COOSEFAN

Well I should be doing other things instead of fishin', but i just can't help myself! I've got a new "honey hole", one that I've known about but haven't tried yet until recently. Tonight was the first time draggin' the boat in there and my buddy David and I were not dissappointed in the least! We only had 2 hours to find the fish and figure out what they were hungry for and it took all of about 5 casts to land the first one which was a solid 3 pounder! We caught several more in the 2-3 pound range and were excited becuase we knew it was only a matter of time before one of us caught a really good fish. Sure enough David slams the rod back bringing a big explosion in the water with a great 5 pounder dancin' around trying to shake the jig free! Now it was my turn! Shortly after David caught his big fish we rolled up on a small break in the brush, David said there should be a fish in there, so I casted to it and over shot the spot. David laughed and made the comment that I must be trying to be sneaky by bringin' my bait past the spot instead of hitting it.....more or less makin' fun of my casting skills Well whatever I did worked and sure enough a fish was in the spot, I felt the hit and laid into the rod and instantly felt the hard pull of the fish! I knew at that point I had something good! The fish was haulin' for deep water and directly under the boat and it was all I could do to hold the rod against the boat until I got him turned back toward the shore! I kept telling David to get the net, this one is a pig! Finally the fish rose and I then could see it wasn't the 10 pounder I thought I had, but a pig of a fish nonetheless! We finally landed em' and I was excited as it's definitely one of the biggest bass I've boated! The scale said she was just over 6 pounds! In the end we ended up with 15 fish landed and several caught and lost, and almost all of them were 2 pounds or bigger! Too much fun! JIM>

Yeah, when it gets that hot I'll already be back up north watchin' the elk grow! I don't get much time to fish but when I do I tend to put everything else in my life on hold.....just ask my wife, she knows all about it! We never keep any of the fish we catch so these will hopefully grow up into that 10 pounder that I hope to catch on another day!

I bought a pair of Cabela's Meindle Perfect hunters and took them back. I really didn't want to take them back as they were the most comfortable, well built boot that I've bought. BUT...upon further inspection at home, when I would kneel down or walk up a steep grade the top of the boot would dig down onto the top of my foot. The metal rings for the laces happened to be right along the "crease" where the boot bends, these metal rings would bind up and dig down...definitely a bad thing. I really loved the way they felt and was dissappointed that they wouldn't work for me. Cabela's didn't have another pair in my size to see if it was just a problem with that pair. Definitely check those out but definitely look for the problem I just described before leaving the store! Good luck! JIM<

Yep, spring is in the air and just not enough time to do all that there is to do right now! Here is just one example why I love the spring time, and hopefully I'll soon have some big ol' brownies to illustrate the other reason why I love spring time!

My plan today was to hit the lake early, see if the carp have started spawning, catch a few bass and then be to the ISE show by noon! I didn't catch a single bass and I didn't make it to the show...but the carp have started spawning! We cruised the lake for a few hours and found just a few straggler carp but they were too deep or too fast, and the bass just wouldn't cooperate either. Finally, when we were about to pack it up and head to the ramp we rolled into one last cove where to our amazement carp were rolling on either side of the cove and absolutely tearin' it up! We couldn't get the boat in there so my buddy David and I jumped in barefoot and the hunt was on! It's a freakin' blast to try and sneak up on a fish while in knee deep water, it's so much like hunting that i just can't get enough of it, especially on days like today! The water was all muddied up so it was difficult to see the fish, but as you stand there all the brush around you will move as the fish swim past. The brush and dry leaves would rattle and crack as the unseen scaled beasts plow their way through, and every now and then several fish will meet up and explode on the surface in a huge explosion of water. The hunting was tough because of the water clarity but there were so many fish and so much activity it was inevitable a fish would thrash on the surface close enough and long enough to get an arrow in em'! In this pic I was waiting in ambush as several fish thrashed their way towards me! David's arrow broke so he became the photographer for awhile and got this cool photo of me shooting a carp just as happened! We didn't keep count but figured we had at least 15 of those suckers scattered around the surrounding desert that I'm sure the coyotes and skunks are enjoying as I type this! We did manage to get a couple pics with a few of the fish we got, no big fish really, but it takes more skill to hit the small ones! Thanks, JIM>

I planned on makin' it to the show but missed it today, would loved to have seen that buck in person, what a toad of a buck!

