billrquimby

Bullwidgeon's great uncle shot a beautiful 340-350 bull this morning after a classic stalk. No antelope yet. I lost my title of master guide and chief packer five years ago when I reached age 65, at which time I was automatically promoted to "Ye Holder Of The Elk's Legs." I now report directly to the chief gutter and cutter-upper. My birthday actually is September 30. The date somehow got screwed up in the site's database, and everyone congratulated me this past January. Bill Quimby

I agree. I used ballistic tips on a desert bighorn ram, a kudu bull, several impala, a reedbuck, and a couple of mule deer. All were dead on their feet instantly when hit, but all were lung shots. I have been told they are too fragile for shoulder shots on large game. My 7mm Rem Mag loves them, but I feel more comfortable with Nosler's partition bullets. Bill

Yes, but I don't remember what year it was. Time flys when you're having fun. I interviewed a lot of people, including other landowners in the area who were pissed when the roads to their places suddenly were blocked by Klump fences. The missing wife was mentioned many times, but nobody had any specifics. The land management and law enforcement people expected lots of trouble, including a possible shootout, when they went onto the Klump leases to round up the trespassing cattle. The roundup was peaceful, though. As far as I know, the Klumps did not lose their leases. Bill Quimby

I was told that King and Reynolds shot their bucks in the Coyote Mountains. King's antlers are owned by the Game and Fish Department. They were mounted on a lifesize with another cape and are on loan for display at SCI's museum in Tucson under an agreement with the court. I don't think either man is related to the late Ed Stockwell of Arivaca who took the No. 1 B&C typical Coues buck many years ago. (A replica of his deer is in fact at Cabela's in Glendale.) Bill Quimby

The feds definitely did not start the flap with the Klumps. I was among the newsmen who reported on the situation at the time. The Klumps' problems began when they sent the U.S. Forest Serve, BLM, State Land Department, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department an arrogant letter declaring that because the family had leased government land for XX number years the land --" from the center of the earth to the clouds in the sky"-- now belonged to them. Next, they blocked paved and gravel public roads with their fences, poured cattle into the land they illegally claimed, and announced that anyone, including state and federal employees, entered at his own risk. At least one group of hunters claimed shots were fired when they tried to enter state land. The land agencies responded with a joint operation that rounded up the Klumps' cattle found to be in trespass on public land -- there were considerably more cows than their leases allowed them -- and selling them. It was the only such roundup of trespassing cattle I've ever heard of in my 70 years in Arizona. Although this has nothing to do with the situation in the Dos Cabezas, one of the younger Klumps from an area north of Willcox was being investigated about the same time by AGFD and USFWS for killing a jaguar, and later guiding undercover agents on illegal hunts for bears, desert sheep, and javelinas. The fact that the agent shot a ram was too much for the judge, however, and he threw out the case, saying the officers had gone too far. Bill Quimby

Well said, Stanley. Actually, I had similar experiences back when I still could draw a bow. I'd be bowhunting for javelinas in the Willow Springs Ranch country, or the Santa Ritas, and quail hunters would spook the herd I was stalking. I chalked it up to bad luck and went looking for another here. Bill Quimby

You shouldn't envy an old man. You'll understand why when the sand gets low in the top half of your personal hourglass. Bill Quimby

That's been my experience, too. although I sometimes have seen a few elk grazing in the same pasture as cattle. A case in point can be seen with the big herd of elk everyone going to Big Lake sees at the junction to Sunrise Lake/Ski Lodge/Sheep's Crossing above my cabin. Before cattle are brought in, it is nothing to see 150 to 250 elk at daylight from the road at that spot. When there are cattle there, you'll be lucky to see more than a dozen or so there. Bill Quimby

Stanley, Ernesto, all. The honor was mine. As I've said many times, I envy those of you who are younger and have years of experiences still ahead of you. Bill Quimby

