AZ8

Wow, I'm envious! haha. Great job! Our spot sucks this year....not much luck. But still nice to head out. Looks like you have a great spot!

Ive decide I need one myself. Just tired of beating up my truck!! If anyone has ever driven the 82 road on Anderson Mesa knows that has to be THE WORST road on the planet! Years ago, I thought I was going to bust both axles on my truck just trying to get outta that mess! Vowed to never drive anywhere on Anderson Mesa again unless I have a quad! LOL Anyways.....I've decided on a Honda Rancher. My goal is to save enough and have it by next fall! Good luck on our search/purchase!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/9728034/Washington-state-lights-up-as-smoking-marijuana-becomes-legal.html

No specific hunt per se. I'd buy about 5,000 acres and flip off my neighbors as I high tail it outta the valley!!!

It shows both dates. Under "season dates" and "open areas". See where it says...."AND May 10....". The online format simply doesn't allow it to show in the same box. You're good to go!

Good luck to all! Put up my Christmas lights and I was sweating my a$$ off! Whats wrong with this weather??!! Flat out ridiculous! Wishing everyone a great hunt!

Hold on! Not until December 1st!

Hey there! Just wondering how everyone is doing a month now into the season. It's been tough for us to say the least. I don't know if the unusual heat here at the end of the month is affecting their early season patterns, but we just aren't finding much. It's clear our area suffered a poor hatch and/or recruitment. The few birds we're seeing and bagging are older, skittish birds. The usual numbers just aren't there. Anyways, just wondering if this is what you guys are seeing or simply bad luck for us this year? Our backup spot is even worse! Been hunting quail for 30+ years and this is as tough as I can remember. So, what are you guys experiencing? Thanks.

drone skeet shooting. LOL http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Flying-Camera-From-Animal-Rights-Group-Shot-Down-at-Pigeon-Shoot-Cops-179983451.html?dr

Not elk hunting related, so I'm posting this in the campfire. Anyhow, on our way home from a day of quail hunting, my brother and I headed out of Tonto Basin. Heading south at the 188/87 junction back to Phoenix, about a mile south of the turnoff, and not far past the rest area, we see a huge 6x6 bull in the number 2 lane of SR 87!!! About freaked me out as I wasn't expecting it. It was about 6PM, almost dark and almost the last light as my headlights lit up this huge bull! I'm always observant....but this caught me off guard. Going 65mph....I about messed up my pants! lol Has anyone else seen elk here? Can't believe how far south he was. In the mesquites, saguaros and pricky pears. Just bizarre.

Wow. Guess my sighting wasn't unusual after all. They must be coming off the Mazatzals and expanding their range south. Maybe we'll get a new sub-unit to hunt: Unit 22 Very South

Turkey for me! Now if those wicked spring winds would stay away...I'll be happy!

How bout all the Red counties/states start their own country....and all the blue counties/states can have their own country. We can run it our way...they can run it how they see fit. And we can build a big wall to keep them out!

I think Romney ran a decent campaign. It was just too much for him to campaign against Obama AND the media. Even the best candidate wouldn't have been able to overcome the stacked deck. I'm still stunned. I'm depressed. I've been in a haze all day at work....the whole day just seems surreal to me. Romney vs Santa Clause(Obama)...... Work hard, take care of your family and live a decent life, or...........let the government give you free phones, free insurance, free birth control, food and a house, all without working? The people decided that Santa Clause is the better choice. Romney had no chance. We've become Europe. http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/110712-632397-five-stories-the-media-have-buried-.htm

huntlines, I don't have that data. You would have to email the individual DNR departments to get that information.

123456, You are probably one of the G&F employees who troll this web site and like to throw "facts" around. I will guarantee the harvest number by archery hunters will not go down if this law is passed. For some reason the thinkers in game and fish area believe it is due to baiting but never think it is possibly due to other factors like bow technology, better optics, time in the field and hunters studying the game more than ever before. Why are we not limiting the size/power of optics, feet per second shot by a bow, range finders and scent lures? Or are the game and fish getting ready to look into these issues too? All the studies done on diseases due to baiting have been done in states that have far greater deer/elk populations than Arizona. The harvest numbers you are referring too are in my opinion due to many other factors stated above than to baiting. But I’m sure in five years when the hunt success is still on the rise for archery hunters even after the baiting ban, laws will be put into place or hunting seasons limited for archery hunter to make sure it fits the G&F puzzle. G&F wonders why hunter participation numbers are down, all they have to do is look into the mirror. Stupid laws like this will just make it worse not to mention hurt the hunting revenue generated from the archery hunters. I’ve been considering moving to another state and this will be a motivator to take my money elsewhere as will many others. I simply stated that lots of arguments on this site seem to be that they want to know #'s. Read Coues n Sheep's post. He actually puts his questions in a bullet style presentation. The answer to 70 % of his questions are present in Hunt Arizona. As far as doing #'s on our present herd vs. other states, this is not a very intelligent statement. You see in order to have research, the problem has to be present. We do not have CWD, they are trying to be proactive, not reactive. If this law makes you move to another state, I would suggest it be one of the other states that allow baiting. When you arrive at your new state, I'm sure you will have stuff to complain about there too. If I were you, I would start packing and looking at real estate outside of AZ. Good luck in your travels. 123456, I find it interesting you do not deny to being a G&F troller. Also I think you are not intelligent when saying there can’t be any studies when there isn’t any CWD in AZ. This has to be the dumbest statement I’ve ever heard but doesn’t surprise me coming from some pencil pusher or a warden that never gets out of his truck to do any research. One doesn’t need CWD to be in AZ in order to study how it spreads. Again there are good arguments to why it isn’t here. States that have CWD are primarily states that have high elk populations that are forced into small areas due to hard winters. We have nether and with the high number of tags being issued every year we will never have high populations. Also there is no proof that baiting causes the spread of CWD. Also I don’t find it surprising that you are glad to hear a hunter wants to leave the state due to dumb game regulations. This has been a huge problem in G&F that they just don’t care. All they care about is selling tags and to heck with the hunters. To prove a point here I point to the fact that G&F is trying to put a lid on high archery harvest numbers. Why doesn’t G&F highlight this as a proud point and use it to increase hunter participation. This should be a positive issue and not a negative! But with G&F high harvest numbers is always a negative. I also agree with huntlines that even if you ban the baiting thing the archery harvest will not go down, then what? Ban archery hunting? Reduce archery tags and increase rifle tags(which is what they have been doing by increasing rifle tags). Go troll somewhere else because your ignorance is just proving everything we already know about G&F That statement is not entirely correct. States that have free ranging CWD include, but not limited to: Wisconsin, Illinios, New York, West Virginia, Michigan, Maryland, Nebraska and Kansas. Last I checked...there isn't a large elk population in any of the listed states.

