longer shot from the top of the canyon but she would be able to prone out. We decided it would be better for her to take the longer shot from the prone position as that is her favorite, most accurate shooting position. We moved all around the canyon top until we found the perfect spot for Angie to shoot from. Once we go the packs and jackets laid out Angie proned out behind the gun and got comfortable. I ranged the buck at 479 yards and dialed the turret accordingly. Things got a little chaotic as Angie was struggling to find the buck in the scope. I would have the scope zoomed all the way out for her and then she would get on the buck. As soon as I would zoom the scope in she would loose him or she would be on the buck just ready to shoot and he would walk behind a cactus. I was getting a little panicky as the sun was setting and we just couldn't seem to get Angie on the buck. Thankfully Justin was the calm one and kept reminding us (mostly me) that its okay and the buck has no idea we were there. Finally the buck stopped long enough for Angie to get the cross hairs on him and allowed her to take her time and make a great 479 yard shot. When she hit the buck it turned to walk down the canyon side and I could see a tennis ball size exit hole low behind his shoulder. Justin was watching through the spotting scope and confirmed that the buck was toast. He slowly walked over to a mesquite tree and went down for good. We were all so excited but had to get moving to get to the buck before it got dark so off we went. We got to the buck and immediately started taking pictures. The sunset made for some great pictures. It was a great hunt and one I will never forget. Thanks to Justin for coming out and helping us on Angie's hunt and of course for being the “calm one”. Hahaha! Angie and I while we were hiking to one of our glassing spots. Angie with her December buck! Angie and I with her buck. Angie, Justin and I with Angie's trophy. Packing out Angie's buck. Thanks to everybody who stayed with me through my story. I knew I needed to get caught up on last year before I post our great start to this year. As always thanks to Amanda for this awesome site where we can share our passion with each other! -Tracy

Once you use a Havalon you will never go back to using a regular knife. Its the best knife out there and the only one I use. -Tracy

This is just awesome! Kudos to you shedhunteraz! -Tracy

Very cool! I have always been interested in a NM Oryx hunt. Congrats and way to get it done on a nice bull! Thanks for sharing! -Tracy

I couldn't agree more! I always say that the good Lord put javelina on this planet to give us archery hunters a taste of success every once in a while. hahaha! -Tracy

+1 on both these posts. I've seen bulls that don't look as big as they score also have seen bulls that look bigger then they score. I try not to get caught up in score now days. If the bull makes my heart skip a beat then he's big in my book. I couldn't agree more! Score can give you an idea of the animal but it can be very deceiving. I think the biggest problem with the way most animals are scored is that they are scored on inside spread. To me this makes no sense to have any kind of spread measurement because it in no way represents the amount of bone on the animal's head. For example a bull that scores 330 with an inside spread of 30 actually has more bone on it head than a 340 bull with a 50 inch spread. To me numbers mean nothing and its all about "the look". -Tracy

PM sent.

:lol: No brainer! Definitely a once in a lifetime buck! -Tracy

I'm going to say that I am passionately obsessed! Tracy

I do agree with others that it is a lifestyle. For me, hunting is all I think and dream about. I base every aspect of my life around hunting. We don't ever go on a vacation to places that your average family might go. Our vacation time is spent hunting. Every extra penny that we have goes towards hunting/scouting/gear/taxidermy. Anytime it is suggested that we do something that will cost money the first thing that pops into my head is the thought of all the things hunting related I could do with that money instead. This is just the way I am wired. I guess you could say I am obsessed. I call it passionate! Some people go out and spend money to get all the latest and greatest electronic gadgets, we spend our money on hunting, scouting and gear. The gear I have I acquired over several years. Although I have many different rifles my "go to" rifle was bought for me when I was 12 years old. It was a Xmas gift from my father. I have since put a little money into it and made it the awesome gun that it is today but that was done a little at a time too. The Vortex scope I have on it I bought from Cameraland when they were having their really good deals and the stock on my rifle was an Xmas gift. I just paid for the gunsmith to free float the barrel, bed the action and install a Timney trigger. I saved my money for quite some time to by my Swaro 15's and just waited for the right deal. I bought them used from a guy that was out of work and needed to make a quick sale so I got a pretty good deal on them. My Swaro 10's I bought from a lady who's husband ran out on her several years ago and left them behind. They had been in her closet for about 3 years and she just wanted them gone. I paid about half what I would have if I had bought them brand new. I got the deal of a lifetime on my Swaro rangefinder. There was a mistake at the Outdoorsmans and they thought that the rangefinder they had behind the counter belonged to me. The gentleman there slid it across the counter to me and told me to have a nice day. I could have simply walked out but my parents raised me to be an honest person. I explained to them that the rangefinder was not mine and they were so blown away by my honesty that they sold it to me for half price. It definitely pays to be honest! A lot of the gear I a have all had to do with saving money, right timing and a little bit of luck too. If I had to buy all my gear brand new today there is no way I could ever afford to have the things I do. That is why I would NEVER sell any of it, because I know if I did the odds of me ever owning these items again would be slim to none! -Tracy