"Bill Q, Some interesting comments in this thread for sure. I wonder how we all got along in the woods during the "good ol' days" of the ealy 1980s when more than 90,000 folks had deer permits. Maybe AZ was much bigger back then, eh? As for the current and VERY random AGFD survey, it appears every question has an optional answer at one extreme or the other or somewhere in between. So the only way the results can lead to more hunters/permits/opportunities will be if those answering the questions swing toward that end. Obviously those who DON'T want to see more permits have the option to answer the survey questions so they reflect THEIR opinions. For those who weren't around way back when or didn't pay attention, the following is a list of the general season permits going back to the record high number in 1986. The total was also above 85,000 for a couple years prior to and after 1986. The reason for the high # of permits is simple: AZ experienced TWO years of massive rainfall -- 100-yr. flood types -- in the early 1980s and the deer herd growth reflected that. I don't recall anyone complaining about overcrowding back then. In fact, most folks were happy for the chance to go hunting. Heck, some guys even got two permits. What a concept, huh? Today, there are a 1/3 the number of deer hunters in the woods. Historical Deer Permit Totals The downward trend for the number of deer permits issued annually began in the early 1990s when the ?drought? began in the West. 2006 37,975 2005 37,695 2004 36,325 (Record Low) 2003 37.025 2002 42,295 2001 44.695 2000 45,850 1999 46,820 1998 47,505 1997 51,815 1996 58,260 1995 63,900 1986 95,821 (Record High)" Tony: I have been afield either hunting or helping others during deer season in Arizona every year since 1948, including 1969, the last year we could buy tags over the counter. Close to 107,000 tags were sold that year. I wish that drought were the only reason for the downward trend in permit numbers, but there were other things at play, including the significant loss of access leading to what I call the "parking space factor." Bill Quimby

Don't knock those 15-inch bucks. They may not look as spectacular on the hoof or wall as a 17-incher with short hooks, but they can score higher if they have good mass and better prongs. Any 4-5 year old pronghorn is a trophy. Good luck. Bill Quimby

"You are right about AZGFD getting these herds to their present status, which is horrible. They have screwed up hunting in this state so bad it is sick. I dont think the present status of the herds is anything to brag about. Just talk to anyone who hunted this state 20 years ago. It is sad to see what has happended. " Dear 300wsm: I shot my first deer in Arizona in 1948 ... that's 58 years ago. Does that count? I have hunted in this state every year that I have drawn a tag, and have seldom missed taking a buck. On the years I did not draw (such as this year) I have scouted and helped others get their game. I can tell you that our elk herds here in the White Mountains have never been healthier. Mule deer are a different story. Their numbers declined as elk numbers exploded. I can remember the days we could see 50 to 150 deer, just by driving from Greer to the Black River via Big Lake. If we saw one elk, we'd mark the date on our calendars. Today, on a good morning in midweek, I can show you 500 to 700 elk, sometimes more, on the same trip. Five years ago the odds were we wouldn't have seen a single mule deer. Today they seem to be rebounding slightly because I seldom go out without seeing two or three. I may be more experienced at finding whitetails now, but when I was in college 50 years ago I felt lucky to find a buck in three of days of hard hunting. Today, even in October, I usualy can find at least one a day ... and sometimes a lot more. The good ol' days are today, as you will discover when you reach my age. Bill Quimby

http://www.maineguides.org/referendum/anti...er_quotes.shtml

Ron and Lee: I guess I shouldn't care about the future of hunting. My daughter and grandson have no interest in it, and with my health status at age 70 I have only two or three years at most that I will be able to hunt. I don't mind that I might not draw another permit. My occupation has allowed me to do more hunting in more places than most people. However, my entire life as an outdoor writer/editor/author has been spent promoting hunting and attempting to keep the tradition alive and well, and I'll be damned if I will stop now. Whether you realize it or not, we hunters are at war. There are many millions of people who want all hunting stopped, and their numbers grow each year. Don't expect our game department, or those in the other 49 states, to stand up for us when there is a serious, well-financed and well-planned campaign to ban what we do. Bureaucracies have one mission, and that is to survive. The only way we will win is with numbers. A mere 40,000 deer hunters in a state as large as Arizona will not have the political clout to win sustained battles in a legislature comprised of politicians who stick their fingers up to see which way the wind blows. First we will lose the hunts with the fewest participants -- bison, sheep, lion and bear, for example. The anti-hunters' next target could be bowhunting or muzzleloading. Just as happened with trapping, the majority of selfish and short-sighted individuals in our group will say, "Why should I care? I don't hunt lions or bears" or "I don't use muzzleloaders or bows." Our enemies have been quiet for the past few years but they have not gone away. What you guys should be up in arms about is the loss of access in Arizona. Every time the Forest Service, State Land Department or BLM closes a two-track road or a landowner locks a gate on a road that crosses his narrow strip of private land, hunter distribution is affected. Eventually, there are only one or two roads providing access into an entire mountain range. When this happens, a wildlife manager drives up the only remaining roads, sees all the camps of hunters, and decides there are just too many people in "his" unit and recommends a reduction in tags the next year. It doesn't matter how many deer are over the next ridge, permit numbers will be based on the number of parking spaces. I won't be around to see what's coming, but just remember I told you so. Bill Quimby

