ac guy

Nice. I found a buck at 9:30. By the time I moved into position, around 9:45, that joker moved behind a sapling, and fed there for 2 hrs. Unfortunately, I was in a very uncomfortable position the whole time, but he finally stepped out. Buck went 3 feet and perished. Was a long walk out of the Superstitions, but well worth it.

I'll show my hand and say that so far, I like Fred Thompson. Surprisingly, he came up 3rd on my list behind Hunter and Romney. Not so surprisingly, I agree least with Kucinich.

Are you trying to say his story wouldn't have been better with an illustration or 2? That story would have been better if it was never told. I need to go bleach my brain

That's interesting, I didn't know that. Can really help for the archery season after the rut.

The eastern whities do scrape a lot. Usually on level ground in their core area. We usually would find more activity on rub lines, but that was in the early season, before the rut really kicked in. When the rut kicked in, we would ignore all buck sign and go to doe feeding areas and travel areas.

If you are extremely comfortble doing so, then have at it. I don't know you, so I'm going to assume you know your rifle better then your peter. I believe whatever makes a hunt enjoyable to someone, that is legal is fine. Good luck on your hunt.

Are they still gong to a shotgun only, general fall turkey next year?

I always do it myself. I feel like it completes the circle for me. Nothing at all against those that use a processor. After doing it a few times, makes you think twice about taking a little one

Find the place that is the hardest to get to and you will find nice bucks in 24b. Too bad you don't have the early hunt, I could show you a spot or two.

White-tailed Deer Overview: Whitetail deer may be found throughout much of Unit 24B. A general rule of thumb is that they occur in brushier habitats above 3,500 feet in the unit. However, whitetail have been showing up in the past few years at elevations of about 2,500 feet in what would usually be considered as mule deer habitat. The more typical whitetail habitat is located from the central to the eastern portion of the unit, and is comprised of chaparral, oak woodland, and conifers. Whitetail are also found on most of the mountain ranges in the western portion of the unit as well. These habitats are primarily high desert or chaparral and may also contain mule deer. Whitetail in 24B do not appear to have been as severely affected by the recent long-term drought conditions as mule deer. Permit numbers for whitetail have remained relatively stable for the past eight years. There are a total of 550 whitetail permits for the 2007 seasons. Practically all whitetail habitat in 24B is located on public lands of the Tonto National Forest. A small amount of whitetail habitat is on private land owned by mines near Globe and Pinto Valley. These lands are usually posted as to whether or not hunting is allowed. A large portion of whitetail habitat is within the Superstition Wilderness. The Wilderness is closed to all vehicular or mechanized travel, but it is open to hunting. The Tonto National Monument near Roosevelt Lake is closed to all hunting. A Tonto National Forest map will help to identify roads, boundaries, and land ownership. Topographical maps will provide information about the terrain. Areas: Some of the more popular whitetail hunting areas are listed below. If you are not familiar with the unit, these may provide you with a place to start. Superior: North of the town of Superior you will find extensive whitetail habitat around Iron Mountain (FS 172), Montana Mountain (FS 650), and Fortuna Peak (FS 342). Expect to encounter other vehicles along the way, but don't let that discourage you – there is plenty of room to hunt away from the roads. Portions of the Fortuna Peak area were burned due to a lightning-caused fire during the summer in 2005. Isolated patches of habitat remain untouched in some of the drainages, and some forage has begun to appear in burned areas. If you plan to hunt this area, it would be especially important to do some pre-season scouting to determine habitat conditions and deer activity. Globe: In the Globe vicinity, Pinto Valley provides access into whitetail country. You must drive through the Pinto Valley Mine, which can be very confusing at times. Routes through the mine change continually, and they are not always clearly marked. North of Globe, the area around Webster Mountain has whitetail habitat also. Roosevelt Lake: South of Roosevelt Lake good whitetail habitat may be found in the areas of Two Bar Ridge (FS 83) and Campaign Creek (FS 449). Reminder: Whitetail can be found throughout the unit. The locations listed above are simply larger areas of whitetail habitat. If you already know how to look for whitetail, take some time to explore other parts of the unit, and you will discover pockets of whitetail habitat just about anywhere that is above 3,000 to 3,500 feet in elevation. Also consider backpacking or going horseback into the Wilderness. December can be a great time for a pack-in hunt in 24B.

