Coach

Nice job - I love to see those youth hunters out here with their first harvests. Got a story to go along with that great photo?

Probably already got your answer, but just to toss more fuel on the fire, the Nikon is VERY good for the money. I've never looked through the Leupold, but, my money is on the Nikon for sure.

Nice buck - welcome to the site.

Each season and each hunt is different for me. This year I really wanted to take my first deer with a bow, but I still passed several small coues bucks before taking the one I was fortunate enough to finally tag. First ML coues also came this year, and while I had hoped for something over 100, I opted for the first "mature" 3x3 or better I could find. Going forward, I'll have different goals. I'm starting to get up there in bonus points and would really love to hunt either 12AW or 13B (or a December coues tag in 22, 23 or 24A) but I may still be several years out on those. So to kill in January, I would like to say, it would have to be a coues over 100" or a muley in the 170+ class. But take a look at Standman's post - he's taken lots of great bucks. To call in a buck like that during the rut, and make it happen the way he did, I think we'd all be hard-pressed to hold off because of score alone. That was an awesome, exiting hunt. Sometimes there is a number that sets the goal, sometimes it's something else.

Bump.

SOHCAHTOA - don't you remember your trig? the sine of angle A equals the length of the opposite side devided by the lenght of the hypotneuse: sin(A) = opp/hyp the cosine of angle A equals the length of the adjacent side devided by the length of the hypotneuse: cos(A) = adj/hyp the tangent of angle A equals the length of the opposite side devided by the length of the adjacent side: tan(A) = opp/adj

Oops - cut and pasted from Craigslist - forgot the price. I updated the post above, but asking price is $4900 obo.

I've got a thumbhole stock on my ML and love it. If I were building a gun right now, I'd put a boyd's thumbhole on it.

Nice! That's a great looking buck! Congrats!

Dude - I used to do the sardines and oysters bit - LOL - If you can't eat it at home why eat it on a hill? Very convenient for sure to open up some "sardines in mustard sauce" or canned smoke oysters....Anybody sharing a tent with you has to be dragging you to the edge of camp come midnight.

Welcome to the forum. You've found the right place!

I have to say, the first half - it was anybody's game. Both teams moved the ball incredibly well. Defense was another story - I've got to give props to Show Low's QB and recievers. They were fantastic. A couple of finger-tip defensive plays by the BR secondary were crucial. It would have been a much closer game without some truly outstanding defensive plays deep. The second half, BR got their defense in gear and finally started forcing punts. Show Low could not stop our running game and BR was able to score on pretty much every offensive opportunity. I hate to say it - gotta love ALL the kids that made it that far - but in the second half, Show Low was just looking more "beat up" and less determined. BR is one of those teams that is always close, and usually in the playoffs. We *should* have beaten Payson last year based on the half-time score, but they came out and made the adjustments they needed to come from way behind and win - kudos to them for that. As for "finally having good program again" - not trying to sound defensive, but Blue Ridge has had a very good program for a long, long time. Sure, they've missed a couple of close ones, but the coaching staff here does an AMAZING job. I graduated in '89 and played tight end and defensive end on the team that trounced everyone and then lost to Parker in the semi-finals, who eventually lost to Snowflake - a team we had beaten during regular play. BR is pretty much always the "smaller" team on the field. We don't grow them big here like other schools do. Coach Moro and his staff - Williams, London, Thompson - really know how to put a team together and make the best out of the kids despite their size. For BR it's all about hard-hitting, assignment football, off-season training , speed and discipline - and most of those things come out of the coaching staff when it comes down to it. I've got 3 boys involved in football now (I've been coaching the local, "mountain" leauge too), one in 7th grade, one in 5th and one in 2nd. I can't wait to see what Moro and his staff can do with these kids who have been playing together from 1st grade on up. No doubt about it, there will be some amazing high-school football in small-town Arizona. Gotta love it - this is one of the big reasons I moved out of the valley and back home to the mountains to raise my kids hunting, fishing and playing football and baseball.

CouesAZ, I gotta get one of those Bark River knives. I've been salivating over the Bravo I or Bravo II in ironwood burl with turquoise. Not a better looking knife around. Here's the one I'm after - PM me with cost etc. I've got to sell some stuff first.

Snickers, apples, Cliff bars, mixed nuts (love the salty cashews), jerky or other deer snack sticks. Nothing beats some fried chicken legs or wings about 9 am. Some chocolate for sure. Hershey's Nuggets always pick up the pace after a slow morning of glassing. I take along jolly ranchers too. Helps keep the saliva moving when water is short.

Binos and tripod first, range finder second, my headlamp or at least a working flashlight third, my Browning FDT - best knife I've ever owned - nothing fancy but does everything a guy needs when taking care of game - yeah baby wipes, but let's face it, we've all used whatever was handy and lived to tell about it. Ever cut your chonies off and walk out commando? I bet you have! Seriously, my mantra when checking my gear is "tag, gun, bullets - ok I can hunt (or tag, bow, release)". Everything else is gravy. That said, I keep my fanny pack stocked with an emergency blanket (one of those foil thingies), magnesuim fire starter, two bic lighters, a GOOD flashlight and a backup flashlight and a couple Cliff bars.

I was hoping to see the 'U' blow 'em out, but I'm sure for those watching it was a very exiting game. I'm glad the cats got it done.

"A good cigar is as great a comfort to a man as a good cry is to a woman." We're friends already!!! Welcome! Feel free to PM me. I don't consider myself a coues expert, but I'd be happy to help out any way I can.

That is awesome. What a great looking buck!!! Wowser! Congrats to Courtney on an outsanding buck!!!

Look for open South facing ridges with lots of yellow grass, and thick, nasty, brushy North halves. They want a quick escape route into the thick stuff. You'll find 'em. If you find an open hillside with a saddle leading back into thick cover, look for trails leading from the feeding side into the bedding side. If it's an active area, the trails will be pounded pretty hard - that's when you know you've found a good spot to focus on.

Congrats on a nice buck. I too, was wondering about the blotted out faces. Wassupwitdat?

That's an awesome buck for sure. Get it DONE!!!! And +1 on the fox.

Great post Dan - those are some amazing animals. The San Carlos holds some great trophies every year. One day I'll hunt the SC for coues again. Hopefully you can join me next time.

Great post and lots of great advice here. IMO the biggest complaint about deer/elk/javelina is the "gamey" flavor. Chances are, that was meat with the hide on too long. Given a rutting bull usually tastes like boot leather, most deer and elk are left sitting way too long with the hide on. I've seen guys gut animals to cool and leave the hide on while they go get help or a vehicle - their head is in the right place - they want to get the warm part away from the meat, but anyone who's ever seen a deer or elk bed in the snow knows, their hide and hair hold in almost all of their body heat. A deer can lay on snow for hours without melting it - think about that in terms of the insulating qualities of deer hide and hair. If you want good meat, the hide has to come off first. Personally, I prefer the gutless method. But if you're going to gut it out, skin it first, then gut it. That hide is holding in all the heat and causing spoilage - not the guts. When you think about it, how much meat is actually in contact with the inside of the rib cage vs. how much is in contact with the hide?

Nice job, Scott. You've earned that one many times over by helping other people chase their dreams for so many years. You were definately due. I can't wait to see the finished mount. Best Thanksgiving wishes to you and your family.

Wow - I'm glad I missed it. Even as an alumni, I can barely watch U of A football games. They have mastered the art of blowing big games. That said, you ASU fans can prepare for a shellacking on Saturday.