Coach

That is just awesome! Huge congrats on a stellar buck!

Wow! What can I say that hasn't already been said??? What a gorgeous buck - HUGE congrats to the hunter!

That's awesome. Congrats!

Green's Peak. Bulls are screaming, we've got our last 'Blue Moon' unti 2015, the roads are wet from all the rain - perfect time to go play.

Finally! Congrats to the buyer. Sweet jeep for sure. I would have bought it but I'm just too tall for a CJ5, and my boys are getting taller than me.

Wow, that's awesome! Great buck and welcome to the site!

I just realized both of two oldest sons have 27 youth deer the same week as their unit 1 cow hunts. We are going to focus on deer first and then elk if there is time.

Don't beat yourself up. You had a great hunt. You worked hard and got a good shot, you took it. You worked your tail off to follow up. Really, what more can you do? Focus on your kids' hunts, re-live your hunt and figure out how to incorporate your experience into their learning. Every hunter has to face adversity, and it comes in all kinds of forms. I believe "true" hunters are those that have faced adversity over and over and over again. Weather, lost animals, mechanical fails (vehicles, optics, guns, bows, rifles, scopes), family issues, monetary issues. Those I truly respect are the ones that remain calm in whatever storm comes their way, and they fall back on family and friends above all else.

I think TJ perfectly summarized the best approach. Yield to experience, friends.

Wow, nice buck! Gonna check out the video. Congrats on a fantastic buck.

Really enjoyed the video - some great looking bears!

First off, I am truly sorry about how this happened, and I can relate. I had a similar situation, from a tracking perspective, to yours. I had a mile long stalk on a bedded deer, when I got there I couldn't find him but when I stood up, so did he, but across a wash at about 55 yards. I had decent wind gusts, and was trying to time my shot, but the wind pushed my arrow forward. It was a hit but in front of the shoulder. I had good blood at the point of impact and for a long way up the hill with puddles wherever he stopped to rest. Eventually the blood spatters went from red to orange and finally petered out. The last spot I found was where a hoof had scraped a rock going uphill. One of the guys I was with, the guy who drove me there, HAD to be back to town by a certain time, so we had to call off the search - he was still a few hours late getting back home, and I felt bad about that - almost as bad about losing the first buck I ever hit with a bow. You'll probably never know if they guys in the truck found him, or if he changed directions. If the guys in the truck did pick him up, it wasn't necessarily that they were being unethical. Realistically, if a seasoned, ethical hunter came across a wounded buck on his last leg, they would most likely finish him. It would be hard for them to assume that the hunter who shot the buck is as dilegent as you were. Most likely, they'd see a deer that was about to go to waste, and in their mind they might have been doing the "right thing". However, if they did take it, you'd think there would be a gut pile to confirm that's where he ended up. If they were just trying to be good "stewards", I wouldn't think they'd just toss it in the truck and drive off to gut it somewhere else. I'm sure this isn't any help. Just about anything could have happened. If I had to bet, I'd say the guys in the truck didn't pick him up. My best guess is that the buck stopped bleeding externally and had enough strength to keep moving and he's still there somewhere - most likely dead now.

That's a nice looking bear! Congrats to Ross.

Sweet! Huge congrats!

Sure glad you found it - that had to take a load off!

Yup, seems like a nice guy, I think I have pix of him earlier in the summer too. He didn't mess with the camera, just smiled and walked on by. Just wanted to see if I could find him and say thanks for his courtesy.

Had a guy flash me a big grin on a trail cam - wanted to see if it's anyone on here.

Nice job - that's a great looking bear!

A .300 Wby that shoots well is one of the most versatile guns out there. I had one for a while and killed a couple coues bucks with it. In no way was it overkill. I've since switched to a .300 WSM, which I prefer over the .300 wby, just because I shoot this particular gun better. A good muzzle break and recoil pad go a long way. My Wby was super light and it didn't take long for me to develope a pretty good flinch. It was a shoulder pounder. Congrats on a really nice gun, and very versatile round. That is one gun that can go from coues to Elk, Moose, anything that walks basically.