OUCH!!! Sorry to hear that Coach! I would loose my mind if somebody did that to my truck! Sound like your son needs to get used to walking for now on. Good luck on the repairs. Hope they don't cost you too much! -Tracy

Ilene, I love the pic! Your opportunity will come. Shoot straight and keep us updated. Good luck! -Tracy

I'm really depending on the site to get me through this season this year. This is the first time in 16 years that I will not be hunting the early archery season. Definitely a very mental and emotional struggle for me not to be out there right now as it is what I live for. Good luck to all and PLEASE post updates on how your hunts are going as some of us are depending on them. Haha! TJ, I wish the best for you and your family and hope the health issues are resolved quickly! Tell Peg hello for Angie and I. -Tracy

You jumped your truck with a DeWalt battery?????? I can't believe that actually worked!!! AWESOME! I would have thought that idea was so ridiculous that I wouldn't have even tried. hahaha! Way to think outside the box. It may have not been the day you expected but I assure you it was a lot better than the day I had at work! Good luck tomorrow! Hope you connect on a good buck! -Tracy

Ryan and Regan deffinitley deserve to win this contest. Keep in mind that there is no limit to the number of times one person can vote so if you are looking for something to do for a couple of hours and want to cast a few thousand votes I am sure that Ryan and Regan would much appreciate it. Just sayin...... Hahaha! Tracy

This is exactly how they should be compared. Then you can just use percentages of how far under or over they are. -Tracy

I remember quite some time ago, I think it was July of 2007 when a gentleman posted on this very site looking for information for his daughter's first elk hunt. It was in a unit that he had never been in before and a unit that I was pretty familiar with. I offered up some information and even met him out in the field to show him a few places. Now this same guy is one of my closest friends and has been there during some of the most memerable hunting experiences of my life. Heck, I was even his bestman when he married his lovely wife 2 years ago. I guess the point I'm trying to make here is to never look down on an E-scouter and although you don't have to give them your most secret spots, give somebody some pointers if you can. You may be blessed tenfold because of your willingness to help others! -Tracy

I have killed a few pigs in 37A. Its been a few years since I hunted that unit but I am sure the herds are still in the same places. If you decide to hunt 37A send me a PM and I can share a few places to start. If you decide to hunt 37B then contact Ben Brochu the 37B WM. He is a stand up guy and I'm sure he will point you in the right direction, especially being that this is a youth hunt. -Tracy

I think Lance and Jim pretty much summed it up. I have the Rifle Railz/Loc Jaw on my "go to" rifle and I love it. Others may see it differently but I don't see any reason to remove it. I like the analogy that Dave used comparing it to a scope on your rifle because that is exactly how I see it. I like that it is always on my rifle so if the right situation presents itself I can simply slide it on my tripod and I'm ready to shoot in a very short period of time. It is VERY useful when hunting in steep country where you may be shooting across canyons. I really like having this option when I am hunting but where its value truly shines is when taking kids hunting. One of the toughest obstacle for a lot of new hunters is target acquisition. With this system I can find the animal in the scope and then lock the tripod in place, move out from behind the rifle and let the shooter slide in. I have used other products that allow you to do this as well but like Jim stated above they put pressure on the stock when clamping down. Another down fall I experienced with a similar product that clamped to my rifle is that after a couple of shots the recoil can cause the gun to jump out of the clamp. This cannot happen with the Rifel Railz/Loc Jaw system which makes follow up shots so much easier if needed. I would definitely recommend getting one of these for your rifle. IMO its worth its weight in gold! -Tracy