COOSEFAN

Awesome find, great character on that buck!!!

Hope you like them Jim. The Meindl Perfekt Hunter is the best boot I have ever owned. They hold up very well. I also wore Danner Boots for years. They were good boots but I also could never get more than a year or two out of them. Back seams were always coming apart on them. The Perfekt Hunters are the most Comfortable boot I have ever worn. Hey Dan, This similar topic came up a while ago and I remembered what you said about the Meindl's and have had my mind set ever since to buy them.......it also is a "NO-BRAINER" when Fatfootdoc and Mr. Scott Adams reccomends the same brand!!! I'll check out those Canadians too! JIM>

Way to go on some great bucks, congrats to all involved, I know how exciting and memorable those hunts can be!!! Great job! JIM>

Awesome job Ilene, congrats on a great bull!!! JIM>

If there is a category for best "Other Game" story........This is #1 so far!! Great write-up, videos, pics and congrats on a great bull!

129 4/8. That buck is incredible.....absolute dream buck!

I have the Bogan, the Outdoorsman, and now the Slik Pro 614CF. I have used the Outdoorsmans for years and love it, but after acquiring this Slik CF tripod, I love it more! I don't know the specifics on weight, but I think it weighs very similar to my Medium length Outdoorsmans, but I can stand with my Slik tripod and also extend the legs as long as needed when sitting on an elevated surface. I also like the twist style tension knobs on the Slik as opposed to the lever style on the Outdoorsman.......I always had a hard time keeping the lever tightened correctly or clean enough so it worked right.....constantly had to clean the Outdoorsman. The Bogan tripod is so heavy it only gets used in windy conditions or with my scope. As for heads....I've got the Jim White head on the Slik and the Outdoorsmans Pan Head on the Outdoorsmans......both are awesome, don't know which is better, but I do know for me I would use a Pan Head style head any day before using a Pistol Grip....those things drive me nuts!

I'm in the market also and I've decided to go with the Meindl's Perfekt Hunter boot. I went through 2 pairs of Danners last year and have never gotten more than 1 season out of any pair of Danner I've had....but they are much better than any Rocky model that I've previously used. I have a pile of Danner boots in my closet with some that appear as though they are brand new....execpt for a blown out seam, or the front of the sole separated! I love the boot for comfort and support but it drives me up the wall that I spent almost $400 last year alone on 2 pairs of boots and haven't gotten a full season out of either boot! I know I should have been calling Danners customer service and sending them in to be repaired...I've heard they are good about that, but I never have time for that so I have just gone and bought a new pair. The models I've bought that lasted me the longest time is the Frontier, and the Quarry models....all the others fell apart fast for me. I'm buyin' the Meindl's tomorrow!

Hope you have a great birthday Amanda! JIM>

Howdy all, I'm back for a few days and we've had a great season so far! This last hunt was one of the best though! Our hunter and new friend "Ian" was the proud owner of an early rifle bull tag that his dad "Rick" had signed down to him! Ian is 17 and hearing impaired, but I'll tell you he has zero handicaps while out in the feild! He kept up with my brother Matt and I all day the first two days and obviously enjoyed every last minute of it as much as us! Ian only had 3 days to hunt and we didn't want to settle for just any bull and felt confident we could get the job done by Sunday. The first two days consisted of incredible ruttin' activity, tons of bugling and fast action! We called in several bulls on both days between 320-350 and a few to within 20 yards! As soon as Matt would tell Ian that it wasn't a "shooter", Ian would whip out his camera and get awesome photos of the bulls while they screamed in his face! By Sat. night, with the help of Popps, Chrissy (Froddo), Rick and Ian's friend Derek, we had several options to pursue for our final hunt on the following day. We decided to go after the bull Popps found and after Froddo relocated it on Sunday morning we realized it was good ol' "Ron Burgandy"! We were already in close to the bull when Froddo told us it was indeed Ron, so we ran up to the glassing hill and planned our attack. The bull had several cows and all were bedded in a tough spot with no great vantage so we decided to wait him out. Popps, being the great guy he is, went to camp and brought us lunch which was awesome considering all the miles we had put on that morning up to that point. After lunch a storm cell started building and we knew that was our chance to move in because the bulls had been getting up and bugling a bit during the afternoon storms. Matt, Ian and I took off and got into position but the rain kept us held up under a tree for a few minutes. Ron started bugling giving away his location and as soon as the rain eased off we closed the distance to 200 yards. The sage was tall and I could only find 2 cows up feeding. I had Ian standing with a tripod as a rest waiting for the bull to stand up but couldn't see exactly where he was yet. I then felt the wind on the back of my neck and the cows threw up their nose and started to get anxious. Thankfully before anything busted I noticed the antler tips rise up out of the sage to the left of the cows! The bull stood knowing his girlfriends detected something and was facing directly away. Ian knew not to shoot and kept telling me he needs a broadside shot so I started whistling at the bull and finally he turned broadside........BOOM....WHOP! I couldn't tell where the hit was but it sounded solid, the bull walked a few yards and Ian slammed two more "insurance" rounds into the beast putting him on the ground for good! Ian despite his handicap or his age would have impressed anyone with his skill, patience, and attitude! He knew to wait for a broadside shot, he picked a spot, and followed up with the second and third shot without any prodding from me! You'd be amazed how rare that self control actually is with most folks in situations like that! My hats off to him and to his dad for graciously handing that once-in-a-lifetime tag down to Ian! Well, thats the story and the pics are to follow. I know after Froddo posted the scouting footage of this bull there were conflicting thoughts on score. At first glance on the hoof, this bull looks like a 390" class bull, but after inspecting you realize he lacks quite a bit down low dropping his score considerably. All I know is that with only a few hours of Ian's hunt left to go, this bull was not going to get passed up! None of us cared what the bull scored before or after the shot and only knew that it was an incredible bull to end an incredible hunt with! Because the plane was waiting for Ian in town and we were running late packing the bull out, a full breakdown on score never happened. With the measurements we did run, we can honestly say this bull is a solid 370" class bull and most likely would have been mid 370's if not for some broken tips.......but who cares, it's only inches, check out this gorgeous bull!!! Thanks, JIM>

