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CHD

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Everything posted by CHD

  1. 33 hits so far, and no responses. Holy cow. Seems like everybody's afraid to say it. Daniel, thanks for the pics and the great info and the great post! I enjoyed it!
  2. CHD

    An Albino Deer (pic)

    I ain't sure of anything other than a lot of people drink a lot of hard liquor in Wyoming. How 'bout these?
  3. CHD

    36C opener

    Good luck to all you guys this weekend. Be careful and shoot a biggun! 36c is a very exciting unit to be in! Looking forward to seeing your pics and reading your stories. A better muzzle tape (other than electrical tape) is duct tape. Also, just shoot right thru it. The gas will blow it out long before the bullet gets there, so it's not necessary to remove it before the shot. It won't affect accuracy. I have proven this at the rifle range many times. I'm delighted to see that some of you are pretty doggone perceptive about kill pictures, and to see that I'm not the only one that realizes................that the most important part of the picture is............... the background.
  4. azpackhorse, I said 'former holder' of the 10 late elk tag because I returned it. I had one of Slimeball Taulman's lawsuit tags. AZGFD is offering us refunds and bonus points reinstated. They can't do this with 'drawn' tags, but can with these 'awarded' tags. There are many who returned them. We have problems at work with being shorthanded, and I can't get away. I'm okay with it tho, because I've taken 2 good bulls the last 2 years. Plus I'm really not into elk that much. Plus I only want a great big bull from now on, and 9 out or 10 will be broken due to waaaaay too many bulls in the unit. Most of the big bulls being taken in AZ any more are during the archery season before they get broken. The one that is tough to hear is CB1's story about eating a 13b tag. OOOUUUCH! That is the best public-land trophy muley tag on the planet and definitely worth quitting a job over, LOL. 111, the trophy animals I have taken are from a mix of high-quality draw units, mediocre draw units, and over-the-counter tag units. I apply all over the west and build points where applicable. Another game you can play is save your money and buy a landowner or auction tag. The biggest mistake that hunters such as yourself make...............is thinking that a great draw automatically equals a great animal. That's usually not true. It might, but it usually requires good scouting, research, hunting savvy, and knowledge of the specific habits and behaviors of old animals to tag one. A unit is great because it has the potential to produce a great animal, not because it automatically does. Also, there are trophy animals in general areas, just not as many. You just have to work harder and really know the critters to take one there. That WY muley I posted was taken in a general area where most hunters were driving past in a rush to get someplace better. Oh well, their loss. I think I'll go ahead and post 1 more pic and story of my last years bull, and call it good. I don't want to hog the forum, and there ain't that much interest in my animules and stories anyway. The other muleys I have are nice but aren't quite as good as the AZ and WY bucks I posted.
  5. I took this 6.5 year old buck in November 1994 in 13A at the base of Mt. Trumbull near the mouth of Tuweep Canyon. Again, don't have decent field pics, but here he is on my wall and in my hands. Same as the rest of the animals I've posted here, he was taken on BLM land all by myself. I was just floored to draw this tag. In fact, I didn't believe the recording and hung up and called back just to make sure. I did a great deal of telephone research, which didn't lead me to any particular honey-hole, but narrowed my hunting plans to the Trumbull area. Many so called experts said I would never kill a big buck unless I tracked one from a water hole. Others said I may not see a deer at all. Others said "don't go in early to scout, as you will be completely discouraged by the time the season rolls around". But, it turned out these guys were full of it. I went down several days early from my home in Wyoming. Never had set foot in the Strip, but had done a lot of map work. Drove the roads and looked for some areas to hike thru looking for big tracks and water plus..................FEED. In one of the areas, I found a water trough that was supplied by a piped spring a ways off that was shown on an old USGS map. This spot also had another rain encatchment nearby. This spot was at the edge of a thick PJ jungle and had some sagebrush flats interspersed with the PJ with some rimrock. Classic big buck habitat. While hiking thru it, I found a great small hogback that was loaded with cliffrose, a superb muley favorite in that region. Not coincidently, this hogback was also loaded with big blocky tracks, old and recent. So were the nearby sagebrush flats. In addition, there were plenty of doe tracks in the area, which meant the buck didn't have to leave the area to find does to rut. I had found just what I had hoped to find. I decided I would spend the entire season in this one spot looking for the buck that made those tracks. I glassed the area from afar before the season, not wanting to enter it again and let the buck know I was there. I only spotted 1 deer in the 4 days before the season, a 3.5 year old. Opening day, I just sat on the hogback and glassed the sagebrush flats, sparse PJ's, and the cliffrose. Only saw a forky. The second morning, I spotted a small 4x4. Then, I ran into a Texas hunter who had just crashed thru the spot. Man, he had just ruined my spot, I thought. I heard him coming from a long ways off, the noisy sob. So I decided I would slowly move thru the sparse PJ's into the wind, and end up at the far end of the spot looking into some small canyons. I walked right back up his path for 15 minutes when I walked up on this buck at about 20 yards. He heard my quiet footsteps, but