Jnj13

great buck. congrats

Cool buck. I am just learning scoring. The left side is really good but that will all be deducted from the right side if I understand correctly? 76-78" net is my guess.

We were lucky to draw 2 tags. Cow elk and deer for the same week. Little stressful trying to learn a new unit and hunt 2 species but it worked out and we had a blast. A few scouting trips and we had located several nice mule deer bucks and a few spots where we knew elk were. Murphey’s law?!? No mule deer and no elk in the days leading up to opening day…. Lot's of predators though. Our focus was mostly elk but we caught a glance at some coues antlers one morning and we all decided to chase coues. I was pretty happy with the decision. Big morning hikes, long hot hours of glassing, more hikes and we were finally in a spot we all felt would hold deer. We picked up another buck and believe it or not he was running with a doe, tail up and nose down? That had us scratching our heads. 471 yards canyon to canyon was the best we could do. A few misses from a very awkward shooting position and I had a very frustrated son. First opportunity was gone. We made a plan to get back in the same spot the next day and see if he would show back up and sure enough almost to the minute the buck and doe were 288 yards from us. This time he made 1 perfect shot from the 6.5 CM 120 gr GMX and it was over. Nothing beats celebrating a successful hunt with your son and friends. Big hike and pack out and we decided to break down camp and go home happy. We’ll save cow elk for another time. We had a great camp with friends and can’t thank them enough for the hospitality and comradery. Thanks for reading, here’s some pics (probably all sideways) .

Fellas! Flatlander and Big Browns Thank you. I added your numbers to my contacts. I really appreciate that. We enjoy the challenge of finding them but if we get 3 days into this without seeing anything I hope to connect with you for any help.

Good luck! Is that the camp near pumpkin center? My son drew the jr elk and deer tags for 22 but we may stop by camp if we get that far east. We are still really new to this so feeling the pressure with 2 tags. All ears if anybody has any advice, especially on cow elk for this time of year.

You can find deer with them. No problem. For $550 you can't do better. Obviously you can get fancier glass for more money. I have the Vortex 12's and 15's. Both meet my needs. My dream pair is the 15x56 BX-5 Santiam by Leupold. Just don't think they are $1500 better than what I have. To each his own.

Sweet. My son and I both drew our first choice. I drew my first late Dec tag down south and my son drew the youth 22. Are there any deer in 22?

Not sure if this is the right place for this topic but here it goes. My son and I are in our 4th season of hunting. Not nearly enough experience hunting so would appreciate any advice on this. Is the 6.5 creedmoor enough gun for an elk hunt? I’ve done the online research. Read some forums with mixed reviews. Here is what I found. A nice bull shot at over 600 yards with a 6.5 creedmoor 129 grain hornady- dropped it. And an African safari that used a 6.5 creedmoor and was able to harvest an elon, among others, with it. http://www.outdoorlife.com/photos/gallery/hunting/2012/02/shooting-65-creedmoor-african-safari My conclusion is that it is “enough gun” on a well placed shot. My son has a couple kills with this rifle and we both feel confident with it out to 600 yards. More so than our 300 win mag. (Our less accurate option.) We will be hunting at 4000-5000 ft and using the Hornady 120 grain GMX superformance. http://www.hornady.com/store/6.5-Creedmoor-120-gr-GMX-superformance/ Any opinions or first hand experience on this? Thanks

OK here’s my story from January 2017. My son and I glassed up a nice 4x3 buck rutting a doe, nose down, chasing tail, 200 yards off in a small canyon. Wind was good so I made my move. Took my time getting in there quiet and using cover and hoping my camo was enough. It took a while but I got to where I thought they were and of course they weren’t there anymore. And this is what I learned. I stayed there. Maybe an hour passed - I don’t know but I finally picked up movement and caught the doe moving up above me at 60 yards. I assumed the buck would follow and I would have my shot. After 20 or so minute and no buck I figure they pinned me and I was busted. Took a few minutes to soak in the stock and just before I headed back to my son I picked up movement again. The buck was less than 30 yards right in front of me. Didn’t even range him, drew and lined up an ok shot. There was a cholla maybe 20 yards in front of me that may or may not have 1" little branch in the flight path. I had nowhere to go to get away from a cactus on one side of me and a rock on the other. Held the draw for a few seconds and thought I gotta let it fly. That dang cholla branch was no bigger than 1” in diameter. What I learned- if you think you can get into the area they are hanging out in just sit tight when you get there, and a cholla can stop a broadhead at 20 yards. Hope I get that chance again. Good luck to ya.

