36b 12/16 - 12/31 hunt

[lfootmatt]

3 years in Tucson now, formerly a Missouri WT hunter, job transfer. Great place to land! Got drawn for the Dec General WT hunt in Dec!!!!

 

Obviously thus isn't as simple as hunting WT in MO!

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Security stuff already taken into account G22 .40 & long gun for scouting trips. I want to know what I need to do to hunt WT out her in the West.

 

.300 SAUM 3.5X10-50 Leupold VXIII solid out to 500 yards. No I won't take a 500 yard shot, but won't hesitate at 400.

 

Is 150 grains too much? And what bullet is reccomended as a handload. I'm leaning to a Nossler Ballistic Silver Tip 150 grain w/ Varget powder.

 

Have good 12X60 binos w/tripod and Nikon LDL 8X42 ED glass binos for scouting. Have Topo maps.

 

Areas, terrain for scouting, etc, need advice on all.

 

Thanks, Matt

[bigcoues]

You should have no problem getting a decent buck.Good hunt you drew and great area.Seems to me like your all set up contact game and fish for more info.Send me an pm and I'll point you in the direction of a few spots where I've had a little luck.Good luck.

[matthewp45]

All of your equipment seems just fine. The most important thing to do is get out and glass,glass,glass. Get use to finding these little grey guys. Dwayne Adams has great book out called "How to Hunt Coues Deer". This book even gives you an overview of 36B. You read this book and get out in the field you will learn quick. Good Luck. You can get the book on this website.

[Diamondbackaz]

You have my favorite hunt. Get out and drive Ruby and Tres bellottas roads and scout all of the side roads till you find something you like. It is difficult to give you the advice on where to hunt since I don?t know what type of terrain or vegetation that you like to hunt in, or how you hunt. Some people might like to hunt big mountains with big canyons, and others may like to hunt rolling hills. Some might like to hunt the thick oak and manzanita, and some may like open areas with ocotillo and mesquite. It all depends on your personal preference. Some people like to sit and glass while others hike for miles, or do a combination of both. The only thing that I can tell you is to get maps, and get out and drive and find where you can get into and where you can?t, access is a big issue. Find areas that look good to you that meet your hunting style. Getting into more difficult areas will usually mean fewer hunters to deal with. I believe deer can be found all over and most large canyons will have deer in them.

[bowhunter4life]

have had 2 tags down there with success.. trick is to glass.glass.and glass some more.whole unit is great.mike

[m1280]

lfootmatt Isent ya a pm ck yer messages -mike-

[lfootmatt]

lfootmatt Isent ya a pm ck yer messages  -mike-

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Thanks for the feedback!!!

 

I'll be scouting this weekend. I've been pouring over the topo maps and GPS data for the area. Co-worker is going to hook me up with the Game and fish folks for that area.

 

I'll be glassing myA$$ off. Terrain? I'll do whatever, and go wherever it takes to take a good coues.

 

I'll order the book today.

 

Has anyone else gotten this hunt?

 

Is anyone going to be so bold as to actually camp in 36b? Besides our recent immigrant friends that will be camping in the area!

 

Does anyone think the constant human pressure will desensitize the coues in the area? Seems to make sense to me.

 

Thanks again!

 

Matt

[daryl_s]

Matt-

 

That hunt is my first choice every year and I am yet to get it. I'll be down there in October and yes we are going to camp there. I don't know if I would camp there during the December hunt because there are going to be about 850 less hunters and it is spread out over a longer period of time.

 

The area just north of the Tres Bellotas ranch is really good but it is right on the border. You've got a great tag, good luck. Daryl

[ajohunter]

I will be there in Oct. also. There are great areas all over that unit. We have hunted down there every year and always tag out. As for the illegals we have only had one run in down there, that was when one stole some of our beer from a cooler one night. Just steer clear of any illegal with backpacks. they usually do what they have to to protect it.

[firstcoueswas80]

another here for october, it will be my first october hunt. it will also be my first hunt with my new 15x60 zeiss, and my 270 wsm. the december is far superior. dad had it a few years ago and we saw a lot of bucks!

[trufletch]

I have hunted that unit on and off for the last 25 years, lots of great places to hunt.Get off the beaten track, find a high spot and glass your tail off, literally for hours at a whack from the same position. Just becasue you don't see something, doesn't mean it's not there, lots of little draws and coulees for them to hunker in. They will get up and feed all day long-so stay out there. As for the human traffic (illegal and otherwise), my experience is that it affects the animals. The illegals move mostly at nite, hunker down during the day. Human presence will make the animals move to areas that they feel safer in. You won't find a patch of ground down there that isn't littered with clothing, food packages, water bottles etc. from the illegal aliens. Just stay frosty, hunt in tandem, lockup anything that you don't want stolen(sometimes that won't even help). I still love to hunt the area, lots of nice bucks and beautiful country. I would not hesitate to hunt it. Glass, Glass, Glass. Some of the country looks like mulie country, but it will hold whitetails. We have glassed up some great whitetails in the lower elevations bedded in the mesquite bosques. Just be sure of your target, wouldn't want you to shoot an old mulie. Good Luck

 

trufletch

[lfootmatt]

Finally got out to scout.

