Outdoor Writer

No upcoming hunts in this house, so beef will have to do. I was going to wait until Costco had the loins on sale for $3.50 ala woody, but I'd likely be dead by then. 😉

Basha's has beef tenderloin for $6.77 lb. Fri. thru Mon. only. I'll be stocking up with two more.

This is what they like. Good luck to everyone.

BTT

Last call before I list this on eBay & Rokslide.

You got it. See my PM

Another oldie from my files.... LAST SHOT HEAT UP WITH DOVES Copyright by Tony Mandile As I stopped along the dusty two-track, the truck radio blared out Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire.” It was an obvious prophecy of the day to come when the weather forecaster followed with, “Well, today will be sunny and hot. The 6 a.m. temperature at Sky Harbor is currently 91 degrees, and the expected high will be 113." Already, the sun had started to peek over the eastern horizon with its orange glow. My oldest son and hunting partner, Keith, sighed. "Hope the birds are plentiful and get up early so the sun doesn’t get a chance to bake our perhaps not-too-swift brains. This is madness, you know?" I laughed. “Quit complaining. We’ve got lots of cold water. Now let’s get out there. The sooner we fill our limits, the quicker we can go eat breakfast.” We uncased our shotguns, filled our vests with shells and walked off in different directions alongside the sunflower-covered field. Keith disappeared into an irrigation ditch about 200 yards east of where we parked. I walked to the west end of the field and settled into a small indentation in the edge of the five-foot-high plants. The tall stalks surrounded me on three sides and provided good concealment. I could feel the sweat caused by my short walk already trickling down my back, chest and forehead. I took my hat off, mopped the perspiration from my brow with my shirt sleeve, then crouched below the tops of the sunflower stalks. Lees than two minutes passed before I heard Keith fire his 20-gauge. Another shot immediately followed the first. I saw feathers gently fluttering toward the ground, but the bird had kicked in its afterburner and streaked toward the other side of the field. Keith cut loose with his first tirade of the morning at the departing dove. "Go ahead, you @#*#@. Fly off with your heart shot out!" I chuckled to myself, then peered over the top of my natural blind in the direction of the salt-cedar grove along the Gila River. At least two dozen flying silhouettes dotted the sky and headed right toward me. A pair of low-flyers was now less than 50 yards away and would fly directly over me. At least I hoped they would. Clicking off the safety, I pointed the gun at the leader and promptly missed, shooting two feet behind the tiny gray missile as it whizzed over my head. When the second dove came within range, it, too, miraculously dippsy-doodled through a string of shot. I shook my head, muttered a few choice words a little harsher than Keith had and popped two more shells into the chambers of my Browning over-and-under. I shut the action just in time to see two whitewings coming in low over the sunflowers. They were heading straight at me as if they were on a strafing run. I raised the 20-gauge deliberately until the barrel covered the lead bird. As the sight went past the whitewing, I pulled the trigger. The dove folded its wings and crashed to the ground less than five feet behind me. The initial flight at the Arlington Wildlife Area lasted two hours that morning. During that time, Keith and I shot uncounted shells before downing our limits. Understandably, neither of us claims prowess with a shotgun. Arlington, along with Robbins and Black Butte, are owned by the Arizona Game and Fish Department and are located in the "Green Belt," a long stretch of lush vegetation that borders the Gila River from Phoenix to Arizona's western border near Yuma. Besides being ideal dove nesting areas, this area along the Gila provides excellent pass shooting as the birds fly from their roosts in the thickets and head to the nearby grain fields. The department leases the surrounding land to local farmers. In turn, they must raise grain crops specifically meant to help feed the numerous mourning and whitewing doves that habitually nest and roost in the thick growth along the river. Some hunters favor citrus groves or desert water holes, but over the last 25 years I have found the farm country west of Phoenix, near Buckeye and Gila Bend, to be the most productive. In most places, a person who can shoot reasonably well --- certainly better than either Bill or I --- can take a 10-bird limit in less time than it takes to eat a hearty breakfast. In the southern half of Arizona, many cities and towns have nearby agricultural regions. The farms around Casa Grande, Eloy and Florence normally offer excellent shooting, and experienced wingshooters regularly describe the shooting in the fields near Yuma as incredible. At times, the Picacho Reservoir area deserves a 10 as well. A friend of mine from Tucson regularly takes limits near that city or sometimes goes east to the grain fields around Safford or Wilcox. Hunting doves in farm country is rather simple and usually amounts to pass shooting at incoming birds. For the most part, getting in position before daylight or an hour before sunset between the bird's nesting and feeding areas holds the key to success. Of course, being able to hit the targets consistently is a great help. Doves go to food and water each morning and afternoon. One to two hours later, most return to the tamarisks and mesquite trees in the river bottoms or into a neighboring citrus grove. Therefore, merely turning around in the opposite direction to watch for the returning birds could complete a limit. Although mourning and whitewing doves are closely related, they differ in many ways. Those who have hunted doves for any time are no doubt aware of the whitewing's habits. Unlike mourning doves, which often remain in Arizona year round, the whitewings head south to winter in Mexico at the first signs of cool weather. Sometimes, this occurs as early as mid-August. They will remain below the border until the following May, when they return to Arizona to nest. For the hunter, however, the most important concern is the difference between the feeding habits of the two species. Mourning doves are ground feeders. Although they will feed between rows of standing grain, they normally prefer fields that have been harvested already. In contrast, the whitewing does the opposite. You'll frequently see them filling their crops while perched atop maize, safflower or sorghum plants. So when you choose a hunting spot, it's smart to keep this in mind; if there's no standing grain fields in the vicinity, you can almost forget putting a lot of whitewings in your game vest. When the weather cools later in the season and the whitewings leave for warmer climes, I like to use the mourning dove's feeding habits to my advantage by "walking" them up. This technique is ideal to use after the early morning flight is over. Because it involves every imaginable shooting angle, the jump shooting method proves invaluable for hunters who wish to sharpen up their skills for flushing quail. A few birds might fly directly away; others might head to the left or right, or straight at you. Be forewarned, though; locating downed birds in fields covered with a copious crop could be difficult. A good retriever, however, will take care of the problem. Hunting a particular spot year after year is not always a sure thing. Low grain prices might force a local farmer to switch to a more profitable crop, such as cotton, which fails to attract birds. In the past, expanding development, fires and floods have destroyed traditional nesting habitat. Although this has had the most devastating effect on the whitewings, it has taken a toll on mourning doves, too. Undoubtedly, pre-season scouting is an important factor for hunting success. Yet it's better to wait until a day or two before the season actually opens since some many variables could affect the habits of the birds. If you find a good spot for whitewings in mid-August, a seasonal storm might send them packing before September 1. Because the dove's daily routine is predictable, the hunter who figures out the pattern a day or two before the season opener should score well during the first few days. My favorite method involves a lot of driving. First, I choose a broad area, and then narrow down the choices by driving the roads either early in the morning or late in the evening. Doing this gives me a general idea of the bird concentrations and also the species that is most prevalent. Of course, in recent years, finding a mother lode of whitewings has become extremely rare. After finding good bird numbers, I spend some time watching the flight pattern and trying to determine how long the birds are on the move. Occasionally, this will take more than a day. It even might pay to wait for the birds to return to give you an estimate of how long they feed before heading back to their roosts. Searching out a likely ambush spot comes next. I search out a natural blind that allows me to see in all directions. For the ease of locating downed birds, I also look for one with fairly open ground close at hand. The blind might simply be a big tree, a pile of tumbleweeds or an irrigation ditch deep enough to hide in without getting wet. As a matter of habit, I always wear clothing that will blend with my planned hideout and avoid ANY white or bright colors. Many of the places I hunt border public land. At times, though, the best flights take place over someone's farm, in which case I seek out the owner and ask permission to hunt. Most landowners are happy to have you as long as they know what you're doing in their fields. Even though the bird population is down, hunting doves in Arizona still provides a fast-paced, heart-thumping brand of action rarely encountered in other types of hunting. And as usual, I'll be out there letting the sun bake my brains, getting frustrated by my numerous misses and elated by the good shots. -----30-----

