Outdoor Writer

Oh, okay. Then it could have been taken any time after your last visit and before your most recent one. I guess I had assumed that you had just killed your other buck there, as well. That said, I sure can't imagine the thief being stupid enough to then put a salt lick close by, knowing you would probably be back to retrieve your stuff and perhaps run into him. -TONY

Here's one taken from the window of our time share in Mazatlan. -TONY

Good point and possible. But if you were him and wanted the camera and stand, would you wait more than two months to go back for them without your pack and rifle?? Why would he wait until after the season when the owner would likely have removed his stuff? Again, your scenario is possible but it makes no sense to me. -TONY

And here I thought only fishermen stretched the truth. For shame. So is anything else you mentioned about this great place to hunt hogs embellished beyond the reality of it?? -TONY

Josh, Correct me if I'm wrong here, but the photo you posted was of a guy that wandered into camera range last Oct., and the camera was stolen just recently, like in the last week or so, right?? If that is the case, I wonder why the guy in the photo didn't steal anything the first time he was there. I guess what I'm saying is you might be pointing the finger at the wrong person, given the situation. It's possible it is the same guy, but IMO, it's unlikely. -TONY

Well, I saw the hog that appears to have been killed the first time by you and the second time by your buddy (see above). If he needed killing twice, he musta been a tough ol' bugger, eh? -TONY

Wow. That is exciting. I will rush over and look at it right away. -TONY

Jesse, Dan (guy in your last listed video) and Atsko have been in the forefront of all this research on deer vision since the late 1980s. Everything he said is right on the money. Because I was skeptical, I spent more than a year researching the subject and was present when they tested the vision of LIVE deer at the Univ. of Georgia's deer research facility. I also attended the Southeast Deer Symposium in Mississippi where two biologists presented their papers on the subject. I penned the first and most definitive article about the subject for OUTDOOR LIFE magazine in the early 1990s. The article and supplemental charts, etc. covered about six pages. Although the original topic concerned deer, MOST non-human mammals are "blind" to blaze orange and nearly all shades of red into the infrared range of the color spectrum. That general statement takes in ungulates, canines and felines. In contrast, all of the above are highly adept at seeing in the lower range of the spectrum, i.e. blues to ultraviolet. This is what originally triggered the research and led to Atsko's products to eliminate UV absorption from clothing and other items. The only creatures you hunt that will see orange are the avian creatures, such as wild turkey, waterfowl and upland game. And they also are very attuned to the UV part of the spectrum. Anyone interested in reading the OL article, can send me a PM here with an email address. -TONY

I see you just joined CWT today. Welcome!! Where is the ranch? You said it is "free-range" hunting. To me that means there are no fences to keep the hogs from wandering around the rest of the state. Is that the case? Or did you mean they aren't in a small pen? Look forward to seeing the photos. -TONY

rockdog, A site trying to sell hunting opportunities should have at least a modicum of information about such opportunities. That one has nada, zero, zilch, nil, nothing. You would think they would at least include some photos of past hunters if they intend to sell hunts. So how's about some photos of that monster boar you shot?? -TONY

Right. I saw that. The web site is still useless. How the heck does an outfit looking to run a money-making venture think that site will help them? -TONY

Jeepers, To save you time, the web site is about useless with very little information on it unless you need a recipe for venison chile.

Good job, Troy!! I really enjoy it when young lads such as you are successful. -TONY

