Str8Shot

My grandpa always said once the Bulls start Mounting the Cows ( pretty much his definition as well as many as the real start of the rut ) if the nights are lit up by the moon , that most of the activity will take place through the night into the early morning.... Once the bugles stop the bulls are moving into the thicker stuff to rest .... Find water and push through the trees during mid day and you will often find them. IT always seemed to work for him. What would you be doing during the day if you had worked over a harem of females all night long?

^^^^^ Once Those First Elk Hunts start EVERYDAY is a GOOD DAY FOR THE CROWS ^^^^^^^

I am saying that from my experience living in AZ all my life and from what I have seen and been taught ... The drop of temps and onset of the first freeze usually coincided with the first estrus... The hotter the Sept.. the later the rut. Just saying remember cows are in estrus for less than a day and can go through 3 or 4 cycles... The rut can last as long as 40 days depending on if cows are still going unbred and into other estrus cycles... that is why the satellite bulls hang around to try and pick up what is being overlooked or not gotten to

The Rut is all you listed through all breeding phases... However the rubbing , fighting and herding/pushing cows are considered by most pre-rut ... with The first breeding phase the actual start , when the cows go into estrus ( typically started with the start of overnight freezing temps) the rut kicks into gear .... It is like making an addict run around for a few weeks in search of the fix he wants then opening a big bag of meth on the counter for him.

This post has been seen every year since this site went up ... BAD YEAR , really ? Traditionally the Rut usually gets into full swing in late Sept. to Early October and there is plenty of pre-rut activity in most units right now going on ... seems like pretty par for the course.

OP , what makes you think the rut is started everywhere else. It seems these days that when hunters start hearing a few bugles and seeing a few bulls moving cows the rut is on, it is not ... Everywhere is pretty much pre-rut including 27... and every day you will see activity pick up until it explodes. Dropping temps and the upcoming full moon will have it in swing through most of the state in the the next couple weeks, but be patient and enjoy the hunt.

Congrats on a quick and successful hunt... No need passing up that guy opening morning, well done.

I feel this is a spectacular Buck and a true testament to the quality ( though so many will whine and disagree) of the big game management in AZ. I give mad Props to Brandon for putting himself in a position in life to accomplish what he has accomplished including wrapping his tag around this Brute. My only disappointment in this whole soap opera, is the way the outfitters rushed to put a pic out with no real story behind it other than trying to use it it for marketing. I understand business, and that need to get the marketing value out of such a feat, but in business you also have to know your audience. When I see a Guide put up a Pic with their water mark ... imo they are claiming being the Hunter and the guy with the tag the shooter. Brandon's story shows there was a level of involvement and time beyond what most people imagine when seeing guided kills. Including that kind of information from the beginning would (imo) would have changed the whole course of the thread and some individual views on the guides involved. Brandon, congrats and good luck on future hunts.

You guys need an official thread with the match ups , winners and losers , the whining and gloating ... this is going to be a year of upsets and fantasy owners pissed and throwing things. I think it would make for good entertainment to see you guys messing with each other

I believe it is still the entire unit for Both Tribal and Non tribal ... The agreement to allow non tribal hunters access to Hopi trust land mandated that a certain number of permits be set aside for Hopi tribal members. Tribal members had to go through their management service to get hunt numbers and any tags left after the draw were available to all tribal and non tribal in the leftover draw. I do believe the biggest thing was guides and outfitters had to get a business licence for the tribal land and do a formal request on behalf of the hunter that would be hunting tribal land. For the DIY guys I do not think much changed to hunt the Hopi Trust Land in those units

6 lb for drop shot ... 8 - 10 for almost any other bait getting started ... it is a huge learning curve and so many guys have their preferred ways and teachings ... IMO have 2 poles ... 6 lb mono ... and 8- 10 lb fluorocarbon ... as others said retie knots often .. and learn your knots ... First knot I learned at 5 was the trilene know ( easy and works fine ) but I prefer palomar knot on many rigs.

