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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
I recently updated my Trail-camera website. I added pictures from 2006, and a few that I have already gathered this year. Please feel free to have a look at: http://trailcam.drchoate.com.
This is the last week for online sales for the Arizona Big Game Super Raffle.
From the AZ Department of Game and Fish:
Arizona Big Game Super Raffle Here’s your chance to hunt big game trophies in Arizona and the price is right! The Arizona Game and Fish Commission in cooperation with various state and national sportsman’s groups will sponsor a raffle for the 2008-2009 hunting season. One tag for nine different big game species will be drawn in this raffle. Tickets range in price from $5 - $25, depending on the species. Mail orders for tickets must be received no later than June 27, 2008. Online sales will end July 13, 2008. The public drawing for winners will occur in July 19, 2008. Every dollar raised through ticket sales of each species goes directly toward management projects that benefit that species in Arizona.
I filmed this unusual event while hunting at Turk Ranch in Texas in 2005. One afternoon I was filming a small buck at a feeder. Suddenly, I caught movement from my left. When the animal appeared, I honestly thought it was a goat. In reality, it was a mature whitetail buck that had lost both of his antlers (only stubs remained), I am sure in some battle. Regardless, this animal was still the dominant buck. Enjoy!
