Little Creek Calls

This alone time you speak of is because the hens are leaving the tom to lay an egg each day in there chosen nesting area. They will lay one egg each day and catch up with the flock in mid to late afternoon until they have a full clutch of eggs and start sitting full time to start incubation. This a good tip and I have killed quite a few turkeys during this time. Most hunters are back in camp eating breakfast.

4% For each early elk hunt 1% for lope 15% and 24% for the jr's tags Really? only 4% for the early rifle bull with 14 points? I dont know anyone with that many points that has been putting in For the early rifle hunt in 10 last year 4 applicants had 20 points, 10 had 19 points, 39 had 18 points, 45 had 17 points, 61 had 16 points, 65 had 15 points, 72 had 14 points and 103 people had 13 points just like you last year. There are only 20 tags for the bonus pass so I only see the bonus pass number creeping up by the time you get there. Last year and this year the 100% draw odds bonus pass number should be 19 points. 22 N looks a little better as far as the number of applicants in front of you so the bonus pass shouldn’t creep up by the time you get there but there are only 6 bonus pass tags. It should still be 18 points with 2 tags going to 17 point holders this year if the trend continues.

Has anyone hunted them in 13B? I saw them in the unit report but that's a long ways to go for a pig.

I would look for a guide that spends a lot of time in your area. Timberland Outfitters is a sponsor on this site and frequently guides in 12A and offers turkey hunts. They would be my recommendation.

The reason in starting this poll was not to start an argument between bow hunters and rifle hunters. It was not to see who made the longest or most ethical kill. The reason I did this poll and just for one year is I wanted to see what the most effective range for shooting coues deer was for 2014. As I thought might be the case the numbers show 200 to 500 yards to be that vulnerable range for coues deer. I tried to hunt for closer shots like mule deer for a few years but found myself not skilled enough and going unsuccessful. The past few years I have tried for the 200 to 500 yard range and have been able to kill 3 years in a row. I wanted to see if it was just me or if others hunting numbers supported my thoughts on yardage. Sure there might be a few that are better stalkers and hunters and get closer and there will be a few who have invested the money into equipment that can constantly kill deer at 600 + yards and those who get lucky with the occasional long shot. Archery hunters have different seasons that make closer shots more possible and also make it harder to compare to rifle seasons. Thanks to everyone for participating and commenting. It gives me a better idea on how to practice for my next hunt and how far I can close the distance to before my chances for success will start declining.

Turkey seem to be constantly moving throughout the year with the best available food source for each season. The only time they seem to slow down there roost movement and hold to a tighter more consistent pattern is in the spring when the hens start laying eggs and need to visit there nesting grounds each day to lay eggs. I have seen it quite a few different years in the areas I hunt that in March most of the birds will not be in the same areas that you will find them in during the hunt. Last year I went to several roost areas in March to get some pictures of trees and sign for my seminars and the birds and the sign were nowhere to be found. A month later in April we killed opening morning and seemed to find turkey and sign everywhere. There always seems to be a few that lag behind so if you do go out in March and see a bunch in a particular area keep it in the back of your mind as a backup place to check out if things don’t go as planned. Just don’t have that as your plan A would be my suggestion. Thanks for posting those PDF's CouesPursuit I look forward to reading when I have more time.

I will take the desk. It wont be used for writing but will make a good mouth call assembly station. It will be nice to separate mouth call assembly from my roll top fly tying station.

If lucky2hunt doesn't want your missing bladder float tube then I will take it. I have the same one I use for backpacking fly fishing trips but my friends always get stuck trying to fish from shore.

Looks like I will be helping out with a calling seminar at Cabelas in Glendale on Saturday March 14th at 1pm. As I understand it the seminar will be followed by a calling contest with gift cards supplied by Cabelas for prizes in three categories, experienced novice and kids. There will be two or three of us doing the seminar and the calling contest. There will also be two more seminars on Sunday the 15th at 1pm on calling and at 2pm on scouting. I will not be able to make it on Sunday so they will be taught by other members of the NWTF. Also just a reminder for my other two seminars. Saturday March 21st 2015, 10:00 AM – 11:30AM at the St George, Utah Sportsman’s Warehouse. Thursday April 9th 2015, 6:00PM – 8PM at the Mesa, Arizona Sportsman’s Warehouse.

