recurveman

cool part is nobody can go in that area and the animals should have very little stress. Things change so fast once they go hard horned anyways that most of the scouting done before September 1st is not that important. Honestly I look at 2 things before September. Feed (where the cows are at) and Water (where the cows are at). Come the middle of September the boys will show up. Kind of like a lady's night at the bar. Give women a bunch of cheap drinks and dudes will show up.

I'm also not seeing great recruitment but I'm hoping that it is a little early yet. I think there is still time for them to drop. Did have the fawn in distress call going this weekend. Let's just say that I have saved a few calves and fawns!!!!!!! Oh and antlers. I think they will be just fine. The winter was mild and I think growth will be better than hunters are expecting. From what I'm seeing it should be a solid year. Not fantastic but good.

I shot a lion last year on August 5th. This year I couldn't shoot a lion on that date. As of July 1st lion season will be closed for the first time I can every remember while being in AZ. So basically from the 80's lion season has been open every single day until July 1st. Kind of weird. Guess I'll just have to go up this weekend and get one before the season closes!!!!!!

I usually use a longer top shot of flouro. On my 20# rig I usually use 100 yards of top shot and normally 25 yards on all of my other rigs. I don't like using only 3-4 feet and then having to tie new leaders on all the time. I just put a bunch on and cut it off as needed and don't have to worry about putting on new leaders all the time.

I believe the season closes june 30th and reopens August 24th. First time I have seen the season not be all year long.

Cats aren't that hard to call in. You have to think a bit different though. Don't sit down wind. Sit so you can look down wind. The cats I've called in always come from down wind. If you have the wind in your face and are looking at the call.........the cat is right behind you. The biggest reason people don't call more cats in to calls is the cats aren't in the area. If a cat is in the area then you have a chance at calling them in. If you are seeing the cat on camera every 2-4 days then call in the area and see if you can't turn it up. I bet you can.......PS. I'm leaving in about 30 minutes to go cat hunting this weekend. Notice I didn't say predator hunting. I strictly focus on cats.

So when I go on a boat I run a 20# avet SX with a 8' 15-30# rod (bait). 20# penn spinning rod (jigs). A 30# Avet JX 2 speed (over kill but versatile) on a 7' rod. A 40# Avet JX 2 speed on a 7' rod. A 60# HX 2 speed on a 7' rod. 80# trolling rod. All but the trolling rod are spectra backed and I always run 25' or more floro top shot. So, if I had to put this in order of most used I would say my 20# bait rod, 20# spinning rod, 40# bait rod, 30#, 80# 60#. If you are doing a 3 day or under trip I would have a 20# bait and a 40# rod. You can put a 30# leader on the 40# rod and do just fine. I would buy the absolute best reel and rod you can afford and just buy one. Don't buy two that are marginal. Buy top gear and less of it. Start with 20# then the 40# and go from there. Heavy gear rarely gets used (though the last few years have been a bit different. If you are on a budget look at the diawa Sealine reels. They are awesome and I ran them for years. If $$ is no object look at avet/accurate/ ect. My gear took me 10-15 years to acquire and upgrade as needed. All my gear is custom and all the rods are exactly alike. It took years and is absolutely over kill but a blast. Last year I went on a 5.5 day trip and my go to rod was 40# but I still used my 20# rod a bunch. Finally used my 60# rod on some bigger tails (must have brought that rod along for years before I really actually needed it) 2 speeds are cool but I really don't think they have much purpose until you hit 40# and even then only sometimes. I caught a bigger model BFT a few years back and it was awesome to have a 2 speed reel. Still took me 45 minutes to get him to the boat. Keep in mind that a ton of fish have been caught with a penn 500 and a jig stick. Equipment makes it easier to get them to the boat sometimes but getting bit is the key to the whole game.

I used rocky mountains for years. Loved them. Now I use slick tricks. Only shot one elk with them so we will see. Here are my reasons for the slick trick. I like a smaller cutting diameter head. I see way to many guys wanting to put a big hole in an animal. I want to put a deep hole (hopefully 2 holes = 2 holes to bleed from) in the animal. Getting enough penetration to hit the vitals is more important than having a big hole. I also like the thicker blades for durability, shorter distance from point to cutting is also important to me. Honestly I sharpen every single blade when it goes into my quiver. Every single one of them. I actually think back in the day the blades were sharper than they are today. Or at least I cut myself more often. The second place head was the muzzy's. I think they make a good head but the distance from the tip to cutting is a bit longer than I would like to see. Great head though.

