2011 Alaska Dall Rams

Another sheep season has come and gone, and my brother was able to go with his Father in law and brother in law and experience what a great time AK is in the fall! Here are a few pics of the 3 great rams they took. After locating several shooter rams, Clint was able to take his ram about 10 seconds into the hunt. Congrats Clint on this heavy old ram.

Here is a pic taken off vide of Clints ram prior to harvest.

Another pic of this heavy ram.

Congrats Clint on your first dall ram! 

Next up was my brother Shane.  He took this dandy of a ram at a close 30 yards, after it passed by him at 5 yards.  He was able to capture amazing video of this ram as well as the shot at a very close distance. Congrats Shane on another beauty.

Shane with his classic dall ram.

Shanes custom sheep rifle that has served him extremely well.

Last up was Clints father, Gordon, who took an amazing ram after watching him for several hours.  Congrats Gordon on this giant of a ram.  All three of these great rams were taken on video, here is a shot off the video camera while they waited for the ram to stand.

2 great rams, including Gordons on the left.

Gordon with his trophy.

Memories that will last a lifetime.

Congrats Gordon on the beauty.

Clints good friend Joey also went and took this great caribou to top the trip off.

Poor man's sheep hunt... NM Barbary Sheep



Joe Gonzales with his heavy 31 3/4" ram

 Well, Joe and I made our annual trip back to New Mexico to hunt barbary sheep again. I like to think of this as our "Poor man's" sheep hunt. Brought over from Africa in the 60's, along with the Ibex and Oryx, these animals seem to have found their niche and have thrived thus far. Although there are other places in NM that these sheep are far easier to hunt, like the private ranches and other units with easier access to sheep habitat, the area we hunt seems to produce some heavy rams (including this ram Joe harvested on his first ever barbary sheep hunt). Even though we've seen several giant rams, they did not get to be so large by living in the "easy" to hunt areas. We see these big rams every year but getting to them is as near as impossible as any we've ever encountered. That's saying alot as every year we find ourselves in very questionable situations just to get at the younger rams. When I use to live in NM this hunt was available with an OTC tag. Thinking back, it makes me sick that I didn't have more opportunities to hunt them. Now that we have to travel across two states just to get to our hunting area and considering the tags have gone into the draw system, it sure makes this hunt that much more of an opportunity to cherish and enjoy each time we can make it back. Over the last several years we have been able to increase our knowledge of these beautiful animals and have been successful in harvesting several sheep.

Joe's 2012 Ram

Joe was first up this year. Joe went down a couple days before the season opened to do some scouting. With the lack of snow in the high country and the warm temperatures, Joe was seeing fewer sheep than usual and although they had not been pressured yet, the sheep were already high up in the hills. The evening before opening day, Joe glassed up a nice herd of sheep with a couple respectable rams. Since it is such a long trip down there, Joe thought he might as well get a closer look in the morning to see if he could close the distance on the rams. After leaving the truck a couple hours before light and arriving several hours later after a near completely vertical climb, Joe started glassing for the rams at first light. The sounds of rolling rocks above him finally allowed Joe to hone in on the rams' location. Even though he was within a few hundreds yards, the cliffs and bluffs kept the sheep hidden for quite some time. Once the sun began to warm the rock walls, the wind began changing directions with the changing of the thermals in the tight canyons. Usually this means trouble but since Joe was already close, this herd of sheep was in trouble. Joe suspects the sheep caught his wind and one by one, started peering over the edge looking for the source of the odor. Joe ranged the first sheep at 358 yards and set up behind the 7mm STW and dialed in to compensate for the yardage and angle. As the sheep kept looking and swapping positions, Joe picked up the tell-tale mass of a nice ram approaching the cliff edge. As the this ram stood on the rim edge, chaps blowing in the wind, Joe took careful aim and fired one shot. Once again, the steepness of the country masked the sheep's retreat. Even though the shot felt good, Joe had to scale the bluffs and cliffs to see if his shot was true. It took Joe near 1 hour to cover the 350 yard distance between him and the ram. Fortunately, Joe's shot found it's mark and the ram was down. As Joe neared the ram, it appeared to be taking its last breath, or so he thought!!! Since the climb was so difficult, Joe had left all but his rifle at his shooting location to expedite his ascent to the ram. Now Joe had to retrace his steps to gather his back pack and knives. Back at his shooting location and figuring his hunt was over, Joe unloaded his rifle carried only water, knives, and an empty pack back up the rock chutes to his fallen ram. Well, here is were Joe re-learned an important hunting rule. As Joe made it back the area of his ram, he found the ram alive and standing 50 yards away from were he left it earlier. Joe quickly dropped his pack and was once again headed back down hill to retrieve his rifle. With rifle back in hand, Joe was again headed uphill only to return to an expired ram. Needless to say, with all the up and down trips, Joe was already worn out and he still hadn't put his hands on his ram. After deboning and caping the ram, Joe headed downhill for the final time. Arriving back at his truck after dark and legs weary from the hunt and a heavy pack on the way downhill, Joe's 2012 barbary sheep hunt was now final. Congrats again to Joe for another beautiful ram!!

