Zim Report post Posted December 29, 2012 I have 17 NR lope points and thinking of applying for unit 10 archery. Looks to be almost zero chance for NR rifle, and I prefer archery anyway. I am seeking current opinions about the unit and current herd quality. Are there a reasonable amount of water holes given the hunter pressure, or is it competetive? Thanks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lucky2hunt Report post Posted December 29, 2012 I had that tag last year. Although the numbers have decreased in the recent years, there are still a bunch of antelope in Unit 10. The problem is... there is a ton of open country out there too, no trees or bushes to conceal yourself makes for a pretty tough hunt. We had rain every single day of the hunt which made sitting water tanks a non-issue, water was in every dip, culvert, everywhere! I did not fill my tag, I had my chance (a couple actually) just didn't make the shot. Be prepared for a long shot with lots of eyes looking at you!!! Good Luck! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EliGrimmett Report post Posted December 29, 2012 Waterholes are plentiful, but difficult to use. Most of them on The Plateau, and several in Aubrey Valley, are 100 yards across. I've hunted this archery hunt before, and I've been in the unit scouting during the archery hunt almost every season, and I never see very many blinds set up. Most of the competition won't occur until the rifle hunt. The herd quality has been suffering since 2009. The last good fawn crop was between 2003 and 2005. This crop led to a spike in big bucks and numbers of bucks from 2006 to 2008. In 2006 the fawn crop took a plunge. From 2009 to 2012 the herd has had low numbers and fewer big bucks. The fawn crop finally came back in 2011, which should bode well for another spike in bigger bucks in 2014. This coming season is kind of a "tweener" year. I'm not really sure how it will look but my money is on 2014 being the better of the two years for trophies. I had this archery tag in 2006 and hunted for 7 days. I had one shot at an 84 inch buck and missed. If you've never been in the unit I'll give you my take on how it looks: In Wyoming they issued just over 100 antelope tags for Area 60 last season. Arizona is issuing 145 total tags in Unit 10 this season. If you've ever been to Area 60 then you know the antelope can be far and few. In your mind picture Area 60 and remove 90% of the antelope population and you'll have a pretty good feel for what Unit 10 is like. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trophyhnter Report post Posted December 30, 2012 Great Info! Eli, Kind of scary when you put it in those terms! So big buck really have to get lucky to get big! Sounds like our southern units for coues whitetail! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