Guys. I have killed a lot of deer, and to me a "quality" deer hunt is anytime I have a tag in my pocket. I don't want any guarantees that I will kill a super buck but I do want a chance to go hunting. If I see only heat waves in October, I can't blame anyone but my own inadequacy as a hunter. The deer are out there, or else you guys wouldn't stand in line for those last-season tags. I'm not saying that the rut hunts should be eliminated, or even reduced drastically. What I am saying that something needs to be done to allow more people a chance to go hunting without adversely affecting our deer herds. I don't care how it's done. Perhaps permits ought to be increased in areas where hunt success exceeds a certain percentage, say 25%, which should tell us that are an adequate number of bucks in that unit. I'd be happy to have a 1 in 4 chance to kill a buck, especially when I know only about 10 percent of us know how to find and kill a deer consistently. As for the recent AZGFD survey, polling everyone who provided an e-mail address with his/her application definitely WILL provide a genuinely random sample (although the number of participants will be higher than it needs to be) of the population of wanna-be deer hunters, and should yield acceptable accuracy if the questions are appropriate. Bill Quimby

CouesKrazy: DustyB0: AZ4life: bowhunter4life: Couesdiehard: AZonecam: bmf1321 AZyoung Cochise: muleybull KGaines: I have trouble deciding what you guys are angry about. Is it that Game and Fish might allow more people to compete with you, or that you might have to work harder to take a buck or a bull? What?s wrong with decreasing rut tags to allow more people to go hunting without increasing the deer kill? Have you forgotten that record-class bucks are out there in October and November, too? Is it that you believe you?re not good enough to find them except when the rut has them running around like crazed idiots? I would like to think you guys are better than the average hunter, and that ?a lower quality hunt? should be no handicap for you, even with a greater quantity of hunters afield. Something must be done to stop the trend of hunter numbers declining statewide and nationally if our hunting traditions are to continue. We need numbers to give us the political clout needed to save hunting. Bill Quimby

billrquimby, I have a quick question. I am using a Marlin 1894 .44 mag with 240 grain flat nose bullets on my bear hunt. I doubt the shot will be more than 30 yards with the type of terrain I am in. Do you think this is sufficient to kill a bear cleanly? I have other guns I could use, but I really wanted to shoot one with my lever action. I also have a model 336 in 30-30 that I can bring along. David Either will kill a bear nicely. BQ

The bears I watched being plinked with .357s were up trees above us and mudh closer than 20 yards. I've forgotten how many shots it took to kill them, but I do remember both guys having to reload. I also remember that both bears bawled constantly after the first hits. Not all of their shots were poorly placed. When we skinned those bears we found very little flesh damage and extremely poor penetration. Sure, bears have much more hair, fat and tough muscle than a deer that a bullet must penetrate, but those experiences burned me on the .357 mag for hunting. That .45/70 long-barreled handgun looks like it would do the trick, but seeing that it weighs less than 5 pounds would you mind if I asked you to hold it for me when I pull the trigger? Bill Quimby

Hey Lark: Back in my college days in the 1950s, I watched someone shoot a forked-horn mule deer buck in the lungs with a .22 long rifle (No, the caliber was not legal. Yes, it was in season and he had a tag). It staggered around and dropped kicking before he could shoot it again. A .357 mag will kill a deer, and so will a .22 and a .30 M-1 carbine. You guys can use what you want, but I want a handgun that carries more energy out to 50 yards or so. Bill Quimby

Just a thought: Has anyone tried using lag screws inside a trail camera to attach it to a tree? Chances are good a bandit wouldn't be carrying a socket wrench when he finds it, and although he might have one in his truck, he'd have to be a real @#$%^! to walk out and back to steal it. You might come across a really bad guy who would destroy it while trying to get it off the tree, but you were going to lose the camera to him anyway. The ordinary, run-of-the-mill bad guy would see it can't be removed and leave it alone. Bill Quimby