I'm not here to defend the Department. However, what's wrong with them being proactive with CWD? As the agency that's paid to manage Arizona's wildlife, my guess is they have the most experience with such matters. I understand a majority of us are passionate when it comes to the outdoors. We think we have an understanding, but in reality, we are misguided by our own biases and passions. It sure seems like this forum is full of experienced biologists, range managers, animal cognition researchers and food science graduates. Not too long ago, Arizona lakes were free of Quagga Mussels. Won't be long before this invasive species will be in all the lakes. Too late to prevent this. So again, how can you fault the Department for being proactive when it comes to CWD? To say it will never happen in Arizona is foolishness. Nature has a funny way of surprising us. Just one man's opinion.

Might be the case Stanley, but there is something missing from the story overall. Just my opinion and not that it matters. With that said, I'll never trust the current administration occupying the WH. Either way, it's sad for the families.

None of us know what went down, but I'm not buying the friendly fire narrative. It just hit the news outlets too fast. There is something not right with this. The families deserve the truth. http://www.examiner.com/article/friendly-fire-or-is-the-fbi-off-target-again-with-agent-s-death-1

wardsoutfitters: Anyone that helps wounded soldiers is A+ in my book! Kudos to you. The fact of the matter is, you know it, I know it and everyone that's lived in this state long enough knows it: The Deptarment/Commision has already made up they're mind, this is just fluff. However, as you can tell by this thread, there is a split in the hunting community regarding this issue. Always has been, always will be. Like naturegirl stated above...we have to be realist. This is not Arizona, circa 1983. As an Arizona native I've seen this glorious state change, for better or for worse. We all have to adapt. Do a search of this topic. Every one of them was started by someone in favor of baiting. Not the other way around. You and others have to accept the fact that there are fellow hunters that don't agree with your reasoning. As I've said before, expect a reaction on a public forum.

This thread was started by someone that favors baiting. Some of us that dont care for it are responding accordingly. Nothing more, nothing less. No need to get personal. Otherwsie, don't post such a volatile topic on a public forum. If you're going to yell "fire" in a movie theater....expect a reaction.

Because it is not about success, they already control success by only having mandatory reporting by bowunters. They removed December hunts and made others by going to a draw. If they were truly concerned with success, all species would have a mandatory reporting for harvest, not just bowhunters. Just look back a few more years ago; another method was removed, trapping. Now just look how our pronghorn antelope, the mighty coyote has single handily kills over 50% of the young before they are a week old. Kind of funny we never had those issues before the loss of trapping. Again a knee jerk reaction to satisfy the old left wings Ainti You are wrong my friend, if it was truly for the good with sound scientific data to back it up. I would support it! Theres more to that story than this: The trapping initiative, Prop 201(ban trapping), passed because the hunting and fishing groups that pulled together to defeat Prop 200(ban hunting, fishing, trapping), abandoned the ATA(Arizona Trappers Association) the following year when Prop 201 was introduced. All the various hunting groups were simply out of money fighting Prop 200. So when the initiative was changed to just trapping, it was over. It wasn't their(hunters,fishers) problem anymore since Prop 200 failed, and the ATA was left alone to fight Prop 201. The ATA was hung out to dry, but now every hunting group uses Prop 201 as their rally cry! Seems hypocritcal if you ask me. Too little, too late. Anyhow, the AZGF Department isnt trying to end hunting all together. Rifle or archery. No units are being shut down. OTC tags are still being sold. No one is preventing you from loading up your truck, pack and cooler and hitting the hills. Just leave the corn at home. Thats it. Simple. Nothing else changes in your hunting routine. Arizona's coues deer population is what...85,000+/-, mule deer 100,000+/-.....unless you can convince God to change Arizona from an arid, desert climate to a humid, subtropical climate....nothing wrong with trying to manage a limited resource.

Im just one lone hunter, but feel this is a good rule change. Long overdue. Arizona native, lifelong hunter. I've killed a few, missed a few and flat out got out played most of the time by my quarry. It's be fun!

I think no one, particularily those on this site, understand what's really causing G&F to consider this. I'll let you guys figure it out. I will say this: It would behoove the administrator of this site to remove the Trail Cam sub-forum. You guys are your own worse enemy. How does the old idiom go? Out of sight, out of mind.