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Richelle's first deer. Shot on the last day.It ended today at about 10 a.m.. After 8 days of hunting, we killed this buck on the last day. I am not going to lie and say this is mine, or Richelle's dream buck. With that said, we both feel very blessed right now. We had our kids just 75 yards away when the buck was shot. Richelle made a great 1 shot kill at 300 yards with her 7mm Mag. I am proud to have built a reload that is topped with a 180 grain Berger. It's amazing what a big dumb redneck can do if he reads a little!We also used the TriClawps. Richelle still has trouble finding animals in the scope and the TriClawps enabled me to place the buck in the scope frame for her. Once she found him, I knew he was dead. Richelle shoots all my rifles better than me and I am a big enough boy to admit it. I have been hunting big game for 22 years and I panic when we shoot paper together.What meant the most...On the drive back to the cabin, our nine year old daughter was talking to us about applying next year for this hunt. I am a trophy hunter (but I eat the meat) and sometimes I forget there are little people watching. I forget to teach. I forget to take them and I forget to have fun with them. We are still losing hunters and it's our own fault. Take your kids and other kids hunting. It's not always about the size of the dang rack, make it fun! We are not sure if we are going to publish Richelle's story in the Arizona ORG (Outdoorsman's Resource Guide), but you will either find the whole story in next year's hunting edition or on this blog. Yes, we have better pictures and we filmed the hunt. View the full article

Been hunting for the past two days. We still haven't found what I would consider a big buck. We didn't see a deer on the 28th, which really stunk. Yesterday was a different story...We decided to hunt further east because of the time we have spent on the west side without seeing a shooter. A ton of country is unhuntable because of road closures and snow. With that said, we hunted the juniper and cinder country. Around noon I glassed up a 2 12 year old two point chasing a doe and then a deer in the middle of some elk. We went around the corner and we saw 7-8 does and fawns with a year and a half old buck rutting them around. At about 4 p.m. we glassed up a doe and a fawn with no buck. A few minutes later we glassed up 6 more does and fawns. Again, no buck! Terrible buck-to-Doe ratio! I have also probably seen 250-300 elk in the past two days. Almost every place I glass has an elk in it. I am beginning to hate them dang stupid things! Ok, so back to the end of our day. At about 4:45 p.m. I was wading through the elk with my 15's and spotted the first mature buck of the trip. He was only a 2x3, but he had the best mass thus far and was tall and about 24ish wide. After watching him trail up deer for 10 mins. I told Richelle she could shoot him, if she wanted. She said she was ready to kill him. I started taking ranges and found the buck to be well over 1,000 yards, so we waited. The buck eventually made his way to the top of the mountain, where he found two other bucks and a hot doe. There was a better buck! I quickly sized him up. He was a main frame 4x3 with a 3" kicker on his left side. I didn't think he was that good until he got next to the big 2x3. The 4x3 doesn't have a great scoring frame but he is about 26" wide. We watched the deer as it got dark. On the way back to the cabin we found out about a big buck that had been killed in that general area. After talking with a couple friends I am thinking of checking out one more spot before we go hunt the 4x3 with the kicker. I am not sure if it is the right move. Honestly, I think it is a selfish move because I know Richelle wants to be done. It was -11 with wind chill yesterday and with the whole family hunting together it's not going to be easy. FYI-Richelle has never killed a deer before so I have mixed emotions about pulling off of this buck. View the full article

  Ernie with his 3rd Big Game Animal in less than a Year! Our young cousin, Ernie Scaff, has taken his first 3 Big Game Animals in less than one year. He just killed his second Mule Deer buck and second big game animal of 2012! Ernie has developed into a pretty good young hunter, considering he was once afraid of shooting a .22 rimfire. His last two big game animals were both taken down with 1 shot. Honestly, a lot of practice has gone into making him a better shot, as well as one quality piece of gear. The TriClawps gun rest system. It works, period. I don't endorse or put myself out there for many products, but this system is a practical solution too many gun rest issues I have seen in the field. It makes it so much easier for youth hunters to acquire their target and it gives anyone the ability to feel rock solid from a sitting to a standing position.Congrats to Ernie for conquering the challenges and for sticking with it. No Excuses... His first elk! A nice unit 10 AZ Bull. [/url] View the full article

