Red Rabbit

The NMGF website says results will be posted by the 22nd. Only a week to go. Patience. I don't do online banking to check the CC, so I will need to wait for the G&F postings. Doug

Normally I hike in about an hour~2 miles. Last season, I only went in about a mile, but still had too many other hunters to contend with, so I guess that was not far enough, as they spooked then shot at a nice buck we were stalking. Doug

I use the Balcom sling. It has a hook that is attached to the cable guard, which hooks onto a string and strap that goes over your shoulder. You can also tie a loop of string to your pack shoulder straps. http://www.balcombowsling.com/ The belt hook comes in handy also. Doug~RR

Welcome, In factory ammo, I would try the 180 grain Nosler Accubond loads by Federal. I think the 150 Ballistic tips may result in too much blood-shot meat due to their faster, greater expansion, especially if you catch a coues at close range. The Accubonds are a bonded core bullet with the pointed resin tip (like on the Ballistic tip). Accuracy with the Accubonds is real good in my 300 WSM's. If you get into handloading, try the 150's in Accubonds, Sciroccos, or Hornady Interbonds, or the Barnes TSX. The 150's will be a little flatter in trajectory than 180's, but drift a little more in the wind. Difference in recoil is neglible (lighter bullet, but more powder and higher velocity). Doug~RedRabbit

Bret, One of my hunting friends is one of those lucky 6 with max elk points. He's counting on the 3a/c early bull tag. Should be a good year for him to draw that tag. Fifteen years is a long time to go without hunting elk. Doug~RR

I have used the DropZone for a couple of trouble-free years and really like it. You could spray the fletching and rest with powdered foot spray to check for contact. Also, check the rest to cable connection to be sure that the arm is rising at the last moment/dropping at the first moment. Another thing to check is whether the cable guard is far enough out. Maybe the one fletching is hitting the cable. RR

Brett, Chatter on MM is saying that NM is hitting the credit cards. I hope that bad feeling is like a dream that passes with the night. Several years ago, I had a dream the night I sent in my applications, that I was canoeing across Canyon lake to go sheep hunting . I awoke the next morning with hope, but never did get to wet the canoe as the pink slip from G&F had no adhesive backing. So much for my dreams . Guess I'll never be used to solve a crime, either. Doug

DesertBull, If you shoot a lot and/or are going to keep your bow for some more years, I would recommend getting a Winner's Choice string & cable set to eliminate the stretch and peep rotation. It's costly, but worth it if you're an avid archer. Cost me about a C-note for set and installation on the Mathews. http://www.winnerschoicestrings.com/ You might want to call Corner Archery at 5008 W. Northern, 623-842-3337, to see if they can help. Doug~RedRabbit

Like Kaffer, I like a .22 among my current rifles, which in this case is a Kimber 82C that is used on prairie dogs more than the .22-250. For deer and elk the last few years, I have carried a 300 WSM by HS Precision as the go-to rifle. While accurate and weather-worthy, it still lacks the warmth of wood. I still seek that laser-flat , low recoiling, accurate deer rifle set in beautiful wood. Looking at taking a Winchester 70 Supergrade in 300WSM and necking it down to a 25 caliber, which would be similar to the 257 Weatherby in performance. Coat it in Cerakote, and have a backup synthetic stock for inclimate weather, and it should be as close to coues perfection as one can get. Guess one could say that the favorite deer rifle has not been found yet, since the search is still ongoing. Don't forget the search for extra $$$ for all these hunting "essentials". Doug~RedRabbit

My first tag in Arizona was for coues in about 1986 when I was living in Texas. Since then, I have had many great coues hunts and taken 8 memorable bucks. Doug~Red Rabbit

Deer:1, Elk:1, Antelope:14, and bighorn:12. When the bonus points were started for deer, I put in for a few years for only unit 13B to get that extra advantage for a primo tag, but had since missed the coues hunts and did not want to sit on the sidelines accruing the bogus points.

The best vanes that I have come across are the Flex-Fletch. You must clean the base before gluing to the shaft though. They are less prone to wrinkling and tearing than other vanes I have shot. The local shop says that the Quik-Spins are noisier than other vanes. I have not shot them. Do you hear any extra noise? You would probably need to stand to the side and let someone else shoot to compare sounds.

