TAM

Have you thought of just flying into Tucson instead? That may be cheaper than an international flight? Either rent a car or possibly make arrangements with the outfitter to meet you there?

Josh, you've got my #, feel free to give it to anyone that needs a reference. I'd recomend you guys to anyone! I think chasing a lion with dogs is something that every hunter should experience at least once in a lifetime. I can't even describe the excitement! Now I'm just waiting anxiously for Greg to finish the mount.

As Amanda mentioned salt can work to bring them in, but it's probably to late to use it this year. It can take weeks and months to get deer hitting salt on a regular basis. From my experience salt gets better with time and should be established early in the year if you plan on hunting it in the fall.

Is that Mike and Roxy in the 4th picture?

I'm not sure what they are, but I've seen my taxidermist pull them out of the nose and sinus cavities of bucks I've shot in the past. He says he sees them all the time.

Bowsniper, I sent you a PM, did it work?

Here's a picture of a scrape in the desert from unit 31. The picture was from 2004.

Good for him! I always love it when the bunny huggers cut off there nose despite there face. Shows just how stupid they really are. I know hunters and ranchers don't always agree on everything, but I think one thing both sides do agree on is that the environmental wackos are bad for everyone!

I'll be hunting the Granados ranch. I'm getting real excited about it!

I'm hunting with Cola Blanca for the first time in a few weeks. My trip is scheduled from Jan 3-9th. I'd be happy to share the details with you guys when I get back.

missedagain, that makes perfect sense. It actually works to my benefit as well, being that I've never given myself the add back. Thanks.

Casey, how do you measure a .185 inch group? Not bashing, just curious? Even if you put five bullets through the same hole with a .270 that hole is going to measure .277 inches across? When you measure groups don't you measure from the outside edge of the two furthest holes?

I'd have shot him too, but there is no way I would have put him in my truck let alone touched him! No way in heck I'd even think about eating him either!

Nice buck! Congratulations.

These are a few of the questions that pop up in my mind as I read through this discussion. They're not meant to bash anyone. I just have to ask because some of the statements in quotes seem outrageous, unfounded, and in some cases just plain wrong. For the record, I don't own a chute plane, nor have I ever flown in one. I'd say that when it comes to scouting I'm not against their use, but I am very much against their mis-use! Daverp - "My personal belief is that any "eye in the sky" technique short of your own leg power to drag your butt up to the top of a hill or mountain to glass is unethical." That's a pretty broad statement What about trucks, horses, a bicycle, a pack goat, a float plane, or even a pogo stick? Dare I even mention an ATV? What are your thoughts on trail cameras? Rembrant - "...the chuters are pounding them" I always enjoy and respect your thoughts, but I've just got to ask, do you have facts that support this statement? Is it your opinion or a prediction perhaps? Noel - "My final word on this subject is that it may be legal now.But if we can still expect to hunt in the future then the powers to be need to make it illegal to fly." - It is already illegal to fly during the hunt. Bobbyo - "These bucks are likely to have never seen a human, never experienced a hunting season. They would be as wise as a 1 year old spike, how could they not be." - Your reason against chute planes is because they could find animals in remote areas that are not as wise? These remote animals would be more easily shot because they are not as wise? Daverp - "Personally, this whole thing really takes the shine off of Mr. Ulmer's image as far as I'm concerned" - So because you have a different opinion on an ethics issue it's ok to look down your nose at him? Daverp - "but he's still using the tactic not available to most hunters to greatly increase his odds of success over traditional, hard earned methods." - Sounds like since you don't have a chute plane no one should have a chute plane? I'd also like to see some factual information that supports your theory that chute planes "greatly increase" hunting success? Daverp - "More importantly he's using a method that most hunters would find unethical." - This may be your opinion, but that doesn't mean it's everyon else's opinion as well. Coues7 - "if we look the small picture it would be cool to use chute planes, helicopter and such to locate game.....this gives us the MAJOR UPPER HAND" - If used within the current AZ laws in the very best senario a chute plane still only tells us where animals were two days ago. How is this a "major advantage"? Advantage - yes, Major advantage - ??? I have trail cameras that can tell me where animals were two days ago, but I've yet to shoot one of them. How is this any different? Bobbyo - "glad you are back on the side of good instead of evil" - So just because you are anti chute plane's that makes a chute plane scouter evil? Isn't that kind of self righteous or are you trying to be sarcastic? Bobbyo - "yet a guy in a chute plane can spot a trophy mule from the air, know its exact location and then list his trophy in the book." - How do you know his "exact" location? If you were using your chute plane in accordance with the law, at very best you would know exactly where he was 48 hours ago? Is it different if I used a trail camera to find his "exact" location?

Yep, I guess it's all perspective. When I first started using trail cameras with film, they would use like two 9 volts, and 4 C's and all you would get was like 50-60 pic's. The moultrie was my first digital and I thought it was great because it got so many pic's from one battery. Now I also use home brew cameras and they can get 500-600 pic's from two AA's and a 9 volt battery. They could get thousands of pic's if I added the extra battery packs like you have in yours.

Josh, the buck I saw was alive. I'm not sure if anyone ever shot it? Send me a picture of Jay's buck and I'll tell you if it looks the same?

I asked this question earlier on this same post and none of the anti chute plane crowd responded. So here it is again. In Arizona it's only legal to use a chute plane for scouting purposes up to 48 hours before the start of the hunting season. There's a bunch of you on here saying that chute planes are unethical even when used inside this law. In Alaska it is perfectly legal to fly over caribou herds, river drainages and other areas scouting for game animals during the hunting season as long as you don't hunt within 24 hours of flying. It is common practice up there to get on a bush plane with tundra tires and have your pilot fly you out in front of the migrating caribou herds so you can hunt them 24 hours later. Why is it that nobody blows the ethics whistle on the rules in Alaska but many choose to whine about using chute planes in Arizona? In fact, I'll bet that most of the anti chute plane advocates on this very thread have no ethical conflicts with hunting caribou in Alaska in the above mentioned fashion. Sounds like a double standard to me???? Speak up anti chute plane people.

I saw one a few years back in unit 31. I hunted him hard during the October hunt, but never saw him again.

I don't use mine anymore since it was vandalized, but I didn't consider it a battery hog. I'll bet I got 300 pic's per battery.

It seems to me that bucks in the northern units tend to have larger bodies than those in southern Az. Even my taxidermist has noticed this. I'm not sure if there is any science to support this like genetics or climate? Isn't there a theory about the further north you go from the equator the larger the bodies of deer get? Perhaps that has something to do with it?

NM is a tough hunt with a rifle let alone a bow! Great potential for trophys, but coues can be very difficult to find. Like anywhere scouting is important, but from my experience it's extra important in NM. The sheds in my Avatar picture are from NM and would score 120+. Good luck!

I always figured 15 inches.

I was thinking on the hoof, but Azpackhorse may be right!

I'll bet that fat buck on the bottom will go at least 130!!!