Tracker Fall/Winter 2009

Fall 2009/Winter 2010

Photo by Joe & Marisa Cerreta

Founding Associate MembersDouglas Sr & Donna Obert

Founding Life MembersKen Alexander+

Michael J Anderson Ernest Apodaca, Jr+

Randy BeckKeith Berger

Esther CadzowJohn CadzowHarry Carlson

Randy A Cherington+ Pete Cimellaro

Steve Clark Todd A Coleman

Richard CurrieDon DavidsonKay Davidson

Larry DaySharon Eichelberger

Ron EichelbergerPeter EkholmDaron Evans

Will & Fran Garrison*Ed Hightower

Michael Horstman+James JohnsonEarl C Johnson

Edward E Johnson Richard Johnson+

Mitchell JonesSandra G Kauffman

Richard E Kauffman, SrBill Kelley

Peter S Klocki+John Koleszar+

James LaraTim Littleton

James Lynch Jr+Don Martin

Russ McDowellWilliam D Meredith

Anthony NicholsCookie NicosonWalt Nicoson*

Mark NixonDonna Obert

Douglas Obert, SrShawn Patterson

Jan PurdyForrest Purdy

Mel Risch+Tom Schorr

Gregory StaintonDouglas Stancill

Vashti “Tice” Supplee+Dan TaylorJohn Toner

Corey TunnellRick Vincent, SrDon Walters, Jr

Dee White Larry White+

Mark WorischeckJoseph Worischeck

Chuck Youngker

Founding Sustaining Members Everett & Joyce Nicoson

Founding Couple MembersBridgid & Ron Anderson John & Patty AndersonDenny* & Paula Bailey