That is one dandy ram! Congrats. -TONY

TJ, I had posted a some pix of a couple javelina hunts from the 1960s in one of the other threads here. I'll see if I can locate them. I also have some scans -- bad ones -- of a few prints from our steenkin peeg hunts. I need to find them on my HD. In the meantime, the following is a snippet from one of the first articles I wrote on javelina way back in the early 1970s. It reccounts my very first successful hunt when I was a tenderfoot of 20 years old nearly a half century ago. But I still laugh when I read about it. -TONY ********** My first javelina hunt took place in 1963, a year after my arrival from New Jersey. I was 20-years-old then, and chasing squirrels and rabbits comprised my meager hunting experience. Two months before opening day, Bill McCurdy asked me to join him and two companions for the hunt. At the time, pen-raised "pigs" were the only ones with which I was familiar. Concealing my ignorance, I quickly agreed to join the trio. By the following week having a few phone conversations and reading some books made me very apprehensive about the hunt. I discovered our quarry-to-be looked like an over-grown rat with a short tail and flat nose that supposedly possessed a liking for attacking hunters. I had purchased a 30/30 lever action prior to a canceled deer hunt a few months earlier. A new Stetson and a .44 magnum handgun, both bought a week before the javelina season's opening day, completed my Western ensemble. For a while, the hunt went as planned; we ate breakfast in the dark, wished each other luck and ventured off in different directions in quest of a trophy. Shortly thereafter, Murphy's law took over, turning my day into one better suited as the plot for a Chevy Chase movie. A 100 yards from camp, a cholla cactus attached itself to my leg. I painfully removed the offending barbs. Hopping from rock to rock, I began crossing Pinto Creek in the dark and nearly made it; fortunately, the water was only knee-deep. By noon I had climbed half-way up a ridge but soon realized I had erred in my judgment. The slope was steeper than I first thought and about six inches of marble-sized, rough-edged volcanic gravel covered it. For every step I went up, I slid down at least two. Earlier, my down jacket had eliminated the chill of the March morning, but now it became a hindrance. Stripping to my short sleeve shirt, I tied the jacket around my waist and placed the rifle sling over both my head and shoulder so I could use both hands to claw at the loose rocks. Once I reached the top I gingerly lowered my battered body onto a nearby boulder. Raw, bloody fingers raised my canteen to anxious lips, while perspiration dripped from beneath my Stetson. Suddenly, a grunt disturbed my rehabilitation. The sound had come from behind me. Trying to keep the rest of me motionless, I cautiously swiveled my head. With its nose sniffing the air, my prey stared at me from 30 yards away. Other dark shapes moved through the brush. As I stood slowly and deliberately, my legs began shaking. Tales about charging beasts came to mind. "Don't panic," I told myself. "Be calm." I debated with myself whether removing the rifle from over my head would take too much time or spook the javelina. I decided to use the Ruger instead and winced when the click of the hammer locking into place broke the stillness My unsteady legs and heavy breathing caused the single-action revolver to move up and down, left and right. When the sights crossed the target for the third time, the pistol roared. The recoil pushed it and my right hand past my head, barely missing a favorite ear. The bullet tore a chunk of wood from the mesquite tree behind the hog. Motionless, it continued to stare at me. A dozen more pigs stepped into the open and milled around, apparently undisturbed by the handgun's deafening report. The .44 boomed three more times. The last shot thudded into the ground, splattering dirt and rocks in the pig's direction. The gun also tore a chunk of flesh out of hand where my thumb was attached to it. Unscathed, my primary target swapped ends, snorted a few times and headed for a thick manzanita grove. With bristles erect, the rest of the herd followed. I holstered the smoking pistol, removed the .30/30 and noisily thrashed through the head-high trees with the grace of a fox in a hen house. I was positive the commotion would surely send the fleeing pigs into the next county. Intead, I saw a lone hog standing broadside in the open, a mere 50 feet away. I soon discovered my marksmanship with a rifle far outclassed my accuracy with the handgun; my first Arizona trophy became history. Bill was eating lunch when I walked into camp. He noticed the hog hanging from my shoulder and paused in mid-bite. "What did you do, rassle'em to death?" The manzanita's sharp branches had tattered my shirt. Deep, red scratches, with a spot of blood here and there, made both my arms and face look like an ill-conceived road map. The hastily bandaged cut from the handgun's recoil didn't help my appearance, either. Since that inept but successful first hunt, I have pursued the shy javelina several more times. Each hunt has taught me more about the elusive pig's habits and haunts. Other experiences have clarified some of the myths associated with the javelina, especially the one about their penchant for hostile assaults.

Bill, As you might know, I did an annual Steenkin' Peeg Hunt for a bunch of guys from all over the country for many years. We always hunted either the WM or SC reservations so we never had to worry about evreyone getting a permit. It got to be quite an affair with a camp and food that had many guys coming back every year just to eat. I lost count of the ones I've killed here in AZ and in Texas, but it was enough to where I decided I didn't need to kill anymore about 15 years ago. So when we had the hunts, I did nothing but play camp mom for the rest of the crew. One of the guys from NY had his javelina smoked somewhere near his house one year and brought a big hunk to the hunt the next year. It was the best javelina meat I've eaten. I used to have mine done at the Real Texas BBQ that was on Bethany Home near I17 in Phx. When I heated it, I would slice it thin and put a liberal coating of a tangy bbq sauce on it. Then I put it on a rack in an oven pan with about 1/2" of water in it and slowly heated it at about 225 degs. It was both moist and flavorful. -TONY

