Red Rabbit

Since getting a pair of 15x binos, I have not carried the spotting scope on coues hunts. Prior, the use of an eyepatch with the spotter made it a lot more comfortable than squinting, but not up to bino comfort. Perhaps with a sheep tag, a spotting scope will be packed. Drawing a sheep tag could also be a good reason to uprade from Cabelas version of the Redfield Regal IV that I got 20 years ago. I can't see where a cheap spotter would be helpful over a nice pair of 15's. If you use a spotter to judge distant antlers, you need high resolution that the Burris Landmark and $100 Trashcos cannot provide. What good is a bigger blurry image? My $0.02 RR

I have a good friend in Boise, Idaho (a fireman, actually) who drew a bighorn sheep tag in ID this year on his first year of applying. He's up in the Frank Church wilderness scouting right now. Beginners luck can happen to any of us with a few, if any, bogus points. I remember the hoopla of it happenining to Gov Jane Hull's son. Doug~RR

Welcome Switchback! Doug~RR

It was posted on Bowsite that the draw possibly happened last night, With the 40 hour system shutdown to post the draw, I figure we could see the draw results on AZGFD.com sometime Friday. Any cyber-cafes in Williams for the Bowhunter Happening could be busy this weekend. RR

POSTED TODAY!!!!!!!! this week's fishing report

If I just put the cursor on the roadless area picture on the main page, it says "Big game draw-view draw information" Are they at G&F getting ready to make the switch? RR

Will it be a baby girl or baby boy you adopt? She? should be fine in the house and a hard worker in the field. Just will need to avoid the cholla areas you've learned to hunt. RR

Chris, it turned out great. RR

Casey, Ask Lark. He got a new mule to get back into 36b come December, so I'm assuming that was your tag you woulda drawn. Shoulda spent the money on banjo lessons . He said the rifle should be done in time to work up loads for Kodiak in late Oct. RR

What time are you planning on being at the Pine Country?

TAM, I took my rifle for a hike in NM 23 last year. I think SunDevil got the last coues there, a reclusive dink of a buck. Can't remember if CB said if it was being chased by a hairy, ape-like creature or not. Sure glad I didn't pull a tag there this year for a waste of a hunt. In AZ, I had heard enough to know not to apply for 23. I've seen pics of bucks from the good old days, but those deer are dead now. Today, it's all about opportunity (to go camping with a rifle) RR

New Binos (Leica Duovid 10+15) from Doug@CameraLand, new MysteryRanch NICE pack w/ load carrier, 6.5 WSM being built on a Winchester SuperGrade, and a new 2006 December WT tag ( I got a peek at the pre-draw results .) Doug~RR

AG Congrats on your Dec 23 tag, but I hear there have been no deer for several years. Have a nice camping trip. RR

Yep, it's time for the e-scouters to start posting. Makes ya wonder why their the first post is to ask where to go hunt in such-n-such a unit. I would hope that they would realize that one would not give the location of one's own hunting spot, or backups, or where their friends hunt, or their secondary and tertiary spots. The best bet is to start with GnF recommendations: http://azgfd.com/h_f/hunting_units.shtml and spend a few days in the field and post your findings and ask for help after doing some legwork. earth.google will give a view of the area and the bunnies at the mansion Or do a search of former years posts to learn there are no deer left in unit 23 because they migrated to 45 due to the fires . RR

Lark, Duz dis mean dat weel hafta lernt ta play the banjo to unt'rstund the rekordun uff da drawl rezultz? I noze Casey aint tookin no banjo lessunz, so he wernt be drawn. Ya gunna claim his cheep tag, or turtee-six b tag? RR

Again, from last fall's hunt in unit 45

Casey- Happy 21st! Enjoy the concert and your first legal beer. Doug~RR

Putting a good pad like a Sims SVL or Pachmyer Decelerator will help a lot. I am not a fan of the muzzle brakes due to the blast and noise, but if you gotta have one, the Vias is one of the best. Wear hearing protection at all times. A friend shot a 300 winny with a brake 4 times in the field, and his ears rang for two months. I have three 300's and only have good pads on them, no brakes allowed. RR

AG, I will give him a call tomorrow. Thanks. RR

I wonder how busy the preview day will be for Cabelas Visa holders on July 26? I received my "special" invitation. RR

Dang, another record-book bull from unit 45. I wonder what he looks like this year with the drier winter and spring. Have you been able to relocate him this summer? RR

This is really cool. Satellite photos of the world. You can zoom in and see individual trees and waterholes, the tennis court at Elkhorn ranch, trucks on the highway. You can tilt the view to give a 3D view. Rotate it to look from any side. Some sections the photos are not that sharp, but others are well defined. What a great addition to topo maps for scouting and you don't have to rent an airplane. It's a free download. (I zoomed in, but didn't see any deer in 23. Don't know why you guys put in for it.) http://earth.google.com/ RR

How can you get the topo contour lines to overlay on the satellite imagery? RR

That Arkansas photo has great color and composition. Well done. Were the bass hanging under the docks? With a sunset like that going on, one would have to stop fishing for several minutes. RR

Dan, Thanks for taking us shed hunting. I can rest now that you wore out my legs, LOL RR