Well, this weekend the boys attended a Hunter Education class through the AZ Game and Fish Department. My oldest, Seth, just turned 14 so he only needs the course for a bonus point at this point. His younger brother, Colton, on the other hand needed the course to be able hunt deer this year. I think boy boys were apprehensive, and maybe a little upset when I told them that their weekend would be spent in the classroom. However, they both enjoyed the course and paseed with flying colors.

The class they took was a two-day class, which I really prefer. Although you only have one evening to prepare for the test, it really beats spending several evenings over several weeks in the classroom. In addition, you can always use the nes online course materials to study leading up to the course.

Day One: In the classroom covering topics such as safe handling, wildlife conservation, and hunting ethics.

Day Two: During the field day, students witnessed a shooting seminar performed by the instructors, shot a .22 rifle in three positions, and experienced a simulated hunt. Finally, in the afternoon - the TEST!

As I stated, the boys did good: Seth - 98% and Colton - 96%. Good job guys!

Here is my warning! Since the kids passed, especially the young one who needed the course to hunt; I have fielded every question in the book: When can we go hunting? What tags can I just buy? Can my uncle take me hunting next week? Can we buy a tag in New Mexico? …and so on.

If you are looking for a hunter education class in Arizona, visit their site.

After several years of applying for both elk and deer, my boys (14, 11), finally drew deer tags this year. Both boys drew the same youth hunt in November, and both will be shooting their .243s. This morning we had to sight the younger’s rifle in, and then I put them to the test.

Recently, I saw a TV show or read an article about teaching kids shot placement. Instead of having them simply shoot at a target, they had them shoot at a simulated deer. The deer, just a shape painted on wood or a box is easy to construct. I just took a white box and spray-painted the shape of a deer. I believe the most important step is to make sure you have the front leg included so that they can start to use the leg as a guide for proper shot polacement.

Below is the target I made, and their shots.

Each boy shot five rounds, (2) at ~85 yards and (3) at ~100 yards. All shots were taken either prone or sitting in a simulated field position using backpacks for rests. To be honest, I was surprised. The youngest, Colton hit the target 4/5 times (yellow above), and his older brother, Seth was 5/5 (red above). I am now confident that either can make a shot out to 100 yards. However, we will continue our practice.

I am really excited for this hunt!

For the last few years, I have really become infatuated with hunting White-tailed deer. I have hunted whitetails in Texas and Indiana, and I am currently preparing for an archery hunt in Nebraska this year with IMB Outfitters. It wasn’t that many years ago that I could not bring myself to watch a whitetail hunting show on TV, and now I am addicted. I think a lot of it comes from hunting Coues whitetail deer here in Arizona on a regular basis, and the fact that it presents a new challenge and learning opportunity. However, I know other hunters that are still dis-interested or would prefer to hunt other game species.

With that in mind, I offer this small survey: Click Here to take survey

I will post the results in a few days. Enjoy!

Well, the early archery season ended yesterday here in Arizona. I had a few almosts, but no velvet Coues deer for me this year. My fall hunting schedule is such that I really only hunted on the weekends. Last Sunday, which was basically my last day to hunt, I took my 11 year-old boy, Colton, with me. Originally he was going to spend the afternoon with his grandmother since his mother had other commitments she was attending to. However, after a little quick thinking, I realized that I had a blind that I could put near my tree stand for Colton to use. It’s just a small chair blind that I use mostly for wildlife photography, but I found out it works well for kids as well.

We arrived at the set a little late, about 2:30 PM.  I positioned the blind to the side of my tree stand, and hid it behind several trees in relation to where I believed deer would approach from. The first 30 minutes or so passed, and to my amazement Colton was being quiet. The night before he had spent the night at a friend’s house and they stayed up until 5 AM, so I knew he would probably fall asleep, which he did. He slept for almost two hours, and all he missed was a group of turkeys that passed behind our location.

