AZP&Y

Prior to my trip to the peaks in Flag and quick 5 day trip to Iowa ... I was able to spend 3 days running around the Santa Ritas. 15 miles of hiking on the Arizona Trail (section 4), the scenery was absolutely spectacular. Sore feet left me glassin and was able to locate 2 nice black (cinnamon) bears, some nice coues and this Goulds. So far I've seen Goulds in 3 Arizona mountain ranges: Huachuchas, Santa Catalinas , and Santa Ritas... Looks like the reintroduction is going well. Just before sunset, I was able to locate this nice 5pt shed and attempted an Arizona Highways "SHED SHOT" . Hence " evening bone" - get your minds out of the gutter- this is a family website! Good luck to you rifle hunters that drew tags- The coues are awatin' .... http://www.aztrail.org/passages/pass_04.html AzP&Y Doug

121 & 6/8 - excellent coues deer and great mount! AZP&Y

Finished it again last night for the second time. Fantastic book. It's hard to comprehend the level of detail in this book- which makes it all the more enjoyable... I would say a must read prior to your upcoming coues hunt... AzP&Y

Sweet ! Summit FEVER! That is one fantastic hike! You guys look like you earned it! Looks like a very nice day up there... Thanks for sharin' the pics! AzP&Y

yep, got pretty lucky just before sunset. Here are a few in daylight... Not sure if that buck roams the hills? The shed looks like weathered 1-2 seasons? May go 46"? Check out the eye-guard. Doug - AzP&Y

Coconino and Kaibab National Forests Lift Closures, Some Restrictions For Immediate Release Date: July 19, 2007 Contact: Coconino Supervisor's Office 928-527-3600 or Jackie Denk on the Kaibab National Forest at 928-635-8314 WILLIAMS, AZ — Due to recent rains, the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests plan to lift all closures and some fire restrictions at 8 a.m. tomorrow (Friday, July 20). The entire Coconino National Forest is open to public use except for the area directly surrounding the Birdie Fire. As of 8 a.m. tomorrow, all fire restrictions will be lifted. “We have received significant precipitation over the last couple of weeks with more on the way, according to forecasts,” said Bruce Greco, fire staff officer for the Coconino National Forest. “We feel comfortable that the risk of fire starts has been reduced enough to lift all restrictions on the Coconino National Forest.” While the Kaibab National Forest has also received some rain, it has not received as much as the Coconino. Therefore, all closures will be lifted, but campfire and smoking restrictions, known as Stage 1 fire restrictions, will remain in effect forestwide. As of 8 a.m. tomorrow, the North Kaibab Ranger District, which is located north of Grand Canyon National Park, and the Bill Williams Mountain watershed, which is located on the Williams Ranger District just south of the city of Williams, will be reopened to public use. That means activities such as camping, hiking, biking and motorized vehicle use will again be allowed in the areas. All other areas of the Kaibab National Forest will remain open. On all districts of the Kaibab National Forest, campfire and smoking restrictions will remain in effect.

RR, Not sure if you have seen this or not, but it helped me when I was down there a couple of weeks ago.... Congrats on the Tag- I do believe that you will have a QUALITY Hunt! http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/coronado/forest/re...ta_rita_ohv.pdf AzP&Y Doug

It was time to saddle the packs and dogs and get some summer excercise in the cooler climate of the San Francisco Peaks. The hike started at the Inner Basin Trailhead (elevation 8500) and climbs for roughly 2 miles up to the Waterline Trail. The Waterline Trail (road) is a nice wide traverse along the Kachina Peaks Wilderness. Good views abound, along this area and lots of shaded places and comfortable temperatures. After the first 14 miles, we dropped into Schultz Tank and re-supplied with water that we had cached prior to dropping the vehicle at Snowbowl. There are some nice natural springs along the Waterline trail, but in the summer of the NON-SOON, it was nice to have good water waiting after a 800 vertical climb and then drop. The next leg of the hike, another good incline (700 vertical) up the Weatherford Trail and then hooked up with the Kachina Trail , which in my opinion is the the most picturesque and enjoyable. Now at 9000, the air felt cool, breezy and comfortable. The afternoon brought a brief hail storm and then the clouds parted with a pleasant sunset. 19 miles and an uphill climb to the snow-bowl parking lot and cold beer - The SanFransico Peaks are truely an Arizona GEM! I do hope they get more precip in the mountains as it is needed... AzP&Y Doug