Great post - I agree completely.

That's freakin' AWESOME! Huge congrats and welcome to the site - that's a great way to introduce yourselves.

A good guy I met through this forum has a strip (13B) archery hunt starting tomorrow. According to the statistics I got from one of the better-known guides up there, the unit has over 1.5 Million acres and less than 3,500 deer. With abundant water, the deer are going to be dispersed throughout the unit. Traditionally, a bow hunter up there with some time can sit the right tank and eventually have a monster buck come in. This year, he's going to have to rely on spot-and-stalk, and the rut is a long way off. That really complicates things for sure. I sure hope Ryan (aka KiababHunter) can connect. That said, the white mountains have really been blessed with amazing rainfall this year. The monsoons started a little late, but they have sure been great. Lots of rainfall, the forest is healthy, the bulls are already going nuts. Good year.

I agree 100%. Without mandatory reporting, G&F has to extrapolate based on the respondents. I think it's a fair assumption that successful hunters are more likely to respond than unsuccesful hunters. That kind of voluntary reporting can skew the take statistics that the following year's management approach are based on. I'd be fully supportive of any measure that requires mandatory harvest reporting. It imposes very little on the hunters and gives G&F a lot more accurate information to work from.

Man, this topic is complicated. On the one hand you've got a couple of idiots that caused a disastrous fire. Then you have a community that lost homes and grazing lands, and untold habitat destruction because of that fire. On the other hand, you have small businesses that profited well by providing water trucks, backhoes and manpower to fight the fire. Not to mention all the crews that came in - they were taking in overtime & hazard pay. The fire was an economic boom for some. And if you've been up there since the fire, it's obvious that it will actually benefit the wildlife for a long time to come. A lot of what burned was overgrown and in need of a natural fire to clear things out. Much of the burned area will be healthier in the next 4-7 years than it was before the fire, because of the fire. Overall, from a hunting perspective, I think Unit 1 is going to respond to the Wallow Fire by creating some of the best hunting AZ has ever seen, using 3A/C after the Rodeo/Chedisky fires as a model. Deer, elk, turkey and bear are going to thrive.

I think Tonto Rim did an excellent job of providing some insight as to where these proposed policies come from. A lot of respondents have taken a defensive approach to his comments. A word of advice -- don't shoot the messenger. He's already stated that he's retired - he's not in the position to move this issue one way or the other. He's simply stating the facts about how this topic has bubbled to the surface and what types of studies and objectives are behind it. We don't have to agree with them, but we should all agree that we have to get our heads around the the motives, objectives and rationale behind this move if we want to either fight or support it. We all have our perspectives about how this issue faces all of us. We can all talk about how great one unit was until the over-allocation of tags, the salt/corn hunters, high tech bows, wolves, mines, urban development, tree stands, ground blinds changed everything...it's endless. Perception IS reality - and my perception or anyone else's on this forum isn't always going to be in line with the peception of those that make decisions about hunting. If the perception of the wildlife manager in unit XX, is that the bow harvest exceeds expectations, they are going to have to find ways to reduce that bow take, or reduce rifle permits that have more predictable annual harvest rate. It can't be any more simple than that. This "balance sheet" perspective is reality in any government agency. There is no rationalizing that will change that fact. When bowhunting success excedes the forecasted "take" expectation, either fewer rifle permits can be allowed, or limits to archery take come into play. That means: 1: Limit the access to bowhunters by instituting a "draw only" archery hunt. 2: Limit the success of archery hunters by regulating take methods (bait). 3: Reduce rifle tag permits, especially in the later season. We've already seen #3 all over the state. That's a done deal. #1 is also being experimented with in select units. So here we are with #2 - like it or hate it, wildlife management is a numbers game. Being successful by figuring out some tricks and tactics to "up our odds" has changed the way G&F has to manage wildlife. There's no good guy/bad guy in this scenario, just the reality that the people who are trying to ensure a sustainable hunting future have to balance the wants and needs of current spotsmen/women with the objectives of ensuring that our sport will still be available to our kids and grandkids.