Joe Gonzales and his 2012 ram

Unfortunatley, being solo in steep country makes for few self-portraits...



One of my rams on a homemade pedestal



A few weeks later, it was my turn my turn to head east towards sheep country. As is usual, I'm not the type to hold out for the giant and thus, have not killed any rams as large as Joe but I have taken quite a few sheep over the years. This year was not to be different, I was looking for any respectable ram. I love the beautiful European mounts this sheep make. My good friend Gary drove all the way over from Arkansas to join me in my hunt. We have hunted annually with Gary in NM and AZ and have been fortunate enough to help Gary in taking many big game species across the two states, inlcuding several barbary sheep. Gary and I spent our first day glassing and scouting. The combination of this big country and Kowa binoculars make for some great glassing opportunities. We stood mobile all day but it wasn't until the evening hours that we finally spotted sheep. The first herd we picked up had 2 nice rams so amid following other sheep, we watched this herd until we couldn't see any more. These sheep tend to stay still over night so we were confident that we could find them first thing on the second morning. With a different wind direction predicted for the morning, Gary and I felt we should wait until we could see which direction to approach rather than try to get in position before light. Sure enough, I was glassing before I could clearly see and as each minute passed, more and more sheep became visible. This herd had not moved more than 50 yards over night. Gary and I loaded up and started our upward climb. Fortunately a heavy fog moved in which masked our approach and kept the temperatures cool for our hike. At one point, we stood still for about 30 minutes as the fog was so thick we did not want to put ourselves in a bad spot without seeing where we could climb and we did not want to spook any sheep and not be able to see them run off. Slowly but surely (with an emphasis on SLOWLY) Gary and I kept climbing to a pre-determined spot we thought we could relocate the sheep from. After 2 1/2 hours, and with the weather finally clear, we thought we put ourselves in a good position above and downwind from where we believed the sheep to be. Gary and I unloaded our packs, drank some water, and cooled off a bit. As I slowly crawled to the edge of the hill to look over I immediately spotted a lone sheep bedded 212 yards away. What luck, more often than not, plans don't tend to work out this good. We joked to each other that we better be careful or somebody might accidently get the impression that we knew what we were doing!! All joking aside, it was pretty cool that our plan, put into place the evening before, had actually put us in perfect position. As we began looking for the rest of the herd, the sheep started standing and began feeding over the bluff and out of site. Knowing we had the advantage of being undetected thus far, Gary and I slowly crept closer and closer. Step by step Gary and I moved in, using our glass every other step to try and re-locate the sheep. As I looked down and across a small drainage, the herd of sheep began appearing one at a time. Gary and I dropped to our knees and began sizing up each sheep that appeared. At 132 yards, the biggest of the rams finally made his way out of the drainage. With Gary watching for me, I squeezed off my first shot on the unsuspecting and quartering ram. By the reaction of the ram, and the tell-tale thump that followed, we knew he was hit hard. As the sheep bunched up to figure out what was going on, I put a follow up shot into the ram to ensure he did not go to far. High fives and congrats ensued as the rest of the herd made its way up the crags and cliffs. Gary and I took our time making our way down to the ram and found he had rolled off a 40 foot cliff and came to rest just above another big drop. After taking in the moment with stories of past hunts and a quick photo session, Gary and I got to boning and caping my ram. A few hours later, and with 4 very tired and sore legs, Gary and I arrived back at the truck with enough time to break out the binoculars to find next year's ram. Well, we found next year's ram, but those cliffs will have to wait until that ram wants to come down, or until we can afford a helicopter to get us that high. Watching the sun go down on sheep country keeps the spirit and hopes alive and well and will help get us through another year of waiting. Once again, enjoy the pics as we sure enjoyed the memories they help capture.

