jp0212

Thanks everyone! Ross seems to be getting some pretty awesome reviews. They have 5 stars on Google too. I saw Timber Mesa and was considering them, but they weren't listed as a dealer on Hoyt's website, so I thought they might not sell them. I'll give them a call to be sure. I'm still pretty open when it comes to a bow. The Hoyt and Mathews I listed above are at the top of my list, but I know I plan to shoot lots of other bows too to make absolutely certain. Top priority is shootability, followed VERY closely by weight. I prefer to backpack hunt so keeping the weight down is pretty important.

Along the same lines, I was at Usery last year and a couple of older gentlemen were having a problem getting the bolt open on their rifle. It was a wood stocked bolt action chambered in 223 and they were shooting 5.56 in it. The rifle was a very nice looking one but I don't remember the make. I explained the difference between the two rounds to them at the time. Yup, good call helping them out. Bolt guns are usually built to higher tolerances, so the expansion of the casing from the higher pressure was probably causing some problems.

To answer the questions about shooting 5.56 through a .223 rifle, someone more or less hit it on the head above but I figured I'd elaborate a little. The 5.56 round is loaded a little hotter to get better ballistics. Although the .223 can fire the 5.56 usually without any issue, you will see significant premature wear on the rifle as the pressure are simply too high for the bolt, extractor, etc. You can also (in rare instances) start to see malfunctions attributable to the higher pressures as it will be causing the rifle to cycle much harder than it was designed to do. I would strongly recommend just getting a rifle chambered for 5.56 if you think you will be firing those rounds. Not to mention, firearms that are rated 5.56 are generally a higher quality build as well. If you find something showing 5.56/.223 you are good to go for both rounds. If you are looking for a good rifle, I would recommend checking out Bravo Company's website. If you look in the sale section you can find some pretty amazing deals on blemish uppers. I built my current varmint rifle using those parts and was able to put together a very awesome rifle at a great price.

Regarding communication, get a Delorme inReach Explorer or SE. They are similar to a Spot device, but actually let you text message on your phone or directly on the device. You can also text back and forth directly with SAR should something ever happen. Much cheaper than a sat phone.

One thing I have debated quite a bit is bringing extra clothes on backcountry hunts that require me to backpack in for a few days. The last couple trips I brought additional clothes to sleep in, to avoid stinking up my clothes. At the same time though those clothes can be pretty heavy and offer the chance to shave a few pounds out of my pack. I was curious, to those of you who do backpack hunts, do you bring extra clothes or just choose to sleep in your hunting clothes to save weight and minimize the time it takes to change, etc.

I say again, I STRONGLY recommend avoiding anything like the Keto, Southbeach or Atkins diet. Really anything that drops your carbohydrate intake below 30% of your diet. Another flag is anything that lets you eat all the bacon you want, but won't allow any bread, pasta or potatoes. I you don't want to truly track calories, there are other diet plans out there that do a great job of having you balance your diet without that calorie counting. Body-For-Life and the Zone Diet are the two I most highly recommend. They have both been around for a very long time, and have done a fantastic job of helping people lose weight in a HEALTHY manner, which results in much longer term results.