didn't see me, and certainly didn't smell me. He trotted into a PJ stringer going up the hillside, giving me a glance at his rack that said 'shooter'. He then stopped out of sight and listened for me for 5 minutes (read 5 hours!) wanting a confirmation from sight or smell to add to what he had heard, 'cause he still wasn't sure. I didn't move or make a sound, but my heart was pounding fast! I was ready with my 7mm Mag in hand anticipating a one shot chance off hand at prolly a moving buck. He finally starting trotting up the slope again and stopped in a opening to look back at 125 yards. But he only stopped for 2-3 seconds, saw me and confirmed his suspicions, and wheeled to trot away. I double-lunged him and he bucked like a bronc. The next day, on my trip out, I ran into Ted Riggs, who also had a tag. Ted took a pic of me with my buck, but I never thought to have his buddy take one of me with Ted and my buck. I sure do regret that. I was just in a daze over having the trophy muley hunter's ultimate dream come true, whacking a big buck on the famous Arizona Strip! That Texan would be sick if he knew what he had just walked past. But he ain't the first and won't be the last. He told me in our brief visit that he had hunted this unit in the '80's and never saw a deer in 10 days. I'm not surprised. In 1999, I visited this great big buck hole again while in the area, quickly spotting a big 'ol fat-necked, heavy-antlered buck about 29 or 30 inches wide. As I said before, I love it when a plan comes together!
  6. AZ Griz, It only took a few minutes as I type fast. It was intended to be funny, outrageous, to clarify a few things, and most importantly.................to make it clear that I don't care what people think about me. Lighten up, Griz.
  7. I took this 6.5 year old buck in a desert area in central Wyoming on October 15, 1996. This was in a unit that has unlimited over-the-counter tags for residents. He is another PJ/sagebrush BLM land buck scouted and whacked all by myself. He isn?t my biggest, but he is my best due to the circumstances described below. Don't have any field pics, but here he is on my living room wall. When I lived in Casper in 1995, I was cruising some new country scouting for antelope and keeping an eye out for some new big muley country. I new this particular region had a decent gene pool for big muleys from talking with locals over the years, primarily at my buddy?s taxidermy shop. I got to looking at this area that is at the base of a large mountain and is the bottom of a bowl-shaped mountainside. The reason it struck me as a good big muley spot is because it had incredible feed in the middle of some fairly barren desert country. The feed consisted of various low-growing shrubs thickly covering the lower, flatter portion of the bowl. Quality feed is the first thing I look for when searching desert country for big muleys. Quality feed and water come first to old bucks, with bedding cover a lower priority. Anyhow, my first hike thru this spot to search for tracks ended with me almost stepping on him as he was bedded in some tall sagebrush. I watched in awe as he bounced away. I knew he was the one I would pursue. Turned out that spot was a classic ?buck pasture?, with a dozen bucks of all ages living there. The reasons it was a buck stomp are 1) great feed in the form of a variety of shrubs, 2) several nearby sources of water including tanks and a spring, 3) adequate bedding cover in the form of juniper thickets, tall sagebrush, and small gullies/arroyos, 4) good isolation from people, 5) plenty of wind to keep the summer bugs away. I soon figured out how to hike above the bowl and sit where I could glass the whole area and watch the evening show below me. Many times, I could see 6x6 elk, this buck, and great antelope from one spot. This buck often liked to bed under lone juniper trees in the rocky gullies that drained out of the bowl. But sometimes he came out of a juniper thicket, and occasionally tall sagebrush. His sidekick was a heckuva buck too at 28 or 29 inches wide. This buck was within the same half-section every time I saw him over a 2 year period. Anyhow, I hunted him for a week in 1995 but couldn?t find him or any of the bucks. Elk hunters had hunted that spot a week earlier and had shot a bull there and had spooked those bucks out of there. They prolly had moved into the thickly covered steep slopes high on the mountain. Plus that week was brutally windy, which tends to keep critters out of sight. August 1996 rolled around, and there he was again with the same rack plus a kicker on his right side. Opening morning, I sat in my spot and saw a couple small bucks plus several hunters march across the bowl and then back. A few shots fired around the mountain. One guy sat all morning on a point across the area from me, and then left when I did. I sat ?til noon and then hunted higher up on the mountain and then went back to the truck for a nap. But I knew this buck was there, as I hadn?t seen him get spooked by the hunters and move out that morning. I moved back out to my glassing spot and had the whole area to myself. I looked down into one of the small gullies and he had just gotten up from under a juniper tree about 45 minutes ?til dark. Those other hunters had walked right by him at less than 200 yards and he had held tight. Also, the guy on the opposite point had sat within 300 yards of this buck all morning and never spotted him since the buck was in his bed at daylight. I was able to make a quick downhill stalk losing 1500? in elevation plus ? mile in distance. I peaked over the gentle slope and shot him thru the neck offhand at 75 yards as he fed. I love it when a plan comes together! My latest Wyoming buck was taken in 2001 in a desert area in SW Wyoming. That buck is a 28" 7x5, was 6 or 7 years old, and was located and taken using the same knowledge about these bucks and their preferred homes that is presented here.
  8. Azpackhorse, good quote, one of my favorites. Burt Reynolds in "Gator" wasn't it?
  9. CHD

