catclaw

Canon Vixia HF20 or HF21 depending on how deep your pockets are. True HD, holds TWO SD cards and has a pretty good sized hard drive. To add to that, arguably the best anti- shake feature in its class. I think the HF20 will set you back about $800 and the HF21 about $1300. You will need better batteries though. You are crazy not to buy an HD camera these days.

That is a tough one to score- I will put him at 122 7/8"

Depends on where they hit the elk. If it was a good hit, they need to get a lantern and get after it. If is is a gut shot, then you should wait 3-4 hours MINIMUM to make sure that it doesn't get bumped out of bed and run off. This is the most common reason that hunters lose elk that they track- the elk quit bleeding, get bumped and move out leaving no blood trail. Most hunters are poor trackers and it doesn't take much to lose a trail. If you are going to shoot in poor light you should invest in some illuminated nocks so as to see your hits. Otherwise, as Lark says, quit early! I saw some pretty amazing stuff during the hunt in 10 so far this year. I wanted to take a bugle away from one guy and shove it where a thermometer goes! Holy crap- It think guys watch an outdoor show and become elk experts! I swear some hunters must NOT want to kill a bull. Sure doing everything they can to ruin their hunt!

Where we were hunting all week, the elk were watering after dark. Cameras confirmed this. It's more fun to chase them than to wait for them but you do what works. If your elk are watering during legals shooting hours, then sitting water is a good bet. It is going to continue to get hotter as the week goes on- can only improve. No cool weather or storms before end of season in forecast.

That is exactly what I now use; an 8x30 SLC around my neck (don't like the harnesses), small compact Nikon rangefinder for archery or Leica for rifle hunting, and my 15x56s and 80mm Spotter in my pack. When guiding, I would like to have an 8x42 Geovid but not for hunting.

I have both the original style Coverts that are shaped like a keyhole and the new and improved models. I have been really disappointed with the newer ones; they lose their programming often and any movement creates a blurred photo. My older cams would freeze any motion, the new ones don't. I wonder if they have slower lenses or just different sensor type or size. The only improvement I have enjoyed is the ability to use a 4 Gig SD card over the 2 Gig. Anybody else have both and noticed any of this?

Got the firmware update, I will install it soon on a couple and try some before and after photos. (fingers crossed)

It was just a rant. prolly no photos

I think they play Oregon st which was ranked 24 this week but lost to an unranked BYU team so they won't be in the top 25 anymore. OSU does look like they have potential and Locker was a pre-season Heisman talk. The OSU game is at home so that bodes well for them.Other than that, Boise doesn't look to have any tough games- they should win them all and run the score a little to get their ranking up- they are already 3 so it will be hard to go much higher.

The 15x56 SLCs are only able to accommodate down to about a 62-63 mm IP distance. If you have eyes set closer than this, they will be tough to use. The Geovids are a little wider yet. The Kaibabs will easily work down to 60mm. This is the biggest drawback of the roof prism binocular. 56mm Objective lens makes it tough to get them close enough for all eyes to use them. There are two hunters on my street that cannot use my 15s. I have to pull the lens cover straps apart to make them overlap or I can't even use them. Might be the reason some prefer the Minox- maybe they will squeeze closer together. I really find it hard to believe that someone would prefer them otherwise. Ergos are not as big a deal on big glass as it is mounted on a tripod, the view is pretty much everything. I wish that they had quit putting research into the porro prism designs and we still had a choice out there. Remember when the 15x60 Zeiss used to be the Gold Standard? Well the really good ones are still porro prism style: Kowa Highlander, Doctor 30s etc.

I have been trying, elk hunting keeps getting in the way though...

I have a half dozen of the Covert Is and there is still plenty of room to lag bolt them on. The new ones have 3/4-1" of dead space (my lag bolts are only 1/16" thick at head). There is also a dead space around the camera on the Covert IIs. The Covert IIs that have given me problems have all been purchased this summer. I have only had to send one back so far though. It lasted one session and died. I bought some more of the Covert Is this summer too but haven't had a chance to check the night photos to see if they are the same quality or not. The main thing I like about the Coverts is the size. Now that Stealth and Tasco have come out with small cameras, they will hopefully have to step up to the plate, so to speak, and make sure their quality is good.

Wow- that really sucks.

Twice I have checked cameras and found that the dates had started over on 1-1-10 when I set them even though I had carefully set the date and time up. I always turn them off and then plug the remote back in to check my settings. It's just a little frustrating but the night photos are real blurry. I was going to switch back to the older style but sounds like that is not a fix. I also don't like all the wasted space in the metal boxes for the new ones, they are considerably bigger. Tasco now has a mini camera as does stealth. I am going to try both of them and see what I think.

Those tags were really good the first couple of years but not so good anymore. Better tag for locals that can keep tabs on them and jump on it when they are there.

That is a very interesting buck. Good job!

The guides are the ones mostly getting their cameras jacked, I think most of us are pretty good about just leaving stuff alone. Wow, not sure that stereotype is really even valid. Must have had a guide help someone kill a buck he saw once and that it was his or something?? Funny rant though!! And I guess i can't wear shorts anymore when I am scouting... bummer, cause it has been pretty hot this summer in the hills. I did notice a nice drop in night time temps the past week so it is getting bearable.

You could always go to the zoo and get some jaguar scat, that seems to work pretty good.

I found a big bull with cows last Friday. I saw a half dozen bulls the past two weeks that are tending cows. I filmed some small bulls sparring a couple of days ago. The rut is looking good this year and is way early! The rifle hunters are going to be picking through broken stuff I am afraid. The bulls were very responsive to calls. I could lay on my cot, hit a cow call and 3 bulls would sound off. Once you get them going, they keep feeding off each other. The archery hunt should be a ball-the opposite of last year!

Camo is meaningless on a rifle hunt. You can get by with just subdued clothing colors. As for camo on a rifle, I can't see the reason to ever do it except for some varmint calling. I have a camo shotgun for calling because it was a turkey model and came that way. Just make sure your rifle isn't "shiny" and you will be fine. Your bare face is going to be the biggest give away to an animal, not your rifle. As for camo patterns for closer stuff, most of them are too dark for typical AZ hunting. I like lighter patterns like Nat gear, Hidden Mesa and a few others. I don't lose much sleep over it for sure. I really like the original Treebark pattern but it is no more.

I think they will get a berth if they win out again this year- I can see Boise/Bama for the nat championship! I mean Boise is returning most of their starters- they should be awesome. I am a die-hard Devils fan, but I don't think Erickson is getting the job done. I see them finishing with about an even win-loss record. Oregon will be the team to beat this year but I don't see them ranked in the top 10 at the end of the season.

Glad it worked out for you. The only unknown is the durability. Good luck

We had a set at the get together last year in Flagstaff. They are quite good, not quite as good as Leica/Swarovski but a big step up from Nikon Monarch and Vortex Vipers. Not sure how well they will hold up- I think Red Rabbit has a set.

He also has been in on the killing of more big game animals than any dozen hunters on this forum. Bill Quimby Wow- you speak so matter of factly about this!

I had a 100" buck come in yesterday morning and it had rained 24 hours earlier. Three bucks came in within a 4 hour period. This tank was a little sandier than some of the others and there wasn't much activity on them. I think they like to get a drink in areas where they are used to it. Organ Pipe NM is not typical of much of the WT habitat- especially in Central and Eastern AZ. Just because they CAN go without. doesn't mean they won't. It sure seems to curtail their visits though. I think they just drink in seeps and pothole that are in more concealed locations when they can.