galiuro mountain man

I had a bear look into the lens of one, all I got was a pic. of his eye close up. Then he pointed it into the sky and all I got were pics of the sky when birds flew by. GMM

Oh one thing I forgot to mention, If you quit getting pics from a certain spot, move the cam a few yards. A lot of times they will just move out of camera range, they wont change that much, most of the time it is only 15 to 20 yards. GMM

I havent had any problems with the noise or the flash spooking big bucks. I got 16 photos of the 100" buck I got and 11 of one that had to be around 120". I also got multiple photos of 90" bucks. The one thing that you need to worry about with film cams is bears like the taste of film. They will play with digital cams but usually wont eat them. Another advantage to using digital is that you can look at the photos in the field, and you can get many more pictures on digitals. The bad thing about digital is the initial price, but it will save you money in the long run on developing prices. I have had my cams up for a total of 2 months each, and have over 1000 pictures on the digitals and only 100 on the film, and they have been out the same amount of time. I hope this helps you. GMM

What is this?

I was in 32 today scouting for Jan archery hunt. I made a 5 mile loop into the wilderness, and the deer are still lower. I saw some good bucks in one group right off a main road. Most were 90 to 100 inches, and one would go to 110 or better. I only saw 2 bucks up high, where nobody but me has been. I figured they would be there by now, but not yet. I figure it will be this way untill the first gunshot. GMM

Go shoot a bunch of them, then determine it by comfort and how well you like them. Everyone is different and you need to find your own favorite. What is best for one person may be the worst for another. All the bows out today are quality and 100 times better than bows from just 10 years ago. GMM

About the bachelor herds: I saw a few of them this year a few times each. There is no real pattern to it. One day you see big ones running with little ones. The next time you see them some of the little ones are gone. Then you run into them again and the big ones are gone, then a few days later they are all together again. This year I ran into 4 different bachelor groups. One was 3 big bucks and 4 small ones. Then there was another one with 12 in it and only 3 were under about 80". The only thing I have figured out about them is that the groups change, one day it is big the next it is small, then the next day they are all together. GMM

Hey thats awsome! was it his first? We saw a huge WT in unit 31, when I first saw its rack I thought it was a mule deer. I only got a side view so I dont know how wide it is. GMM

Thanks guys, what you said helps with my dissapointment in myself for not finding it sooner. I had a couple more chances at a couple of 90" bucks, but passed because I wanted my buck. He only went 300 yards from where I shot him, but made it into a nasty, thick canyon. I walked right by him on the first day, about 30 minutes after I had shot him, but there was no blood trail, and it was too rocky for tracks. I walked a total of 27 miles in search of him, (at least that is what my gps said) stumbling around about a 4 mile radius from where I shot him. I knew I made a great shot, but when I found no blood, I started second guessing myself. I put bears on hold during my search also. I had a good chance at a good size bear, but I wanted to either find my deer, either dead, or alive, at least I would find it. I am excited now, I am going to start my bear hunt now, I hope to see that bear again. I also hope he gives me that 30 yard broadside shot again!! I will go to the taxidermist and get some photos of the rack, my dad wants to see it, and I will post it if I can Good luck to everyone else! GMM

I dont have a photo of it, but I got a decent buck. I tokk the rack directly to the taxidermist. I will have it scored in a few months. I didnt get my 110+ buck, but I got the other one that I thought was good. He is a heavy 3x3 that will easily go 100". It was a fun hunt, but I am a little dissapointed in myself. I made a perfect shot at noon on friday on him, but couldnt find him till yesterday. This is the reason I have no photos of him. I walked all over the place to try to find him, I looked for buzzards and crows, I couldnt find a blood trail or anything. I finally smelled him yesterday, and got my rack. I wish I would have found him friday, but a bear had a good meal. GMM

I use one minute delays on my digitals, anywhere they are set. It works good for me. GMM

If you can keep up with me in the hills you can try for him too. It is a good thing my truck hasnt been to that area in about 3 years. I found this guy in just about the roughest area I have been in any of the southern units, so if you were to follow me and get him, I wouldnt be mad, because it is on public land and I know if you got him, you worked your butt off to do it! Then I would just chase his little brother, which runs with him and is almost as big! GMM

You can voulinteer me, but I dont know when I will be back, I will be moving the next few weeks. I will try to get on here when I can. GMM

Oh, the 110+ buck is the same one I have been chasing. This will make year 3, and 3rd time's the charm! I hope I have him figured out this year. Out of 6 months total time in the field chasing him, not even counting scouting, this is my year. Last year I passed up a monster muley at 20 yards because of this coues. I have never shot a big coues, so I want to get this one. The muley got lucky because I have a 26" wide X 24" tall one on my wall, so I want a coues so bad I can taste it!!! GMM

I will wait until after I shoot them with my bow. If I dont get them I will get them posed for you guys. I want to have before and after shots for you guys. Also my photo files are too large to post here, so I also have to find a good crunching program. I am in the process of moving so I have no time to find any programs. One day, you guys will see them. GMM