 

SW side of the Atascosa mountains, up from ruby road

 

Didn't see a sole or hear a man made sound for at least 6 hours, eagles crying and all. Really pretty area, no trash, illegals or anything. A very pleasnt surprise. Perhaps an indication to the difficulty of the terrain.

 

Lots of sign and game trails in the area I climbed from ~4200 to 4600 feet in elevation. Several fresh prints in a stream bed. Appeared to be a Doe and Fawn. One larger set with a very small set in the same line. Like a fawn following a doe.

 

How big would a fawn's prints be right now? these were about the size of a 1/2 dollar. Didn't look like Javelina tracks, too pointed. I'll try to post the pics if they come out good.

 

Spotted 3 Does. First was in a stream bed. I was marking a game trail on the GPS and decided to glass the trail. As I scanned up the far bank I about $hit when something was looking back at me. ~75 yards away was a large whitetail, looked real skinny to me, but I'm not used to Coues WT. Might have had some small buttons, hard to tell because it moved. Was in the clear long enough to to get out the camera and snap a pic. Was heading into the brush at that point so I don't know how good it is. Turned and flagged nicely, bounded a couple of times and ducked into a very dense low scrub forest on a large flat plain. ~4300 feet

 

It's body was larger than I expected for a doe.

 

2 other does ran across in front of the suburban on my way out at dusk and just after.

 

Hiked in late so I didn't spend much time glassing. Absoutely brutal terrain!!! 30lb pack with food gear water etc. took 4 hours to get to a tank less than a mile and a half from the truck. Was losing light so I found an old cattle operation trail from some old (dry) tanks and headed back to the truck. Got out alot easier than in. Didn't want to hike out by myself in the dark. The stream turned into a slot canyon in a couple of places.

 

I'm in pretty good condition, so getting my a$$ kicked that bad was unexpected.

 

Having located the old cattle trail I might give it another shot if I can get started before dawn. I want to get up to the South facing slope and galss the North facing slope, lots of the appropriate terrain, cover, feed as described here and inthe book. And did I mention really had to get to?

 

I'll try a couple of other areas before settling down on a area.

 

Thanks for the input, your feedback is always appreciated.

 

Matt

 

 

I have hunted that unit on and off for the last 25 years, lots of great places to hunt.Get off the beaten track, find a high spot and glass your tail off, literally for hours at a whack from the same position. Just becasue you don't see something, doesn't mean it's not there, lots of little draws and coulees for them to hunker in. They will get up and feed all day long-so stay out there. As for the human traffic (illegal and otherwise), my experience is that it affects the animals. The illegals move mostly at nite, hunker down during the day. Human presence will make the animals move to areas that they feel safer in. You won't find a patch of ground down there that isn't littered with clothing, food packages, water bottles etc. from the illegal aliens. Just stay frosty, hunt in tandem, lockup anything that you don't want stolen(sometimes that won't even help). I still love to hunt the area, lots of nice bucks and beautiful country. I would not hesitate to hunt it. Glass, Glass, Glass. Some of the country looks like mulie country, but it will hold whitetails. We have glassed up some great whitetails in the lower elevations bedded in the mesquite bosques. Just be sure of your target, wouldn't want you to shoot an old mulie.  Good Luck

 

trufletch

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[ajohunter]

Sounds like you are heading in the right direction for a great hunt there. If you need a hand scouting I hunt there every year, shoot me an e mail.

[stanley]

Hey Matt, it sounds like you're doing some good homework!

 

You should try to participate in the unit 36A,B,C ranch clean-up on October 22nd. The WM (Mike Holister) for 36B will be there, and it would be a great chance for you to meet him and share some camp fire talk for some pointers on the unit.

 

Good luck!

 

S.

 

[lfootmatt]

How do I find out more about the clean-up project?

 

The area I scouted Monday was nearly pristine. 1 sardine can lid in the middle of a God forsaken, rock strewn, shin digger infested, steep a$$ slope. At least I 'm not the only person in this world stupid enough to climb that slope!

 

1 length of yellow nylon rope and a really old Coors beer can on an old cattle trail. Picked up all of that stuff. Also found a rusted muffler in some really dense brush, rusted beer cans, and ther misc. stuff in an area that appeared to be an old camp site. Too much to carry out, and was rapidly approaching complete decomposition anyway.

 

Thanks, Matt

 

 

 

Hey Matt, it sounds like you're doing some good homework! 

 

You should try to participate in the unit 36A,B,C ranch clean-up on October 22nd.  The WM (Mike Holister) for 36B will be there, and it would be a great chance for you to meet him and share some camp fire talk for some pointers on the unit.

 

Good luck!

 

S.

 

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