I posted a thread a while ago titled "Needing Help", for anyone that is looking to become more fit. I have a B.S. in Kinesiology (Exercise Science), and spent a few years as a personal trainer before I decided to go back to school for Construction Management. I used to love helping people, but quickly realized I didn't want that type of profession for the rest of my life. I still really enjoy helping people get in better shape, so I am happy to help anyone out who needs it. I highly advise AGAINST any type of diet such as Keto, Atkins, South Beach, or any other diet plan that restricts your carbohydrate intake to less than 30% of your total. That percentage itself is already considered low carb. When I used to train, I always ran people on a diet that consisted of 40% Protein - 30% Carbs - 30% Fat along with a 500 calorie deficit. People's bodies tend to react differently, which is why the alternative to that was 40% Protein - 40% Carbs - 20% Fat with a 500 calorie deficit. The ONLY way you can dip below 30% carbs safely is to engage in a carb loading diet. That involves eating almost no carbs 5 days of the week, and stacking up and eating almost all carbs the other two days to replenish glycogen stores. The statement that some diets work for some people and others don't is completely false. The diet doesn't work solely because it doesn't get adhered to. Not necessarily out of a lack of motivation, but sometimes people may think they are doing the right thing when they aren't. As a trainer, I had only one single person not get the results they wanted from the macro break down I listed above. She was strictly adhering to it, but losing almost no weight. I had to convince her to see a doctor, as the only way that could be happening is if she had a thyroid issue, which she did. Following this type of plan, you do not starve your body of any necessary macro's so there are no harmful effects to your metabolism or how your body functions. The body can continue to operate using its normal functions of fuel metabolism. Someone stated earlier that Keto tells your body to use fat as fuel rather than carbs (glucose). That is actually false. You are essentialy starving your body, which forces it to start using fat out of desperation to fuel your muscles. The main issue with this is that your brain cannot utilize anything other that glucose as a fuel source, as it is pretty much the only thing that that can pass the blood brain barrier. When your body doesn't have enough glucose coming in, it will resort to pulling from Glycogen stored within your muscle (which is actually meant for muscle energy usage). When that runs out, which it will during Ketosis (Keto) or any other very low carb diet, your body will actually start to break down stored muscle because it can convert that to glucose to fuel the brain. You are also starving your body of a necessary macro nutrient, which causes it to alter your metabolism. That can actually have harmful effects. Generally, on those diets you do lose some fat, but you will also lose a significant amount of muscle as well as large amounts of water that equate to large weight loss. I can elaborate on this more if people would like, but I was hoping to avoid writing a confusing novel. I know this is probably super confusing so I will try to break down how I operate here: At 33 years old, 6'0", 205 lbs and regular exercise I will need 2796 calories to maintain my body weight Putting myself at 500 calorie deficit that means I need to eat 2296 calories to lose fat and minimize muscle loss At 40-30-30, that equates to 918 cal protein, 689 cal carbs and 689 cal fat Protein has 4 cal per gram, Carbs have 4 cal per gram and fat has 9 cal per gram Taking my macro breakdown that means I need: 918/4=230g of protein per day 689/4=172g of carbs per day 689/9=77g of fat per day I then take each of those "per day" values and divide by 5 given that I eat 5 small meals per day. Usually you would follow that plan for 3-4 weeks and evaluate how effective it is and adjust as needed. If you want to bulk up, everything above stays true except you will increase your intake by 500 calories and go into 6 meals, mainly because 5 meals will then become way to hard to eat given their size. I realize this is a lot to choke down, so feel free to let me know if clarification is needed.

Nothing for me or the kiddos yet. We'll see.

Without this sounding like personal ad, I am curious how everyone met their hunting buddies. I had a solid group of buddies that I used to hunt with, but unfortunately one moved to Wyoming, the next to Oregon and the last one to Washington. Their moving has left me having to go out solo for all but one trip over the last two years. It was cool at first, but it gets pretty lame after a while. I really want to meet some people that are around my same age group (late 20's/early 30's) that are into backpack style hunting into the Wilderness areas, but not sure where to start. Did most of you guys grow up with your bro's, or was it archery events, etc. that helped that out. Pretty sure approaching a dude at Cabela's or Bass Pro will get me beat up, and sending my wife over to help me out could go all sorts of wrong

Agreed. Part of the reason I have struggled to find a good hunting buddy is because of my desire to go deep into the Wilderness Areas. Hard to find someone willing to hike 5-10 miles each way just to get into the area to start hunting. I actually thought it would be easier with the onset of Cam Hanes and the Train to Hunt philosophy, but no luck yet. I have found some people willing to hunt with me, but as soon as I mention the hike they get a little busy. That will always be a lonely way to hunt. Generally speaking, people are not really know for being well disciplined or motivated. I love backpacking and do at least a couple 2 nighters every winter, but seldom do long trips anymore. Too busy chasing dollars and raising babies. I hear you. With the wife, a baby, my niece and nephew that I adopted and my 60 hour a week job it can be tough to get out. That being said I have been blessed with a supportive wife, who herself loves to hunt. She has never once given me a hard time about going out, and even encourages it since she knows how freeing it can be. Can't wait for the kiddos to all be old enough so she can start going with me again.

Agreed. Part of the reason I have struggled to find a good hunting buddy is because of my desire to go deep into the Wilderness Areas. Hard to find someone willing to hike 5-10 miles each way just to get into the area to start hunting. I actually thought it would be easier with the onset of Cam Hanes and the Train to Hunt philosophy, but no luck yet. I have found some people willing to hunt with me, but as soon as I mention the hike they get a little busy.

Or just put your hair up in a man-bun. I hear it the moment you throw it up you become one with nature and can speak to deer.

