AZDirtyTaco

I have a lot of great memories of the ranch over the past 20 some odd years and will miss that orchard dearly should it go. My son got to make the trek a couple of years ago at age 9 for the 1st time and then again this past Fall to reap the rewards of the orchard in full bloom. Last season was a heckova harvest!!! I've had the area on my bucket list of places to hunt since getting into this obsession a few years ago. It will stay on my list of places to hunt but will be different for sure. I hope the orchard survives and if it doesn't... we'll have to hope something better will come for future generations. At least the trash and Copenhagen tins the hoards have started to leave behind in recent years will get burned up in the process as well.

Are there other fires across Apache Lake that are also being considered part of the Woodbury Fire?

He had the right to defend himself and his property using equal force, which he did, up until the crackhead chose to escalate his use of force by attempting to run him over. You don't have to remain a victim once you've become the victim by watching someone drive away with your livelihood. One can certainly argue the benefit of risking his life, but that's a matter of personal choice vs legality. As previously mentioned, he opened himself up to scrutiny by offering such a detailed account on camera. I feel like that was his 2nd worst move of the ordeal. There is much to scrutinize from his account and the placement of rounds in a crowded environment. It's fortunate he didn't kill someone with that round that hit the trailer.

Not 100% sure on that one. It's not anything I've used. There are a few similar sounding features, but not exactly like you've described or at least that I a familiar with.

I started carrying a 10k mah charging pack a few years back for my longer backpacks and will carry a 5500 for 2-3 stuff. I always have way more juice than I need, keeping both my phone and InReach topped off daily.

I lost a cool 1yr old Ausie several miles back in a trail after he was bitten on a mt bike ride a few years ago. That wasn't an easy ordeal, to say the least, but better to have a pup for security especially if you train them for it. I hadn't really considering having the pooch along for that reason, but you got me thinking on checking into what it would take to get our shepherd trained.

It's that wonderfully nervous time of year!!! Looking to learn more about these dang things that send my heart rate through the roof when I have close encounters and typically put me on DEFCON-5 the remainder of the time I'm out n' about. I would like to gain some insight from those of you who don't think twice about heading out into the backcountry morning, noon, or night during rattlesnake season. Those suckers keep me out of some of my favorite coues country during the warmer months and I would like to change that. Who doesn't sweat bullets out there over these things and why?

IA Born - you definitely have the background to speak as intelligently as anyone on the topic. I just find it an interesting conversation and I mostly spend time deep in the wilderness areas where cel phone service is not easily attainable. The InReach has been some of the best money I've ever spent and it has already saved my butt in a non-life threatening situation. I just don't like putting all my eggs in that basket and being in a spot that if I were to get bit, that thing better work or else... Delw - you and me buddy are on the same page! I'm trying hard to change my perspective on these dang things though. But I'm one close encounter every trip from having my head completely out of sorts and preoccupied with flippin snakes!

Cool pics! Looks like there is a decent amount of runoff still going on up there. Bradshaws are one of my favorite places around.

Stories like this are more of what my aim was when posting the thread. Just trying to get a handle on how much consideration I really need to give to the "what if" portion of the conversation. At this stage, I feel like our normal heavy hiking boots with gators should be decent insurance against the lowerish odds of a strike. What was most interesting to me about that story is how that dude needed to hike out on his own power and how truly detrimental that could have been for him. Add another mile to that trip and we might be reading a biography instead... Which has always been my biggest hang-up, especially before having the safety net of one of the personal emergency distress devices out there. My InReach stays in my chest rig which stays attached to me at all times in the backcountry, but I might start even start sleeping with that puppy under my pillow. For the sake of conversation - So what does one do if they get bit and can see/feel signs that a significant amount of venom was released while miles deep into the wilderness, in big canyon country, lots of elevation to deal with, etc. while solo and with no SPOT or InReach type of device or... maybe it is busted or dead? Basically, you're on your own and self-rescue is your only option.

Just awful. You shared some really kind words for your buddy Rojo and his family.

And here we were telling all of these warm n' fuzzy stories about how pretty these things are UNTIL you had to chime in....

"Someday, when we're all sitting around the campfire, I'll tell you what happens when you accidentally snort crystallized mohave toxin (the nuerotoxic venom of Mohave rattlesnakes)." Now that right there would be a story worth hearing! Not that there are any that I recall weren't worth hearing around a campfire....

