stanley

I purchased The Gun Claw through this site a couple of years ago. I thought it would be a good way to help my kids shoot a little bit longer distances, but at the end of the day we really didn't end up using it much. We are not really 'long distance' shooters, and hence I don't think we were the right folks to get the most out of it. (Seems like shooting sticks and/or just resting the rifle over the top of the tripod works well enough at the distances we shoot....) That being said; WHO WANTS IT??? I would rather it go to someone who will really use it as opposed to me seeing it in the bottom of my box of hunting/shooting goodies everytime I open it. I'll send it free to anyone who thinks they could put it to good use. Please only ask if you REALLY think you would use it, otherwise it will just end-up at the bottom of someone else's gear box...... Also, if you happen to use a Manfrotto floating head on your tripod, I've got a quick release head-plate which is currently attached that I'll send also (I have spares for my Swaros, etc...). PM or reply (or call me 602-690-2423). S.

Good idea, elkaholic. I should have thought of that first...... Will keep in mind for any useful items in the future, for sure! I've exchanged PMs with SHREK though, and I think it will go to a good home and be put to good use! S.

WOW! That was quick! Got your PM. Done deal! Sounds like your little guy can put it to use. Will be in touch via PM..... S.

Virtually every response so far has been on target, IMO. I procrastinated too (Seems I always do.....). Had a hard time finalizing plans with my out of state friends who are putting-in with me. What ever the reason for the procrastination, I experienced the same problems last night, and wasn't a bit surprised....... High network traffic to the site is going to clog it up. Not much G&F can do about it. Because of what happened last night, I set my alarm for 4AM this morning. Woke-up, brewed some coffee and submitted my kids junior applications and my application for deer with no problem. Good luck to all! S.

Wow...... Good luck TJ! S.

Hello Airbusdriver! I'm no expert, but I'll try to answer your questions (in red below). Good luck! S.

Awesome! Love the old 30-30s! I took mine on my muley hunt last fall. Left the .7MM at home. Never got within shooting distance of anything I wanted to kill, but I enjoyed having it in my hands again. The gun I 'grew-up' huning with..... S.

I agree, it's a pretty good show. I like his excitement/passion as he's doing his thing on public land. I also like that he gets old friends/acquaintances involved, which is what I think a lot of us try to do when we plan our trips. S. PS: Another guy I like to watch is Fred Eichler. I know that he is not 'OYOA' (He uses outfitters..... and is an outfitter himself...), but I really like his crazy attitude and passion! He can be a little wacky, but so are my friends and I on occasion. Saw him stick a little muley with an arrow and he was as excited as anyone would be over any sized trophy.

I agree, Snapshot. I'm absolutely NO expert, but it seems to me that if she would have simply stood-up earlier in the encounter and waved her arms and yelled, that the bear likely would have moved-off. Didn't seem agressive at all, mainly curious. That being said, it is interesting footage..... S.

AWESOME! Cool that you did it with a 30-30, too! Would like to see a pic of your rifle. I have an 1894 model that I LOVE! S.

Great buck! Thanks for sharing! S. PS: Looks like you packed it out 'old school'.....

Thanks TJ, Chef, and Amanda....... All of us have shared a camp fire or two, and you KNOW where my passion is! S. PS: Shot craps on elk talks for all of us this year. Will keep my fingers crossed on deer tags for the kids though.... PSS: Sorry to highjack the thread, Raghorn! Trophys come in all shapes & sizes, IMO......

Trophy is DEFINITELY in the eye of the beholder, IMO..... Here is an amazing trophy for Greta!! (and me too.....) S. Full slide-show of the hunt: http://s379.photobucket.com/albums/oo234/stanleyaz/Kiabab%20Junior%20Deer%20Hunt%20October%202010/?albumview=slideshow

Nice, TJ!!!!! Awesome write-up and pics! Glad you had such a good & delicious time! S.

LOL!!! +1 Reminds me of an old Cash song..... My opinion is that you should name the kid what ever you want to name him/her. My wife (ex-wife, actually....) and I figured-out early in the process that we didn't want to share any 'prospective' names with anyone prior to making the final decision. Reason was; when you share the prospective names you get all kinds of opinions that might make you biased towards or away from what you, in your heart, think is the best name for the little fella. Pick a name and go with it! Doesn't matter what any of us hacks thinks! S.

