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couesdiehard

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Posts posted by couesdiehard

  1. Posted · Report reply

    As someone who has looked a little too brown and a little too dirty returning from a coues deer hunt of all things, and was stopped and harassed by a highway patrol officer, I can tell you this BS, IS about profiling. That trooper should be glad he realized the error of his ways and let me go on my way because I would have introduced him to my .45 before I showed him any "residency papers." By the way, I think most of us would have a hard time producing residency papers or proof of citizenship when pulled over for speeding. (A driver's license does not qualify Non-Typical Solutions.) It amazes me how so many members on this site scream and yell about "Government" taking our rights away every dang day, but start spouting off how they like this infringement on our rights simply because they don't think it will apply to them because of their skin color, or because they were born here. Maybe you would feel differently if "Government" decided to crack down on Anglos on the basis that they may be illegals from Canada or Europe or wherever. I guess the Anglos in AZ can rest easy as long as we have the Mormon majority running our state government. With that, I am done with this topic and the forum.

    Lee Molina

  3. Posted · Report reply

    I've always felt October was the best time of the year here in AZ. You have fall colors up north and down south, football in full swing, better weather in the deserts, all kinds of hunting and even some great fishing, not to mention my birthday (I guess that makes me a little biased). The exception to the rule is when I have an archery bull tag in Sept. like this year or whenever I finally get drawn for that darn rifle antelope tag.

    Lee

  4. Posted · Report reply

    Rut activity starting at different times in different locations is interesting but I believe this weekend the elk will be well into the early rut all over the state. Should see and hear bulls trying to pursue the cows and maybe even trying to run off the spikes. Feel pretty confident herd bulls will have harems by the Sept 14th opener. I can't wait!

    Lee

    • Like 1

  6. Posted · Report reply

    Well, As I feared and predicted I was scouting in my elk unit in the Coconino on Saturday, and found that nobody seemed to give a dang about road closures or camping restrictions. If I follow the rules I will be at a huge disadvantage, because looks like everyone else will be driving and camping on the "closed roads". Very discouraging to say the least. Didn't see any enforcement personell all day either. Wish I had been able to get a photo of the guys who were setting their tent camp up with a "NO CAMPING" Forest Service stake sign between them and the road 20 yards away! FS has done nobody a favor with these rule changes. The folks who didn't follow the rules before are worse now knowing there are too many closed roads for FS to patrol. Those of us who follow the rules just got screwed some more. On the bright side I did see plenty of elk despite all the yahoos. Not even going to bother going up on the holiday weekend, would just make me want to puke. Good luck to all of you on your hunts.

    Lee

  9. Posted · Report reply

    Look on the bright side.

     

    Road hunters will have a tougher time.

    Real hunters will not have their stalks messed up by Roades.

    The Elk will be more relaxed because they are not hearing hoochy mamas all day.

    I'm not so sure about that. Not enough FS personnel to patrol even a small percentage of these forests so roadies are going to do what they do and most of them won't get caught. So those of us who try to follow the rules will be watching roadies fly up and down the "closed" roads all day long anyway and they will probably camp in spots that aren't open either. I was drawn for archery bull in 5A and I don't have high hopes to be honest. I fully expect a real circus between people who don't know or care about the closures, the FS staff who don't seem to clear on the rules, and those of us trying to do the right thing.

  10. Posted · Report reply

    Ya i have a 5bn elk tag this year and scouting has been really frustrating! I picked up a FS map they are handing out showing you the roads that are open and it sucks it is way to vague. None of the roads are marked closed so you never really know if you are taking a road that is ok to drive on or not. Plus the map doesn't show all the roads that are open. It makes it hard to follow the rules! It seems to me that it could be very easy to get cited trying to do the right thing! Oh and no downed animal pickup either. Oh well at least i got an elk tag ;)

    As I understood it in Coconino forest if the road is shown on the Travel Plan map it is open. If it is not shown on the map it is closed.

     

    If you swing by and pick up the map it has a list of roads that aren't shown you can drive on. But the problem is you don't know exactly when they end and most of the roads arent that well marked.

    Ok I get what you are saying. They sure want to make it as confusing as humanly possible don't they?

  11. Posted · Report reply

    I am not at all confused by the actions Jack has taken. As soon as he realized that he had violated a rule, he immeadiately went to the Dicerctor and reported it. The Director odered a full investigation. The investigation was properly conducted with Jack's full cooperation. He was properly cited and now Jack is excercising his rights under the law. He isn ow being subjected to the bs court of public opinion. He will soon have a opportunity to present his case in the only court that counts, a court of law. By no means is the Department taking this lightly.