Going on a 3.5 day in July and an 8 day on the Intrepid on August 9th. I'm sure the August trip will be fun but I'm hoping the fish show up for the July trip. I remember when I would be fishing for the chickens in June and now we haven't seen them in a decade.

Well this is my my advice. I catch 90% of my fish on 20# and live bait or 40# and a jig. Most everything else is just for fun. Though normally I will have 5-7 rods when I get on a boat (mostly 3-8 day trips) Get a few 1/4 oz rubber core weights and some #1/0-#3/0 ringed hooks for live bait fishing. Get 2 of the jigs they suggest in the pro shop. Get seasickness medicine. You will have to go get the scopalomine patch from a Doc. Well worth the money. Put some snacks in your pack. I've never had a boat complain but I haven't brought a cooler with meals on the boat either.......actually I did but that was a private charter. Honestly I don't know why but the vast majority of the boat food I have had is very good to great. I did a trip on the intrepid this past summer and it was crazy the spreads they would throw down. Absolutely crazy. Sushi, duck, ribeye, everything. On your trip expect a breakfast burrito, burger for lunch and a solid dinner. You will be fine. I wear the brown rubber boats when I fish. you could get away with something different but you will want to have the ability to get dry at some point in the day.....plan accordingly. It will be cold and windy (90% of the time) so plan for it. I usually wear something on top that is waterproof on some level. remember you will be grabbing baits out of a sloshing bait tank and you WILL get wet. There are two keys to getting bit while fishing on these boats. #1. Getting a great bait. If you can't catch it then you need that bait. The harder they are to catch the better chance you have of getting bit. #2. Get the bait away from the boat. So, recap.......Get a great bait away from the boat. Doesn't have to be the first off the boat. Just the best bait off of the boat. Tip.......well I normally tip better than most. I also try to be super nice to the crew. They will really appreciate it and will go the extra mile for you then. I would expect to throw them $60 on top of fish cleaning and galley bill for a 1.5 day trip. So here is another tid bit. Walk up to the deck hands and tell them that you have no clue and this is your first trip and you would like to learn. They will be happy to help you out. If they can get you up to speed fast it will cause them less problems later. Every trip has new guys and honestly the new guys can make or break the trip. If the boat can get them fishing good and at least make it so they are on the correct side of the boat not causing tangles then that will really help. Honestly I still ask questions and I've probably got 200+ days on these boats. The crew has a ton of very current info and you should listen to them. 2 last things. Keep the wind in your face and if you aren't walking towards the bow then you are part of the problem. It is called the tuna shuffle. You need to always be walking towards the bow (unless you are anchored)

OJ.......just saying

use a rifle. You can't kill anything with a recurve!!!!!

WOW!!!!!!!! It has been interesting to read 9 pages of name calling from all sides. Here is my one question. How do AZ hunters stop PETA, HSUS, other anti hunting groups in the future? All of the name calling doesn't really tell me how we stop the anti groups from taking hunting from us. Please let me know how that happens. I will support that effort. FYI - Don't know this Pete guy but I would like a hear a solution to my question. Thanks

It doesn't matter that the tags do not go to CAPAZ. What matters is that the CAPAZ proposal intends to distribute tags in a manner where the wealthy have an advantage in obtaining them. The wealthy hire guides. Pete Cimellaro owns Yellowhorn Outfitters. How much will he profit from the CAPAZ proposal? Do you really think that profiting from being a guide is the objective? I have seen so few guides/outfitters where I would like to live their lifestyle. Most of the guides I know make little to no money. If most of them didn't have a day job they would be living off of food stamps.

I find it funny that there are many people that say there is no opportunity to hunt anymore. I would argue that there is more opportunity to hunt today than every before. If for no other reason that the information is readily available that wasn't available 25 years ago. Honestly my biggest issue isn't finding hunts but finding the time to do the hunts. I also look at AZ as my "trophy" state and the other states as my opportunity states. Biggest reason is that getting a trophy tag in some of these states is almost impossible as a non resident.......but getting a decent tag is achievable every few years or so out of state. Going on a combo Mule deer, cow elk, bear hunt in CO this year. Had 2 deer points, 1 elk point and bear is OTC. Tough to beat that for 10 days of hunting with some buddies.

