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No sir. My wife, 3 month old baby and I got out opening day. We hiked 6.6 miles and were at a decent spot. It was hot out so we had to stay down by a creek under trees instead of going up our normal hill and getting roasted by the sun. We got to glass for about an hour. Got some good pictures with the baby and hiked back out. Didn't see anything. When we got home I realized I messed up my shoulder some how. We took Saturday and Sunday off. We picked the toddlers up from daycare early Monday and went back out. We hiked all around with all the kiddos played in the creek and had a good time. No glassing was done at all. We drove up to Humbouldt MtN observation and the kids ran around and we got some more good pictures and saw the sunset. We live in the heart of Phoenix so really dont ever see good stars. We drove out slow so it could get dark. We stopped at Sears Kay ruins and the 4-1/2 year old got to see real stars for the first time. We dropped toddlers off at daycare the next day and took the baby with us. Went to a different spot. I hiked up a nice hill and actually got to glass for a while. It was hot and didnt see anything. I could hear and see the wife was having a hard time with the baby. Hiked down and asked her what she wanted to do. She was frustrated and we drove home. My wife let me go solo the last day of the hunt. Was sitting on a hill before the sun came up. Saw three does in the first 30 minutes of light. Never saw another deer. It was 42 degrees when i hiked in and 82 degrees when i hiked out. The thing I have learned about hunting Coues is you need to put in the effort. I have been very successful hiking in to places. With toddlers and a baby it makes it very hard. Will need to wait until they get a little bit older or keep going solo. It was still great to get out with the family.

IMG_8192.mov IMG_8192.mov IMG_8192.mov I ran into a unique but not uncommon situation this year on my buddies wife’s 5B late rifle bull hunt. Opening morning we turned up 2 bulls first light at 1100 yards. Her effective range is about 600 yards so we needed to drop off the ridge and onto a spine between us and the elk. As we made our way there we heard a side by side coming in. I told my buddy to continue on and I would let them know what we were doing. It ended up being two guys from Washington, one with a tag. They too had seen the bulls and were in pursuit. I told them since two bulls were in there we should work together and we can make a final decision on shooter once in position. They were agreeable so we eased in. We got to 600 yards and had the biggest bull in plain site bedded. The other was bedded in thick junipers. My buddies wife had never killed a bull and neither had this gentleman. Despite my gut telling me “ladies first” I knew they had just as much right to the bulls as us, so we agreed to flip for it. Well, she lost. So we got her in position in the event the second bull popped out and helped him with distance, windage and execution. He made a perfect shot and the other bull slipped out just giving us brief glimpses but never long enough for a new hunter. It was disappointing and exciting all at once. Bull was a tank and scored 351”. Super solid dudes and even offered tons of assistance trying to help her connect over the next few days but she could never quite put it together. On day 2 I found her the bull of a lifetime, conservatively 370” and had her at 400 yards from him but she couldn’t get him in her scope in the thick cedars before he bedded. I had to go home but they saw him two more times and no shot! IMG_8192.mov I sure love mentoring new hunters but after killing lots of animals for 35 years it is easy to forget the newbie mistakes that occur over and over again that we made and is so glaring when someone else does it. Test of patience, kindness, and humility for sure! Here is the bull they killed 351” IMG_8201.mov My Movie 9.mov

Lightly used on couple of trips to the range. I will include a set of Alpha 6 rings. $775 602 679 7887 Thx

I think you guys handled it very well. I think paper, rock, Scissors would be funner.

Well any luck?

If you were headed to them first I definitely would have TOLD them she would be shooting first and they could shoot once she shot whether she hit or missed the first shot, especially for an out of stater, they can stay out of state lol

You were pretty fair. I’d of sent her up the hill to get set while I tried to run them off the road 😂 And, to be honest, what most hunters would have done is made a stink about it and got on social media to complain about road hunters ruining everything. No animal is worth a bunch of drama. Hunting is supposed to be fun or a way to separate from our day to day. Not something to be even more stressful and dramatic.

Washington? Eww....

I think we did what many ethical hunters would do but I have hunted here 15 years now and seen an unbelievable amount of people turn into monsters for an animal

Do you think they should have conceded to her? I think you did what any other hunter would have done.

I think you played it very fair. Lots of turds out there and just be glad you are not one of them.

Jay Scott has this buck up on his instagram story right now for whoever is curious and wants to see it.

You will be fine. That unit is a gold mine. I hunted it for 5 years and seen tons of deer. My wife killed a 104” deer on post a few years back. If you want, I can help you out. PM me and I’ll give you some more advice. I wouldn’t also recommend buying a lion tag. They are EVERYWHERE!!!

The Az School for the Cartooning I think...

Yeah it’s been tough to watch my dad. He’s gone from the man I always looked up to as an athletic super hero, to someone who walks like a slow robot now. That’s why this hunt is so important to me. 👍

I hear ya! My daughter has been doing the same for several years now, and even the unfinished horses (yes, plural!) are not cheap! But, she loves it and it is an extremely fun lifestyle to be in.