We cruised the old fashion internet and found the TOP 10 Mule Deer Fights:#10 #9 #8 #7 #6 #5 #4 #3 #2 #1 View the full article

We saw this video the other day, so we decided to share it on our blog because it never gets old looking at big mature mule deer. These two big old mule deer bucks decided to invade a backyard and take on a little old house cat. View the full article

I am always humbled when I am willing to sit back and listen. So often, in today's society, we want to express our own opinions without actually listening to history. Hunting has changed over the years. Some days I believe we (myself included) have forgotten or disregard the true meaning of hunting. If you have a few minutes, take a break, watch and listen. Open up your mind and digest this message...Why we can hunt. the Public Trust Doctrine Boone and Crockett Country - The Public Trust Doctrine from Boone and Crockett Club on Vimeo. View the full article

I can't say enough about Hunting GPS Maps and if you have hunted with me, you know I use it almost every time I am out hunting or scouting. We are giving away x2 of these Hunting GPS Maps. Click here to Pre-Order! View the full article

Here is a short video preview of some the mule deer bucks we looked over during the first 4 days of Richelle's Late Season Mule Deer Hunt. View the full article

It's been a long, but short 7 1/2 days, if that makes ANY sense. Yesterday, we saw a few deer but nothing like we thought. Some of the places that held a lot of deer were shut down because of road closures. So, it was frustrating. I tracked up one 22 inch 4x5. He just wasn't the kind of buck we wanted. We also covered a lot of country searching for the rumored 190+. We are calling him the "Ghost buck" and pretty much are done looking for him.Today, started good as we trailed a big footed buck amongst some does. We got busted while moving in the thick stuff. The deer spooked and a few minutes later two shots rang out below us. dang it! Just our luck! We still aren't sure if someone killed him or what happened.Later in the day we drove up on a nice young 4x4 and some does. We decided to let him grow, but it got our blood pumping again. (Pictured below)We drove another 5 miles and cut some fresh tracks. We made a big loop in the truck before taking out after them. We trailed several does and another big footed buck. We zigged and they zagged, until Richelle spotted them below us. A short wait and a Knarly 2x3 pushed a doe in front of us. dang... not the buck we had mind. Wet feet and a cold walk back to the 4runner was our reward.We are out of time until after Christmas so everyone will just have to be patient. On top of that, a vacuum switch went out in my truck and tonight we discovered the front passenger suspension arm is cracked on my 4runner!No Excuses. View the full article

Let it snow. Let it snow. Yeah, that is the worst Christmas song ever! I am plume tired of watching it snow and blow.Today we hunted all of about 3 hours. The rest of the time we sat in the truck and watched the radar. We encountered snow from 6-24 inches. Below is a picture of my 4runner which we left at the cabin. 24 inches!We ended the day seeing 20+ deer and 4 bucks. We trailed up the biggest buck, but he avoided us in the juniper country. Below is a picture of a small three point that Richelle could have shot with her bow. Also, below is also a picture of two small bulls we walked up on, which was pretty cool. All of this action happened quick.Today we had a heck of a snow ball fight and built a snow man with some special people. Tomorrow will be our first full day of hunting, if we avoid getting stuck. At the end of the day, we feel blessed to have both our children after the tragedy in Connecticut. It puts life and hunting into perspective. No Excuses... View the full article

It was an interesting day... 1-8 inches of snow was what we encountered today, which was actually a blessing. With that said, the 40 mph winds were a dang curse! We saw 20+ head of deer and the best buck was this young 4x4 pictured below. Almost every deer was seen from the truck because of the inclement weather. It was the worst conditions I have ever hunted in. Long story short... We are tired. We did not kill and we are ready for a better day. No Excuses. View the full article

It's been super windy the past two days, but I finally managed to find a decent buck this morning. I can't seem to find any of the bucks that I was told about. One of the bucks is rumored to be well in the 190s. I managed to find the rub shown below, in almost the exact spot I was told he was seen. Maybe with the snow we can pick up his tracks. There are not many deer where he is at.Below is a cool Droptine buck I found this morning. He is a main frame 27" 4x3 with a 6-8" drop tine. In my opinion we are going to look for something better. Stay tuned... View the full article

