stanley

Big congratulations on your pending graduation Christian! Great mile stone in life..... Take care of that wrist, and good luck up north this summer! S. PS: I'm coaching my 8 year old's 'machine pitch' baseball team this year, and we have not lost a game yet. One more win this Saturday will cap-off an un-defeated season! I hope I didn't just jinx him!

Awesome mounts everyone! I don't have any to share, as I have never felt like having anything I've killed mounted. Saved some antlers, but never put them on a cape. Pretty inspiring though folks!!! Doug, that buck is beautiful! Great representative speciman from the sw part of the state! S.

Outstanding pics everyone! I especially like the ones with the kids! Here's my son Erik with his first deer and his first javelina. Truly my most treasured memories.... S.

My son and I got turkey tags in unit 23 for the second hunt last weekend. We were in the same spot I've hunted the past two seasons in 23. There are always turkeys there! On Thursday evening we went-out to a point over looking a huge drainage of ponderosa & oak covered canyons. We heard what were likely over 10 gobblers up & down the drainage within a couple of miles of our position. On Friday morning the birds were noisy again, and we had two gobblers come into our first set-up fast & loud! The first one came in slightly behind us though, and never offered us a shot (I could have swung on the bird but was waiting for my boy to get a chance...). The second one then hung-up and didn't come in. By 6:15 AM on Friday the birds shut-up though, and NEVER GOBBLED AGAIN the entire weekend!! Made for really tough hunting, and we never got a bird. We did get one to come in silent on Saturday evenin simply by setting-up in a likely spot and waiting it out long enough. He came-in from the side though, and also didn't offer a shot before disappearing into the thick brush. Lots of fun but no bird! The spot we hunt is WAY back in the stuff, and we only saw one other hunter the entire weekend anywhere near us. No hunting pressure at all, so why did the birds shut-up? Could the slight change in weather (air pressure, etc.?) on Friday impact them this much? Truly frustrating.... Any input from anyone? Anyway, we saw deer, elk, a timber rattler, and other stuff. Did lots of exploring & target practicing, and enjoyed some great meals. I might try to get out once more, but work is weighing me down... We'll see. How did anyone else do? Any similar stories? Good luck to anyone who is hunting! S. :-)

I suspected I knew the general area of your pics Doug.... Outstanding buck! Good luck on your turkey hunt as well! I'm picking Erik up from school at lunch (science & vocab test's this morning... ), then heading-up with my buddies Rich & Richard. They'll be doing the calling for us. Anyway, gotta finish packing & get some groceries! Nice pics all! Amanda, that camp looks REALLY cold!!! S.

Nice comfortable looking camp there Doug. I want to see a picture of that buck though! S. PS: Erik and I are heading-up to 23 for turkeys tomorrow! I'm hoping one of us can get our first bird. Don't you have a tag as well? Good luck!

OK, here's something for all to consider; I just opened the new regs (on-line) and noticed that the hunt success reported for one of the units that I like to hunt actually had a higher success % for the October hunt than the November hunt? For what it's worth.... S.

Hey Doug: I had thought about this myself as well, as I usually put in for the October hunt. My opinion is that it will not change it that much. I'm thinking that most 'average joe' hunters (like me...) generally hunt the weekends or long weekends, so adding a couple of more days to the hunt in the middle of the week won't matter much to most. I could be wrong, but that's my $.02..... Tis a fun time of year when we get to start strategizing & planning for the draws. Fall will be here before we know it! S.

Now that's really funny! S.

My boy and I will be heading out for our turkey hunt in a couple of weeks, and the joke about the 1st grader inspired me to write about our experience last season. We had tags in unit 23 here in AZ, and had an adventurous hunt but ended-up with tag soup. The turkeys were a little silent, and the stomach flu swept through camp. We made the best of it though, and had a good time. We were joined in camp for the weekend by a couple of my regular hunting buddies. Now, don't ask me why, but on the drive home I felt compelled to give my son the 'what happens in camp, stays in camp' talk. I wanted to make sure that anything of the words he might have heard around the fire didn't get repeated around his mother or sister. Well, he said he understood but asked if it was OK to say ANY 'curse' words. I said that I didn't really think at his age he should be cussing. He then said, "Well what about the 'C' word?". I immediately said "WHAT?? NO, YOU CAN'T USE THE 'C' WORD! ESPECIALLY DON'T SAY THE 'C' WORD!". I then said "Erik, do you even know what the 'C' word is, and what it means? I couldn't believe it when he replied that he did, in fact know what it was and what it meant. Holding my breath, I then said "OK then big guy, what is the 'C' word and what does it mean?". He calmly replied "It's crap, and it means poopie.". I let out a HUGE sigh of relief and told him that he should try not to say it too much . S.

