Coach

Lots of great advice here. You might try shooting a 3D deer target from an elevated position - if you have a tree in your yard, use that, if not, get on your roof then look at the hits and where the arrow is going to pass. Real deer are not as dense as a 3D target, so the penetration will only give you a reference as to where the arrow will go once it hits. The closer the deer is to you on a treestand shot, the higher you want to aim. The more it is quartering away, the more back you want to hit. Generally, you want to aim for the opposite side (think of aiming for the back-side elbow) when sharp angles are in play. I totally agree with AntlerObession about quartering toward you shots. Those are some of the toughest ones to make in my opinion. A deer's anatomy is designed to be able to deflect things coming at their chest, head-on. There's a lot of bone and muscle up front on a deer. Look for the broadside or quartering away shots. This can be tough if you're sitting a treestand and a deer comes in walking toward you. Try to be patient and avoid the frontal shots. For one, the deer is already facing you and will probably pick up the movement of you drawing. Secondly, if you draw on him coming in, you are trying to hit a very small spot. Be patient, if you can, for the deer to come in get relaxed and offer you a broadside or, even better, quartering away shot.

I switched to the ACC Pro Hunters and couldn't be happier. Great arrows.

What is that? Some type of target stand?

PM sent.

I think it's awesome how this community has come together to support Josh and his family. It's funny how the world becomes a much smaller place when you are really in need and the people around you come to your side. Many of us have never met Josh face-to-face, but we know where he stands and how he lives and what values he is passing on to his kids. Once again, more prayers sent to this family. Godspeed on a full recovery, and best wishes - truly. Jason.

That is a tough question to answer. I generally avoid the Southern units because of the illegal traffic. I think a big camp with lots of people, and at least one or two guys minding camp is ideal down there. I wouldn't take a 10 year old down there by myself. For what it's worth, I'll be backpacking into some crazy human/drug trafficing country in late October. The last time I did it, I was completely alone and it was beyond scary. I slept with one eye open and a Baretta 9mm in my hand all night, as coatis raided my camp just a few hundred yards from an active smuggling trail. I wouldn't subject my kids to that at all - it was hard enough for my wife to know what I was doing. This time, I'll be with another guy who will be packing heavy, but to be honest, I was just pricing Mossberg 500 "Just In Case" shotguns because I think I'd sleep a bit better with the 12G shotty at my side down there. IMO, there are a lot better hunts to take a 10 yr old on than those in the border areas.

Clearing out some of my broadheads. A lot of these have never been shot. First up, a selection of G5 Montecs. All 100 Grain. There are 3 teflon-coated practice heads, and 6 hunting heads. 2 of the hunting heads are brand new, never fired. One is "like new", it's been shot a couple of times into foam and resharpened. 3 are in OK shape, but need work to rebuild the edges, or they can be used as practice/small game heads as they are. I'm including one Carbon Express F-15 dual blade head (never fired) in this bundle. $35 OBO. ** SPF ** Next is a pack of 3 G5 Montec CS (carbon steel) 100 gr. brand new, never fired. $25 OBO. ** SPF ** Also, a nice G5 montec diamond sharpener made specifically for the Montecs. $18 OBO. If I don't sell the Montecs, I'll probably keep this, so bear with me, please. 5 G5 Tekan heads, never fired. $20 OBO. ** SPF ** 7 Slick Trick broadheads - all 100 grain. 6 are the standard one-inch, and one is the "magnum" 1 1/8-inch. Some have been shot at foam once or twice, but you would never know it - they are still razor sharp and look brand new. I'm also including an unopened pack of the 1" replacement blades (enough for 3 heads). Retail on this is over $70. Selling for $40 OBO. ** SPF ** Finally, I've got 15 NAP ThunderHeads in 125 gr. 10 have never been shot, 5 have been shot but are still in very good condition. Lots of extra blades - more than I wanted to count. All have the retaining collars and o-rings. $20 OBO. These are all really good heads, I'm just thinning out some of my stuff. We're all family here, so if you buy something and don't think it was represented accurately, you'll get your money back. Just ask plenty of questions if you are unsure. Thanks, Jason (Coach)

Would that be the SALT River? Hmmmmm?

Prayers sent. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Alright guys - just the thunderheads and the Montec diamond sharpener left - somebody make an offer if you want 'em.

Reply sent.

Congrats on an awesome looking bear! Great write up too.

