Grugle

Thank you for the story of your hunt ! Way to stick it out and now you have a beautiful bull to show for it.a lot of times that’s how bow hunting is for sure ! Opportunity may only knock a few times during a two week hunt if at all depending on your standards for the hunt , then after all the work and finally getting a chance you have to execute a good killing shot in the midst of all of the excitement. And you did just that ! Congratulations on a Beautiful Bull ! 👍

Not sure about your experience with hunting sheep but You’re one lucky hunter ! Enjoy every part from now until your hunt is complete. Share your hunt and excitement with family and friends because they may never get the chance to hunt a desert bighorn in Arizona. I got lucky and drew a few years back still daydream about the experience! They’re awesome!

Congratulations! That’s a quality buck!

Absolutely right ! AZGFD draw is horrible. We hit your card but can’t tell you what you drew for at least a week ! 🙄

Congratulations Craig , sounds like you put the time and effort in and were rewarded with a trophy buck ! Thanks for posting your story it was nice to get a real perspective for future hunters looking to have success in those areas and on those specific hunts ! Antelope tags are so few and far between in Arizona it was nice that you took the time to share your hunt with us !

The western desert units are not the highlighted units you see on your favorite social media hunting channels there are many more deer in southern/ southeast even more central Az .. go hunt it and you will see .you may get extremely lucky and have spotty success or most likely you will leave with an eye opening experience and a plate humble pie! Good luck either way .

Non - residents are flooding Arizona for these OTC hunts , Great weather and hunting when all other options are pretty much over in other states . The tag fees are minimal for the opportunity it provides .. I do think it will change to a draw at some point , maybe a separate draw that takes place after the June deadline draw is over ..with tags issued through a draw you may be able to get a more accurate account of the true harvesting taking place and the pressure some of these units are getting . Who knows what will happen It just been very surprising seeing non-res hunting some of the places I have recently , and these hunters are coming from a long ways away not just Cali,Utah and Texas. Arizona is just a very popular place to move and hunt these days unfortunately those of us natives it will impact the hunting we’re used to at some point .

Drew a Gould's archery only tag in 33 south of reddington rd. I would love to talk to anyone with experience hunting Gould's in this area.

Spent 10 days on the 2019 archery hunt , the last time I was on the archery hunt was 2010 trough 2014 . I was amazed how the age class has dropped we saw a good amount of 300-320 class bulls and also found 2 maybe 3 bulls in that 350-360 range.. in the past we would have seen at least a few 360+ bulls or bigger . hopefully a few less tags will help that hunt get back closer to what it used to be. taking age class away from the equation its still a heck of a archery elk hunt from a bugling and numbers stand point.

3b is a good hunt with a bow .. you never know what might show up in that unit.. especially the later part of that hunt. It's worth your best effort.

👍

Congratulations on a beautiful Ram!

Fantastic job on a great Ram . The Opportunity to hunt a Desert Bighorn Ram in Arizona is a rare and special gift! The first time you see a Ram on a scouting trip will absolutely take your breath away . The miles on your truck and boots will add up fast in the hopes that you will find the one special Ram .. and then at some point you will realize that all mature Rams are majestic in there own way! Nice job ! Your one of the few owners of a Arizona Desert Bighorn Ram!

Awesome story ! The Gila Wilderness is an awesome place if your prepared and ready for it .obviously you were .. great story and memories forever! Congrats

Absolutely Correct.. Enjoy the hunt and learn something about hunting antelope and field judging.. not all units are the same . Who knows if you'll ever draw another tag in Az . Scout hard ,hunt hard enjoy it with your hunting group and Have Fun!

Did you get the heart buck?

Heart Buck #1 for sure

I have around 20 pts or so and would love to hunt for a Bull at some point , but this situation does not sound like a hunt a want to be a part of at this point .I have never been on this hunt but have spoken with friends who have they didnt have anything negative to say about Russ and his operation. they are just bummed that this is the type of hunt it has become.

I got hit on Tuesday after the elk/antelope draw started hitting c/c on Friday this year. I would guess someone's card failed is the only reason I could think of, but fingers crossed there's still a slim chance🤞

It changes year to year with the habitat area and people hunting it , some years more crowded then others ,Late 3b is not an easy hunt and the draw odds reflect that. But if you hit it hard you should have an opportunity at a bull for sure. Good Luck

I got hit yesterday around 3pm for 135$ and had been checking since 7am Friday . Could be a wave after failed cards don't give up just yet.

Great Bull on a tough Hunt...Well Done.

Congrats

water..