Non-Resident questions.

[NTBoy]

Hello. I have recently decided on trying to do a D-I-Y coues hunt if I can get drawn. I have never put in for a tag and Arizona and am working my way thru the process so I will be ready to send in my application before the deadline.

 

I am planning on using my 300 Weatherby Mark V with 150 or 165 grain bullets on this hunt, and having the rifle where it should be dead on at 300 to 350 yards.

 

I have never hunted Arizona before, and this will be a one time deal, so all I am after is just a nice representative/legal buck, not into trophy hunting, would not turn one down if he was dumb enough to stand still long enough for me to get a shot off, but for me the trophy will be hunting in Arizona and shooting a coues.

 

I have had some advice from a couple of Arizonans about management units. I have also been told that the kind of hunt I am wanting to do, might be more productive for my hunting style if i did it pre-rut, in Nov. instead of Dec..

 

Any help or advice any of you would be willing to give would be appreciated.

[youngbuck]

PM sent

[azslim]

I like the first hunt and the last hunt, first hunt is pretty hot but the deer haven't been stirred up yet, last hunt is rut time.

[NTBoy]

I like the first hunt and the last hunt, first hunt is pretty hot but the deer haven't been stirred up yet, last hunt is rut time.

 

That is what folks are telling me. I am not sure, since I have never been to Arizona, but I am guessing that you folks 80 to 90 degree weather is cooler than the part of Texas I live in since I would be hunting in a drier climate and at a higher altitude.

[Santana Outdoors]

First welcome to the site, always great to see new members.

 

Have you looked at the draw odds? The rut hunts usually take many years to get a tag. If you are wanting to hunt soon you probably need to count on getting an early rifle tag. As far as units, that depends, I'd highly recommend finding a good friend locally to cut out lots of wasted time!

[SunDevil]

do you have access to any property in TX that you hunt? you might be able to find someone on here that would be willing to trade you some help on a "do it yourself" hunt with a new hunting partner in AZ for a return hunt in TX. Just a thought.

[NTBoy]

do you have access to any property in TX that you hunt? you might be able to find someone on here that would be willing to trade you some help on a "do it yourself" hunt with a new hunting partner in AZ for a return hunt in TX. Just a thought.

 

Actually I do have access to some land, I am not sure how easy it would be to gain access for a swap hunt or similar since it is my bosses land and we have a hunting operation on it.

 

Just now getting familiarized with AG&FD rules and regs, but from the info I have already received from some folks, the early hunt will be the one I will be putting in for.

 

I have done spot and stalk hunting for white tails here in Texas, and for muleys/pronghorns and elk, in Colorado/Wyoming and western Nebraska, which was at altitudes from 3500 up to 7500 +.

 

I have been interested in doing a coues hunt for several years, and after getting a bear in Idaho this past September, I decided that trying to put a Coues hunt together was something I needed to get done.

[BikerRN]

I'm just getting back in to hunting since being away since 1988.

 

My advice, for what it's worth, being that you are in Texas and a weekend scouting trip is probably not feasible for you, would be to read very carefully the AZ Game & Fish website about coues deer in the various management units. Then I would become intimate with Google Earth. You can learn a lot from Google. Then go to your local map store and have them order you topographic maps of the areas you want to hunt. Study the maps and Google earth to get an idea of the lay of the land.

 

I've given you some clues, and they may be of help to you. I plan to start doing some scouting this summer, as two of us are putting in for coues deer in southern AZ. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

Biker

[CouesWhitetail]

Some of the southern units (36A, B, C) have left over tags often for all the hunts (including the rut hunt). These are great coues deer units, but you have to deal with the illegal immigrants/drug traffic that goes on down there. But that's probably your best bet for getting a Dec Coues tag.

 

Otherwise, use the draw odds book that AGFD puts out to find units and hunts that are fairly easy to draw. HOWEVER, not all units have good access to public land, so make sure you look at hunt success rates too and balance high draw odds and good hunt success to find a good unit. Also AGFD puts out info on each Game Management Unit and discusses things like public land access. Use that to make yourself aware of issues in a unit.

 

here is the link to the draw odds book:

http://www.azgfd.gov/pdfs/h_f/HuntAZ2010.pdf

[azgutpile]

Once you have settled on a unit, you can contact the Game & Fish unit Manager for that area and they should be able to give some tips get on where to start. I also believe that G&F, and Forest Service have land access coordinators that you can contact.

 

The only other suggestion that I would make is to bring along a good set of Binoculars and a steady tripod.

[SunDevil]

Topo software would be a good investment used along with google earth because topos don't show all the roads.

 

Tony and Duane's book available for sale here on CWT along with unit info from AZ G&F would also be good.

 

If you can't come out for a scouting trip, you might want to come out 3-4 days prior to your hunt to scout the areas you have decided to focus on. Further away you can get from the roads the better you will do (especially if you find a shooter before the season starts) but opening weekend of the Oct and Nov hunts gets pretty busy out in the desert.

 

Good binos, tripod, spotting scope, range finder and water are a must.

 

Good luck!

[NTBoy]

Topo software would be a good investment used along with google earth because topos don't show all the roads.

 

Tony and Duane's book available for sale here on CWT along with unit info from AZ G&F would also be good.

 

If you can't come out for a scouting trip, you might want to come out 3-4 days prior to your hunt to scout the areas you have decided to focus on. Further away you can get from the roads the better you will do (especially if you find a shooter before the season starts) but opening weekend of the Oct and Nov hunts gets pretty busy out in the desert.

 

Good binos, tripod, spotting scope, range finder and water are a must.

 

Good luck!

 

Many, Many Thanks folks for the help. The whole trip hinges on getting drawn, but I will go with the afreas where I stand the best chance of getting drawn.

 

My only concern with illegals has to do with the fact I will be hunting alone. I will be camping at either a commercial campground or a state park if possible.

 

If I do hunt on an opening weekend, I will do like I have done in Nebraska on Public Land, and find me a high spot and hope some one runs something over me or by me.

 

I figure that if I get drawn, I will be out there 4 or 5 days before opening day scouting, hunt a little on opening weekend and concentrate on hunting Monday afternoon thru Thursday morning, and hope I ghet a cxhance at something.

 

I appreciate all you folks advice.

[azslim]

Get up high and glass, find a buck you want, they tend to bed somewhere around 10:00 for a few hours then get up and pee and grab a mouthful to chew on and bed down again. Watch when they go down the first time and move into shooting range for the afternoon pee.

[NTBoy]

Get up high and glass, find a buck you want, they tend to bed somewhere around 10:00 for a few hours then get up and pee and grab a mouthful to chew on and bed down again. Watch when they go down the first time and move into shooting range for the afternoon pee.

 

Many Thanks for the information. My next step is picking a unit I can possibly get drawn for, that is the biggest hurdle I am facing.

 

Getting drawn will give me a reason to try and make a scouting trip.

[azslim]

A lot of the border units are under subscribed, I have picked up Oct hunts in 36B as my 3rd and 4th choice before. I haven't had issues with illegals even tho I have seen them pretty much every time I have been down in that country. Don't camp in major travel areas, you can tell by the trails and trash. I get by with a cot under a shade tree for the most part, but have had some times when a tent went up quickly due to rain or high winds.