Well my buddy finally convinced me to give it a try. I have always fished for numbers and never really tried to catch the biggun's, my patience isn't there and I get frustrated fast if i'm not gettin' bit! With this in mind I was reluctant to try it but heck, even if I spend the day on the water and never get a bite, it's still better than workin'....well, that aint true, I REALLY need a job, i NEED to be workin' but I went fishing anyway My buddy and I headed out, all I took was my reel as my poles weren't heavy enough so I borrowed one of his and I spooled on some 20lb test line that he had as well. The lures we used were almost as big as the fish I normally catch and were either very expensive or not available anymore so I was pretty scared launching them out into the lake....luckily I never lost any The day started out clear and calm and we were one of only 3 boats on the water, absolutely perfect! As expected, the action was non-existent but i was getting better at lobbing the huge lure and finally got the feel for this style of fishing. Then our luck turned for the better as a G+F truck pulled up to the ramp and started dumping a whole bunch of "vitamin T" as he called it, or "Trout" into the water! WhooHOo! Now we have a new fresh "bait site" all set up for us compliments of AZGFD....go figure! Shortly after that I was reeling in my fake fish when I finally had a "thump" and a little tension on the line so I leaned back hard and set the hook in my first swimbait fish! The fish fought hard but was landed fast as I was careful not to give em' any slack. This fish wasn't a monster but a nice 4 pounder which is a trophy in my book! Now that first one was out of the way it became alot easier to fish with the big lures, confidence is everything! Not long after the first fish, we saw a trout getting slammed up against a rock wall, my line was already out too far so my buddy flipped his lure perfectly into the action and we both saw a giant bass hammer the fake trout! We were flopping around more than the fish was, trying to get the net and get positioned to land the beast. It was amazing to pull that hog out of the water, and on the scale she weighed in at 8.25lbs.!!! That was my buddy's 4th largest fish and one of the largest I've personally witnessed catching! We threw her in the livewell so we would have her for pictures later if we caught another one.....unfortunately we thought my first one was probably our only one and already let it go. Again, not long after we caught the big one I had another "thump" and I let him have it hard, leaning back and reeling fast I felt like I had a good one and soon saw it was a little bigger but not as fat. This second fish for me weighed in at 4.75lbs.! That made a total of 8.75 lbs. total for me out of 2 fish and 8.25 lbs. for my buddy with 1 fish! I got him on weight, but I'd trade my 2 for his 1 anyday!!! It was a slow day but that's how trophy fishin' goes, we knew it would be slow but it's exciting knowing that when you do catch something it probably won't be a dink! Now I've gotta get back to hunting, but those bass are in for some trouble, I'll be back lookin' for my own "wall hanger"! Thanks, JIM>

Some of the best BIG coues footage I have ever seen!!! I didn't play with numbers or anything but that buck has to be within 3 inches either side of 115"! Gorgeous! JIM>

Gino I remember that skull with the forked G2's real well.....my favorite part of the house, and a place you wouldn't expect to find a coues skull!

Loved it, great job! JIM>

Thats awesome! Congrats and thanks for the great write-up and great pics! JIM>

You know you got the passion when you can't even wait until she can walk before taking her glassing! ( Shorty and his daughter ) And you know your addicted when you proudly make it a point to wear the CWT.com shirt while on hunts for other critters....gotta display what your true passion is especially while hunting less desirable critters! Yes, I may be addicted, but I think a better description for it would be an obsession and this wonderful site along with its outstanding membership is just an outlet for us all to feed and nurture this obsession. Thanks Amanda for all you do and have done! JIM>

Amanda, when at the ISE show talk with the AZGFD guys, they almost always have a few hides they are trying to sell. I haven't seen any tanned lion hides but they usually have fleshed and salted hides that they've acquired. Last year they gave my sister some skulls and various stuff because it was to be used for educational purposes, she was putting together her own "bone box" for her classroom.