I made it up Monday afternoon. After taking a real quick drive the sun went down. I spotlighted until 3:30 am and turned up 30+ head of deer, but no shooters. Yesterday was a horrible day. Awesome weather but my tired butt couldn't turn up any thing. Well... 1 doe was it.I am now all cozy on the side of Mt. Crumpit. The wind is howling and my fingers are numb, so hopefully the big buck will turn up. I am doubtful with this wind. View the full article

If you spend $500.00 or more, on any regular priced items (no sale or closeout items) at Bull Basin of Tucson, AZ, they will pay your sales tax. If you have been thinking of a new bow set-up, or an awesome set of optics, now is the TIME to get them! Tucson has a Sales Tax rate of around 9%, so you are saving $45+ dollars for every $500 you spend. This offer is only valid until Christmas of 2012! View Larger Map View the full article

Double Drop Tine Buck!Laine sent me a picture of a buck his friend took in Colorado. This buck will be featured in the 2013 Colorado Hunting Edition. We are still looking for UnGuided Arizona & Colorado Hunting stories for the 2013 Hunting Editions. Submit a story-info@OutdoorsmansResourceGuide.com Your Resources. Your Stories. Your Publication. View the full article

It's the last morning of Richelle's 2012 Elk Hunt. We saw one little bull last night, but he was too far off to even consider. We are going to burn up our eye balls and boot rubber today. Whether successful or unsuccessful today, we won't have any dang excuses. View the full article

Bob Costas Gun Control comments after NFL tragedy.I just get the kids to bed after a long weekend. I sit down to watch a "mindless kids game", called NFL Sunday Night Football. The game just breaks into halftime of the Cowboys vs Eagles game. Shortly, before the commercial break my jaw flat hits the ground after listening to what Bob Costas said,"Jason Whitlock sports writer, with whom I do not always agree, but today said it so well. That we may as just quote, or paraphase from the end of his article. Our current gun culture, Whitlock wrote, insures that more and more domestic disputes will end in the ultimate tragedy. And that more convenient store confrontations, over load music coming from a car, will leave more teenage boys blooded and dead. Hand guns DO NOT enhance our safety. They exacerbate our flaws. Tempt us to escalate arguments. And bate us into embracing confrontation, rather than avoiding it. In the coming days, Jevon Belcher's actions and their possible connections to football will be analyzed. Who knows... But here, wrote Jason Whitlock, is what I believe. If Jevon Belcher didn't posses a gun, he and Kassandra Perkins would both be alive today ".I don't care if you are pro-gun or anti-gun, this was a terrible moment to broadcast such a statement. I am obviously pro-gun and so are most of you reading our blog and publications. I would like to add, hand guns DO add to our safety. My wife is a 120 pound female and it keeps me safe at night knowing she is packing a hand gun. I want her to SHOOT anyone in the head that tries to violate her, or my children! POINT BLANK! You can't dispute that BAD guys are always going to have access to guns. Stop preaching ignorance and stupidity during a NFL game Bob & NBC! I don't want to hear your stupid ignorant claims.This is my family. This is why we have a right to own guns! Do we all feel sad for the families? Yes. But the truth is, Jevon Belcher was responsible for himself and I REFUSE TO BE HELD HOSTAGE FOR HIS HORRIBLE ACTIONS! PERIOD! View the full article

Miller's Southwestern Processing Inc. was our expert contributor on how-to-do the Gutless Field Dressing method in the 2012 Arizona Hunting Edition of the Outdoorsman's Resource Guide. Here is a short how-to-web video: View the full article

I had to share this 200 inch Mule Deer video compilation by Larry Mower. I couldn't focus on work after watching this! View the full article