    Bear calling

    Bret, check out my warning to Rembrandt about using sarcasm on this forum, LOL.
  10. CHD

    Unit 23 whitetail tag

    Rembrandt, you are just brutal, man. I hope my twisted sense of humor hasn't rubbed off on you. Sarcasm is frequently misinterpreted on this forum, and you could end up being a dirty sob like me. The only other Coues deer hunter that I know in Grand Junction is an older gent that is comfortably retired but works at our Sportsman's Warehouse just to get away from his old lady during the day. He is originally from AZ, is somewhat connected there, and knows alot about hunting there. He and I just shoot the sheet 'til his manager comes out and separates us. We talk tripods, catclaw & mesquites, Leica-vs-Swarovski, and Coues deer habits at least twice a month. Everyone there listening in on our conversations thinks we are loco and need some serious help. But we both know better. Anyway, he and 3 of his buddies hunted 23 December last year, and all easily took bucks. Don't know where they hunted, but all came back happy. They didn't take any toads, tho, just average bucks. The bucks are there...........somewhere.
  11. CHD

    Even more NM coues.

    Bret, Congrats on a super buck and a great, memorable trip! Look at the size of the head on your buck! Looks like he might be a regressive buck to me. Do ya think he's an old one? Did ya whack him on that open hillside? Also, thanks very much for the quality post. Good luck in 27/28!
  12. Azpackhorse, I sense some doubt and confusion in your message. Here's some stuff that may clear things up for you and others. I am: 1) A holder of an AZ unit 22 2004 Dec Coues deer tag 2) A former holder of an AZ unit 10 2004 late bull elk tag 3) A proud, card-carrying member of the 'Satire is great, but sarcasm is better' humorists club, especially on forums 4) A very serious, hard-working, successful, dedicated trophy muley hunter 5) A 41 year old 6) A complete prick 7) A mean, nasty, tired, pissed off, sob and borderline sociopath 8) A very serious, dedicated, successful trophy pronghorn hunter 9) An educated scientist, and practicing civil engineering manager 10) A dang poor photographer 11) A dang poor trophy Coues deer hunter 12) A whiskeyman 13) A buckaroo boot wearin' cowpoke 14) A borderline redneck 15) A troublemakin' sob, especially on forums 16) A firm believer that the best way to harvest big critters is to learn to think like one 17) A hater of stereotypes 18) An extremely intense person 19) Very direct 20) Very intimidating 21) A huntin' and scoutin' fool 22) A lover of sharing my huntin' knowledge with younger hunters I am not: 1) A 400 lb naked fat man with a long grey beard 2) A loser computer geek with too much time on his hands 3) In prison, an anti-hunter, or in need of a girlfriend 4) A shallow person 5) A youngster 6) A punk 7) A phony when it comes to presenting huntin' stories and lessons and trophies I've taken 8) A liar 9) A poacher 10) An egomaniac who is in hunting for "the books" or to show off This post will prolly scare the sheet outta some of you, but it is the truth. I appreciate your responses to my picture posts here, and I'll continue to try to accomodate you all. And yes, Rembrandt and others, I do have some more nice muleys on my wall. After all, don't ya think that just 3 or 4 of 'em might get lonely there? They require at least 7 or 8 just for adequate company, don't ya think?
  13. CHD

    foggy binos?