A 6.5 CM should work on elk if you put a properly constructed bullet where it needs to go. This is pretty much my thoughts too. I haven't seen any data that says it won't do the job. Since my 14 yr old son is the hunter we both like the 6.5CM over the 300 mag. Also weighs 5 pounds less. Plan is to get a couple boxes of ammo and see if I can get a better group or comparable with a little heavier than the 120 hornadys. Forepaw- agree about the long range shots. Don't intend to take a sketchy shot no matter what. I'm no expert on ballistics but the 3 bullets suggested at 400 yards * speed/energy Hornady 120 superformance 2249/1347 Hornady 143 ELD-X 2156/1476 Norma 130 2160/1363 Bergers * can't find any data compared to the 300 win mag 2197/1607 in the 150 grain hornady.

Sounds like the consensus is to go with the 143 ELD-X so I need to find those and try them out. Looks like they produce about 100FT-LBS more energy at slightly slower speed with only a few inches more of drop. Appreciate the advice.

Big browns, what ammo did you use on that cow kill? Thx

Found this bull today. How big will he get? Any guesses?

Wow. You guys are good if you can recognize elk. Not my backyard but yes Show Low, near 135 road. First velvet bull I've ever seen and a 7x7. Pretty cool.

Try a few different releases. Some are pretty tight and others reach out a little.

Tucson

Like new in box. Full battery. Very fast and accurate range finder out to 600 yards. Retail $250 1/2 price $125 https://www.leupold.com/hunting-shooting/rangefinders/rx-rangefinders/rx-600-digital-laser-rangefinder/

http://pse-archery.com/shop/bow-packages-rts-fr/fever-ready-to-shoot/ Located in Tucson 1 year old like new bow. Comes w 5 carbon arrows, release, stabilizer, quiver, sight, rest. As seen in pic. Set at 27" - 42#, fully adjustable 11-29" 30-60#. Just tuned at PSE in Tucson. $300

https://www.redfield.com/spottingscopes/ Retails for $200+ Asking $125 Located in Tucson Nice little spotter w/ Leupold glass. We have used this to sight in rifles at the range. Like new condition. Kit includes everything seen in pics. 37 ounces, 14" The Rampage 20-60x60 Spotting Scope Kit from Redfield is an all-in-one glassing setup that comes with a compact tripod, carrying case with strap, and view-thru case that has fold-down objective and eyepiece access that allows the observer to use their scope without removing the case. The Rampage scope has a fully multicoated optical path that uses BaK-4 prism glass to maximize image brightness and clarity. A 20-60x zoom range and 20-foot close focus distance make this configuration of the Rampage scope well-suited for intermediate to long-range observations.

Couple pigs down. My son got his pig on the 33 jr hunt opening day. We glassed a herd up at 200 yards and he made a great shot off shooting sticks. My hunt took some time. Several day trips to locate any pigs but I was able to find a solo pig. Only 1 pig on the 33 Jan archery hunt ha. I tried to "whoof" or call him in and it worked. He came out of a thicket at 35 yards. I was amazed at how tuff this Javelina was. We gave it some time but it required a follow up shot. I killed my last pig at 500+yards, rifle- what a completely different hunt using a bow when you can smell and hear them. Fun!

My son and I sighted our new 6.5 CM w Leupold scope using the vortex app http://apps.vortexoptics.com/lrbc/ In the app we were able to use google earth to pin point the exact location of the hunt for altitude and weather plus exact bullet we used to make a MOA sheet. I can tell you that 3.6 MOA was perfect for 350 yards, 383 slope adjusted, for a 120 grain Hornady superformance kill shot. Easy and free.

False! Thank goodness. FYI - the Boston Tribune is a fake 'news' site.

Go for it. Hunt how you want to. Just me, but my experience was more rewarding with a bow than 500 yards with a rifle. Maybe have someone carry the rifle for you and if the stalk fails you can fall back on the rifle. GL I don't think 6A is open in Dec or Jan use your tag how you want.

We’ll be headed out for what I consider a scouting trip for the fall hunts. With our bows just in case. Question for anyone with experience. My son has mind set, if we harvest a deer, on entering in Pope and Young. I see the appeal of getting a certificate for a youth hunter etc. 70" is what it takes. I’m so new to couse and hunting just curious how hard is it to field judge a 70” buck in velvet? is that a small 3x3? Also per the ‘rules of fair chase’ is use of radios/ phones etc to help guide hunter to deer prohibited? Thanks

White spinner baits, strike king