Robert F & Shirley J BanksJohn & Taina Beaty

Robin & Billie BechtelBrad & Shelley Borden

Philip* & Jamie Brogdon+ Mark & Shanna BrooksShawn & Lisa Carnahan

Kim & Lynn Carter, SrDanny R Cline & Pat Thompson

Tim & Patti GarvinW Hays & Suzanne Gilstrap

Don & Gwen Grady Steve & Bobi Hahn

Igor & Christy IvanoffDaniel & Danny Johnson

Glen & Tracey JonesRichard & Wendy Kauffman

Bill & Mary KeeblerMark & Lynda KesslerMel & Diane Kincaid

Richard & Christine KrantzDick & Nancy Krause

Eric & Wendy KruegerRon & Lisa Lopez+

Gary & Lin Maschner Shane & Tiffany May

Kevin & Donna McBeeRoger & Micaela Mellen

Denny & Pat MossRobert & Diana Noel

Richard Oberson & Bonnie McAuley* William & Vera Rezzonico

Clarence Rodriquez MDRichard & Anna Schmidt

David Scott & Rosemarie NelsonBruce & Lisa Snider

Macey & Becky StarlingEd & Ace Stevens

Tim & Ellena Tanner Craig & Susan ThatcherTom & Kristel Thatcher

Marvin & Margo Thompson+Keith & Lois Zimmerman

Founding General MembersKendall Adair

Gary R AndersonJim Andrysiak

Denny AshbaughRon BarclayDavid BarilCal Bauer

John F BauermeisterRobert BaughmanManny Bercovich

Dr Tom Boggess, III Tom BrownTom Carroll

Steve CheuvrontCarolyn Colangelo

Mike CupellJack Daggett

Kyle Daggett+Bob Davies

Gary A DavisNathan Day

John W Decker*Chris Denham

Neal E DialCraig Dunlap

Jennifer EvansBobby Fite

Chris FlandersLorenzo A Flores

Roger GibsonCourtney Gilstrap

Floyd Green Jon Hanna

Douglas HartzlerArt HathawayDean Hofman

David J HofmanNorma E Hook*

Russ HunterDavid Hussey Rick JohnsonMike JonesDoug JonesTodd Julian

Charlie KellyCharles A Kerns

John Krause Joseph M Lane

Robby LongAaron Lowry

Rick MacDonaldJoe Makaus

Daniel MartinMichael L MasonMike McCormickDonald Meakin

James O MeeksJason Mercier

Jim MercierTracey Miner

Ken MossRonald J Nadzieja

Mike N OliverCraig Pearson

Kenneth B Piggott Bethena PughCarlos Quihuis

Mark RabyRobert L Read

Neal Reidhead*Kyle SanfordCraig SanfordTony Seddon

Arnold SheltonDennis Shipp

Tom SiscoBruce Sitko

M Scott SouthCarl Staley

Randy StoutKenneth K Stringer

John W Stuckey Dave Swayzee* Troy TartaglioGary TeBeest

Todd ThelanderCharles B Thompson

Stan ThompsonThom Tokash

Brian Van KilsdonkRick Vaughn

Kathy L VincentRick Vincent II Don R Walker

Douglas WatsonVince WattsTodd Weber

Donald D Weber Jr Tom Wooden

Douglas Woodward

Founding Junior MembersTyler GetzwillerKevin H Knight

Daniel RabyNathan RabyJames Rawls

Sheena SmithBlake Tartaglio

Alexandra TartaglioAlexis TartaglioTravis Thatcher

Clayton Thatcher Nathan ThatcherWayne ThatcherTaylor Thatcher

Alexandra Vincent Emma C Vincent Justin M Vincent

Arizona Elk Society 3

Prior to March 17, 2002, AES Founding Memberships were available. These individuals and couples came forth to show their support for the AES in it’s early stages of development. During the formation

of the AES, administrative funds were needed to pay for organizational costs that led up to the first fundraising banquet on March 16, 2002. Founding Members paid a premium membership fee to help make the first year a success. For their support and dedication, the following Founding Members will

receive permanent recognition by the AES.

+ Membership upgraded * Deceased

ARIZONA ELK SOCIETY FOUNDING MEMBERS

I hope everyone had a great Holiday Season. Here at the Arizona Elk Society we are very busy getting ready for the 9th Annual Banquet on March 20, 2010. Please try to be there to help us raise money for elk habitat in Arizona.

The last few months have been a whirlwind of activity. Some of the camps and project stories are in this issue of the Tracker. Many of the meetings and challenges that face the elk herds and their habitat never make it to the Tracker.

The Mexican Gray Wolf issue here in Arizona and New Mexico is going through some changes that may not be good for elk. The AES has banded with other wildlife groups to make sure that the concerns of our membership, regarding how the program should be managed, are heard. Hopefully, many of the sportsmen will voice their concerns and be involved in this issue. We have been attending meetings and mailing letters to stay involved.

Another issue that could change the landscape of wildlife habitat is the changes proposed to the Wild Horse and Burro Act. The AES again is sending comment letters and attending meetings trying to oppose this bill. Many horse lovers would have the government let the horses multiply and take over wildlife habitat across our state with no regard to regulating the impact of the damage.

The Forest Service is still working on the Travel Management Plan to lessen the impact of unauthorized roads throughout the forest as well as ATV and off-road travel. The AES has been working on this issue for the last

two years and the Forest Service will be rolling out the new plan in 2010.

If you haven’t renewed or joined yet (see page 12), please join us in trying to improve wildlife habitat in Arizona for the elk herds and other wildlife. With more members we can make a bigger difference. If you’ve been reading the papers and spending time in the woods, you will have read about and witnessed many of the successful projects that the AES has taken part in. The new pipeline to bring water to elk in the driest areas of Unit 9 was funded by money raised by the AES. The new drinkers in Unit 9 and across the state have been funded by money raised by the AES. Controlled burns, like the 6,000 acre burn in Unit 23 in Cherry Creek, was funded in part by the AES as well as 10s of 1,000s of acres of juniper thinning across the elk range. In January, the Arizona Elk Society Projects Committee will be meeting with the Arizona Game and Fish Habitat Partnership Committee to fund around $450,000 worth of habitat and research projects across elk country here in Arizona.

And new this month is Eloy the Elk and His Desert Friends – a children’s book written by Terry Clapp and published by the Arizona Elk Society. Don’t forget to get a copy for your kids. It is a very nice educational and fun book. All the money raised by the book goes to the youth programs of the AES.