Arthur Gonzales and his 2012 ram

Arthur and the 7mm STW that has put many sheep on the ground!



At 64 years young, Gary still loves to hike up and down this sheep country.



Marshalls 2012 AZ Coues Video!

Here is a quick clip of some of the footage taken on Marshalls hunt.  I hope you enjoy.

Marshalls 2012 AZ Coues Buck

Marshall and his giant 133 5/8" Arizona Coues Deer

Congrats to Marshall on harvesting this absolute giant coues buck named "Willies Buck".  Marshall was the proud holder of one of Arizona's special tags that allowed him to hunt 365 days across all of Arizona.  Marshall worked with the MBAZ boys for 3 years trying to get this great tag.  With a tag like this in his pocket, Marshall knew he had a great chance of harvesting one of AZ's finest coues deer. Since Marshall's hunt started, many giant bucks were located and sized up. Some did not quite make the mark, others were not consistent enough to have Marshall cross the US on a hunch, and still others lived in areas making them near impossible to hunt. After sorting through many different bucks, Jay received a call from  Luke of http://azgroundpounders.com/ .   Luke had a giant buck pegged and invited MBAZ and Marshall to come up and hunt this buck.  This was one of the buck's that one of our guides had also found and hunted. This buck had become a living legend with the locals as several other hunters had followed, hunted, and at one point, even wounded over the last several years. This buck continued to grow in inches and changed antler configuration from last year.  He lost a drop tine on the left antler but picked up a few extra stickers on the right antler.  With the info Luke provided, Marshall quickly crossed the country to team up with Jay and Luke in their quest to help Marshall harvest the coues buck of his dreams.  Within 10 minutes on their first day out, Luke and Jay glassed this buck up with Marshall at their side.  There was no doubt when this buck stepped out that it was old Willie.  Within seconds Jay was rolling film and Marshall was setting up for the shot.   Being a true sportsman, Marshall sent a warning shot over the buck.lol  Since this buck had no intention on leaving, Marshall was quick to follow up and get a bullet in this buck.  With the adrenaline pumping and nerves unwinding, Marshall's shot was a bit far back (Who could blame the guy, most folks would faint just seeing a buck of this caliber on the hoof).  After several hours of watching the buck through a tangled jungle of brush, he finally moved enough to give Marshall another chance.  After having several hours to re-compose himself, Marshall's next shot put this buck down for good.  Marshall was able to harvest the largest coues buck taken with one of these special AZ tags and his biggest coues buck ever.

MBAZ Guide Jay Lopeman with Marshall and his buck

AZ Ground Pounders Guide Luke Weisser with Marshall and his buck

After getting many great field photos and preparing the hide for a lifesize mount, the trio moved the show into town and immediately started drawing a crowd.  Chad and Arthur drove down from Northern AZ just to put their hands on this buck and congratulate Marshall on his harvest.  Since this buck was well known to the locals, we had the opportunity to meet several folks that have been chasing this guy for several years.  We even met Willie, for whom the buck was named for.  He shared the story of his close encounter with this buck and showed us trail cam pics from the last several years. What a great group of hunters AZ has to offer. These folks all showed up out of respect for such an elusive and giant buck.  There was not a negative person in the group, just a bunch of hard core hunters that knew what it took to get this buck killed.  Luke sure had this buck pegged and helped provide Marshall a true once in a lifetime opportunity.  It was unbelievable to watch and hear others share the experiences they had chasing this buck with Marshall.  No doubt about it, this thing is giant!  After all the guesses had been thrown in, we taped this thing at 133 5/8". (Most guesses ranged between 130"-135", right on the money) WOW!!  Once again, congrats to Marshall and great job Jay and Luke.  Seeing the smile on your hunter's face says it all.  He's killed alot of animals but like he said, this is trophy he'll cherish forever.. Enjoy more field photos below..