VERY cool pictures!!!!! Must have been very awesome to be there! Thanks for sharing! S.

The guidelines state that, where possible, there shouldn't be a junior deer hunt and a junior elk hunt going in the same unit at the same time. That's why the 3AC junior elk hunt used to be a week later than the other junior elk hunts. Now that the junior deer hunt has been moved to November, the junior elk hunt is the same date as the other junior elk hunts (except for the elk hunts in 22 and 23). To the general question of why they junior elk and deer hunts tend to take place at the same time: First, the guidelines state that they should try to schedule the hunts at the same time as a school break. These hunts often fall during fall break/Columbus Day (although this year fall break is the week before the hunt). Second, they've got to fit junior hunts in when there aren't any general hunts for any other species going on in the unit. If you set aside certain weeks and decide that all junior hunts should take place at that time, it makes it easier to fit all of the general hunts within the schedules provided in the guidelines. It's all about uniformity...where possible. Finally, and this isn't in the guidelines, but I've always assumed (as stated above) that the thinking is that when a kid draws a junior elk tag, scheduling the junior hunt on the same week may open up opportunities for another kid to get a junior deer tag. I think that ugly hit on a couple of key points....... 1) They try to schedule (as best they can) when some kids might be out on break. 2) They also have to schedule several hunts throughout the fall, and it's just not that easy to fit them all in to a calendar that is perfect for all. Also, oz31p; I agree with you regarding the combo javelina/deer! A couple of years ago my son had a junior deer tag. We picked-up a javelina tag OTC for him, and it was a lot of fun. Kind of like a 'Southern AZ Safari'!!! S.

LOL!!! +1!! AWESOME, Buckskin!!!!! S.

Wow, Eilieen! What an amazing trip! Congrats on the great adventure, and thanks for sharing with the site! S.

Nice to hear the urban chicks are hatching! I'm a little pessimistic regarding the Gambels in the desert this year though...... Dry winter/spring almost always results in not many young birds next fall. Weather girl on T.V. this morning said rain fall in general, is WAY below average so far this year. I know that the measure at Sky Harbor, so different places have different amounts of rain but I think in general it might not be good for the Gambels chicks. If you're a bird hunter, cross your fingers for monsoon rain for the Mearns! S.

NICE SunDevil!!!! Makes me wish I was down there wading right now!!! Life, I think you should have a good time! S.

Do you how much for the pang fishing? Not sure how much it would cost now..... Three years ago, a buddy and I paid $150 (total.... between two of us) for 4-5 hours out on the boat. We found the boat by questioning one of the 'bannana boat' towing pangas one afternoon. He was taking the kids for a tow off the beach and I chatted with him about fishing. He only wanted to tow kids around, but had a buddy who owned a panga. (Disclaimer: Not bonded/insured! Hire at your own risk! ) He sent his buddy around and we arranged a deal. The guy took us out to some rocky areas a bit off shore, and we had lots of fun on Covina and Trigger Fish. As from the beach, we used nice heavy Kastmasters as opposed to live bait. We just wanted to have some fun with our spinning reels, and we definitely got it! S.

I've had some luck on the beach along Las Conchas throwing Kastmasters. Last time I went it was awesome until I stepped on that darn Stingray. Sucker got me good! Good luck and have fun! S. PS: Depending on how much time you have, you might consider paying one of the panga-boat guys to take you out for a bit?

Why create a law that is an ethical issue and is unenforceable. You can't police ethics! Nothing in life is 100% and to think that just because someone is unable to recover game that they made some unethical choice is not realistic. The best hunters in the world, meaning lions, tigers, wolves etc. are successful maybe 10% of the time, to think that human hunters should never wound something is silly, its just part of hunting. Umm..... I would disagree with the "unenforceable" comment. Seems like Alaska enforced it just fine. S.

For every one person who speaks-up and makes a stand, I suppose there are 100,000 who will say nothing. Not saying I agree with him or not. Frankly, I think he's a bit of a nut job.... But at least he's speaking-out. He'll pay the price (or not) for that, but at least he spoke his mind. My $.02 only. S.