Water holes

[Thegrayghost]

Maybe this thread has already been done, not sure... But I was wondering if anyone has made their own water hole to stay away from the well know ones during the hunting season. I was thinking of making my own with a back up tank to fill it when it gets low. Do you think it's a waste of time and effort or have some of you been successful with your own? Any feedback would be nice And maybe some pics of the one you built for some ideas.

[CouesPursuit]

Always thought about it but it sounded like a game violation to me. Upon checking, guess not.

 

Page 127 of Regs:

4. 5. and specifically 6.

 

Those are G&F regs however, not sure how the federal land agencies would feel about it unless you added water to a natural rock formation, they would surely not be happy with any pouring of a concrete hole or littering water containers.

 

I do wonder how long it would take for game to find it and use it routinely though..

And how difficult it would be to keep it full..

Somebody out there is doing it I'm sure, if it's legal hopefully they share..

[520HUNT]

It has been done and is being done by many hunters...

[lancetkenyon]

A friend and I had one for a few years. 55 gallon drum cut in half with a float, and an additional 55 gallon drum with a larger steel "funnel" for rain water above to gravity feed it from a hose. We would pack in supplemental water every so often too. It worked quite well for a while, then one weekend it was totally gone. No tire tracks into the spot, nothing. Maybe alien abduction?

 

We had visits by deer, javelina, coyotes, fox, bobcat, and a coati that we saw. This was before trail cameras, so I am sure more visitors were using it. We floated a 1x6 in it for small birds and insects so they did not drown and foul the water source. We also had a mesh steel paint roller screen as an escape exit in case any other small animals fell in.

[JOEDKILLA]

This is what I use in Mexico. It's a 55 gallon honey barrel cut at an angle with a float attached to the side near the base. I run poly tubing (buried) from a 300 gallon cistern 20 to 30 Yds. away. I sow a grate or chicken wire to the barrel in order to protect the float from swimming javelina and coyotes. It's important to know what the barrels have been used for in the past, you don't want harsh chemicals, oils or solvents contaminating the water and keeping the critters away. The best time to set them up is now when natural water sources are dwindling and temperatures are rising. I find that if I give the ground and surrounding vegetation a good soaking every time I fill the cisterns the deer find it quicker. Salt in a granulated form is a good compliment to this setup. I have about 20 of these sites scattered throughout the desert and it's a lot of work keeping them full, but very rewarding if done right. As far as it being legal in Arizona, I can't help you there. But if It is, It's probably better done on private property or away from traffic where you can keep it a secret.

[Edge]

Not illegal. And wildlife will smell the water and algae immediately and come in.

 

I had 50 acres of mixed permanent pasture and forest up north. Raised horses and had water tanks I had to haul water to almost daily. Put a 300 gallon tank in a draw below the house and 5 bulls moved right in and stayed around it for months. After a couple weeks, they got so used to me, they wouldn't even get up when I came to refill it.

 

Now if an archery hunter had approached me and offered to build and keep watered what JOEDKILLA had installed, I would have jumped at the offer of having one more water source for a couple horses. In exchange, I'd allow him to hunt there if drawn, or sell him a discounted landowner tag if I had one. Would then be up to me to put the horses up during the hunt.

 

Had a couple Navajo brothers help me out once when my truck broke down on the Res. In exchange, I gave them perpetual written permission to archery deer hunt on the land,

 

Get out there and knock on doors at the ranch houses, meet the men and offer to help out with fences or water tanks, projects if you're drawn in their units, you might be pleasantly surprised by them.

[Thegrayghost]

Wow please tell me you where able to harvest one of those bucks

[JOEDKILLA]

Yup! We've been able to take a few great bucks using this method. I shot that top buck with my bow, the rest are still growing.

[Thegrayghost]

Good job. Thanks for the info. Did you find that the resivor kept the water filled for you, or did you have to haul water in more than you would have liked to?

[JOEDKILLA]

The biggest challenge is keeping them clean and full. When you provide an artificial water source for wildlife It alters their habits and they become dependent on it (especially in the desert). I feel I'm obligated to keep the water available. Everything and anything that drinks water will help themselves to it. Coyotes and javelina are very destructive, they will dig up the drinkers and chew on the hoses to get at any water when the levels are low. Once thirsty cows find it you're in for a lot of work! Regular trips are required to check for leaks, so when I do this I take a load of water just in case.. I don't mean to discourage you but it gets to be time consuming and expensive. Fuel will be your biggest expense.

[kidso]

A half-dozen cattle will parch a 50 gallon water tank in two days. So if cattle are ranging the land, your water will quickly run out.

[muledeerarea33?]

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A half-dozen cattle will parch a 50 gallon water tank in two days. So if cattle are ranging the land, your water will quickly run out.

I've had one or two cows empty my 35 gallon quail tank in 30 min or less! Cattle love free water.

[Edge]

Using a green water tank will help inhibit the growth of algae. The waterer should have some means of escape for birds, squirrels and other to get out or the tank will turn putrid with a dead creature in it.

 

Good for you for keeping water in it, you are absolutely right about the wildlife becoming dependent on that source. AZGF did a study on this a few years ago and found deer and sheep will die waiting at a known water source that has gone dry, rather than going to another source just a few miles away.

[AZBearhunter]

In my opinion its way to much work when there is already plenty of water in the desert, you just have to find it. The amount of work it will take to keep a tank full and functional will consume you alive, plus, WHEN someone else finds it, your spot is no longer a secret. If you think there will be a pay out, put the work in and see what it produces. There are just way to many cattle ponds, seeps, springs and drinkers to go do all that work.

[AZLance]

 

Good video on how to make your own water hole. Very similar to how I built mine. Make sure you hide it and camoflauge it so other "hunters" don't steal it.