Another great animal taken with the help of the Triclawps!!

Here are some trail cam photos of this elusive buck...

My first coues with a bow!!

Arthur Gonzales' 2012 Arizona Archery Coues



We were able to get plenty of tc photos of this buck.



Chad named this buck Boots, can you guess why??

Well, once again Joe and I were back in the field hunting together. This time we were hunting coues deer in Southern AZ. Joe and I have both taken many coues deer but neither had taken one with a bow. I was hoping to shoot any 3 point or better but Joe, true to his style, was holding out for something over 100". I was constantly chasing the action as every where Joe went, he was passing on nice bucks and when I showed up the next day to try and take one, they wouldn't show. We kept at it and had a great few days. My wife missed a nice buck, which would've been her first, and our friend Mark harvested his second coues with a bow. Over the last several months, Jay, Chad, and Joe were getting photos of some outstanding bucks but since they seem to be rutting over the last few weeks, nothing had been consistent at the cameras. With the rut winding down, some of these mature bucks began getting back into their routine. At the location that I was to sit on our last day out, the amount of rubs and scrapes was comical. It almost seem like someone was playing a joke because every manzanita and pine had scrapes and rubs. Unreal scrape line, and big rubs at that. Joe had me sit this spot as there were several good bucks in this area and my chance at one of them seem to be pretty good. After 4 does had come and gone, things slowed down. I figured I didn't have much to lose so I grabbed my rattling antlers and crashed them together for about 10 seconds. The instant I stopped, I could hear a buck running through the oak litter head straight for my location. Within seconds, the buck was standing directly beneath my stand. I barely had enough time to put the antlers down and grab my bow. The buck was on full alert, obviously looking for the bucks that were sparring. As he moved forward a few yards, I recognized his extras and knew this was a stud buck. I kept telling myself "It's Him, It's Him.." Fortunately things happened so fast, I never had time to over-think my situation and never really got nervous. Since the does earlier had spent about half hour wondering around earlier in the day, I felt like I had all their paths ranged. Once this buck walked by me stand, I could tell he was headed down the same path the does took. I drew as he went behind the brush and when he stepped out at 18 yards, I touched off an arrow. It all happened so fast, it's hard to imagine that I actually remember every detail of the next few seconds. I heard the distinctive whack of the Rage broadhead connecting. In a few leap and bounds, this buck was standing about 60 yards out looking around to try and figure out what just happened. This is the point were I started shaking. I didn't want to take my eye off of him so I watched without binoculars. After a few seconds, I thought I seen him leaning to the left. When he walked off, I heard some brush and limbs snap. I'm sure you've all been in my boots. I began second guessing what I had just seen. Did he look hurt, was he falling or running off?????? After a few minutes, I stopped shaking and started gathering my thoughts. I looked down were I shot and with the binos, I could see a blood soaked arrow sticking in the dirt. I now knew I had at least hit him. I climbed out of the stand and picked up my arrow, climbed back up and waited another 45 minutes. Still unsure, I quietly slipped out of the area and walked the 1.5 miles to Joe's location. I ran him through the scenario but failed to mention it was a big buck. He thought I'd shot a 90" buck. We drove back to my spot and slipped back in quietly. I couldn't take it anymore, I was a nervouse and scared wreck. I let the cat out of the bag and finally told Joe it was the big buck. He pretty much figured the buck was dead and sure enough, when I showed Joe the last place I seen the buck we tracked him a few more yards and found him piled up. My shot was true as the broadhead hit both lungs and severed the top of the heart. This buck was dead a few seconds after being hit. Then the hugs and smiles hit us. With the help of my big brother, I'd finally taken my first archery coues, and my biggest coues to date. I have to give thanks to my wife and family for putting up with my addiction to hunting, to Joe for giving me this opportunity, and Jay, Chad, and the rest of Mossback AZ for finding this buck. Even though I'll be waiting a full year to hunt deer in AZ again, its definately worth the wait. Enjoy.

