AHUNTER

$228 pending...... looks like 2 elk tags for my son and I, 7th year in a row. Now before everyone starts getting upset about how they never get drawn and this guy is bragging how its his 7th year in a row first we put in for limited opportunity hunts just to get out in the woods every year, we dont always come home with a kill but its always a successful hunt. Good luck to you all on the draw, and Congrats to those that have gotten drawn....

My wifes first deer was from Skull Valley and thats how we hunted, find trails from Hills into fields and then get up high on hillside and glass them up coming in the evening and coming out in the moring. Look for deer crossing signs on road side good place to start from.

It's a Mauser 98, I don't know much about rifles but was told the barrel with the muzzle brake was custom?? as is the trigger?? Again i don't know enough to know if thats true... I do know it dont kick like my 270WSM

Thanks for comments, Unfortunately I dont reload but have a friend who does he offered to reload if i got dies for it. What bullet grain and powder grain would work best? I went out this morning, I had a box of 180gr the first 8 shots looked good at 100yrd after that the barrel was hot and the shots where all over the place, waited about 20min and it was shooting good again. heck maybe it isnt worth putting the time or money into it? As a 99% archery hunter i dont deal alot with rifles but it does'nt seem right to me, but it was nice to shoot.....

Got this 308 norma mag about a year ago, from a friend who needed cash its a nice looking rifle I just cant fine any ammo? Any reloaders out there already loading this caliber wanting to sell me a box/boxes? Send me a P/M

The group of guys I hunt with got a nice bobcat during the deer hunt a couple years ago and during the pig hunt had two lions running about 400 yrds away from them on a hill side but none of them had a tag. I have glassed up a lion down there about 5 years ago but way out of my range, wife doesnt like me hunting down south anymore she watches Border Wars/ battles what ever that show is, so dont get to get left over tag anymore.

I knew a guy that gave hotair ballon rides in the Verde Valley and he said he was surprise to see so many elk in the area? But like they mentioned above the locals get them every year.

Well, we will drive our ranger to area we are allowed to drive on, then ride bikes the last two miles before we walk into our honey hole

Well have been out scouting for my elk hunt in unit 11M and the mosquitoes are real BAD!! out there, which im sure its bad everywhere. My question is what repellent works best for you hunters out there without smelling too bad? I have a thermal cell which works great in the blind or while just sitting a area but i when im on the move thermal cell doesnt work as good. Just thought it would be a good topic as we will all be dealing with these mosquitoes.

On the Motor Vehicle Use Map (Coconino National Forest) it states on bottom left : When an elk has been legally taken in Game Management Units 6A, 6B, 7E, 7W, and 8 the individual who legally took the animal may drive or be driven to the down elk. Now at the end of pharagragh it also states: Motor vehicle use off of designated roads is not allowed for game retrieval of any species, including elk, in game management units 5A. 5B, 5BN and 11. I will be in unit 11M so im not allowed to drive down some roads, trails which is fine, my wife and i have bikes and a bike trailer which is how we have done our scouting and if we do down our elks the bike trailer will also aid us in retrieving them. I just hope we dont pedal our A$$es off just to have another hunter pass by on a atv/utv and beat us to our spots

This will be a big problem this hunting season with all the road closures and limited camping spots within there new camping rules ( next to roads that are ON there map and so many feet away from it) I'm sure thats why they are inforcing it now, so hunters dont leave trailers / tents unattended days before there hunt starts. It will be a mad house out there trying to find a camp spot (at least in area i will be hunting as its very limited on camping spots) good luck to all and remember just keep cool and open minded you mite meet a new hunting friend.....

All advise comments are correct, and yeah you wont see large number of Elk in this unit. I was out there a month ago and had foresty give me new map and rules (we were camped off good maintained road but wasnt on map) but (correct me if im wrong) you can only do primative camping 100yrds/ or feet from any road that's ON map? So camping away from others will be hard to do as these roads get busy with quad riders on the weekends too. Not sure what hunt you have 1st or 2nd but my wife and I have 1st cow hunt if your in our area stop by we have a Polaris crew ranger and maroon/ gold trim lifted Excursion we would be happy to help any way we can.

I also have that first 19A archery hunt and was thinking of sitting water in my blind if a couldnt get it done by spot and stalk first. I was planning on taking it down after each day of sitting it because there are alot of cattle in this unit and cattle could damage it, just something to consider I also dont think i could sit in blind more then a day at a time. Good luck on your hunt. oh and as far as scent go's I was up there friday sitting on hill glassing and had a couple antelope walk in down wind about 300yrd from me and walked within 60yrd from me, they could see me but they just came straight at me???? hope they do that during the hunt.

I took family camping this weekend and took my map up by A1 Mountain and was really surprised to see all the roads they closed. I have a archery cow hunt there but was thinking the same thing, I will be walking into areas were they closed the road then have other hunters ride pass me I hope Forestry can put up signs or block some of these roads off before hunt starts. I know there will be some people that will go down the closed road because like you said Dont Know or Dont Care...

How long before the hunt do I need to have blind up for goats to get uses to it? Or does it not bother them if i set up and hunt same day? I was going to dig hole about 300yrds from water by a good trail they use and sit it, but I also have a blind I could setup (really dont want to leave blind out as a friend had his stollen from this unit) but it would also suck if I dug a hole just to find someone else sitting in it......