When I had that rangefinder I had this case/strap on mine. It made the use of the rangefinder much easier and protected it as well. Here's a link to one on ebay that appears to be a good price. http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Cabelas-rangefinde...bayphotohosting

Here's an idea, this is what I'd have done if I didn't have any room for another lion! This is a McKenzie form that is available, and can't see why it would be too expensive to have done! Good luck with whatever you decide. JIM>

Jim... Jason and I both have bigger bucks on the wall.... ??? and your point is....... The more the better! I ain't gonna stop 'til I have no more wall space or my wife threatens to leave me......well, actually if she threatens that than I guess I'll miss her

I sat down and re-read all of the stories and they are all great! I would like to encourage everyone to check out each story before voting and base your decision off of the story's support photos, quality of photos, and content....the kill photos will be judged in a different part of the contest and isn't a major part of this one. This is about the quality of the story with the use of support photos or videos which help give the reader a better feel for the experience that is being shared! I think this is a great part of the contest this year, it was appearant that folks were taking more time to get better support photos and add more content which makes for a better story. Thanks to everyone who did share their hunting experience with us this past season, it definitely helped me cope with the fact I didn't have a coues tag myself (that'll all change this year!) JIM>

AZP&Y, I too savor those pics, these animals are simply amazing! The one I saw in MX was darker in appearance than the one in Warner Glenn's photo, kinda like the collared Jag. Probably too because mine was at longer distance it appeared darker. I recently read that there are estimated between 8,000-10,000 Jaguars in existence, we just have a few stragglers up this far, most are way south but there's definitely more out there than I thought! JIM>

Whoohoo! Awesome....I WANT THE BRONZE! just kiddin'...kinda Yeah Bret, that's the pic and thanks! I agree with you Gino, I too wish I could vote 3 times as well, but there is also something about an older gentleman such as in pic#1, you have to wonder what experiences he's had, or what amazing things he's seen in his lifetime of hunting! To see him sittin' there in the coues woods reflecting and appearing content, no tripod or fancy camos, there is just something about it that has a lot of spirit! That's a great pic as well as the others! JIM>

That is awesome! I had the great privilege to see one last year in Mexico and the image is and always will be burned in my brain, what a gorgeous beast right there! JIM>

those bucks are way to big to euro....mount those studs dangit!!!! ( tell Scarb that goes for him too, I'll get him a cape!) BTW....huge congrats to you Colton!

My hearing has taken some huge hits over the years, I try my best to protect it but sometimes it just doesn't happen. Even if I have plugs with me it seems those are the last thing you think about when your critter is standing within' range. My biggest problem, and the biggest reason for my hearing loss is from clients or friends that pulled the trigger without warning. I just got HAMMERED last week in Mexico by a client's muzzlebrake. We couldn't set up any different becuase of the vegetation, the muzzlebrake of his .300WBY was no more than 3 feet to the right of my head and I immediately made a note of this! I was set up behind my binos to spot the shot, I turned to him and in a very stern tone I told him to "LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU ARE GOING TO SHOOT!" Just as I turned back to my binos and with my hands halfway up to my ears...the gun goes off! I wanted to cry becuase I knew there was no fixing what just happened. This exact thing happened a couple months ago with a different client, it didn't matter that I had just told him to give me warning. When in the heat of the moment people (myself included) get tunnel vision and I should be A LOT more careful. I usually set up to the side of the shooter to call the shot through my binos or to help acquire the target, this always puts me in a bad position and more times than not I end up paying the price. One of these days I'll be able to afford those nifty hearing aids I saw in the Western Hunter Mag.......I just hope it's before I actually need hearing aids

yep, Unit 14 has a couple decent bulls living within it's borders and they're definitely not the easiest critters to call over a fence either! they know which side of the fence is safest!

Congrats to all the succesful hunters in Gino's group! I was very fortunate to get the invite to hunt with most of this crew this past January for a few days and it was a blast! I didn't see any shooters but i wasn't at all disappointed, I had deer below me every day and it's just awesome to sit undetected in a coues deer's world and watch them at less than 20 yards away! Those guys and gals have worked very hard and have put out an amazing amount of effort to achieve their success, congrats again to you all! Thanks for sharin' the experience with me! JIM>

Gorgeous pics Doug!!!!