coueshunt32

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Try the eastside of the Galiuros, Deer Creek and Rattlesnake Mesa are good spots, as long as you are prepaired to do at least 6 to 8 miles a day on foot, dont be just another road hunter, cause this will only get you dust and dispair.

China Peak can get over hunted, unless you do a 3 to 4 day pack hunt, which is how it should be done.

Water is scarce so be prepaired to pack plenty. I have taken 6 Coues in unit 32 over the past 10 years, 3 of them scoring in the 90 to 95 inch range, but i had to work hard for them, so be ready to hunt from sun up to sundown, and dont count out the lower lying areas.

Good Luck

 

BC

[bonecollector]

Try the eastside of the Galiuros, Deer Creek and Rattlesnake Mesa are good spots, as long as you are prepaired to do at least 6 to 8 miles a day on foot, dont be just another road hunter, cause this will only get you dust and dispair.

China Peak can get over hunted, unless you do a 3 to 4 day pack hunt, which is how it should be done.

Water is scarce so be prepaired to pack plenty. I have taken 6 Coues in unit 32 over the past 10 years, 3 of them scoring in the 90 to 95 inch range, but i had to work hard for them, so be ready to hunt from sun up to sundown, and dont count out the lower lying areas.

Good Luck

 

BC

There are very big coues in this unit you just need to scout and be ready to hike a lot! I know a rancher in this unit and we hunt down there a lot either for coues which I hunt for and muley that my uncle hunts. We are pretty much down there every year, there are a lot of road hunters but if you are willing to hike you will find a nice shooter.

[natureboyfloyd]

Gabe,

 

Think carefully on these posts. I've returned from another serious scout from Unit 32. One weekend prior, I could've shot my share of decent sized spikes. This weekend, working for a large buck, I saw two deer running as I went to a water source; relatively no skill involved in those sightings, to be sure. The unit is dry, as one astute observor mentions, and I spent a better part of a long day looking at few fresh tracks in a fry stretch of topography. The land spoke of water, once, but not now.

 

(June, what about those Little Dragoons. I took a peak through the glass, and they look large. However, the range is probably dry, huh? Tempting though, another range to wander about.)

 

General questions I have, and not expecting anyoone to give up hard won knowledge: Will Coues become larger in home range in a drought? How much? How much do larger, older deer look around, presumably to spot me glassing, before they start tooling around? What is their "awareness factor?" Are the"dumb deer' genetics gone forever?

 

Hunt hard and smart; enjoy the process.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Str8Shot]

NatureBoy... deer like all living things are going to adapt (just look at Red rabbits post with the desert bighorns chewing grass right close to concrete and asphalt) ... The thing I learned in my time in 32 is that the terrain and limited access are a much larger obsticle to hurdle than thinking of how dry it is .... looks can be Deceiving when it comes to water in many southern units including 32 .... Such as that River that runs north through the unit and often looks dry in long stretches .... Dig down 10 inches and see how dry it is ... The question with the drought in my opinion lies more on the vegetation that is available for feeding (coues like all white tail have to feed at at certain times to keep the biological process going)..... Tanks that rely on rain and runoff that are dry plus low vegetation most likely means fewer deer ..... Kinda sucks for road hunters but hey not many roads run to the best water sources.... that unit is bubbling with water even now, but you are going to have to walk more than a 1/4 mile from a road most likely to find it ....the other thing about those areas where the water bubbles from the ground is that a higher water table usually means more things growing those guys like to eat ...... Guess What I am trying to say is adapt ..... Find you an area with some Bubblers ( I hear thats what Yankees fans call water fountains) .... Look for those things green they like to eat and if in the area you have some good slopes littered with large areas of deep cat claws or ocotillio find a glassing spot and be patient .... At least thats what I would do

[azhuntsmen]

To all interested.

like stated before the deer are there you will just have to get out and find them, they are not going to jump infront of your truck for you. Some long hard hikes will give you the best chance at seeing a shooter.The area is over run with hunters true but most are road or lazy hunters. If you pack into the wilderness area all you will run into is some great views plenty of deer and the fellow hunter put as much time and effort into the hunt as yourself. I normally camp in the Ash Creek area and hump in from there for a few days,its an RV lot but once you get about a mile up its only you. I will be there the early Nov. hunt so if anyone has that hunt look for my Wrangler cant miss it with the big CouesWhitetail.com sticker taking up most of the windshield. Everyone have a safe and fun hunt.

 

[natureboyfloyd]

Thanks for sharing,

 

Yeah, I did a bit of exploring, approaching the Ash Creek/Saddle Mtn from the south Mesas; also checked out elevated outposts on the west end of the unit. I agree, water is there, because I drank it. Still, quite a few catchments were dry, the kind that are bulldozed on one end. So, I figure the deer have to change the home range, but that is kind of a no brainer. I was also noticing that some of the deepest shaded places/crevices were dry this weekend. poor monsoons? I did not dig down, but I have seen deer pawing...Any mammal, including the bear, that deal with the arid seasons have my respect, as I lug a gallon plus for the first day.

 

Guess my post made me sound like a road warrior. Hardly. Sensitive about that. Was actually thinking about the interior, and maybe seldom visited, features of the unit...

 

The genetics question, well, I use to live in Reynolds County, Missouri, the most heavily poached county in the US for a while. Even squirrels seemed a notch above regarding flight distance to human noise, and my father tells me about pheasants in S. Dokato fleeing at 200 yds when a door opens. I still wonder and have decades to wonder about, hopefully, exactly how far a mature deer looks as it decides to leave a gully. On average. (the posts on harvesting Monster bucks really got me thinking about the role of age on the deer' s awareness. Probably should continue "thinking aloud" on the biology thread).

 

Str8shot, one weakness to focus on is a lack of knowledge re: browse; the D. Adams' book and others are on my list now.

Thanks for thoughts. This site contributes to the experience.

 

[James Gleave]

I have the first Nov. hunt and just got back from a trip to Jacksons cabin. Ended up seeing a few bucks and several does, the bucks we did see were small. I like the copper creek area better and always see deer there.