That is a great 2 and half minutes- VERY WELL DONE! Thanks JIM! AzP&Y doug

Thanks guys- glad you are enjoying the pics- !!!!! Scott- whew, what a break from the sweltering temps and heat advisory, again today... YH - Glad that you caught that one about the dogs missing the leashes, I posted the picture and laughed, thinking... I wonder if anyone will notice ? They listen so well, especially the setter. RR- No, in fact I want to try the Sycamore hike sometime. Even an overnight would be the way to go. My pack is down to 32 lbs and that includes a gallon and litre of h20. The peaks are a whole different world compared to Arizona's Sky Islands and the Santa Ritas Thanks Ernesto! Here's another pic of the dogs as they both have crossed the 100 mile mark in the past year and never seem to tire... AzP&Y

There is no corrsponding error code chart supplied with the Bushnells, but it's pretty simple with a rangefinder. If you are getting an error code of any kind with a rangefinder, it means one of these: 1) Low battery, replace if necessary 2) You are trying to measure an object that is too close, try a more distant object 3) You are not holding the rangefinder steady and have not gotten a reading off the target. Try an easier, larger, more reflective target as a check. 4) You have an electrical problem requiring repair. Check 1-3 first. If you are still getting an error, contact Bushnell at 1-800-221-9035 for instructions. AzP&Y

Muzzy 3 blade for elk and Muzzy 4 blade 100 gr for coues. The 4 blade is slightly smaller diamater (sexier) cutting area... Good Luck! AzP&Y

i see a trophy jackalope.... azp&y

Nice pics david- bruiser body on that buck- bull is a heavyweight as well... Thanks for sharin' AzP&Y

Here's a link to the company that did some of the research for a study on why kids don't hunt or continue to hunt: It's 111 pages (somewhat long and drawn out - PDF file) , but still some real interesting stuff in there. The 12th grade students were polled @ Phoenix Area schools in 2001. •Factors Related to Hunting and Fishing Participation Among the Nation's Youth: This study was conducted to better understand the factors related to hunting and fishing initiation, participation, retention, and desertion among today's youth 8-18 years old. http://www.responsivemanagement.com/downlo...torsPhaseII.pdf Although public lands seem to be constantly decreasing, AZ still has plenty of space to take kids outdoors , hunting and fishing...30 years from now - who knows? AzP&Y

HD, Super buck- love the start of the crab claws! AzP&Y Pedestal mounts are cool!

Sweet bird! I leave for Iowa tomorrow~ vacation AzP&Y

Still don't think the legislation is enough, along with the 2000 grand to catch the coward. 6. For each trophy or endangered species animal $8,000.00 More needs to be done from legislative level and it needs to be treated like a crime scene... http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?in...amp;DocType=ARS AzP&Y

nice micro photography- takes a keen eye to get shots like that! AzP&Y

May this winter be the one we've needed for a while.. AzP&Y

FIRE WEATHER... HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE REGION WILL BE STRENGTHENING THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND IN TO EARLY NEXT WEEK...RESULTING IN A CONTINUATION OF HOT AND DRY WEATHER. TEMPERATURES WILL BE SLOWLY TRENDING UPWARD... AND REMAIN ABOVE NORMAL THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD. RH VALUES WILL REMAIN LOW THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD... FALLING BELOW 15 PERCENT DAILY. OVERNIGHT RECOVERY WILL BE POOR. WINDS WILL BE DIURNAL AND TERRAIN DRIVEN...LOCALLY BREEZY AND GUSTY IN THE AFTERNOON AT ELEVATED SITES. AZP&Y

I saw that same thing today and wondered the same... error? AzP&Y

88 and change? He definetly has that 'deer in the headlights look' AzP&Y Nice Velvet BUCK!

MATT - REAL NICE JOB FOR ONLY LEAVING IT OUT THERE 10 DAYS! Gonna get mine out this weekend!

Nice PIcs JIM! - Looks like you've got an excellent spot there for pigs- Don't have to drive all the way to 36b! AzP&Y Doug