Like AZ41mag mentioned, If you need to trim the tape to get the call to fit better in your mouth do it. It should not affect the call just the way it fits in your mouth. When I am making mouth calls the latex reeds are stretched clamped and then cut at the edge of the frame before applying the tape. The tape does not hold the tension on the latex reeds, the frame does. If you bend or change the frame then you will be changing the tension on the reeds and changing the sound off the call.

Condition your slate with a small square of scotch-brite pad. You can get it at the grocery store on the cleaning isle just cut the big pad into smaller easier to use squares. When using it just go side to side in one direction not circular. When using the call use the striker on the call perpendicular to the direction you ran the scotch-brite. It can also help to lightly sand the striker tip. As far as mouth call recommendations it will be easier to learn on a 2 reed call and one without a lot of complex cuts. Once you get that figured out then move on to the more complex calls. A general rule for using mouth calls is the cut reeds or the longest reeds go up toward the roof of your mouth allowing them to vibrate and not against your tongue. If you are looking for some more training with calls come check out my seminar in April at Mesa Sportsmans. http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/55284-turkey-hunting-and-calling-seminars-2015/

Jim Warren is a great guy and is experienced in real estate and lives and works in Pinetop. If I was selling something in the white mountains I would call him first.

I became friends with Jim Warren back when he was the state regional director for the NWTF. He is a great guy with a lot of knowledge. Should be a great seminar.

I had the good experience of spending a few days out hunting with friends and family. The rut seemed to be picking up more each day. We saw bigger bucks making rubs and chasing does. I glassed the buck I ended up taking first thing on Saturday morning chasing three does. I would like to thank Vowell, Singleshot, Jacob and Sean for all their help.

Here you go. Sorry for all the blood, it was the first picture taken as he lay.

Just a quick update, we have three puppies still available. They are now just over 6 weeks old and have received their first vaccination and will be ready to go to homes starting Friday 11/7. We have two orange males and one black female left available.

We have bread our English pointers and are expecting puppies due September 19th. Our dogs were purchased from John Lossing of Numark Kennels. John spared no expense in creating the best line of Elhew pointers in his 30 plus years of running his kennel. He was forced to retire and close his kennel to fight cancer two years ago. We feel fortunate to have purchased our dogs in 2010, 2 years before its closing. If you have ever wanted to have a English Pointer puppy through the famous blood lines like HOF(hall of fame) Ch (Champion) Elhew Snakefoot, HOF Ch Elhew Hannabell, HOF Ch Elhew Swami, Ch Elhew Explorer, Ch Elhew Fibber McGee, HOF Ch Dunns Fearless Bud, HOF Ch Bases Loaded, HOF Ch silverwood, Ch Rocky River Hank and more all on a four generation pedigree this is your chance. Our puppies would be available for pickup starting November 7th (Bob Wehle of Elhew kennels recommended age of 7 weeks old). Both of our dogs were pick of their litter. Our Dam is Orange with Black nose, gums and pads. Our Sire is Black so there is the genetic possibility of all three colors of pointers Orange, Black, and Liver. We will offer special pricing to Coues Whitetail members $400 for males $450 for females with a $150 deposit reserving your pick in the order received. If you have any questions feel free to send me a PM. I will update this post with details and pictures after puppies are born. This is both dogs first litter. I have attached pictures of each side showing coloring on both Sire and Dam.

