BeardownAZ

Mine is the far left 3x4. All shot this year(2010) opening day.

Did they respond to your letter or email???

mje1, yeah that was us! Small world-especially in AZ huh!! Any luck for you guys??

thanks for the comments. I really didnt know what to expect for the Late hunt. Still really dont, it was over so quick . I hear alot people say they see them right by the road and alot of people glassing and walking all over and not seeing much and vice versa. So I guess you never know. Just like any animal you hunt. Walked a good bit that morning and saw tons of sign but no elk. Seen 15 or so elk with like 5 bulls driving in to the area we walked but it was to dark to get them in the scope, trust me I tried. They ran off, we tried to come around and get on them but could never find them. Its funny, you can walk, glass, etc and see nothing or no horns, Drive down the road and see all kinds just standing there !

U of A Overrated??? No more than Dennis Erickson's career at ASU!! Underachieving for the cats? Definetly. As far as the Scumdevils go this is the best it will get for ASU under that old goat! Beardown Arizona!!

Very good and informative reading! So is there any belief that only the northern part of the state had the buffs originally or are they believed to of been more dispersed amongst the state?? Always wonder how an animal like grizzly bears and the wolf gets so much love from the bleeding hearts but you never hear of restoration, reintroduction efforts for animals like the buffaloes, antelope. mule deer, etc, with the exception of hunter supported conservation groups.

. That is a fantastic bull. I bet it was a heck of a pack out!

Got 2 Harris bipods, dont remember the models but one is the short one for prone or bench shooting, the other extends out long enough to sit down on the ground and shoot. They really seem great even though I have never used them to shoot an animal.

People dont hate the Forest Service, they hate the bureaucracy, political games and red tape that they let dictate there actions like most all government agencies. If a government does its job and does it well, there will be little or no problems. However that is less and less the case these days. That is why people bash on the government. We need a government and some, not all, of its services. They need just need to there job correctly like anyone else, private or government.

The government is supposed to answer to the people ultimately, especially in a free, democratic society. However that no longer happens. Thus they dont care and do whatever it is they want.

Ask anyone in the Safford area how great the Forest Service is!!! The amount of damage done to Mt Graham and money spent cause of government bureaucracy and not heeding weather warnings. I know there are alot of good, hard working people in our government, unfortunetly they aren't the ones at the top(making decisions) cause they won't sell out to climb the ladder.

My dads Rino and my Motorola's were hit and miss as well as some friends Cobras that I picked up easy on my walkie talkies. Kinda helps explain it now!

Sounds like an idiot. All Thieves are idiots, not all idiots are thieves! Who knows though. Hopefully just a fool and they put it back.

+1 . heck, I hear adults say all the time they wont come back with anything unless its a trophy and come home with a spike. Nothing wrong with that!! Good job!

absolutely fantastic deer!! Not trying to highjack this thread but I always wondered why the eastern portions of Arizona and western New Mexico, with there vast areas, low populations of people, and great Mule deer country never have high numbers in deer. These areas scream deer country, I mean there are some big ones but like the post said, you can glass till your eyes bleed and only see a couple deer, usually doe's at that . Anybody care to comment??

I would say binos. Thats a decision I recently made after having a spotting scope and selling it. But everyone is different. If someone is able to lend you a spotting scope, go out from the house or at the house and sit and glass random areas and see if your eyes like it for long periods of time. Mine dont, but again, everyone is different. Good luck.

I had a decent spotting scope and only used it for looking at holes in paper at the range cause I could never get comfortable with it, thus it always stayed in the safe and I ended up selling it. I like the idea of having a strong fixed power pair of binos for long distance looking. Thanks for the advice!

I was camp at this week and was looking at some deer like 1000-1200 yards away through a cheap spotting scope and thought I would like to look through binos better. Binos seem to be easier on my eyes. I got a good pair of 12x50 leupolds that I carry but dont want to spend alot on a big pair. Just something to mess around with at camp or by the side of the road. Not something to hike back in with. I seen some Barska's, Celestrons, in 20x70mm, 30x80mm. Price range would be around up to about $250. I am not set on any one brand. Any suggestions, experiance? Thanks in advance!

Cabelas has a pair right now on sale for $299.00. Does anybody know who makes these?? This would be perfect for what I am wanting. I just dont have the $1100 for the Steiners I would rather have. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-20x...tt=astronomical

I assume the picture is of the early hunt last year?? Do you know the Kaibab well, lots of scouting, etc?? I ask, cause I am going to start trying for a tag(not that I will get drawn) and live a long ways away. I would shoot my 270 wsm if i got drawn.

I have alot of respect for that comment. To each his own I guess as far as hunting goes, but I agree with what you said. Alot of stuff on TV, shows people basically farming deer and than get all excited when they kill an animal as they didnt know it was going to be any different. Welcome back to AZ and good luck!

The "yes" side didnt get basically any publicity on it and most voters were more educated as to why they should of voted No instead of yes. They should of worked with the NRA who supported the prop, to get TV commercials out there and such. What a shame, what a blown chance. At least with the elected officials in there now we should be ok, however if the tide turns in a few years we could be in big trouble.

Wow, I was getting into this post and then realized the original poster was banned ! Was it cause of his BearMTN remark or what? I guess I am in left field on this one. Anyways, I got a bug this year and am now really starting to think about trying for the Strip hunts. Fun thread anyways or was, I guess.

Considering how much some spend on an ATV, SXS, Toyhauler, bassboats and diesel crewcabs to pull em, $5k should be doable. You and I are probably not in that income group though. Yes, I would agree to that! Or at least I am less reluctant to get in that much debt(how most toys are afforded) after seeing how easily jobs are lost in a bad economy. I would buy some of those items listed above in your post but they would serve for more than hunting, so alittle more justified, at least in the wife's eyes ! Were as the binoculars would be used primarily for hunting 98 percent of the time. I still may try and get my hands on a cheap pair and see how they look but nothing that will kill me if they suck.

Kowa Highlander for $5000.00 ?? For that price I could.......well... do alot. Hunting is a hobby of mine, not a means of survival. I could never justify spending that much money on optics or even a rifle or alot of other things. Like I said, I just was wondering who knew of any that were maybe underrated for great prices. I'll keep looking around and keep checking here. Thanks for the responses so far.