Happy Birthday, ol' man

That's a dandy cat. He looks like he might be a tad larger than mine below, but not by much. Grong's daddy led me to it a LOT of years ago. Whadya think, Dogman?? -TONY

Heck no! Those two years in a Catholic school no doubt had a detrimental effect on his common sense. -TONY

I started a new thread with this topic here after researching the law pertaining to the NR/outfitter quota for the thread in the Hunting in New Mexico section. We've had some discussion here about what might become of baiting game other than bear in AZ. Below are some excerpts from NM's game laws/regulations that are ALREADY in effect. -TONY TITLE 19 NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE CHAPTER 31 HUNTING AND FISHING PART 10 HUNTING AND FISHING-MANNER AND METHOD OF TAKING 19.31.10.7 DEFINITIONS: Q. "Baiting" shall mean the placing, exposing, depositing, distributing, or scattering of any salt, grain, scent or other feed on or over areas where hunters are attempting to take protected game mammals or game birds. ***** TITLE 19 NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE CHAPTER 31 HUNTING AND FISHING PART 14 ELK 19.31.14.7 DEFINITIONS: D. “Baiting” shall mean the placing, exposing, depositing, distributing, or scattering of any salt, grain, scent or other feed on or over areas where hunters are attempting to take elk. 19.31.14.10 ELK MANNER AND METHOD REQUIREMENTS AND RESTRICTIONS: G. Use of baits or scents: It shall be unlawful for anyone to take or attempt to take any elk by use of baits or scents as defined in 19.31.10.7 NMAC. Scent masking agents on one's person are allowed. ***** TITLE 19 NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE CHAPTER 31 HUNTING AND FISHING PART 13 DEER 19.31.13.7 DEFINITIONS: B. “Baiting” shall mean the placing, exposing, depositing, distributing, or scattering of any salt, grain, scent or other feed on or over areas where hunters are attempting to take deer. 19.31.13.10 DEER MANNER AND METHOD REQUIREMENTS AND RESTRICTIONS: G. Use of baits or scents: It shall be unlawful for anyone to take or attempt to take any deer by use of baits or scents as defined in 19.31.10.7 NMAC. Scent masking agents on one's person are allowed.

Perhaps, but perhaps not -- at least in the case of coyotes. Again, quoting from the NM statute: "...where hunters are attempting to take protected game mammals or game birds." The distinction should be obvious. -TONY

If you're talking about the case here in AZ, it involved both shooting the stray horses and then putting them out as bait to kill bears, which in itself is illegal. Jelly donuts and honey aren't the only baits bears like. As for finding something dead per chance, the NM law states: "....placing, exposing, depositing, distributing, or scattering." So if any part of that in regards to the dead carcass applies, it's illegal. Obviously, both the game warden and perhaps a judge will ultimately decide the legality of such a citation. So the hunter will be the one who must decide whether to put that decision in their hands. My now departed grandfather was my hunting partner for 15 years here in AZ. He hunted with me until he was into his late 80s and died at 94. During that time he always told me and my kids when they were growing up: “Obey the law and do only what you feel is right. If there's a doubt, don't do it.” I still abide by his wisdom and even take it a bit beyond the legal aspects as far as the, "If there's a doubt, don't do it." -TONY

Doug, The scent thing is certainly interesting, and I would agree that it basically bans the stuff mentioned here. Also, I'm not too sure tarsal glands or cow urine on one's self would quailfy as a "scent masking AGENT." Me thinks what they had in mind were those types of masking agents sold by Atsko , Hunter's Specialties, etc. that supposedly eliminate (mask) human scent by using a biochemical reaction with bacteria. That's a lot different than trying to use pee to cover human scent. Jeff, I have no doubt you are correct about everyone knowing what the law is in NM. That's one reason I started this thread. It might just save some folks -- as least those who care -- a citation. -TONY

Hmmm. So he was Taulman's BIL, huh? -TONY

Kev, Yeah, I knew they had been around for a while, but I thought some of the wording was interesting, especially the inclusion of "scent" in the statute. Here, it's more like before MLB outlawed steroids and HGH. -TONY