This buck sports long beams and matching extra points on both horns.

MBAZ Guide and my brother Joe with "Boots".

Thanks again to Will at Gila Outdoors for ensuring my equipment was ready to perform!!

 In addition to this buck, we were also able to harvest another great buck with Mark O. Mark's buck also frequented this area and we captured many tc photos prior to Mark making a great 20 yard shot on his buck. What a follow up to Mark's Freak Nasty buck. Two great bucks on back to back days. Congrats to Mark on his beautiful buck.

Mark O's 2012 Az archery coues

Arts 2012 AZ Archery Giant!

Here is the first picture I got of a giant coues that Art put down today.  I will leave the story for him to share.  What a buck and Congrats Art on this beauty.

2012 Archery Javelina Double!!

Gonzales Family on our successful 2012 Archery Javelina Hunt!!

Husband and Wife double!!!!

Those who know me well know that one of my passions is hunting javelina. It's right up there with chasing bugling bulls in my book. Most folks think thats odd but javelina offer a great opportunity to get up and close and if you blow a stalk, oh well, you'll find more. This also gives me a chance to get the rest of the family out with me and not worry too much about how much noise the boys make. This year, my wife Michelle wanted to get back into archery hunting and what better hunt to do it. Michelle has killed several pigs with archery and rifle so she is no stranger to closing the distance and since she is just getting back into shooting her bow after a few years off, we were hoping to get in close to better her chances. We decided to hunt close to home in one of the units in Northern Arizona that has huntable populations of javelina. Fortunately, I spend alot of time in this unit and just last weekend, I was able to find several locations that held fresh sign. Michelle and I purchased left over permits at the G&F office and the hunt was on. Within a half hour of our first outing we were in the pigs. Our boys were able to stay quiet enough as Michelle and I closed the distance. We found one herd of 6 pigs that obviously had not been chased much since they showed no fear and continued to feed even after the first time we bumped them (one bonus of hunting these northern units). After closing the distance again, Michelle sent a couple warning shots (that's what we're claiming) over the pigs just to let them know we were there. I struck first at 40 yards. Since the pigs split up after I connected, we decided the best opportunity for a close shot was to call the pigs to us. After some lips squeaking, we had them headed our way. Michelle came to full draw as a mature pig step out from behind a juniper tree. Her shot was a perfect hit and we never lost site of her pig as it only went a few yards and piled up. My first shot was a bit far back and as Michelle let the boys blow of some built up energy at the truck, I tracked my pig for a ways. Since there was not much blood, I backed off and went down to get Michelle and the boys. On our way back up to her pig, we spotted my pig bedded down. One last well placed shot at 27 yards and our javelina hunt was done. Our pigs died within 50 yards of each other which gave us enough time to get them down the hill and get some photos before we lost the light. This was key as our boys are taking after their mother and love to take pictures. It tooks some time but they managed to get some good shots for us. Just to make sure, Michelle and I took turns snapping some photos and setting up the self-timer. We loaded our pigs and head for home, another successful javelina hunt to add to our scrapbook!!

Michelle, Tomas, and JP pose with mom's 4th archery javelina!

Arthur, Tomas, and JP with dad's javelina. This makes 16 consecutive successful years!!

Here is the picture that JP took.. 

And Tomas' picture...

I added this picture to showcase the bow. Thanks to Will at  Gila Outdoor for the work he has done on our archery equipment. He was very instrumental in getting my bow set up before our late archery elk hunt and his help carried right into this hunt. One of the keys to success in any hunt is to be comfortable and confident with your equipment. Since we starting using Will, we have been nothing short of amazed at his expertise. If you are in the Safford area, stop by and see will or give him a call to see how he can help you out. Huge thanks again to Will.

JP closes the distance on this javelina. What a great way to get the kids excited about hunting!!!