A little after sunset we still had not seen anything. Shortly thereafter, we heard a bull bugle. At that point we were a little restless, so we took a small trip to see if we could see the bull. We had only gone a couple of 100 yards when the bull let out another loud bugle. Luckily, I caught the movement of the bull, and Colton and I hunkered down near a small pine tree. Using my bow to conceal our faces, we waited as the bull approached. Colton’s body was shaking with excitement, a little “bull-fever!” Soon after our encouter with the bull it was dark enough to head back to the quad, and then the truck. Even the brief moment of excitement that Colton and I shared was well worth the trip. The excitement, even though it was not an animal we were or even could hunt (legally at the time), was hunting.

Colton and I both live for these types of experiences. I encourage you to take your kids hunting as often as you can. It is a wonderful experience!

A picture taken with my cell phone of Colton’s hiding spot.
   

This post was brought to you by Bull Basin Archery:

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As I mentioned on the previous post, I have a nice 4 X 3 coming in to one of my sets. I believe it is the same buck that I have pictures of; one in August, 2007, and one on January 1, 2008. In both previous cases it was a one-time event; a quick picture and gone. This year the buck is a one and a half miles from the other two locations. See for yourself below, and let me know what you think.

4 X 3 Coues Buck in 2008.

In August of 2007.

In January of 2008.

Opening weekend of the Arizona archery deer hunt has come and gone — for me anyway. It was an eventful weekend for sure. Opening morning found me high above the ground, waiting for an elusive Coues deer to wander by. While sitting in my stand, I got a call from my good friend, Geoff Lloyd. He had put a big Coues buck on the ground. Without hesitation, I was out of my stand and on my way. Geoff had scored on a huge buck that scored 122″ gross! A friend of our’s, Josh Epperson, filmed the hunt; perhaps coming to a TV near you soon. Congrats Geoff!

Here is Geoff admiring his 122″ buck!
 

Needless to say, I was impressed. I was also motivated to score on a big buck of my own. That evening I sat a different stand, but no deer showed up. At the end of the evening I checked the Cuddeback to see what had been coming in. I was excited with a couple of the bucks the Cuddeback had captured.

A nice 4 x 3.

A decent three point. 
 

A 4 x 4 that I would like to see in a couple of years.

For the remainder of the weekend I hunted these bucks, to no avail. This afternoon I was driven from my stand by severe lightning, unwillingly I may add. So now I am home “hunting” vicariously via The Outdoor Channel.

More to come…

Photo by Jason Coil

Elk season is approaching quickly. If you are one of the lucky ones who drew a tag in either Arizona or New Mexico, please visit Rocky Mountain Game & Fish Magazine online to read my forecast, Southwestern Bulls In 2008.

Southwestern Bulls In 2008 - By Darren Choate
Arizona and New Mexico are fired up for an elk season that promises very good opportunities for trophy back-scratchers. Even in what most would consider a drought, the 2007 elk seasons in Arizona and New Mexico were grand, to say the least. Many factors have changed since the end of the season, but the outlook for the 2008 season looks exceptionally promising.

          Read the full story.

Early this summer I had a picture of the following goofy-looking bull. Checked the Cuddebacks today, and, well, the bull is getting bigger, but still looks goofy. Please feel free to check out my Trail-camera website at: trailcam.drchoate.com

If you love elk, elk-hunting, and want to help ensure the future of elk, please attend our 24th annual RMEF Big Game Banquet this August in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Chapter: Flagstaff
When: Saturday, August 16, doors open at 5PM
Where: High Country Conference Center at NAU, 201 West Butler Flagstaff, Arizona 86001
Event Contact: Tim Topell (928) 635-6776

Prizes include the following:
Quad/two-gun raffle
Colorado elk hunt
25+ firearms
Archery gear
Optics packages
Many more

For tickets call Tim at the number above or visit http://www.rmef.org/AboutUs/Chapters/FundraisingEvents/?statemapname=Arizona to get your tickets online.