Howdy folks, i'm home again but I leave again tomorrow and finally get to switch gears to Coues!!! Last Friday I was able to squeeze in a short hunt with my Bro-n-law "Jimmy". Jimmy drew one of the Limited Opportunity hunts that started last Friday and has been scouting all summer! The unit we hunted is filled with amazing country that you would think hold tons of elk....but there's not! It blows me away that there aren't more elk in these areas, but after hiking miles and miles and glassing even more miles you soon realize how tough these L.O. hunt areas really are! Our first day was grueling as we hiked up several of the biggest mountains around to gain the vantage necessary to hopefully find one of these ghosts that supposedly inhabit the area. I was amazed at how much ground you can cover and not even see the remnants of an old elk track, much less a fresh one! Jimmy assured me the elk were there, somewhere, but they move long distances and we just needed to find where they went! Late in the afternoon on opening day, a phone call from one of our friends came with a tan colored critter spotted 3 miles from where Jimmy and I were so we bailed off a giant mountain that we had just spent an hour climbing up! A death defying quad ride and 30 minutes later we were close to where the critter was spotted but only could find tracks and not enough light to follow them. I will say that snake chaps or snake proof boots are a definite MUST HAVE on these hunts and we experienced numerous reasons for why that is! One incident we won't soon forget was when neither of us had a light and right at dark a snake started buzzing! I yelled at Jimmy to stop, ran back to him as he froze in his tracks to try an locate where the snake was at and soon realized Jimmy was standing on the front half of a rattlesnake!! To make it worse, as we tip-toed back to the quads we had another close encounter with 2 more snakes.....with no lights!!! So now with opening day done I was supposed to be home that night but was talked into staying for the next mornings hunt. It didn't take much to talk me into it 'cause I was not wanting to leave without seeing a dang elk! The next morning had us in close to the area where the elk were seen the night before and right at light we got into the herd! The elk were scattered in the flat cedars and moving fast into the higher and deeper canyons. Only one bull would bugle very sparingly, but it was enough to get the blood pumping! Jimmy and I ran as fast as we could across the flats, up and over ridges and finally over a mountain before finally getting in close to the herd bull. The canyon was very steep and super thick and the elk were on the same side as us, but with the wind right we slowly followed the tracks. Soon we came to a small ravine that gave us a veiw of the opposite side and there stood a gorgeous mature bull! Jimmy snuck down to a fallen tree, took a solid rest and finally my favorite noise came ringing out........BOOM...WHOP! The bull fell instantly and Jimmy was up and about tackled me to the ground he was so excited! Jimmy had been scouting every weekend and had been up there for several days prior to the hunt so he had alot of time, expense and energy invested in this hunt and his reward finally lay motionless 200 yards away! The bull slid up against a tree on the edge of a small cliff and we were about 2 miles from the truck, so I knew Jimmy and our friends were in for a long day of skinning and packing.....I on the other hand, was late for a date with the ol' lady and I sadly had to leave I did feel kinda guilty for leaving.....well, at least for a minute or two Several more snakes were found, even one right next to the bull when the skinners and packers arrived.....one more reason I'm glad I missed out on that part! I didn't have my camera with me, but I did have my new phone which surprisingly takes good pic's.......here's those pic's! Congrats Jimmy on a very hard earned, well deserved bull! JIM> Here's a pic taken before I realized my new phone had a "time-delay" feature And here's a pic of a nice Muley buck we glassed up, don't know the cause of death, probably a lost archery buck? I would guess less than 2 weeks old, I lost my breakfast while taking the cell phone pics and the head is still laying where we found it! Even if it were legal, I still wouldn't have touched that nasty thing!!! Through the 15's...... Up close and stinky........