Hey guys: If you have something bigger than a .357 mag, I suggest you use it. Thompson Center, for example, makes barrels for a lot more efficient calibers for deer-size game. I helped a friend track a mule deer shot with a .357 mag for more than a mile before we lost it. I've also been in on two sloppy kills where a .357 mag just wouldn't do a clean job on treed bears. I can't hit the side of a barn consistently, even while standing inside it, with a pistol (although I used a .44 mag on my first bear) but if I were going after a deer with a handgun (God forbid) today I would not choose a .357 mag. Look it up. Its ballistics aren't much better than a .30 M-1 carbine. Bill Quimby

Shortpants: More power to you on your long-range shooting. I used to shoot in a siluetas metalicas league in Sonora in the 1960s, early 1970s, and even won a couple of matches. We shot offhand, standing, without a sling at small metal animal silhouettes at distances of 200 to 500 meters. I was reloading and shooting maybe 150 rounds every week before I shot out the barrel on my .270, so I know 500-600-yard shots (and even farther) are doable and ethical for someone who practices as you do. I suppose you also have a rangefinder and know exactly how much your bullet will drop and just what the effects of wind will be at any given distance. For those of you who don't practice long-distance shooting under field conditions, a 180-grain (you want a heavy bullet to reduce wind drift) .30-caliber bullet that leaves the bore at 3,000 fps will drop 40 inches at 500 yards (only God knows what it would be at 1,000) when sighted in at 200 yards, which is the recommended sight-in for this weight bullet and caliber. That means you will have to hold over an Arizona white-tailed deer about about 2.25 times the distance from the top of its back to the bottom of its chest at 500 yards. If there's a 10 mph cross wind, you'll also have to hold left or right about 20 inches, depending on the wind direction. It's an easy shot for someone who does a lot of shooting at long distances, such as Shortpants does. For those of you who don't, however, I think you are risking making a poor shot on a great game animal if you're banging away under field conditions at a Coues deer at long range. I've seen too many beautiful bucks running around with their jaws shot off, or limping with a broken foreleg... or dead and bloated from a gut shot that allowed that deer to run a couple of miles before dropping. My $0.02 worth: hold your shots at the deer we all love to distances under 300 yards. 500 yards is more than a quarter of a mile. You owe it to the animal to get closer. Billl Quimby

I'm proud to say I have used Lark's method on at least 15-16 new rifles over the past fiftyyears and have never regretted doing so. Guns to me are merely tools, like shovels and hammers. I am afraid I don't take good care of any of them. My favorite rifle, a 7mm Rem Mag that I stocked myself from a piece of walnut we cut in Texas and a Czech-made Mauser barreled action, has taken at least 40-45 head of large game on five continents and it has never had a cleaning rod run down its bore. It puts my reloads into a 1.5-inch group at 100 yards, and that's good enough for me. All I ask of my rifles is to put a bullet consistently into a kill zone the size of a dinner plate at distances of no more than 300 yards. So far, all of mine still do. I presume Lark can say the same thing. Bill Quimby

"Ahh Mr. Quimby, Do you have a bull in your yard tied up for me? Archery elk starts soon . I hope you had a good time in Australia with Logan. See you soon Bret M." Brett: I haven't seen a good bull in our yard since the warden shot the crippled one last year. But I have seen the bulls you saw with your grandfather. (I heard all about it.) You might try for one of them. Australia was great. Although I didn't get to shoot anything, Logan and I went fishing in the Daintree River on the Top End. He caught all the fish, of course. I was impressed with the size of their crocodiles. They were much larger than any I've seen in Africa, and they were on just about every sand bank in that river. Our guide talked about having crocs grab fish as they were being reeled into the boat. Bill Quimby

"Bill Q: two or three weeks ago we were camping up on the upper log. I have a picture of a black rattler just up the road from the bridge where you turn left to head towards Holly Lake. I believe this is above 8000 feet. I will get my son to post this picture..........Allen.........." Ouch! I've seen several rattlers in the lower ponderosa zone over the years, but I always figured they couldn't survive above about 8,000 feet. Don't know why, because I see water snakes all up and down the Little Colorado here in Greer and at Sheep's Crossing. Since I retired I've been running around here in shorts and sandals! Bill Quimby