Interesting thread for sure. I'm glad we got to hear both sides of the story. On the other hand, why is it that every big bull or buck has to end up in a controversy? We should be happy for our fellow hunters when they achieve what we all spend so much time, money and effort trying to accomplish. Leave the petty jealousy aside for long enough to give credit where it is due. Ive been hunting AZ long enough to know that successful hunts are usually the result of hard work, hard scouting and most importantly, a team effort. I choose to hunt strictly self-guided, but that doesnt mean I dont count on information from friends, somebody with me to help call, or help glass, or just hang out and share the experience. Very few people I know or have known can say that from year-to-year theyve harvested trophy quality animals on their own. Having someone else to help out doesnt diminish the hunt in any way, as far as Im concerned it actually enriches the hunt. Part of the hunt is recognizing and giving credit to the friends and family members who helped make it possible. Another key part is the bonding between people that happens along the way. A guy who consistently has success, completely on his own, is to be admired, but probably also feels very alone at times. A truly successful hunt, in my opinion, is one that is shared with sons, friends, dads, sisters, etc. Its a great opportunity to bond with the people close to you. Lets just try to support each other, without jealousy, without personal agendas, to go into the field with friends and family and create positive experiences that only hunting can generate.

Sorry to hijack with a psuedo-classified ad. If you are looking for a new sight, take a good look at the Axcel Armortech HD 7 pin too. Great sight.

I've got a Hogg-It Hunter sight on my Bowtech Allegiance with the 7 deadly pins housing - great sight. I've got over $300 in that sight and I'm hoping to sell the bow/sight together, but I might be willing to sell the sight separately. I'm posting the bow with sight on Ebay when I get back in town from some traveling. If I don't get what I need from the combo, I might let the sight go separately.

Great pictures Scott. Looks like a great family outing! Thanks for sharing. I've got 3 boys too, a little older - your post brings back a lot of memories of that age. Great job getting them out there building lifelong memories.

Posted this on the "Saddest Trip Ever" thread, but I'll put it here as well. I live in Lakeside, if any of you guys evacuating the fire need a place to store a boat or trailer, I'd be happy to let you park whatever you need at my house. I don't have much storage for "loose" things, but I'll do whatever I can to help. Shoot me a PM. If I don't get back to you right away, I'm going to be on the road starting Sunday to attend a funeral in Oklahoma, but you can call me at 928-242-9350. I've got enough space here to park a couple of trailers filled with belongings, etc.

This is truly a sad situation. I live in Lakeside, if any of you guys evacuating the fire need a place to store a boat or trailer, I'd be happy to let you park whatever you need at my house. I don't have much storage for "loose" things, but I'll do whatever I can to help. Shoot me a PM. If I don't get back to you right away, I'm going to be on the road starting Sunday to attend a funeral in Oklahoma, but you can call me at 928-242-9350. I've got enough space here to park a couple of trailers filled with belongings, etc.

We've got evacuees from Alpine staying at Blue Ridge High school now. I feel so bad for all the people who have to leave their homes with no idea what they’ll find when they return. My complaint with this fire is exactly the same complaint I have year-after-year. These things generally start out small, and are quickly *mostly* contained. The response is usually a small crew fighting a small-to-medium fire. Next thing you know, it gets totally out of hand, and USFS is scrambling to bring in larger teams to fight it. We’ve seen it up here time and time again. Why not put massive resources into getting it fully contained while it is still manageable? You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that with dry conditions and high winds, it doesn’t take much at all for any fire to get completely out of control – as this one clearly has. It’s almost like the powers that be want it to become a massive catastrophe so they’ll get more funding, bigger budgets, and line their pockets in the process when they could have done more, early on, to keep it from becoming such a disaster. I should have some pix tomorrow of the smoke plumes. I sure hope homes and businesses are spared, and maybe, in the long run, the forest will be healthier.

Nice! Maybe the 27 animals are fleeing the fire and heading West.

Heading to my youngest son's baseball game this afternoon, I could see HUGE smoke plumes - like an inverted thunder head - this is in Lakeside. I assumed it was another Whiteriver fire. That thing has to be enormous. And with the winds we're seeing, I don't know how they can ever contain it until it runs out of fuel.

Can't wait to see the pictures, Scott.

The fly shop at Hon Dah has a really good selection of flies. I'm sure you could get a variety of woolly worms and wooly buggers there on your way to the lake.

Thanks everyone - it was a blast. We had a little fish fry with all the ones that couldn't be released cleanly, and it was awesome. I noticed that the fish weren't filled with those little seed-looking worms this time. Maybe the river is cleaning itself up.

NICE!