     

    Let's look at this under slightly different circumstances. Jack is in the field helping a youngster hunt rabbits. A Wildlife Manager (WM) is in the area and witnesses Jack assist the youngster in the killing of a prairie dog. The WM contacts Jack and advises him of the violation. The WM has two difficult choices 1. cite Jack or, 2. look the other way because he knows Jack is a Commissioner. Jack now has several options. 1. The WM cites properly cites Jack, Jack accepts the citation and pleads not guily in order to have his day in court. 2. The WM offers to look the other way. Jack demands a ctitation and chews out the WM. 3. WM doesn't cite Jack. Jack goes home, calls the director and reports his violation and the action taken by the WM. An ivestigation is conducted and Jack is cited and the WM is in trouble

     

    In any case this was a no win situation in the court of public opinion.

    Talk about the BS of public opinion. Let's stick to the facts of what happened according Mr. Husted's own words instead of hypothesizing on all the variables of what could of happened. Whatever the Court in Round Valley decides I'll abide by it, even if I don't agree with it. I will state my opinion of it until I'm blue in the face good, bad, or otherwise. That's my right. This is a matter of public record as are all cited game violations, we on this site didn't make it so, the Law did. Let me reiterate, I give kudos to Mr. Husted for owning up to a mistake when nobody was watching, and I wish him the best.

    But the same ethics that told him he should report it, are the same ethics that should tell him to face the music. Again, just my very public opinion.

    Lee

  12. Posted · Report reply

    Ya i have a 5bn elk tag this year and scouting has been really frustrating! I picked up a FS map they are handing out showing you the roads that are open and it sucks it is way to vague. None of the roads are marked closed so you never really know if you are taking a road that is ok to drive on or not. Plus the map doesn't show all the roads that are open. It makes it hard to follow the rules! It seems to me that it could be very easy to get cited trying to do the right thing! Oh and no downed animal pickup either. Oh well at least i got an elk tag ;)

    As I understood it in Coconino forest if the road is shown on the Travel Plan map it is open. If it is not shown on the map it is closed.

  13. Posted · Report reply

    And so the fun begins... they have been several discussions on this topic right after the elk/antelope draws came out. Search forums for the name of the forest or enter "travel plan". It sucks but the rules have already been changed in most of the forests and we got screwed. Take FS travel plan maps (loaded from individual FS websites) and gps with you and be sure you know where you are at even if FS personnel don't. Good luck everyone.

    Lee

  14. Posted · Report reply

    Unfortunately, ignorance of the law is no defense. As I said before, kudos to Commissioner Husted for coming clean and admitting he committed a violation when he realized it. I am a little curious what his defense will be when it is well-documented now that he admitted unknowingly committing the offense. I'm afraid that he will be found not guilty or the case will be thrown out by his local court (Round Valley). It gives the wrong signal to those who are less honest. I believe I would have plead guilty (since I already admitted it to law enforcement, wouldn't want my integrity questioned) and then ask the court for a reduced fine. To me that is taking the high road.

    Lee

  18. Posted · Report reply

    "Funny how hitting the 40 mark changed everything. Nothing is easy anymore"

    Brother, I am a little older than you and couldn't agree with you more. RA sucks, need glasses to read, cholestrol (was always genetically high) went off the charts, could never gain weight when I wanted to and now I can't stop. My dad was right when he warned me that my time would come when I turned 40.

    Lee

  19. Posted · Report reply

    I have no problem with making a mistake and I admire anyone who owns up to that mistake as Husted did. I have a serious problem with his comments in the AZCentral article about being heavy handed or being rewarded. Very disappointing. G&F employees and especially commissioners who sit in judgement of violators of these very laws should hold THEMSELVES to a higher standard than the average citizen.

    My 2 cents.

    Lee

    • Like 1

  22. Posted · Report reply

    CEI,

    First of all let me say recently received my digital and print copies of the Outdoorsman's Resource Guide and really like them both. Secondly, what kind of deadline do you have for stories to be submitted for next year's AZ edition?

    Lee

  24. Posted · Report reply

    Just when you think you have these deer figured out they will surprise you. You can find them bedded in the heat of the day in the middle of a hill with nothing but ocotillos growing on the hillside. Other times they will be tucked into the darkest shade they can find. It's always best to start off going with the odds and look in the open when the deer should be feeding and in the shadows when the sun is out, but be prepared to try something different if that doesn't work. I do a better job of glassing when I am comfortable so picking a shady spot is good advice. One last thing, the moment hunters start pounding the country-side the game often changes. We killed dozens of deer back in the day because we stumbled into a couple of honey holes the deer were using to escape from hunting pressure. We would set above these canyons in the dark and wait for hunters to start moving at first light and at times the deer would come pouring into these escape canyons.

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