    Cabela's sells this stuff called Parker's Perfect that I've been using. Comes in a little spray bottle. You don't wipe it off completely, but leave a layer of it on the lens and let it dry. Still, fogging in cold weather continues to be a problem for me. I've tried a number of different products over the years, and none work as advertised. They also advertise them as eyeglass anti-fog. But spray it on, hop outta the nice warm truck on a 10 degree morning, then start hiking some steep country sweating profusely. There just ain't any of these products that can keep your eyeglasses from fogging under these circumstances. You Arizona boys and girls don't know how good you have it hunting the banana belt.
  14. CHD

    How to Post Pics

    I see some questions about this, and I had to figure it out by myself, so here is some help. I'm certainly no expert at this. Mine are scanned photos made into jpg files in the 100 kB range. 1) Join www.photobucket.com premium service. $9 per year or $25 life, I believe. 2) Follow the simple instructions and create your personal photo album. The browse buttom automatically takes you thru you hard drive directory and you can select your pics directly from there. 3) Make your post as usual. When you get to the point in your post where you want your pic to be shown, copy the Img code from photobucket and paste it on the post. 4) Preview the post to make sure the pic is shown where and the right size you want it. Pics can be resized easily on photobucket by hitting the 'edit' button. Most of my pics are working fine at 50% reduction. Good luck.
  15. Many muley hunters consider 180" the benchmark score for a big muley, and here's what one looks like. He doesn't have even a hint of an eyeguard, which is unusual. I took this 5.5 year old buck in Colorado Unit 10 on November 4, 2000. He didn't live in the open sagebrush and cheatgrass where he is shown, but he died there courting a group of does (them females will do it to you every time). I caught him out there on a frosty November morning. He actually lived in a PJ jungle that is just over the hill in the background. Dark antlered bucks such as this one have rubbed on trees and not brush, with pines and PJ's yielding the darkest racks. Sagebrush bucks have light-colored antlers. For you younger hunters out there, listen closely, I found this buck before the season. I hunt public land, unguided, all by my lonesome. I specialize in the lower, overlooked, PJ/sagebrush/rimrock country that I love so much. Colorado Unit 10 is a great one for bucks to 180" with lots of mature bucks, public land, and fairly open country. Stay away if you are after a real whopper, as there ain't that many there. PM me if any of you want further info about Colorado Unit 10. Some of you requested some of my pics, and here is one. I am really bashful and private about my animals, as I am in this for personal satisfaction only, and I had a hard time posting this pic on a forum. However, I'm willing to contribute positively here, and if this post is welcomed here, I can post some more. Maybe even a big Arizona Strip muley taken in 13A.
  16. I took this super duper pronghorn in east central Utah in September 1999. He is a huge goat for anywhere scoring 88.3 gross and 86.6 net B & C with 17 1/4" horns and incredible cutters. His left cutter has about an inch broken off, or he would've net scored over 88. His right one is straight as an arrow and is 7". He is the biggest ever taken in that particular unit. This is my best pronghorn to date. It isn't likely that I'll ever best this one, unless I draw in Arizona and put in a bunch of time and/or get extremely lucky. I have hunted these enjoyable critters off and on for 28 years. I have taken prolly 12-15 of them in 5 different states. They are easy to hunt, but hard to shoot and VERY hard to find a really good one. I look for the oldest (read...........biggest) ones in rougher country that others think isn't habitat or won't get out of the truck to hunt. I have even taken them in sparse PJ/conifer country where most wouldn't even think of pursuing a goat. I have taken a number of good antelope, deer, and elk in marginal, overlooked habitat. I found this buck in June after acquiring the tag. He lived 1.25 hours from my house. He was a book goat in June. Some goats don't grow much after June, but this one did and he just kept on growing and growing. I watched him all summer, and knew at some point that he was a TOAD. With no rain all summer, his favorite tanks started drying up one by one. The other goats left. I was really worried that all the tanks would dry up and he would move and I wouldn't be able to relocate him. But about September 1, we started having gully-washers and I knew I had him. I snuck up to the rim overlooking his favorite wash and there he was with 8 or 10 does prancing around thinking he was the king of his domain. But you know what, HE WAS. It was very hard for me to shoot this magnificent animal after watching him all summer. But I realize in hunter-funded wildlife conservation that a few animals must die in order for more to live. I shot this buck at 376 yards by using a good rest and having a perfectly tuned .25-06 with tried and true handloads and lots of practice. Same as the Colorado muley, I used my trusty Fieldline daypack as a rest and shot prone. Don't ever take shots this long unless you absolutely know that you will make them and the animal won't suffer. I'll post some more muley pics and stories and lessons when I get time and have some pics scanned.
  17. CHD

    a simple question??