Edited Version. You don't have to be a pro to take good photos.Non-Edited Version. A little shadowy, but that's real world conditions.I see way too many hunters not taking the time to take a quality photo. My dad is one of them! So, below is a simple how-to-step/reminder of how simple it can be. How-to-take a good Trophy Photo1. Preparation! You need an 8mb+ digital camera with a charged battery and space available on the memory card. Keep it in a zip locked bag and in a small case in your pack (somewhere it won't get smashed). Make sure the lens isn't dirty. Watch some online tutorials on how-to-use your digital camera or read the directions. Then USE it before the hunt, so you are not trying to figure it out in the dark or when you are rushed. 2. Slow Down! You worked your butt off for 12 days and you finally got your big bull on the ground. Like most of us, you are tired, but excited because you finally fulfilled your lifetime goal. Your trophy animal could have died in a bad spot, or you are worried about the meat spoiling (which you should), but generally this is when you have to slow down and take in the moment. Try to get the animal in a position you desire and get the sun toward your back. Clean off the blood around the nose and cut off the tongue. Some guys carry fishing line to tie the mouth's of their trophies closed, I typically don't. (Presentation is huge if you want to get published in a magazine.) We all want our animals to look big in photos, so make sure you take a ton of photos from a bunch of different angles. Again, slow down... Your trophy bull is dead, this is the moment you have waited for!Edited Version. We can do a lot to clean up photos, but you have to take them.Original Image. Real world shadows and overexposed, but still a good photo. 3. Use a tripod. If you don't have a tripod, use your pack, log or a rock to stabilize your camera. Use your timer on your camera, if you are by yourself or want a group photo. 4. Don't just rely on your smartphone! Why? They don't have timers and generally they don't have away to mount them to a tripod. I carry mine with me for a back-up. 5. Smile! This isn't the UFC or the NFL. We are hunters! We are supposed to be having fun and enjoying it. Nothing makes me laugh more, than seeing some guy acting tough with his trophy animal. I know sometimes you are exhausted, or you feel like a badass, but come on man! This isn't about just taking photos for a magazine or for your website. You are documenting your own personal history. I love going through old family photos and I hope one day my grandkids and great grandkids will too. View the full article

Richelle enjoying the beauty of the back country.We had the opportunity to hunt for a day and a half this week. dang, God's Country was unreal. Once again, we worked our tails off trying to find the right bull, but despite pounding the ground with both our feet and eyes, it did not happen.Check-out the short video below. Google Earth with Hunting GPS Maps Land Status OverlayThis week we finally found some country that is AWAY from the hunting pressure, thanks to Hunting GPS Maps and a 1/2 day's worth of pounding our feet. Finally found a Giant Bull living in the back country. With just 2 days left to hunt, we are down to the bottom of the 9th! We may not find the right bull again, but we know he is alive and if someone else kills this bull, they will at least deserve him. Stay tuned... View the full article

Vaquero Outfitters had a great run on the 2012 Arizona Strip Deer Hunts! 218" Gross Giant Arizona Strip Buck! Awesome bucks! Congrats to Vaquero Outfitters & their clients! View the full article

Need a Game Meat Processor? Miller's Southwestern Processing will have Mountain Cooler locations in Clints Wells, Forest Lakes and Springerville. They are also available at their main processing facility in Queen Creek, AZ. You can contact them at: 480-987-8700 Arizona is experiencing warm temperatures for this time of year, so make sure to cool it! Miller's Southwestern Processing also received the most votes on the 2012 Arizona Outdoorsmen Top Pick ballot for the Game Processor category in Regions 1 and 6. Some Game Meat Processing reviews: Javelina Sausage by Miller's Southwestern Processing Arizona Elk Processing Reviews View the full article

The Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Guide Crew filmed this Giant Arizona Desert Bighorn Ram. This ram was taken in Arizona's Unit 22 and it scored over 180 net! The mass on this ram is just freakin' crazy! The Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Guide Crew has been the leading vote getter for the Arizona Outdoorsmen Top Pick Bighorn Sheep Guide, for the past three consecutive years! View the full article

Richelle wondering when we are going to find the right bull. We worked our butt's off this past weekend! We have not killed yet, and we are still going to continue to push forward, until we find what we are looking for. We are not sure if it is a giant bull, the right situation, or what yet. Arizona Desert Elk CountryI pushed Richelle to the brink of making it not fun for her. I want to make sure I don't cross this line, but it is hard to do when there are so few elk and lots of hunters. A couple of the hunters did some things to us that just didn't make sense. I don't know what happened to the "Golden Rule", but it seems like it's disappearing with public land hunters.With that, I am not going to go into to the details, because I don't want to compromise what we are doing at this point, but stay tuned! View the full article