Shanachie

I did the video that goes with this story. I thought I'd share it. In 1973, three friends decided to dress like mountain men and ride horseback from Phoenix to Canada... just for the adventure. They made their own buck skin clothes and took black powder rifles with them. The only modern thing they took with them was a camera. It took them six month to get there but they made it. Two of the guys got together in Phoenix a few weeks ago and I managed to catch up with them and hear their story. Their photos are really great. http://www.azcentral.com/thingstodo/living/articles/20130412arizona-canada-mountain-men-trek.html?fb_action_ids=10201134682547519&fb_action_types=og.recommends&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

On the night of opening day I found myself sitting around a campfire with my buddies Wyatt and Brandon. All of use had been hunting with experienced people in the past, but between the three of us only Wyatt had killed a big game animal and that was with a Volkswagen. Separately, we all had hunted javelina and deer but just couldn't quite get it done. All of us found hunting later in life and wanted to take full advantage of Arizona's opportunities. We were going to hunt a spot that Wyatt and Brandon's friend DJ recommended to us. He filled a tag there previously and gave Brandon detailed directions on where to look. He was going to meet us out there Monday. Saturday we followed the instructions on where to go. Everything seemed to match up to what DJ described and the area looked great. We settled into start glassing. An hour or so later I looked down into a drainage and to my surprise a mountain lion walked into my view. I got quick four second look at it before it slipped away. The lion, would end up being the excitement of the day. Sunday ended much the same way Saturday did- empty handed. All of the tracks and sign we found were old. Nothing too recent. I was starting to think this was turning into another camping trip. That night I settled into the back of my truck not feeling too optimistic. I was having a great time, but it sure would be nice if one of us at least got one. Early the next morning I woke up to a truck pulling up next to mine. Out jumped a guy with a handlebar mustache with a personality to match. His fresh optimism filled us with a renewed confidence as we hiked back in. As we got near the area we spent the previous days he stopped, pointed up the mountain and said," Where are you going? It's that way." We had been in the wrong spot. After a challenging climb we looked down into a valley. With a mountainside to our backs we glassed the surrounding hills. After about 45 minutes DJ turned around to say something to Brandon and then pointed to the hillside behind us. About 15 javelina, a few really big ones, were making their way in our direction. We spread out, and waited. Brandon shot first then DJ. Both dropped pigs right away. The hillside came alive with pigs running every which way. Wyatt took a shot, dropping a big one. I was the last to go but it looked like they might have all gotten away. Then DJ pointed to a final one up pretty high. I figured this was my last chance. BOOM- a hit and it conveniently rolled most of the way down the mountain resting next to a cactus. We were four for four. I can't thank DJ enough for helping us out. I learned a lot of this trip, most importantly that the sweet spot might just be over the next mountain. Thanks for a great trip guys.

I got my summer sausage and chorizo back in time for an early St. Patrick's Day party we were having. After hearing so much about how bad they can taste I was a little worried but I gotta say it turned out really well. We smoked a couple of pork butts for the main meal but put a bunch of summer sausage slices out for folks to try. Keep in mind that the majority of the people there are not hunters and have had limited experiences eating game. People who I thought would never try it were going back for seconds. Every bit of it that we put out was eaten. Everyone was talking about how good it was. The best was when someone came up and asked me," Where do you even find javelina sausage?" I told them, "on the side of a mountain." I'm looking forward to trying the chorizo. Now to learn how to go about hunting deer...

I took mine to Miller's Southwest. I got snack sticks and chorizo made.

I was out today in 37A and didn't see any. I ran in to a ranger with Ironwood National Monument looking for border crossers and he said he had not seen any in a while either.

Nice!! Glad to see you guys got a couple. I spent Tue and Wed in 37A and didn't see a thing. Even empty handed, time in the desert is a great start to the year. I'm gonna try next weekend. Maybe the javelina in 37A partied too hard on New Years Eve.

Very nice! Lets hope I have a similar experience tomorrow.

I'll be out there Tuesday and Wednesday. First bow hunt!!

So to clarify, if I have an archery tag for 37 and a general tag for 37a I am only allowed one javelina. If I get a archery tag for 33 and a general for 37a I can get two javelina. Is that correct?

Here you go: http://www.azgfd.gov/eservices/documents/leftovers-spring.pdf Here is info on the non-permit javelina tags: http://www.azgfd.gov/eservices/documents/Javelina%20OTC%20Handout%208-24-2012.pdf

@bonecollector- "For 2013, the statewide bag limit for javelina has been raised to two per calendar year, with no more than one taken per open area as defined in each hunt number. The bag limit may be filled in any combination of permit-tags (draw tag or first-come leftover draw tag as long as they have differing hunt numbers) or nonpermit-tags (over-the-counter tag). No more than one permit-tag shall be issued per hunter through the initial draw."

Javi general in 37A and I'm hoping to get one of the leftover archery tags as well. It's pretty cool that you can hunt two of them this year. As a newbie archery hunter that extra time will hopefully make a difference.

Congrats! Nice write-up. I'm 35 and am about to go on my first mule deer hunt. It's never too late to learn.

Nice one! Congrats.

I'm really looking forward to javi season. It'll be my first time hunting with a bow. Can't wait.

I'm hoping to get some advice. Is a .243 going to be OK for mule deer? If so, what ammo do you like? I understand it might be little small. My other option is a Weatherby 300 my wife's grandfather gave me. I haven't shot it yet. I'm pretty accurate with my .243 thought. I;d worry about not having enough time to get up to speed with the Weatherby for an early November hunt. Thoughts other than buying a new rifle? Thanks for your insight. This will be my first mule deer hunt. I'm pretty psyched.

Thanks for all of the great advice. I feel pretty good shooting my .243 and I was hoping it would be enough. I'm going on my first mule deer hunt in Unit 22 in early November. Can't wait. Thanks again everyone.

Very Nice. Great opening shot with the silhouetted antelope.

Congrats on a successful hunt. Nice Christmas present.

Nice work and with a pistol none the less. Way to not get discouraged and keep on it. It's good to hear there are Javelina in 37A. I've been out scouting there a handful of times for my upcoming rifle hunt and have yet to spot any.

Awesome story. I'm slowly trying to get my wife interested. What a great experience to have together.

Where do you like to go to have chorizo, brats, polish kielbasa or spicy Italian sausage made? I have my first javelina hunt in Feb and have been wondering about a good place to have sausage made.