I used to ride way more than I do nowadays but still ride several stretches of BCT occasionally since it's right in my backyard. Several years ago I was doing a lot of solo night riding on the Little Pan loop and man o' man would they be out in force. Running across 6 or more right on the trail or just off to the side was not uncommon. I stopped riding at night because of them. I still miss those Summer night rides with the backdrop of the Bradshaws getting hammered by monsoons and all the crazy light shows from the lightning. Don't miss all of the damned snakes though...

My son liked the youth Mossberg 20ga best of them all. Think it's called the Maverick and comes in a synthetic stock. It was the lightest of the bunch and had the easiest safety to reach as well as engage/disengage. I recall several of the safeties being a bit of a challenge to work with on some of the others. I was ready to spend a couple bucks on a higher priced shotty and he picked the cheapest of the lot for a change... Not the smoothest action, but cycles through the rounds and shoots every time. Probably have 250ish rounds through it so far and no complaints.

Man... Some of you have some great stories of some wicked close encounters! I don't know if I'm any less leary of them at this point but I'm gaining confidence based on the fact that there haven't been any stories shared like, "well... my good ol' pal Dale was a good feller and huntin buddy till that unfortunate day back in July of 20__ when he and that wiley blacktail crossed paths". I spend a lot of time in 20B, 21 and 22 and would love to get to the point where that Aug archery deer hunt isn't off the table for me as it has been. This is all good conversation for me and I appreciate you all sharing your experience.

KoosCrazy - Your take is along the lines of the info I am really wanting to learn. All my guys I hike/hunt with are in the same exact boat as me and most of us have our kids with us 90% of the time or more, which ramps up the anxiety even more. I would love to have the mindset as GreyGhost85, but my analytical and logical side has way too much control over me. I haven't killed one and don't intend to at this point. I'm going with the "don't start none - won't be none" philosophy of rattlesnake psychology. So far their kind hasn't done my kind wrong while I've been out and I am hoping that we just have a universal understanding with one and other.

I've worn the snake gaiters on a number of occasions and they are just hot as ____ and my boots end up overwhelmed with sweat on longer hikes. I've heard or read about dudes not caring much about them. Seems like it's been mostly ranchhands and the like that don't pay the suckers much attention. I once posed the same question to one of the local reptile groups called Rattle Snake Solutions and the answers I received were a bit comical... To summarize a bit - they said to basically avoid traveling during their most active hunting times, don't step where you can't clearly see, don't climb or hike in areas with densely concentrated rock formations, nooks n' crannies, etc. Stick to trails and avoid cross-country hiking. All of that after stating rattlesnakes really aren't dangerous unless you are screwing with them and are mostly misunderstood... LOL.

Yep. BackCountry has the same route making feature as Google Earth. Measures the straight line distances between each waypoint

I have an early archery tag and my son has the youth cow tag this season. I certainly won't mind one more trip up to help recover an animal. We live in the far North valley and most of 6A is a short run. I'll PM you my contact info and am happy to help for a couple steaks and a decent six pack of stouts as long as I don't have another obligation going that day.

The higher resolution and size of the screen on any smartphone is a nice bonus as well.

That is the one! I won't geek out on you with it all... But one cool feature is that you can mark a waypoint and also take a picture that will stay with that waypoint along with any notes you want to include. Awesome for marking any bedding, water catchments, reference for glassing spots or whatever. I've tried over and over to spend money on a Garmin and just haven't been able to justify it outside of durability and the fact your not using your phone in the field. Only real thing you'd want to be sure to do is upgrade your microSD card to at least 64gb or 128gb if you haven't already. You can also use an old phone and still use the app. I have an old Samsung S5 that I still use for my PhoneSkope and as a backup GPS.

The GPS apps that you can get for your phone will do everything the high-end Garmin will do and then some. Maybe the only exception being 2-way radio on the Rino's. I've used BackCountry Navigator for Android the past 10yrs and purchase the annual Pro package to get a variety of upgraded maps which includes a hybrid CalTopo w/ Accuterra. Can't say enough good about the app and it's reliability, functionality, customization, compatibility w/ Google Earth and on and on... Blows the doors off anything else out there in my opinion and is a fraction of the cost associated with the dedicated units. Everything you get with OnX is also available on the app and was offered long before OnX.

Super cool going 2fer and in some tough country to dig them out of from the looks of it. Nice work to you and your boys!!!

+1 on the posole recipe. Post it up after you put your tag on one of those suckers!