I voted no as well, it's just wierd when someone we know well changes their name. Just like Younghunter, I don't think he should have changed his name either, just aint right JIM>

Way to go on some awesome bulls! I'm sure the highlight of the season had to be your boys' success though.....that's awesome, congrats to them! JIM>

Gorgeous bull, especially for a first trophy!!! Huge congrats to her on an awesome accomplishment! JIM>

Welcome to the site and definitely welcome to the sport! That's great that you are getting out there and scouting, that's the #1 best thing you can do! One thing I've learned about that unit and especially the area you mentioned is have patience! There are deer there but it can take patience and determination to find them usually. Lots of options down there, find a good vantage point and glass hard at first and last light and even mid-day between 10:00 and 2:00! You won't have to stray very far from where you've already been to find good areas and good bucks, best of luck! JIM>

Gorgeous bull, huge congrats on that one!!! JIM>

Thanks guys! The phone I just got is insanely cool, way expensive, but I can manage all my photos and videos on it. It's the new LG Dare and is supposedly designed to beat the iPhone, the camera is 3.2 megapixel and even has editing capabilities for the photos and video! I'm still learning how to use it, but it's pretty cool to whip it out anytime and show people videos of my hunts or a slide show of my portfolio!

Welcome to the site Ian! Another side note I didn't mention yet is that Ian is a great shot with his Hoyt bow and we almost used it instead of the rifle for his hunt! Definitely had several great bulls that I have no doubt would have died from Ian's arrow if we had the bow with us at the time! We'll go get one of those deer this January Ian, I can't wait! Take care, JIM>

Very cool gun there David! I guarantee there won't be anybody "whisperin'" after that thing goes off though! I do like the name, very cool!

That stuff looks awesome! I ran into Randy a couple weeks ago in the feild and I didn't notice him wearing it on that day. Incredibly nice guy though, definitely a pleasure to meet him! Here's a link to some small TV style shows about the stuff. http://www.optifade.com/

Word for word agree with you TAM. I now have a gun that is accurate out to 900 yards, will I shoot at an animal at 900 or even 750 yards.....NOPE! But I can guarantee that practicing out to those distances I am going to be dead on at 500 yards and if I can't get closer and it's the buck of my dreams, I'll kill em' and be proud as heck that I did my best to prepare myself and my equipment to make that happen as humanely as possible. Everyone has their own limitations, their own equipment AND their own beliefs. Hunt for yourself, be true to yourself and stay within your own limitations based on your own beliefs and skill level. No matter what, it's our responsibility as hunters to do all we can to ensure a quick humane kill and everyone has different limitations in accomplishing that.

Whew..some stud bucks for sure!!!! Hope you get to wrap your tag on any one of those! Thanks for the pics! JIM>

Coolest browtines ever grown on an elk without a doubt!!!!

Great story and pics Amanda! Sounds like you had a ton of experiences and gained a ton of memories, can't beat that! JIM>

Howdy Loner, welcome to the site! It isn't necessary to have 15X or 20X for glassing distance, but it is necessary to have the binos, regardless of power, on a tripod for distance. I start out glassing with my smaller 8.5x42 binos on a tripod while glassing in any terrain or distance and they work fine for finding movement and shapes far out and detail at closer ranges. The tripod is the key though, that's the only way to pick up the animals movements which is normally what gives the animal away. It's better to have a 15X or higher glass but you will be fine with 10X and typically you can identify with 10X whether it's an animal worth going after, just keep em' on a tripod! Sitting and glassing is by far the best way for me to hunt desert muleys, find the highest vantage point and glass all day. Best of luck to ya, JIM>