I agree with you 100% I couldn't get good results, until I realized this. Makes a huge difference.

I suggest getting out and scouting. Scouting is half the fun to a hunt.

Nice buck. Will you ever smile in a picture, or are you afraid your face will crack?

If you're only reloading for a hunting round, don't count on saving a lot of money. Reloading for a hunting round is done to produce the best combination of accuracy and performance out of a bullet. You can go through several different powders, and bullets, and the accessories needed to truly make the best round you can will add up quick. I got into reloading for my 30-06. I bought an inexpensive Lee classic, but I have bought 3 sets of dies, a $200.00 scale, 7 different bullet types at 20-35 dollars a box (50 rounds) and 4 different powders. Not to mention calipers, trimmers, cartrige prep tools, bullet compensators, and OAL guages. I've probably spent over $700.00 just to find the one round I want to use on deer, one species. If you don't have the passion for it, have someone else reload for you. I think you can get 50 rounds for about $250.00. But those rounds will be tuned into your rifle, and will be pretty darn good.

Best advice yet. grandpa hunted in brown pants the trick is to not move when your prey is watching.

A friend of mine and I were hunting 24b last year for javelina. We were in his truck driving back to camp, when we saw a young man in a 4x4 on the side of the trail. He waved and had a shoot eating grin on his face, and when we drove past the other side of his truck, we figured out why. His girlfriend had her pants down around her ankles taking care of a full bladder. It took her a second to figure out a vahicle was passing, but the look of horror on her face when she saw us laughing at her was priceless. I'm sure she figured her boyfriend would warn her of approaching traffic, I guess he figured it would be funny if he didn't It wasn't funny, it was hilarious. I'm sure that girl never moved so fast in her life. Bet he got the silent treatment the rest of the night

I have a late Oct 24b hunt. I hunted 7 miles back in the wilderness last year and saw 50+ deer but only 2 bucks. I have a spot where I've seen a lot of sign, but never deer during the day. It's a tank in the desert at the bottom of a mountain which goes to 4000ft and turns into manzanita and juniper. Do you think the deer can be caught before going over the mountain first light when it cools down some? the other side of the mountain is way too thick to hunt successfully. I was going to hold off serious scouting for about 3 weeks when it starts to cool off.

In NC we would sometimes find piebald, albino and even black deer. do coues ever produce such offspring? also, what about droptines and palmated antlers? Haven't seen any pics of coues with those characteristics

I am an AC contractor (duh). The whip for that at Lowe's is about $22.00, and can be a do it yourself, as long as you remember to shut off the breaker first

Thanks for the replies. I don't mind hiking back into the wilderness, but something about the other area keeps calling to me. You guys know what I mean. Sure wish I had a mulie tag that place is lousy with them. Unfortunately, work kept me from the early archery season, but I'll be sure to be there during the late season. I have yet to kill my first mulie.

Hunt success from 19 to 26% last year. Regs, G&F website and this site has info on where to hunt, success rates and deer distribution throughout the state. Why did you put in for a unit you know nothing about. Do some research before picking units, makes hunting easier.

Saw Jim at last years ADA clinic. He is a very good speaker with a great presentation. Surprised you like him Amanda, he takes a couple shots at the size of coues deer. All in good fun of course.

"I'd like to spit some beechnut in that dude's eyes, and shoot him with my old .45" Wish I knew something, wouldn't want the reward, seeing them busted would be enough.

If you don't have another child to give your tag to, give it to HOAL. I can get you info if you like. Congrats on your deer.

If you want to have some fun with the youngins, take a fawn bleat out to an area thick with does during the fawn months. Stay down wind of bedding areas, and let the kids blow the call. I've had does almost run over me. We used it in the south to call in does(does were harvested there) works about 30% of the time, but only when the fawns are young, 1-4 months