The fact that you were able to find three years of sheds from the same 4-point buck is what is really neat. Show us the intact set come December! Good luck in the draw. Doug~RedRabbit

How did the meeting between G&F, USFS and ADA go over the weekend up on the North Kaibab? What observations, suggestions and conclusions were made?

Thanks Allen. em on the way. Did you make it up there? Doug

I'd wipe the bow and string down with a rag dampened in scentkiller soap, spray the rest with Gun Scrubber or brake cleaner, if you have a TM or drop-away with moving parts, to remove grease w/ dirt. Then put it in a press to remove the cams and axle pins, clean with acetone to remove the grease and dirt, then relube rest, cams and axles with a dry lubricant like graphite or Remington DriLube. Clean the string grooves on the cams with a Q-tip and alcohol. Don't forget the cable guard. Reassemble. Rewax the string I assume you are going to the shoot at Clint's Well. Have fun!

Congratulations on the new son in your family.

Last evening, a friend and I went out to 6B where he had a tag. We knew about where they were roosting, so we set up 5 decoys nearby, built a blind under a juniper tree, and kept yelping in the wind (20-30 mph gusts), hoping to be in the right spot as they came to roost. I saw a gobbler moving through the pines about 100 yards out, but couldn't call him in. He gobbled periodically over a rise, and eventually came in strutting with a hen into the middle of the dekes. Bang-flop .

What decides a trophy has varied and changed. On my first coues hunt, I was told that if you can see antlers, it's a good one. I thought that if it was similar to a small Texas 6 point, it would be good, but a 97" buck in Skeleton Canyon on the first morning of my first coues hunt reappeared long enough for me to shoot. This was much larger than I anticipated, and back at camp my friend informed what I nice buck I had taken. A couple of subsequent hunts in the Chiracahuas lit the desire for a book buck. So, I scoured the record books to find the best unit and noticed most bucks needed to be 4 points. That next year in the best unit, a friend and I spotted a buck, and noticed that he was a four-point. I was off on the stalk, and he ended up having 13 points total and grossing 110. The next year, we spotted his younger sibling and my friend elected to pass. Now it seems that the circumstances of the hunt, the effort involved and the overall experience help define what a trophy is. I recall a hunt where I took a 16 year-old on his first hunt, and we shot two bedded forked horns simultaneously. His was a "trophy" buck that I plaqued and presented to him. I still look for the largest buck out there, and hope that I may sometime cross paths with a booner, but have passed on lesser and shot lesser, but every buck or bull taken has been a trophy for one reason or another. Doug~Red Rabbit

Congratulations to y'all getting your drumsticks in 23. A gobbler responded to the owl hooter at dawn, but I knew a guy and his daughter were right there as they roosted it. Several minutes later, a shotgun blast echoed through the draw. Saturday evening I chased a gobbler between the hail storms til dark, but did not hear him again Sunday in the windy morning air. Got to within maybe 100 yards of a gobbler near camp a few hours later, but he was not seduced by my calling. Back to unit 17 next weekend. Calling turkeys is as fun as calling bugling elk. The fact that you hear gobbling or bugling allows for a two way interaction and heightens the game. Doug

What a chance roadside find. Very interesting shed. Judging by the other shed in the background, guess the elk have long since migrated past Picacho to the Huachucas . Doug

Scott, Congrats on that short order gobbler . I looked in the pic, but didn't see any bluebonnets. I take it you were near San Angelo. When I was back in Mathis, TX last spring, there were lots of tukeys out struuting in the fields. Sure was a sight. Too bad when I lived there, the rancher wouldn't let me hunt them. I wouldn't mind making short work of a bird next weekend near Prescott. Doug~RedRabbit

After reaching my downed animal, I normally give thanks to the Lord above. I never recall thanking Chevy, Leupold, Nosler and Winchester. But then again, I have no corporate sponsors paying for my hunt. Doug~Red Rabbit

How was the banquet? Any lucky winners at the CWT table? Doug~Red Rabbit

I applied for both species; Nov 5-9 coues in unit 23 and Nov 5-9 muley in 2B. Although I have hunted coues more often, I enjoy hunting for both species.