PowellSixO

It was a Vortex Viper HS-T 4-16x44. I'm pretty sure that I fell on the rifle coming down the hill to chase after the bull. It was my fault. This is the closest picture that I have of the weird antler. A few guys I talked to said that it's call a 90 degree bull. If you look close, the antler is lower than the other side, comes out and makes a 90 degree turn. He actually has 3 antlers growing from his front on this side. All 3 are pretty short though. I thought that maybe he got hit by a truck when he was young or something, but they said that sometimes they just grow like that. It's weird and unique, that's for sure. Lol. Oh and I'm going to have a shoulder mount done. I originally wanted to just do a European mount, which is why I didn't cape him. So now I get to pay a little bit extra for a new cape. Lol.

You better get up this this weekend and put some miles on your boots. Get a good map too. There is a lot of private property in 5A, which can make the unit frustrating if you don't know where you're going. There are a lot of elk in the unit, but they can be elusive.

You better get up this this weekend and put some miles on your boots. Get a good map too. There is a lot of private property in 5A, which can make the unit frustrating if you don't know where you're going. There are a lot of elk in the unit, but they can be elusive.

Yeah I don't get it.

Good stuff right there. I killed my first doe on the Kaibab 23-24 years ago when I was that age. I'll never forget the hunting trips I went on with my farther growing up. My kids (twin 4 year olds) will be up on my late rifle bull hunt this year. They're already stoked about going on their first hunting trip. Haha. Keep it up, and take him on as many hunting trips that you can. He'll never forget those memories.

Great job. I wish I had her luck at drawing tags too. Haha.

Can't beet this right here. http://www.legacysports.com/catalog/howa/howa-hogue-youth-scope-package/

Forgot to post pics of the meat getting dropped off at Casey's place in Flag. Should be picking up my 20 lbs of meat in a few days. Hehe.

Well thanks for all the help guys. It ended up being cooler than I thought. We were able to hang both of our deer in game bags in the shade. It was cool enough at night, that the meet would cool down nicely. We ended up getting them to Casey in Flagstaff. Should be picking up my 20 lbs of meet in a few days. Lol.

My buddy and I are headed to 35B for the November 4th-10th Coues hunt. We got to thinking about what we'd do with a buck if we got one, and where we'd store it while we were hunting for the next buck. The weather is not going to be cool enough to leave at camp, and I don't want to put one in an ice chest if I don't have to. So I'm wondering if anyone can point me in the direction of a Game Processor that would let us store a deer in his cooler while we continue hunting? I'd pay for the storage of course. If anyone can help us out, I'd really appreciate it. Even if we have to head into Nogales or Sierra Vista that would be fine. Thanks for the help.

Good advice right here honestly. Even the less attractive units can be successful year after year, once you learn the unit. But if you unit jump like a lot of guys do, you'll suffer because of it. Knowing a unit is huge. Find a unit you like, and learn it like the back of your hand. You'd be surprised at what comes out of the less desirable units, when someone knows how to hunt them. And good luck on this upcoming elk draw. Hope you get one!! Elk hunting is the best.

Good write up! Enjoyed the story and the pictures. Awesome buck. Thanks for sharing

Good write up! Enjoyed the story and the pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the kind words everyone. I really appreciate it. Looking forward to going back already. I was also lucky enough to draw a late rifle bull tag this year, so more pictures to come hopefully. I'm leaving Friday to scout for a week before the hunt. My other buddy and I are hoping to put our tags on something a little bigger than a spike this time around. Wish us luck.