I would have figured you for Donkey Punch or Dirty Sanchez RI

came in to say this. 6lb line, 1/8oz sinker, size 1 drop shot hook, roboworm. rig up a drop shot, then nose hook the robo. done. use it all year too OP... Morning Dawn, Aaron's Magic, and Sexy Shad good colors state wide Also try to limit your self to fishing and learning 1 or 2 techniques on any given trip ... you want to learn drop shot do it all day long... Carolina rigs ... you may get skunked a time or two but you will learn ... Spinners and Drop Shot Robo Worms is where I would start like others have said ...

About 5 poles ... Med/Heavy Bait cast with Heavy Mono 12 lbs plus for Top water, buzz baits, jerks, certain spinner baits and shallow running crank baits Med/Heavy Bait Cast with 15 lb plus Fluoro or braid for deep cranks, heavy spinners ( especially through the garbage and thick log jams) and jigging heavy baits 3/4 oz and up Med Bait cast with 10 - 15 lb Fluoro for intermediate cranks, intermediate spinners... worming and jigging lighter baits 1/2 oz and under Med Spinning 10 - 12 lbs Fluoro ( can do same as above pretty well ) med/light spinning 6- 8 lb ( 6 preferred) for finesse techniques like drop shotting, jigging lighter worm riggs, and crappie if you get on them ( prefer a rig with 4 lb for crappie but 6 works well enough) You can get started with the bottom 2 pretty easy and find success ( bait casting , pitching and flipping takes time and practice) remember if fishing bait on top like floating a minnow, or fishing a shallow or top water presentation use a mono line ( it floats ) things like drop shots fall a little slower with mono but fluro is what I still prefer even for that. practice ... and once you are hooked expect to spend a bit of $$$$

Hells Gate is 22s ... If you look on a flat line map it may show on the north map but the 260 is the divider for north and south Tonto creek west to the salt is the boundary... Still Canyon east toward sweet water tank right on the north side of Hells gate always had good numbers of Bulls in it...

Beautiful 3C buck... seen a few nice double drop tines in there of the past several years... I think he made the right choice and took an awesome animal .. Congrats !!!

Did you try the 16 green as the sun comes up

Magnificent Bull right there ... Congrats to the Hinters success!!!

The Rut will officially Begin on 9/27-28 with the first hard freeze over 5500 feet and the Full Blood moon and Total Lunar Eclipse eclipse... There will be Blood !!!

You may want to try hitting up naturegirl .... think she has most that unit locked up..

Awesome Job!!! both Father and Son ... Especially your son ( couldn't have been easy holding it together with that guy in his sights), heck of accomplishment and quality bull and a memory and trophy that will last a lifetime... That is what it is all about... p.s. It is settled I am going to get a BOW

Awesome Pics ... Beautiful country

from everything I have learned ... Drop Tines can occur for various reason ... Genetics, Injuries to the buck, or just damage during development while in velvet... I have always learned and thought that drops that are genetic continue year after year... Drop Tines caused from damage during development or injuries (that heal) are less likely to become part of the annual growth year after year... I am sure there are some here that can give more insight, as It is an interesting topic.

uhhhhh...check out the first pic in the threadEdit....just went back and looked at it....I sure didnt see the A3 the first time I saw the pic It was not there johnnie ... I seen another pic floating around that it was not on ..

Access to public lands should be equal ... I have no issue putting the miles on and most on this forum do not.... but if there are individuals that can drive in 8 miles closer access is not equal ... Distance from a vehicle adds certain benefits in emergency situations as well as packing out ... not just the Hunting .... On more than one occasion I have been on trails in a couple different units hiking in @ 4 am in the morning only to get a couple miles back and have a couple guys in side by sides run me off a trail barely big enough for the OHV and literally drive within a hundred yards of where I was headed 3 miles back ... They crossed and caught the trail through private land, where the land owner had put up fence and posted no OHV's. They claimed they were given access... Upon running into the land owner , he claimed that was not the case but hard to say if he was being truthful... When it comes to public lands ( land Locked or not ) ALL should have Equal access. for more reasons than just hunting.