Didn't draw that sheep tag...again.

But did draw Oct coues unit 32.

I beat the odds. I drew for trophy deer in the Kaibab. The odds of drawing there are somthing like 500 to 1 against getting a tag.
Paul B.

Drew late December coues deer, unit 31.


Congrats on drawing that Kaibab hunt, Paul.

As per usual, my son and I were shut out for deer since we have been applying for only Kaibab hunts over the last 5 years.

But I was also passed over for bison and again for the 35th time -- desert bighorn.

Coupled with our non-success for antelope and elk, it leaves me huntless for big game in AZ this fall.

Congrats to the lucky ones! -TONY

Tony,

You're scaring me. 35 points?? I have all of 6 accumulated. To reach 35 I'll be well beyond any mountain hunting.
Also, 35 years X the cost of having to buy a license just to be rejected...

Not that it may do any good, but I would be making some phone calls for a 35 year drought.

I was shutout for deer also But did get an Elk tag

bluefin,

Mea culpa. I should have said over the past 35 years. Actually, it's even a few more years than that.

I started in the 1960s before the BP system began and then I missed several years in the mid-1970s when I lived in Colorado. I lost a couple points because I didn't apply for at least 5 years during that time.

Like many others, I now have 18 points. Some others have even more.

So even with your 6 points now, it could take you 15-20 years or more to draw as a NR.

And you're right, at 67, I don't have many more mountain hunts left in me unless they're all downhill. -TONY

My daughter and I drew 6a turkey tags. (her second drawn tag this year. first tag, a antlerless elk in 5bn)This is the first turkey tag for either of us.
Derrick
Coues
I have applied for 30 + yrs for an antelope tag, lets just say I aint holding my breath lol.

bluefin,

The chart below shows the BP groups for sheep. Going into this draw, I was among the group with the red arrow. As you can see, there were more than 700 with more points than I had, and there are only several thousand with more than you. -TONY

I drew a sheep tag with 11 bonus points unit 45A. I'd rather be lucky than good!!

Not AZ, but I drew a Nevada sheep tag with 19 points this year.

Congratulations to all you lucky Sheep Hunters.

I don't even put in in Arizona any more. I went 20 straight being out for Elk and just figured it wasn't worth the ink in the application. I'm old enough so I have a Pioneer License (lifetime hunting/fishing) and just hunt small game and varmints in Arizona.

Zim. I'll be eligible for mine in two more months.
Paul B.

My daughter and I got skunked this year. No big game at all. Not even Coues deer. Where can a blue collar wage slave hunt out of state without taking a second mortgage?

I'd like to be able to drive there, so NM, TX, CO are all do-able. Any suggestions for a low cost hunt for 2 for even whitetail deer? Don't really need a hunting lodge type setup, and cost is definately a factor, but something for $2k or less for 2 hunters (my daughter's 12) and rifle deer?

I know, I want the impossible...

Not looking for monster trophy bucks, just a decent chance of getting a shot at a deer. It's real hard to keep my daughter interested in hunting when we can't even draw tags.

Anyone with suggestions can PM me if they want, so not to hijack this thread.

I'm really getting tired of staying home during hunting season.

Good luck to all that drew tags and congrats.

Slim there were some 30 and 32 tags left I think. In October. Not condusive to a trophy but it is possible.

I use to put in for 29 or 30 as my last choice because draw success was 99%. It is a nice time of year down there and the deer are plenty.

Slowpoke,

This link has leftover permits for deer, turkey and javelina listed in a pdf file. There are plenty of whitetail permits left in various units, and there are a pot full of Jr. fall javelina and a quite a few Jr. deer ones for your daughter. Many of the adult whitetail tags -- including 600 in 36B, my favorite Coues unit -- are in the premium southern units but for the earlier hunts.

They will be doled out by MAIL ONLY begining 8 a.m. August 11. -TONY

Earl and Tony,

Thanks for the info about the tags. I looked it up on the G & F website. The way I read it, they only BEGIN to accept applications by mail on the 8th of Aug? Then it's first come first served by mail...

We drew 34B last year early hunt. Spent the weekend in the southern part of unit, never saw a single hoof print or deer terd. Not one. Hiked over 5-6 waterholes, nothing even in the dried mud. Not even month old sign. Hiked up and down the area game trails. Nada. Any hunter we encountered had the same report. No deer, no sign, no camps with deer or shots at deer.

We stopped for gas and snacks etc on our way out (I forgot where, but small crossroads on west side before heading north to I10), gas station full of hunters from our area and adjacent 34A, all saying same thing. No deer, no sign, no one even knew of a camp that got a deer.

Long story short, that area has been pounded by drought, we never even saw any rabbits.

Have you guys seen the same things in 30, 32, and 36? I'm not looking for a "sure thing", but I would at least like to know there are deer SOMEWHERE in the hunt area!

I'm not looking to just shoot one off a feeder from 20 yards either. I should say that I've hunted 34A north of Patagonia for nearly 30 years, but it's been 5 or 6 years since I've been in the area at all, and we used to at least SEE deer in there.

Slim. We hunter Area 33 last year. We had Mule Deer tags. I teach Hunter Ed so I know a few of the local wardens. The one that checked us out said there were literally no Mule Deer in Area 33. The Whitetails had literally driven them out. I saw exactly three deer, a Whitetail doe and her fawn and a Mule Deer doe just about last light. We hunted harder than we've ever had to and were totally skunked. The drought has really screwed up the hunting here in the southern part of the state. We did not even see any rabbits or coyotes either, and we usully see a few of those. We did see a few deer in area 32 two years ago, but they were awfully spooky. I'm betting there's a lot of poaching going on in that area.
Paul B.