Red Rabbit

Stan- Glad you had success. You should have some tender and prime eating. Amanda- It's been a lot cooler here in Flag since the storm. Got a little over an inch of rain at the house. Those bulls outa have it crankin when you get back up to 6A, considering the cooler temps. Supposed to be 29 tonight and 60 tomorrow but warming a little through the week. Thanks for sharing the pics. Good luck. Doug/RedRabbit

Dang Mike, Get back up there and get that 350" bull. With this cooler weather and wind dying down, they outa be horse from screaming so much. Good luck and keep us posted. Doug/RedRabbit

Lark, I'm under the impression that the $10 fee is for covering the conservation bonus point's paperwork. The fees noted are the max amount/cap, and hopefully will be lower. I do not want to see hunting become an avocation for the financially well-to-do. I would like to know why the 90/10 nonC/Commercial tag split was not pursued by G&F. There has been speculation that it was due to personal liability that could be cast upon the commissioners. Doug/RedRabbit

I was in my taxidermist/friend's place here in Flag last weekend, and a hunter came in checking prices. Said he had taken a 403 incher out of 7E. Could this be your friends bull? fantastic bull either way. Doug/RedRabbit

According to the schedule, it should be aired 3 more times. The show is called "Here's Why It's Hunting." http://www.olntv.com/showviewer.asp?sid=186 Watch out for the time zones. Josh didn't get the buck, but then again the desert also had ponderosas. Jessica is still light headed, but the sun will rise another day. Josh, can you give some more details about the hunt shown? Doug/Red Rabbit

Just a friendly reminder that this will be the opening weekend for archery elk. Be careful around tanks during the prime times. Two years ago I had a scouter mess up a calling setup when a bull got to 50 yards out. The guy on an atv saw the bull and chased after him. When I caught up with him, he said he was scouting for his November tag and I "thanked" him for messing up our opportunity. I walked away before my anger said too much.

I had a Remington 700 BDL in .280 (called a 7mm express back then) and used it the take a couple of coues, several Texas whitetail and some peccaries. I chose that cartridge back in the early 80's after John Wooters wrote an article on it. This was my first rifle. It was traded it towards a Browning Stainless Stalker in 7 mag, which was sold to get a HS precision in 300 WSM. Also have a Win 70 Featherweight in Lark's favorite chambering, which has been used on coues a couple of times. I really have not gotten a "favorite" rifle , yet. But I'm working on it. Doug/RedRabbit

Lark, The show airs this afternoon, so you came in out of the elk-infested woods just in time.

Josh, Thanks for the heads up. I just looked at the on-screen guide and the show "Guide to the Outdoors" on OLN airs at 1PM, Arizona time(AZ iz not on daylight cavings time). Doug/RedRabbit

Younghunter, Those 150 coreloks shooting that well @ 300 yards will work well on coues. And the good part is that a box is relatively inexpensive. Have fun practicing those long shots from field positions. Doug/RedRabbit

Hey Coues Addict. That's the same exact load that my 270 prefers . It's taken a couple of whitetail. Do you have those cock pheasants penned up? The way my GWP jumps for Frisbees, I won't need a shotgun on birds . Take care. Doug/RedRabbit

Here is a survey to give input on various proposals that G&F is considering. Please support the 90/10% resident noncommercial/nonresident commercial tag split as it is the only option that will satisfy the interstate commerce clause and still give preference to residents. www.azgfd.com/nrm/no_cap_comments.shtml Doug /RedRabbit

Hornady offers a 150 grain SST Interbond load (also 150 SST) that is flat shooting. Federal has a 165 gr Noler Ballistic Tp and 180 Accubond loads that would be worth trying. Winchester offers 180 gr Ballistic Silvevertips and 180 Accubonds. I'm suggesting the polymer tipped bullets for their higher ballistic coefficients for use at the longer ranges coues hunting sometime necessitates. The 150's offer less drop, but the 180's will drift less in the wind at longer distances. Stop by Sportsman's Warehouse(or your local gun shop) and pick up a box of each to see which flavor your rifle prefers. Yes, it's easy to spend over a c-note just to find the preferred brand. If your rifle scatters a couple of 5-shot groups, use the extras for practice.

Dave, Scott, Allen, Richard-It was good to meet you. Amanda, sorry we didn't have the pleasure... Next time. Yes, it was a good evening to chat with fellow hunters and to see awesome antlers. Doug

Is there anyone from the Flagstaff area that wants to carpool? Call me; Doug @ 928-525-9804

How has the scouting been? Looks like some rain may have been through the area. Are the tanks in good shape? Doug/RedRabbit

I have a 260 in the Remington laminated stainless mountain rifle. It's light and handles well, and is actually good looking for a stainless and laminated stocked rifle. I have a load for the 129 grain Hornady SST that is around 2800 fps. I figure it has the energy(retains 1200 ft-lbs) and velocity (maintains 2000 fps) for good bullet performance out to 400 yards. Trajectory is slightly less than the 270 winchester. While the 7mag and 300's may be flatter, the 260 has noticebly less recoil and is more pleasurable to shoot. I used the 260 on a Utah antelope hunt a few years ago to take a buck at 385 yards. Had good bullet performance and the recoil was not great enough to lose the sight picture. Also took it coues hunting one year, but didn't pop a cap. It's a great cartridge, but not the optimum for long distance game shooting,IMO. For coues and antelope hunting, and at the expense of some recoil, I'd consider the 25-06, 257 Weatherby, 270 Weatherby, and 270 WSM. Doug/Red Rabbit

Has anyone received their tags in the mail yet? The regs say they would be mailed out by July 23, but with the court case, was it delayed? My mailbox has been empty. Doug/RedRabbit

Finally, today! I was starting to think that the cc messed up, but then again I was not contacted either. A friend got his tag for the same hunt on Monday. Doug / RedRabbit

So much for the saying of leaving nothing but footprints and taking nothing but pictures . Actually, as I understood it from G&F, it is required to have a permit to establish a salt lick on national forest land, also. Land of the fee and home of the paid. Thoughts of the Red Rock Pass to park on the side of the highway in Oak Creek Canyon come to mind .

That was a good range estimate of 450 from 465 yards. I would hate to look across a canyon and guess 100 yards long, and miss or wound a coues. Those cross canyon distances are deceiving to me. Yes, I cheat repeatedly with no guilty conscience . While I can range fairly well at archery distances after years of practice, my eyeballs are not calibrated for those multi-football field distances. Doug/RedRabbit

For reasonably priced 15X binoculars, try the Minox or Docter brands for around $700(half the price of the Swaros). Binos are a lot more comfortable to glass through for hours on end than squinting through a spotting scope. I have the Velbon Chaser EFL-4 tripod which I got for around $130 with head. I really like that its legs are adjustable outward and it is easy to sit under. Slik came out with a good tripod with outwardly adjustable legs that is about a pound lighter. Stay away from the $30 walmart specials as the plasit leg brackets break too easy, and the legs don't swing out wide enough.

Ther is a company that will put a velvet like material on antlers. This is done a lot to caribou racks after they have been stripped. The same could be done to a deer rack after it has been stripped and scored. No need to worry about formaldhyde or insects.

The 150 SST interbonds did not group well out of my 300 WSM for the loads I tried. I am going to give the 150 Sciroccos a try this weekend. 300 WSM- could you pm or e-mail that load to me so I can try it? Thanx Doug/RedRabbit