Yeah, it's a young one, but none of them have too much meat anyway. 😅

Thank you! 👍 I had looked for that but none of my searches turned it up.

Is that written into law somewhere?

28-873. Stopping, standing or parking prohibitions; exceptions; definition A. Except if necessary to avoid conflict with other traffic or if in compliance with law or the directions of a police officer or traffic control device, a person shall not stop, stand or park a vehicle in any of the following places: 1-14 NOT RELEVANT 15. On a controlled access highway except: (a) For emergency reasons. (b) In areas specifically designated for parking such as rest areas. B. A local authority may allow motor vehicles providing a public entity's public transportation service to stop on a state highway or state route for the purpose of allowing passengers to enter or exit if all of the following apply: 1. The local authority that has jurisdiction over the location of the proposed stopping point conducts a traffic and engineering investigation to determine whether passengers are able to safely enter or exit public transportation vehicles at the proposed stopping point. 2. The local authority that conducts the traffic and engineering investigation pursuant to paragraph 1 of this subsection submits the results of the investigation to the director for review and approval of the proposed stopping point. 3. The driver does not leave the vehicle. 4. The vehicle is stopped only long enough to load and unload passengers. 5. The vehicle engages four-way hazard flashers. 6. The roadway has a posted speed limit that does not exceed fifty-five miles per hour. 7. The roadway has signed or signalized intersection controls within a jurisdictionally confined boundary. 8. The vehicle is clearly marked as a public transportation vehicle. 9. As determined by the director in conjunction with the local authority, the driver drives the vehicle into a pullout or uses any other available method that limits the vehicle from interfering with traffic on the roadway. C. For the purposes of this section, "public transportation vehicle" means any vehicle that either: 1. Is owned or operated by a public entity. 2. Is operated under a contract with a public entity.