One of the funnest parts of the trip that I forget to mention was day 4. I setup in a canyon glassing away first thing in the morning, when all of a sudden we hear a loud noise coming my way (less than 5 minutes after first shooting light). I'm thinking this might be a deer. Then it got louder. So I thought this has to be another hunter, or maybe an illegal immigrant. I loaded a round and got my rifle ready. This coues doe walked out literally 3-4 feet from me, and there was another deer behind it. So I keep my rifle up, and the doe walk right past me (I probably could have touched her with my rifle). The second one comes out and I'm thinking holy crap I'm going to kill a buck at like point blank range. Lmfao. Well it ended up being a spike even smaller than the one I killed. After they walked about 20 yards pass me, they caught my wind and were off like rockets. But I was super surprised how loud they were walking through the grass. Lol. I have a video of the spike on my phone after he passed me, but can't get it to transfer from my phone to photobucket.

Crazy looking bull! That's awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks everyone. It was a much tougher hunt than I expected. The hills looked a lot less steep from the road, and a lot less prickly. Lol. I picked out hundreds of fox tails, cactus needles, and other sharp poky stuff every day. It's one of the harder hunts I've ever been on, but one of the most rewarding. Definitely glad I did it. Plus I didn't expect the deer to be that small. I know now exactly why they call them the grey ghost. They're there one minute and gone the next.

Thanks guys. Yeah we had some learning to do. The next time we come down, I'll be looking for a wall hanger. We will be back for sure. We'll probably put in for a better unit, and wait for a December hunt. I think half the problem we were facing, was the bucks were bedded within 30 minutes of the sun rising, and weren't coming out of their beds until the sun was set. It was 35-38 degrees in the mornings, but would climb to almost 80 in the heat of the day. It was just too hot. But lessons were learned on this hunt, and I'm already excited for the next one.

I don't know much about 35B or coues hunting, but we were there too, and it was tough. We saw lots and lots of does, a few spikes, a 1x2, a 2x2, and a small 3x3. I should have shot the 3x3, but I was holding out for bigger. I ended up taking a spike on the second to last day. I couldn't believe the amount of hunters in the unit though. It was crazy.

Thanks everyone. I guess if we get one early enough, we can probably drop it off with WGP and just pick it up on our way home or something. Thanks for the tips.

Anyone? We're heading out tomorrow night after work. Trying to get this last detail squared away. Thanks.

Well my plans have changed. I was going to take my 243 for my coues deer hunt this coming weekend, but now I'm taking my 7mm Rem Mag. My dad called me last night and told me he won a guided mule deer hunt on the Piute Indian Reservation. He bought a single 100 dollar raffle ticket for it, and they called him last night to tell him the hunt starts Friday. Lol. He's not up to shooting big calibers anymore so he asked if he could take my 243, so I said yes of course. So it works out in the long run. I'll get to do a little more practice with my 7mm for my upcoming late rifle bull tag.

Congrats!!! Those are amazing. It's always fair to give at least 2 warning shots. Lol. I gave 4 warning shots on my last elk hunt, before I sealed the deal (scope turret was turned wrong direction once buck fever took over).

Lol. Awesome story!! Thanks for sharing.

If you want optimum life out of your brass, a Hornady headspace gauge bushing set is worth every penny. Put your sizing die in your press and keep pushing the shoulder back until you have no issues chambering the brass. Find your measurement it takes to achieve this, and then write it down. Then every time you reload, push the shoulders back to this measurement. It should help your brass life. Stretching and shrinking your brass too much wears it out. I get short life out of my 7mm Rem Mag because I'm running my loads at almost max load. But I don't get case separations. My primer pockets usually give up first. But I blame that on Winchester brass. Better brass would probably give me more reloads. I get almost 10 reloads out of my Norma brass in my 243 before I throw it out. I would have bought Norma brass for my 7mm, but I came across a bunch of brand new Winchester brass for a good price. But never again. The amount of work it took to prep the brass the way I like (cut the primer pockets to uniform depths, uniform the flash holes, run through the sizing die, cut the brass to the same length, deburr and chamfer the necks, and then clean) is a pain in the butt. The Norma brass goes straight out of the box to get primers, powder, and bullet. I'm going to quit being cheap with my brass. But I have 400 rounds of Winchester brass to use up first. Lol.