Trail cams are fun and cool. My wife and kids love the pics. I had a unit 9 archery elk tag in 2010. Both me and my buddy killed 350 class bulls on the same tank. We had a camera on that tank from July 1st to till the end of elk season. We saved every single picture the camera took and I had it set for 3 pics every 30 seconds when activated. Neither of our bulls had been to this tank from July 1st till we killed them. This was the only time these bulls hit this tank. Did the camera help us kill bulls? I don't think so. Fast forward to 2017 when we had another tag in unit 9. I had a very large bull coming into the tank all summer (same tank) and he moved just prior to the season and I searched the unit looking for the bull from September 1st through September 26th. Every morning and every evening. Never laid eyes on him but I knew he was there. Did having the camera make it super easy for me to kill that monster bull..........That I never actually saw in person even though I spend the better part of a solid month looking for that one bull. Cameras are fun but they don't always make killing the critter super easy. It could be argued that having lots of hunters checking cameras during the season does more to keep animals alive than killing them. All the scent and noise around the tanks will turn animals nocturnal in a matter of seconds. I personally think we should outlaw the use of zip ties. Just saying.

I believe you said it all right there. MR. zip tie man.....LOL

REALLY????? Obvious solution. Own them all!!!!!!!!

I shot a lion this fall and I believe that the cost was $1200.00 from Clay from Mogollon up in payson. That also included the skull getting boiled.

You really need to shoot heavy game loads. I always need to shoot the 1oz loads to get most of the 20g semi's to function. My benelli will function on anything that I put through it but the 1oz loads do great with the gas guns. Even after it is broken in you will still need to shoot the 1oz loads. You can buy them in a variety of shot sizes too. Shot size isn't the problem. The total weight of the load is the problem.

hartland taxidemy does an awesome job on birds. Actually all she does is birds and they rock!!!!!!

The vast majority of the shrinkage is in the mass measurements. Typically the first two mass measurements will loose the most. Tine length and mainbeams are really not affected. Spread also doesn't change much. One animal that has a huge shrink factor is antelope. The shrink quite a bit in a very short period of time. Deer and elk shrink very little. Go kill a monster........in 60 days it will still be a monster!!!!!!

This is the breat down of diesel VS gas. If you pull 10K on a regular basis then diesel is the way to go. If not then get a gas truck. The issue with Diesel isn't the cost of the oil change. It is the cost of a major break down. When (not if but WHEN) a diesel engine breaks down it costs a bunch to fix. I've had multiple bills in the $1500-4200 range to fix a diesel engine. Now keep in mind that isn't replacing the engine but just fixing it. Diesel engines don't last forever either. When they need to be replaced they are about 3 times as expensive to replace. But that won't happen until the 250K miles or more and I don't think most are going to be driving their trucks at that time. The biggest cost of ownership is the drop in value of a $60,000.00 truck. In a few years the truck is going to be worth half that and the cost of the oil change truely is the least of a persons problems if they are looking at the cost of ownership. The largest cost of ownership is the drop in value. With that said you can't find a gas motor that will hold a candle to a diesel when it comes to pulling a trailer. I've got a chevy with the 8.1 motor in it right now and it pulls great but it doesn't pull like a diesel. Not even close. I go a bit slower and my MPG are a bit lower but I still get there in one piece.

I like goat meat. Had it a few times and thought it was really good. Axis is in a league of its own for sure. I think the first ram a bit younger but in 15D that might be a good ram right now. Not sure how bad the unit got hit with health issues.

I like to start high and look down when possible. I also look at the country and spend most of my time looking where they deer would typcially be at given the current conditions. I'm not a big fan of looking over every single bush and rock. I'm a much bigger fan of looking 3/4 the way up a hill that has the wind over the top of the hill and down onto the deer. You will typcially find 90% of your deer in that area of the hill. Shady/thicker spots are also very good. So here is an example. If you are sitting on top of a hill and have the wind hitting you dead in the face then you should be looking 3/4 the way up the hill in front of you. The deer typically will be in that position so they can smell anything coming from above or over the hill while still looking below for their own protection. It's pretty simple once you start thinking like a deer.