KaibabHunter

Yep, I think the Hootchie mama is done with. I use diaphrams. My dad will be the main caller and I'll be secondary. I got the elk nut dvds and we've both done our "homework" watching em. I don't plan to call much and if its not workin we'll just go silent and get close. Also have a decoy for setups.

My last hunt it was like the cow calls were almost an alert to em so I didn't even call after the first 2 days. I'll mix it up between chasin bugles, glassing, spot/stalk, ambush...whatever it takes. I do like gettin in close inside there comfort zone. Its fun and test your skills tip toeing through herds of elk. And thanks again Jim for all the great info!

Too bad about the quads. I was up Sun - Thurs. 1/2 hunting deer 1/2 scouting elk. Not another hunter the whole time except for 2 on their way out on Sun. That was a nice change. Glassed up six coues bucks total and thought I eventually figured out what they were doin but wasn't able to cross paths within range. Maybe on the 7-9th. Stick with it. You got all year to day dream about hunting and only have a few days to actually hunt. Best of luck.

Thanks Jim, PM sent. My last archery bull hunt was in 2006 in 5BS. I had a lot of action just kindof sneeking slow and quiet through the pines during mid day to locate those bedding areas and then hang close. I was in elk all hours of the day - fun hunt and hope this year's is close or even better! But that was different terrain than the pinyons, mostly. I am dark to dark kind of hunter - you never know what you might run into. That might be tougher this year with the sun really cookin ya as soon as you step out of the shade. Glass and/or just mark em where you last seen/heard em and come back later seems like a good option in this country. Looks like the moon starts new at the beginning of the hunt and ends on a full. Thanks,

Just got from a 4 day trip. Didn't see tons of elk but was distracted chasin some coues bucks. Didn't here any bugles. Ryan

That was quick and nice shot too. Congrats.

Nice. Looks like you were in or close to bow range. Would like to see those guys come sunday. Ryan

The wind seems like it is the toughest thing to deal with. Where I'm at it just seems to be all over the place. I do like the crushing the pine/juniper in it to mask your scent. Thx.

6AS archery bull. I can guarantee you I will be replacing my tires when this is over and done with. Never been so worried I was gonna break my truck or have more than 1 tire go down...

+1 Stanley I'm hunting a portion of 6A for the first time too. Was given some general but good info (like above). Went to wide world of maps, bought some 1:24k quads and have been up a few times to learn roads, gps tanks, glass and put out a couple cams. Have been seeing sign and actual elk, coues, muleys, antelope and bear in almost all the areas I've been in and am narrowing down where I'll be focusing on a plan A,B,C...taking into consideration the number of tags, pressure, time to hunt, ability to access areas, bull expectations and budget. Work off the info given and if you can actually put some boots on the ground you can start to formulate a plan. Watch your tires - the roads can get real rough and nasty! Its been raining tons up there (at least where I've been looking) and the animals seem relaxed and spread out. Good luck.

Sorry guys, KeyToTheKaibab.com is still up but I haven't been able to keep up with it and am no longer selling any products. Mike at http://lakepowells.com is the creator of the "Top Secret Waterhole Map." I recommend contacting him for his product on Kaibab waterholes.

I use a quick portable set up to sit an isolated tank or trail coming in if the situation is right - find a spot brush it in and wait. I'll be hunting pinon/juniper canyon country this year and have noticed while scouting he wind is very irregular. The thermals go down in the morning, then up with the heat, then back down in the evening, plus seem to swirl in any direction all day long. Any tips for find the right spot on a tank for wind without a scent controlled blind setup? Do you adjust your spot with the wind throughout the day or stick with just one the whole time? Curious how to counter this wind...

My boy drew 42 JR. His first hunt. Should be fun.

I'm in. AZ archery bull.

6A South Archery Bull for me!!! Seek100Plus - I had that tag in '06...

My last elk hunt the calls almost seemed to alert the elk - especially the hoochie mama. In the morning I'd get out 2 hours before sun up within a mile of where I wanted to hunt and listen for the bugles, follow them on foot on the trail/road and then sneak in without a single call as they feed towards bedding areas. Stayed out from dark to dark and saw elk at all hours of the day. Spending time in the trees, not in camp, staying silent, sneaky and using their bugles to locate worked best for me on that hunt.

I hunted 5bs archery bull in 2006 and it was a lot of fun and saw a lot of elk but the majority of bulls I saw were not in the range you're looking for. Killing a really huge bull is going to be a tougher, maybe not impossible but tougher, in the 5's. Time and effort scouting will help a lot - just depends on odds, how long you want to wait for a tag and the class of bulls you truly want to have a chance at.