    Rembrandt, could you fax that memo to me at 970.245.3076? Also, please send a signed, notarized copy by registered mail. I'll have my custom clothing designer get right on it right away. I'm heading to Arizona in mid-December for 2 weeks of pure Coues deer delight and sure don't want to be out of tune with the Arizona fashion show. It would certainly ruin my whole experience, even if I shot a whopper. Awright .270, are you trying to get things started again? I think you are, buddy. I know you all too well. You 'bout wore me out last time. My brain still hurts. I aged 5 or so years during our last debate, and I don't have them to spare. For a long while there, I didn't think I was gonna survive you. Still not sure, as I am having weekly medical checkups at our local hospital. TAM, nobody................but nobody, ever sells out in the huntin 'biz. Just ask Lark. I might wear blue jeans, but definitely no red/black flannel. Prolly will wear an orange cap due to......................wait, maybe I won't. Might just make a target for the mean, nasty, tired, and pissed off Arizona residents this year.
  18. Doug, Great buck! What neat beautiful country to hunt! Congratulations. Thanks for sharing the pic.
  19. CHD

    How we do it.

    Bret, great story and pics. Thanks for the effort. I can only dream about whacking a buck that big. Maybe next month?
  20. WHT_MTNMAN, I PM'd you last time, check your inbox. I haven't hunted in the shadow of the Grand Mesa, but it has a super gene pool for big racks. Plus the statewide limited quota deer management is working very well, this year should be a banner year for big western Colo bucks. It's starting to resemble the good 'ol days again around here. Speaking of north of Collbran, a friend a mine whacked a buck 2 weeks ago with a 200" frame on public land on the south side of Battlement Mesa. I have pics, but can't post them, sorry. It is 30" outside, plus 2 kickers. Also, his 70+ year old father shot a 30"+ regressive tall 3x4 that is a TOAD two weeks ago in the same place. Keep working that area, as it is a good one. Good luck.
  21. This is a 63" bull that was snagged while pulling a new power line in Alaska.
  22. CHD

    az deer and CWD

    Gut and cool ASAP, and skin WITH NO HAIR CONTACT ON MEAT (the most critical thing)!!! Cut it up into great chops and steaks, without hesitation. Throw them on the grill after aging for a week or so, marinating in Worcestershire sauce for 4+ hours on both sides. I don't like seared, but slowly, gently cooked on each side turning frequently. Should take 15-20 mins for medium rare over cooling charcoal briquettes. Bleeding a little, GREAT VENISON! Add baked potatoes with real butter, a great salad w/ranch dressing, and holy cow, you are enjoying your deer.........twice! But before the venison and great salad and baked potato....................invite the single (or married) neighbor ladies over, and pour Wild Turkey 101 on the rocks very freely before putting the steaks on the grill. Don't ingest too much bird yourself..................but make sure they do. Take 'em inside and brag a little and show them your deer mounts..............and your brand spankin' new Ford diesel pickup. Be prepared to defend yourself if and when their old man shows up tho. Could be hazardous to your huntin' future. FYI, I'm in BIIIIIIIG trouble in my neighborhood, and have been for quite awhile. I know this will come as BIIIIIIIIG surprise to you all, LOL. PS - CWD has been present in northern Colorado since the early 60's. Nothin' new here. Still plenty of deer and big bucks here, plus healthy folks. The recent press coverage is just a lack of subject matter and trying to stir up a bunch of sheet in the huntin' community, from Wisconsin to Arizona. Don't dwell on it, there is really nothing that any of us can do. I believe that the average trip to the grocery store is much more hazardous than wild venison. Grill some great venison, and enjoy it. Take care and good eating.
  23. CHD

    Lunar Eclipse

    Amanda, I got excited about your message, blasted out the back door to see this rare, unusual event. Slipped on the ice and stared up at the big snowflakes that were coming down by the gazillions. No partial moon or stars visible here tonite. We don't all live in sunny southern Arizona.
  24. Awright Rembrandt and .25-06. I think I prolly can accomodate your request, as soon as I figure out how to post jpegs (never done it before). Plus, I will need to get some photos scanned in. I am warning you now that I am no expert photographer. Also, I'm after a big 'ol muley in the Utah Bookcliffs Saturday thru 11/7, and may not be able to post pics until after then.
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