DesertBull

There were appx 39,000 deer tags last year. 5% = 1,950 That is enough to cover all the 'Bab and strip hunts, plus several of the primo December hunts like 33, 36a,b,c, etc.

Here is what I am afraid of. They will start this Class A / B price structure to only include the Kaibab/Strip deer hunts and the early rifle elk hunts. Then, when everyone gets used to that, they shift the late December unit 36, 33, 32, etc Whitetail hunts over along with the muzzleloader elk hunts. Then, soon after that, they shift the archery elk hunts some more of the December Whitetail hunts over etc. Once they get a taste of those big $$$$, it will be like sharks swarming around a dead whale. IMO, the whole process is getting way to complicated. Just go back to the pre-bonus point days and let it be a true lottery.

Hopefully the G&F will hold off on raising tag numbers for awhile. Just because we had a great year of fawn production, doesn't mean we should kill a bunch on 1-1/2 year old bucks next year. This year, so far, is shaping up as another dry and warm winter.

I have asked these question in the form of emails, but have never received a response.

Here is another question. If the G&F can justify the higher cost of Premium hunts, how come they say nothing about lowering the prices of less desirable Limited Opp. hunts, Cow Elk hunts, low succes rate hunts, etc? Using their logic, why should a unit 4B muzzleloader cow tag cost the same as a unit 7W general season bull tag?

in addition to what they already get from excise taxes. http://www.azgfd.gov/artman/publish/article_414.shtml

Nothing infuriates me more than the "non-serious" hunter argument. A father wanting to take his kids hunting once a year, not really caring if they get a deer or not, should not be priced out of the experience. Just because hunting is not the first thought to cross your mind when you wake up in the morning and the last thought you have before falling asleep, does not mean you should be "weeded out" so the fanatic can have a better shot at drawing a tag. There are plenty of people that love hunting, but do not have the means to apply in multiple states, or even apply for multiple species in his/her own state. they want to go on their annula deer hunt just the same as the guy/gal that goes on 3-4 hunting trips a year, thought the country. One day, and I think most of us will see this in our lifetime, there will be a flat out "yes or no" vote on hunting. You are going to want these people to vote yes. If you had been priced out of the game or if your dad never took you hunting because you could not afford $200 for license and tags. how would you vote?

WOW, that's awesome. Funny how hunting is supposed to be relalxing and a chance to get away from the grind of city slicker life, but we often put so much pressure on ourselves that it become more stressful than rush hour traffic. This goes to show that you don't have to take the fun out of hunting, just because you drew a good tag! Are the deer still up high, or have they moved down into the winter range? I noticed you said you had a "pinyon fire" going, so would guess you were hunting down low. Congrats!

If the raise is needed to keep officers in the field, do research, catch poachers, etc, then I am all for it. If it is to alter the draw odds of the better hunts in favor of those who can afford it, then I am 100% AGAINST IT. I don't care if you are from California, New York, or freaking IRAQ, charging $1,800 for an elk tag is an embarassment. The NR cap is back in place. They don't need to use $$$$ to deter NR from applying. USO is going to end up winning the public relations battle if that goes through.

They probably will be reluctant to give out that info until after the increase has been approved. Remember, they are politiions, first and foremost. 5% of the deer tags is a lot of tags. I am not sure how many, but I would think they gave out around 30,000 tags this year (5% = 1,500)

That is why I never chamber a round till I am ready to shoot. Mechanical devices fail. A quick shot at a deer, no matter how big, is not worth losing a friend, family member, or a shooting a innocent stranger. I could live with shooting myself but not someone else.

Wow, what a tough hunt this weekend. We glassed HARD for 2-1/2 days, in an area that holds a lot of whitetails and Mule Deer, and saw exactly 1 doe and a fawn. That's it. I saw the doe standing in some think brush in a creek bottom, and she stood there for over 20 minutes without moving anything but her ears! The temps were very warm, but not unbearable. The area still had a lot of fresh tracks and droppings and the water holes all had fresh tracks, but the deer were just not moving, or else I am blind. This is an area where I have seen as many as 30 deer in a single morning of glassing. The only think I can think of is that they were in the deep canyon bottoms, where it's impossible to glass, eating the acorns. There are a lot of acorns on the ground in the bottoms of the canyons, but there are also a lot of acorns on the oak brush on the slopes. We also saw a lion in the area 3 weeks ago. Oh well, that's hunting. We have the unit for the general tag next weekend. Maybe things will change by then.

Unless they changed the laws recently, it's still legal to bait for everything except bears.

If I had a Kaibab tag, I would not waste one minute of my deer hunt chasing a beefalo or elk.

Here's some more tips: A lot of digital cams will let you set a "bracket" exposure. This will take a picture using the setting the camera thinks is optimal and also take a picture with the exposure a step lighter and another pic one step darker. 3 pics, 3 different exposures, 1 push of the button. When you get home, you choose the one that looks best and delete the other two. Take some pics using your flash, even in daylight, to help fill in the shadows. Use the red-eye reduction settings. Don't center the deer in the picture. Frame the shot using the "rule of thirds". Take some pics so that the viewer can get a good look at the landscape in which you took your trophy. Using the "landscape" setting on your camera will ensure that the subject and the background are both in focus. Use the "portrait" settings on closeups to blur the background and focus all the attention on the subjects of the photo. Take a lot of pictures! You will probably only get 1 or 2 that are really awesome out of every 20 pics you take. Anyone got any more?

I would get a removeable brake. Use it while sighting in and practicing, where you would normally be wearing hearing protection, and recoil is felt more, then remove it for hunting.

Hey, we still had fun! Glad to see the young hunters had some success. I saw 4 mule deer on the side of the road on Sunday too, at about 10:00 am. Just south of Globe, in 24b.

We can send a rocket to Mars but we cannot come up with a button to push on this website to send 10,000 volts through these guys?

Here's mine

Are ya'll related? http://216.17.106.41/extra/license_genS.php?&name=Lark http://216.17.106.41/extra/license_genS.ph...FirstCoueswas80 http://216.17.106.41/extra/license_genS.php?&name=BASS

Designated Driver!!

Looks like some sort of game feeder. Are you baiting? Nice bucks though.

HOLY CARP, I MEAN CRAP! That is freaking SPECIAL! Did anyone break the bad news to him? That he will have hunt his butt off the rest of his life to top that? Did he take a bath in the blood or is his shirt just tie dyed red?

I have never used it as a cover or lure while hunting, but I put some around my salt licks once in while. I have found that it doesn't spook them, but I am not sure they really come running to it either. I do think the imitation vanilla extract spooks them, because I put some of that on a new salt lick I started and they never came around it, even though I know there were a lot of deer using the trail. I moved the salt 100 yards down the trail and they started using within a week or so.

That bottom buck is taunting you.