Just got home from my elk hunt and thought I would share a quick picture of my 3B Muzzleloader Bull. More photos and story to come later when I have some time

My dad had built up 15 bonus points hoping some day for an early rifle tag in unit 1 or 27. When I ran the odds on the calculator I told him he would probably wait over 10 more years for one of those tags or he could make the bonus pass for 3B muzzleloader this year. Being over 70 years old he told me he didn’t want to wait any longer and to put him in for 3B. He did make the bonus pass and I got lucky on a separate application and drew with only 4 points. With my parents and my wife’s parents both living with in the unit we were able to do a lot of scouting for this hunt. Early on we saw some nice bulls in velvet but they all seemed to disappear just before the archery hunt started. One morning after spotting two nice bulls scouting during the archery hunt my Dad suffered a major heart attack and was flown down to the valley to have two procedures done on two separate days. The doctor limited his physical activity for 3 months. We began to explore all available options for his tag (signing it over to my nephew under 18, applying for a CHAMP license, trying to get his bonus points reinstated and surrender his tag) but after waiting over 15 years to draw this tag he wanted to find a way to complete this hunt. This put a lot of extra pressure on us trying to find a water hole and a blind on a fairly smooth road where he could sit and wait without having to hike. The day before the hunt my wife’s little brother and one of his friends turned us on to an often overlooked area that was holding a lot of nice bulls this year. Opening morning we spent trying to figure out how best to hunt with my dad’s condition. Even walking just a few yards had him tired and worn out unable to go out in the evening. I took my wife out for the evening hunt and just missed a shot under a bull at 199 yards. This would be the bull that I ended up harvesting 4 days later. The rain came on Saturday and Sunday and I missed on a primer that didn’t ignite the powder. After the first one and the elk had gone I fired 2 more primers before the powder finally went off clearing the barrel. Monday morning we had my dad set up on a meadow just off a main road that had a decent bull and cows frequenting it. Things just worked out perfect and he was blessed with a 80 yard one shot kill. I think he enjoyed sitting in a chair watching everyone else do all the cleaning and loading of his elk. It wasn’t the biggest bull we had been seeing but for him and his condition it was the best opportunity we could find. It made me so happy that we were able to help him hunt and fill his own tag without endangering his health any more. After working on breaking down and processing his elk all day we took a break that evening to go out and hunt our #1 bull we had been seeing. We were able to call in one of the satellite bulls to his heard and just before dark moved in and almost got a shot at him but he busted me with just one or two seconds to spare. It was tough watching him trot off into the sunset. The next morning we got set up on our #2 bull (the one I missed a shot at on day one) and this time I didn’t miss. In fact I hit him twice but he was a tough bull and took off with his cows. After finding his tracks and blood the tracking began. When we caught up to him he was still alive and had started down this canyon. I put a few more shots in him to make sure he wasn’t going any farther but he still managed to roll a little deeper down into the canyon. My wife’s little brother climbed down near him and said that all the shots looked like kill shots to him. He was one tough elk to go that far. We then tried the gutless method for the first time and packed the meat and head out of the canyon with the help of a few friends.. My bull had long main beams with lots of length up top and on his fronts. He had lots of mass too. He wasn’t the widest bull we saw (that was bull #1) but still had decent width. The tracking made it fun and rewarding, glad we stuck with it and found him. It was a great end to a great hunt. I am still trying to gather photos and videos from friends and may update again later. My dads Bull Where we caught up to my bull picture showing mass (sorry I cant get it to turn right side up)

I might be mistaken but I think the bonus pass only works on your first choice. My dad made the bonus pass with 15 points. According to my calculator the bonus pass should have been around 13 or 14 points. I got lucky and drew with 4 points. Sorry about the blood, it started spraying after the final shot to finish him off after a long tracking.

The High Desert Hunt Club just north of Cordes Junction along the Agua Fria River also has pay per released bird Chucker and Pheasant hunts. This is where the game and fish hold the Ken Middleton memorial youth Pheasant hunt each year.

Here are a few pictures of the puppies on day two. The orange coloring starts light on english pointers and will darken up after a month or two.

Well we ended up with 6 new puppies. 3 black (2 males 1 female), 2 orange (both males), and 1 liver female.

Well the second puppy was a liver female and the third was an orange male. Wow we are only three puppies in and we already have all three colors. here is a picture of the the liver female.

Well the first puppy was just born right on time (we had estimated tomorrow for a due date) and is black and white with great spotting. My wife thinks it is a female. I will update later this evening with final numbers, colors and pictures.