AZ Ranger, I built 2 digitals for $153 each, and I could have got by for less. The cheapest way is to go to a pawn shop and find a camera, I spent $50 on my first 2 cams. The best cams are sony dsc p31, 32, 41, and olympus d360l, d370, d380, there are others that can be used, but these are the most popular, and easiest to use. Coues7, How did your cam come out? I am getting some more going after I move. I have bought every p32 I can find locally, which is 5, soon these will not be found anywhere. After I build these up I will have 25 under my belt. After the first one it goes much faster. I can build 2 in one day now, and the holes line up now. I have been thinking about designing a slave flash board, but havent had time, and I may also do a control board. GMM

You guys are good. Im rolling right now. I had to take a break from the cam, and came across this. I now know why I havent got a big coues on my wall yet, I dont drink and drive naked enough, and I dont have a partner to hold my Jose Cuervo for me . I have a pointer of my own, when you do see a big buck, run as hard as you can straight at him, yelling whatever comes to mind and you will be able to get within 50 yards or so. but dont stop, just shoot while you run. The deer will stay still because it will be laughing so hard it will pass out, then you just cut his throat. But you have to do this naked, while you carry your Cuervo on a string arond your neck. That is why lanyards have a spring on them, so it will fit just about any bottle. GMM

I have seen 12 different bucks, and got trail cam pics of 7 of them. One of them is the 110+ monster I shot at last year. I have seen 1 bear, and got pics of three bears including the big one I hope to see. I have my animals picked, now it is just a matter of seeing them on the 27th and 28th. GMM

Any new bow on the top end of the market will be an awsome bow. I recommend shooting as many as possible before deciding. Buying a bow is an investment, and getting one that is comfortable and fits you right is better than getting one for the name alone. It is a little more time consuming but it pays off in the end. GMM

For choosing a bow, go to the shops and shoot a few and find out which one is most comfortable for you, dont even look at price at this point. This will take at least a day to find "your" perfect bow. Once you figure out what you want, look at the price. The reason you dont look at price first is you may not want to shoot the bow that fits you right because of the price. A lot of shops around here will let you put it on layaway, so it is easy to pay it off. Once you find a bow you need to practice. You should also get camos, a good knife, and good binoculars. Cover scents are good, but you can roll around in the dirt to cover your scent, and dirt is free. After your bow is sighted in, take it on scouting trips so you can stump shoot, this is the best way to learn your limits and how the bow performs, I so this almost every scouting trip, except when I am in a hurry. About the area to go, I dont know that, I dont hunt around that area. And yes it is a little late, but you can get ready pretty quick, main thing is to get confident in your shooting, archery starts Aug 27, it will be here before you know it. Good luck GMM

I agree with azpackhorse, I too would like that tag. GMM

I agree with recurve man. Find your own limits then dont shoot past them. I can get 6 arrows inside of a 3" circle at 60 yards consistantly, but I try to get within 40 yards. The reason is my bow shoots very flat, and at 40 yards my 40, 30 and 20 pin all are in the kill. I can be off on yardage and it doesnt matter. A deer at 60 yards, my 50 pin is at the backbone, and any little flinch is turns bigger at longer ranges. If you want to increase your limits, practice longer than you intend to shoot. I practice at 80 yards all the time, but I will never shoot that distance at an animal (I remove my 80 pin). When I go to 60 I find I shoot much better, 60 becomes easy. Remember one thing, just practice wont make you better, I always think to myself, perfect practice makes perfect. Make every shot count, even on the range and you will be amazed at the results. Good luck GMM

Your best bet is to make your own. It takes about 6 hours and you can make it however you want. I have 3 homemade and I made one for my dad, and got a couple more in the process for a couple of people. The advantage is you can save a ton of money, instant results, and you can make your own camo design to fit your area. I actually have 4 cams all together, but I dont use my store bought one anymore because it has been nothing but trouble, my homemades out perform my store bought by a long shot. Send me an email and I can give you more info. GMM

I used to not be able to sneak up on coues closer than about 80 yards. I have learned to do it well now. I can usually get within 50 yards pretty easily, and my average is about 30 yards now. About 1 out of 10 times I can get within less than 20. The thing that made most of the difference for me is wearing a mesh facemask and gloves, even in Aug. Also, just move as slow as possible. I was within 35 yards of a decent buck yesterday when I checked my cams, I was in street clothes. I first saw the buck at about 120 yards, and an hour later I was acting like I pulled my bow and shot, I then stood up, and that is what made him trot off. I cant wait for the 27th!!! Oh, I got 160 photos on my homemade trail cams of a bunch of deer (lots of bucks), 3 different bears, a bunch of dove, a rabbit, a hawk, and a bat! Awsome photos, if I can figure out how to make the files smaller I will try to post them. GMM

I got a unit 32 Oct WT tag, no elk I guess. GMM