Congrats Vini! I'm heading-out with my son in a couple of weeks here in AZ. Great pic with the family as well!! S.

Are you kidding me Christian???? What a dream job! Good for you, and I'm sure you'll learn a lot up there. You'll also make some friends that will last a life-time! Make the most of it! Alaska is an amazing place. I'm planning on going back there some day with my sons & daughter, and I can't wait. Good luck, and bring us lots of stories!!! S.

Hope to see some pictures from Texas in a few days!!! From the sounds of it, I suppose there will be a couple of birds hitting the ground. Good luck right back at you! Myself, I'll be hunting turkeys here in AZ 23 for the third year in a row. I've learned a bit more each year, and I'm hoping this will be it! Better still, my oldest boy has a tag as well. I'll obviously be pulling for him first. Ditto what Scott said; Good luck to all! S. PS: No feeders where I'm heading. Just good ol' pine tree covered mountains (and STEEP ones)!

I was there for a brief time with my wife. Unfortunately we had another commitment that we had to get to, so we could only stay a couple of hours. Seemed like things went pretty well. Congrats on the 15x56s! How did it go at your table Amanda? Any other winners? Sorry Tracy and I didn't get much time to stop by and visit, but I'm glad you got a chance to meet her anyway. Hope some other CW regulars made out OK in the drawings & auction. S. PS: Amanda, I missed the chair auction. Do you know how much it went for? Curious...

I'm not a member, but I know several of the folks from the Tucson chapter through my ADA trash pick-up & youth camp dealings. They're right in the middle of the semi-annual unit 36 ranch pick-up efforts. Seems like a lot of energy in that bunch, and that they're doing some good things for the deer down south. S.

I'm Stan Johnsen, and graduated in 83. My sister graduated with Clell (then married Sam L.). Anyway, always good to see some home town folks on the site. Sorry to hi-jack the thread Lorona24! Once again, I say it's a big hummer! S.

I think all of the Loronas in Kearny are related. My sister has been a 'Lorona' for 25 years (married one...). Who did you meet in school? Did you live in Kearny Dotshot? What is your family's name? S.

I'm not much into scoring, so I won't venture a guess except to say that it is a BIG SUCKER!! Kearny buck??? S.

I think it's only illegal to bait for bears. I know lots of guys are putting salt out for deer/elk (anything...) these days, and I don't think that there is anything illegal about it. S.

Doug, you're killing me!! I to, tangled with a fish hook once. I was spending the summer in Lakeside with a buddie's family in their cabin when I was somewhere around 10 years old or so. I ended-up wearing a good sized Mepps spinner as an earing for a few of hours until the doctor could dig it out. Screamed like a little girl!!! S.

Man, I LOVE Molly Butlers! Always have.... I remember going there as a kid in the summer and loving playing pool or pinball & goofing-off. Food was great, and now I love the fact that my kids are getting turned on to it. Get there early for the prime rib!!! Good stuff. S.

VERY, VERY, VERY, awesome!!! I love those kinds of stories!!! These are the kinds of stories I LOVED as a boy, and that my young children are just now starting to appreciate. Great job. S.

Everyone has their own thing, that's for sure. LOT'S of work & some travel during the week!!!!! Also, lots of little league games (coaching & spectating...), birthday party?s, school stuff, ballet class, fishing, turkey hunting, etc, etc... Mainly boils down to good ole' family time. I used to spend several weeks in Lakeside during each summer as a kid. Still love the White Mountains. Good memories there... S.

Very cool Kaffer62!! Good story & good pics! Congrats on the lion. S.

Outstanding Sott! Looks like you really did it up BIG TIME! Nice way to go our man!!!! Best wishes with the next phase of your life! S.