Coach

Not gonna flame you Bowsniper, I agree with much of what you said. Personally I'd love to see all cattle removed from public land in AZ as much as I'd love to see this failed, super-expensive wolf experiment defunded. But I don't agree that it's all about greed. You argue against cattle because you see the devastation caused by our archaic adherence to the “free range” mentality. That culture in AZ has literally destroyed the natural grasses and other vegetation in AZ, which of course leads to faster soil erosion as the those long-stemmed grasses are replaced by invasive weeds and short-stemmed grasses, and eventually the drying up of streams and rivers throughout the state. It takes little more than a glance at a map of AZ pre-cattle and post to see the difference. But to recognize those facts, and object to them, does not make you greedy - any more than those who object to the failed wolf policies that basically turn loose a hybrid wolf-dog into ranges it is not accustomed to, in the name of reviving “natural balance”. I don’t want to derail this thread too far, but you have to look at not only AZG&F, but the USFWS and their obsession with what they deem “native species”. Their entire mission is to return to some imagined, utopic place in time where everything was supposedly in a state of natural balance. Just look at their obsession with Apache trout, all kinds of chubs nobody gives a rip about – you get the picture. The truth is, that state probably never existed, and if it did, it was a microcosm. Even if it did occur once by accident, with urban expansion, increased demands on water, cattle grazing, huge farming interests, exploding population consuming more and more, we can’t recreate it artificially. But the wolf, somehow is symbolic. If you protect the wolf, re-introduce it and see it succeed, then there is hope for the utopic dream. Only problem is, they tried it, it failed. Millions of dollars later, we’re still on this wolf topic. And the places where re-introduction has occurred with all the accolades and success they wanted, wolves proved themselves once again to be a serious problem – for wildlife, for ranchers, to the public. They became so problematic that they have been de-listed as a protected species. It’s time to pull the plug on the failed wolf money pit, and it’s time to start taking back public land from tiny minority of cattle grazers who view public land as their own private ranches.

Congrats Andrew, that is one heck of a bull! Looking forward to the story on that bruiser!

Great job! That is a beautiful bull.

Wow, those are some great bucks. Especially that 3rd one - awesome pix.

That's really cool. I love those old vintage photos. Sweet rifles too.

Wow!!! Those are some drop-dead awesome bucks. Nice job, and welcome!

Very nice bull, and great write up! Congrats, and thanks for taking the time to take us all along on your adventure.

+1, I've got a short attention span. Anyone want to post the juicy parts?

Awesome bull! Great job.

That's one sweet pistol! I've got the Sig Ultra Compact very similar to that, but black frame and stainless slide and love it. Bump for a really nice gun.

Looks really big to me. I wouldn't begin to know how to estimate weight, but looking at the size of the head, I'd say "That's a biggun".

The bad news is, 3 out of 4 of us got skunked on the deer draw this year. The good news is, my oldest son, Matt drew a 23 youth tag. I'm no stranger to 23 and have been hunting it for years - but usually for pigs in the early Spring. Many of the spots I know are really great for deer at certain times of the year, but during the youth hunt, a lot of the bucks are higher than where I normally hunt. I'm not looking for a monster buck here, but given the potential and Matt's abilities I think we should be able to find either a nice mature coues or mule deer buck. I'd love to PM or email some ideas back and fourth about strategies for this hunt. I recognize most folks won't want to start shouting out unit-specific advice over the WWW and I respect that, so if you want to talk 23, I have as much to give as get. I know the lower parts of the unit very well, but the upper portion, not so well. I would love to get some advice for hunting this unit for a youth hunt, and will gladly reciprocate with some detailed info of my own, more catered to the later hunts. Thanks, Coach

Wow, that is a STUD buck! Nicely done!

Never had it happen with doves, but at least once or twice I had quail work their way out of my vest and try to fly off. I have a really ugly story about a quail being left in my vest in the Tucson heat for a few weeks before I opened the outdoor closet. There is no going back on that one if you've ever done it.

Kidso is the man when it comes to bears and lions, and TJ has taken more lions than most of us will ever see in the field.

Like backpacking in? http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/27987-a-week-from-now/

I don't own the Vortex, but I have a lot of buddies that do. I was lucky enough to get a pair of Swaro 15x56 SLC a long time ago, when you could still get them cheap on the "gray market". Mine came from France and I think they were around $1117 at the time including the VAT. Only difference between them and the ones sold in the US is they have black rubber coating instead of green. I've looked through mine, and my friends' Vortex at the same things and I have to agree with the other posters here, there is no comparison. The Vortex are good, even great glass. The Swaro 15x56 is, in my opinion, stand out above just about any other glass out there. The only glass I've looked through that compares and in some ways beats Swaro for my eyes is Leica, but they are in no way cheaper.

Man, Lance, that is one heck of a buck. Huge congrats. I read your story a few days back and thought I had replied - As I jump to the end of the thread it looks like I missed the drama - glad about that. Great job on an excellent buck. You deserve it.

Dang, that is a stud buck in your avatar. My hunting these days is all about my sons, so I don't have the time I used to for hunts of my own, but I would be glad to meet up with you and hunt 23 any time. I know certain parts of the unit really well, others I am dying to explore. Shoot me a PM if you want.

A buddy of mine set up to do some calling and got almost run over by a lion. Shot it with a pistol at VERY close range. I know he posted the story here a few years back.

Awesome job! Nice lookin' bull there.

Poke a hole in it to let the gas out. Geeeeeeze. But I'm still laughing.

Nice job! That's an awesome old bear there, and you and your dad will have memories to last a lifetime.Thanks for sharing!

Nice bucks there. Thanks for posting.

Awesome buck, huge congrats to the hunter there. An accomplishment to be proud of.