In my opinion you can't beat Angry Crab Shack. I know there are a few locations around town. They have awesome Crab and Crawfish. Hands down the most amazing seafood Gumbo I have had to date as well. Pretty reasonable pricing too. Downside is that the wait time can get pretty long if you go at the wrong time.

Agreed. There is nothing more frustrating than helping someone out, only to have them reap the benefits of all your hard work. I have gotten some amazing help from people on this forum (thanks again Big Browns!! ). I always make it a point to delete all waypoints, etc. from my GPS and not visit the spot again so I forget it. I had an amazing spot in 23 that I hunted for a few years without seeing another person. I felt bad for someone that needed a little help, so I pointed him that way. Not sure how many other people he told, after two years there ended suddenly being a couple other people, and the animals seemed to dry up from what I think might have been pressure from guys who didn't know what they were doing. Major bummer.

Paleo in it's raw state is not the best of meal plans unfortunately. I love the idea, but there are definitely some silly aspects to it that don't make a lot of sense. All the things you can eat are good to go, but some of the things you can't eat should be edible due to the health benefits. For example Cereal Grains, Legumes (especially peanuts), dairy, salt (in moderation) and potatoes are all very healthy and good options for any modified diet. Other things like greek yogurt are super healthy and provide huge benefits, but aren't permissible since they weren't around 10,000 years ago. If you want to do Paleo I'd recommend modifying it a little to include those items.

I would love to hear how that works out. Any chance you can post a review after using it a couple times?

Haha glad someone got the reference! Hands down one of the best shows on TV. I live out in Gilbert not too far from San Tan. You?

I hear ya. The one time I didn't have to hunt alone it was thankfully because someone here on the site was awesome enough to come help me out. I definitely think I should start getting into the archery leagues. I used to work at a shooting range/gun store, but everyone was more in to guns and less into hunting, so I unfortunately didn't meet anyone with the potential to become a hunting buddy. Don't worry dude the bill on my hat ain't straight. It's got a wicked redneck bend to it. I have also never lived in California so I'm not sure if I would actually fit in with the "bro's", but I'll have to check it out. Although the massive amount of Sitka Gear I own might grant me membership. I offer to take people out all the time when they tell me they haven't hunted but express interest in it. No takers yet. Not just to get a hunting buddy, but to grow the sport. One of these days maybe someone will jump on the opportunity. Hunting alone definitely has various phases. The first couple trips I took, I barely slept and was pretty freaked out. After a few trips I got used to it and actually started to love the freedom. All day everyday I am surrounded by people, so it was incredibly liberating spending that time solo. After several other trips it started to get pretty boring.

Hahaha you must not watch "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia".

Yeah, I probably should have been a little more specific. I'm mostly talking about wearing my hunting baselayers to sleep in. I'd definitely strip the outer layers and mid layers, but was more curious if people wear the base layers to sleep that they would wear to hunt. Also mainly talking about the late season hunts where warm clothes are needed.

Having grown up here, I always felt that people in Arizona were the friendliest people ever. I travel quite frequently for work so have met people in quite a few different areas. I noticed that the great migration to Arizona, particularly by people from California, New York and New Jersey made this place super rude. Not saying everyone from those places is an a'hole, but they definitely have a different way of dealing with people.

Also in on the Browning. They take great pictures and are very reasonably priced.

I personally have the Kelvin Vest and can say it is very warm. I've worn it with the Traverse Hoodie and Jetstream jacket in 25mph winds when it was below 0 and felt very comfortable. Supposedly the Kifaru is extremely warm, but not very packable. From what I hear the Kelvin is pretty packable. I would say if warmth is the priority go Kifaru. If packability is the priority, go with the Sitka.

Not really as long as you have the proper means to treat it. As long as you can treat all forms of bacteria, viruses, protozoa, etc. you can generally drink anything. That usually involves a filter and chlorine drops, a filter and a Steripen, etc. I would pass on a pond with half decayed carcasses in it unless it was an ABSOLUTE emergency and there was no other water source, but supposedly you can tap any resource with the proper means to treat it.

Haven't got it yet. I never hunt alone and have friends with other GPS's as a back up so I think i'm still good with the SE. Lucky you! I used to have a solid group of buddies to hunt with, but they all moved away. My wife was also my hunting buddy, but then came the baby so she had to sideline herself. Can't wait for her to get back out there with me. I would still recommend getting the Explorer just in case. In the very, very, very slim chance you ever find yourself in a bad place, the $50 that seems like a big deal now will seem far more trivial then. You will be happy either way.