Boseman as JR

Groan................

Except when there is permission from the owner, no?

Both slickers still available.

Having survived colon cancer two years ago at 78, I feel lucky. But...indications in the last couple of weeks are telling me something is amiss again. ☹️

Maybe a 30 Rem. ?

It appears that truck will have a bit more than the standard "Arizona Pin Striping" as a result of making a new road. 😎

For all you diehard Wildcat fans, Hall of Famer and former Arizona men’s basketball head coach Lute Olson has died at the age of 85.

GAME AND FISH NEWS Aug. 26, 2020 All signs point to exceptional dove-hunting season Opening day is Tuesday, Sept. 1 PHOENIX — Delayed. Postponed. Or, just flat-out scrubbed. Looking back, 2020 will go down as the year in which our daily lives were turned on their ears, not so much remembered for what we did but what we couldn’t do. Fortunately, hunting memories are waiting to be made when the 2020 dove season opens Sept. 1. It will still be important to remain physically distant from other groups, or persons not in your same party or household, of course, but Arizona’s dove hunters are strongly encouraged to stay socially connected and share in the fun experiences. “The great news is that another exceptional early season is expected,” said Johnathan O’Dell, small game biologist for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. “A longer wet winter delayed some early nesting, but it pushed more of that nesting into the prime breeding season in the deserts. “The bottom line is that a lot of birds should be around for the season opener, especially since the summer monsoon has been relatively weak so far.” Here’s the most important thing hunters should know: In this time when everyone is being encouraged to limit their exposure in public places, it’s much easier and more convenient to buy hunting licenses and state migratory bird stamps online at https://www.azgfd.com/license/. The 15-day “early” season gets underway 30 minutes before legal sunrise Sept. 1. The daily bag limit is 15 mourning and white-winged doves, of which no more than 10 may be white-winged. The possession limit is 45 mourning and white-winged in the aggregate after opening day, of which no more than 15 may be taken in any one day. Of the 45-dove possession limit, only 30 may be white-winged, of which no more than 10 may be taken in any one day. There is no daily bag limit or possession limit on the invasive Eurasian collared-dove. Once again, the greatest number of doves — and dove hunters — will be concentrated in the state’s agricultural areas, particularly those that produce small-grain crops like wheat, barley, oats and sorghum. That includes locations like Yuma, one of the premier destinations in the U.S., as well as Buckeye, Eloy, Florence, Gila Bend, Toltec and others. Note: All National Park Service parks and monuments are closed to hunting unless specifically opened in Commission Order. All dove hunters should review the “2020-2021 Arizona Dove and Band-tailed Pigeon Regulations,” which are posted at www.azgfd.gov/dove. The regulations have been produced in a format that hunters will find particularly handy in the field. The color brochure is easy to read and features important hunting information, such as season dates, daily bag and possession limits, and legal requirements, at a glance. All hunters 18 and older must possess a valid Arizona hunting license, as well as a migratory bird stamp — both of which can be purchased online now at https://www.azgfd.com/license/. A youth combination hunt/fish license (for youth hunters 10 to 17) is only $5 and includes a migratory bird stamp. For everything else “dove,” visit www.azgfd.gov/dove. This web page offers helpful information from hunting safety tips during the pandemic to a list of the top infractions for which citations are written every season. Also, check out O’Dell’s video that shows in detail a couple of techniques for field-dressing doves. Dove hunters play an important role in conservation. Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program (WSFR) funds consist of excise taxes collected on the sale of hunting and fishing equipment (including 11 percent on ammunition), the benefit of which comes right back to Arizona for habitat improvements, shooting ranges, boating access and more.

In my misplaced youth during campouts as a boy scout, our favorite prank for the newbie was to have him search through the gear to find the left-handed smoke shifter. Usually, it became, "I can't find it." We would then send him to ask other troops if we could borrow theirs.

St. Johns is less than 30 miles from Springerville. From there about everywhere south and west is prime country for an outdoors person. Lots of national forest included.

There's some of the best hunting, fishing and hiking in the country just south of SJ.

I found this photo. Looks a bit like yours, but it doesn't say what they are. Hard telling from your pix; did they have stems??

Come on, Bill, lighten up. Don't want you popping a gasket over trivial matters. 😵