I checked my cams in the flats (on/off a tank) and as its rained since november the deer activity went from consistent to non-existent as of this week. Only cut 3 fresh tracks but a mile away from the tank. Walked another mile past the tank to the nearest rise and glassed for a couple hours - nothing. The whole desert is greening up and obviously with all the rain the tanks become less critical to the deer. My plan was to sit on what was the main deer trail into the tank with a decoy and catch them coming/going from the tank - now it seems less likely that that will happen. There have been a few quail hunters, scouters and quads in the area over the last 4 weeks. Any tips for the upcoming Jan bowhunt or where these deer may have gone? The area went from good to apparently bad in the last 4 weeks.

2009 AZ elk/antelope regs now available online at: http://www.azgfd.gov/eservices/draw.shtml

So what do you guys think all this rain is going to do for our january desert muley hunts? Plan A. My spot has dwindled in activity since the last hard rain over thanksgiving and now it getting hit hard again. The plan was to sit the most often used trail about 200 yards off of a tank in a homemade ground blind with a montana decoy and doe in heat scent heavily applied to try and pull rutting bucks in. Plan B. Not much for elevation in the area but I figure I could walk the extra 2+ miles to get up high enough to glass. Plan C. Considered tracking the freshest sign in the area and try and follow it to the owner, but I figure odds are against me. BTW, due to work I can really only hunt on Saturdays and maybe Sunday morning. No quads just my boots. Still thinking I should ride out plan A, do or die. Any of you desert hunters have methods to desert mulies when the weather mixes it up just before the hunt?

The majority of my mule deer hunting has been in thick timber in the mountains so when I started looking for hunts a little closer to home in the desert I naturally went straight to the desert mountains. A couple of guys had told that the big bucks where up high in the nastiest parts of the hills and I hiked my butt off trying to find them. Never really did. Finally got the trail cams out and after 2 months had a whopping 2 does, 6 pigs and one lion to show for it. That's when I started asking around and was told overwhelmingly that I need to be in the flats. I came up with a new strategy, found an area in the flats and used the cams to dial in on a spot that actually has some deer - hopefully they'll still be around for the Jan bowhunt. I've learned that the desert is a whole nother animal than the forest. A lot of what I use in the hills still applies but for desert deer, I'm a little more inclined to sit on a well used trail near water as long as there using it which means the drier the better for me. Where I'm at now there is no elevation what so ever around so glassing is tough. If I could glass I would. In the trees I like to still hunt but the desert is loud and the deer densities are smaller so bumping into them is tough. The other thing that made sense to me was that lions are made for mountain terrain and much more effective at killing deer. There were 4 confirmed cats in the desert hills I was in and that might explain the low # of sightings. I have had a cat on my flats cams but the deer are still hanging around - knock on wood. Plus the ruts coming so hopefully that will draw the bucks in towards my area towards the does. Getting as specific as possible understanding how the deer use the area you're hunting, desert or forest, use the area and the willingness to adjust your tactics to whatever makes sense for the hunt is getting me closer, bit by bit, to having a chance. I guess its not so much that deer are different but a hunter's mind set may be.

All great advice. The only thing I haven't heard is trail cams. I have 2 now and they have been a huge help for me with my limited time and busy schedule. I can leave them for pretty much however long I want and check them and see what activity is going on. I'm still using the same 6 d cell batteries since June and reading 70% battery life as of today. I usually check them every 2-3 weeks. You can eliminate tanks, trails, or entire areas all together until you get dialed in on an area with activity. If you're buying top shelf binos I would recommend adding a trail cam or 2 to your arsenal. ust make sure you're smart about how you place, conceal and secure them - they're tend to get stolen. I also agree with using bowhunting to hone your skills. Nothing like tip toing through 60 head of elk over 2 hours trying to get within range (under 45 yards for me) of the herd bull just to have him feed out of range at the last second or closing from 80 yards to under 40 on a muley. Not easy but its fun and if you take it seriously it'll make you better. Keep using the boards for info. Remember, for example that hunting muleys in the desert vs the mountains is a different ball game. That's a lesson I painfully learned over a long period of time until I finally took the advice of some seasoned desert hunters that got me on the right track and now things are looking much better. Good luck.

I was in 5B S/N AUG 22nd-30th chasing muleys and heard just a handful of bugles. Saw about 45 head of elk and found the bedroom of bachelor herd of 6 bulls on the north side, the biggest being about a 300 class 6 pt. The bigger bulls had rubbed, the raghorns/spikes and deer had not. Was definitely taking notes for future elk/antelope hunts...

Same here. It's official - no Kaibab tag for me.

Called at 3 today and the lady ran my name to see if I drew my tag - nope - but they still had one tag left to give out. She said they're still not done so if you're not on there list now you may be later. Good luck.