Join, renew, donate, purchase t-shirts and Eloy the Elk and His Desert Friends books at the AES online store at www.arizonaelksociety.org.

4 The Tracker - Fall 2009/Winter 2010

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE by Steve Clark

EXECUTIVE BOARDPresident ...........................................Steve ClarkVice President ..................................Carl HargisTreasurer................................. Cookie Nicoson Secretary .............................Open at this timePast President ..............Sharon Eichelberger

You may send a message for any officers, board members or committee chairs to

[email protected]

BOARD OF DIRECTORSTom Schorr

Jim Mullins

Richard Kauffman

Matt Mullins

Greg Naff

Kathi Nixon

John Koleszar

Mike Norburg

Rick Schmidt

Ken Alexander

COMMITTEE CHAIRSBanquet ........................... Sharon Eichelberger

& Cookie Nicoson

Grant Writer ................................Lin Maschner

Membership.........................................Dee Clark

Projects ...................................Ron Eichelberger

Newsletter ............................ Maria DelVecchio

Website ..........................................Leo Balthazor

Wapiti Weekend.........................Shelly Hargis

Scholarship .......................... Wendy Stressman


President’s Message by Steve Clark ............................................ 4

Upcoming Events ..................................................................... 5

In the Crosshairs: The Usual Suspects...Elk! by John Koleszar ....... 7

2009 Unit 6A Junior Elk Hunter Camp by Steve Clark ................8-9

Braggin’ Board ...................................................................... 10

AZ Big Game Super Raffle ....................................................... 11

Membership News ............................................................12-13

Mike Kennedy by Steve Clark ..............................................14-15

In Memory ............................................................................ 15

BB’s Column by John Koleszar .............................................16-17

Buck Springs Work Project by Steve Clark ............................18-19

Third Time’s a Charm by Rick Wilson ......................................... 21

My 2009 Elk Hunt by Steve Clark .........................................22-26

The Battle Within by Patrick Weise ......................................27-29

My Bull Elk Archery Hunt by Corey Tunnel Ferry ......................... 30

The Curse is Finally Lifted by Kathi Nixon .................................. 31

High Up on the Rim by John E. and Joan Appleseed .................... 32

Habitat Partners of Arizona ................................................... 34

IN THIS ISSUEAES MISSION STATEMENT

The Arizona Elk Society is a non-profit 501(c)(3) wildlife

organization. Our mission is to raise funds to benefit

elk and other wildlife through habitat conservation

and restoration and to preserve our hunting heritage

for present and future generations.

AES WEBSITE

www.arizonaelksociety.org

AZGFD WEBSITE

www.azgfd.gov

NATIONAL FOREST WEBSITES

Tonto - www.fs.fed.us/r3/tonto

Apache/Sitgreaves - www.fs.fed.us/r3/asnf

Kaibab - www.fs.fed.us/r3/kai/

Coronado - http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/coronado

AZ SPORTSMEN FOR WILDLIFE WEBSITE

www.arizonasportsmenforwildlife.org

UPCOMING EVENTS

Cover photo by Joe & Marisa Cerreta.

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Meet Eloy the Elk and help out the AES Youth Programs

AES has published a children’s book, Eloy the Elk and

His Desert Friends, written by Terry Clapp and illustrated

by Rikki Drotar. The book is dedicated to all children,

the the magnificent elk of Arizona and to the memory

of Walt Nicoson, Arizona Elk Society’s “Man of Steel”.

All proceeds from the sale of this book will be used to

expand the Youth Programs of the Arizona Elk Society

by implementing special programs for youth education

regarding conservation, hunting and outdoor activities.

Eloy the Elk and His Desert Friends is $9.95 and will be available in the store at www.arizonaelksociety.org and at events.


At the last board meeting of the Arizona Elk Society, held on November 2, 2009, the representatives from the U.S. Forest Service made a presentation regarding the demise of Aspen trees around the state. Present were members of the Arizona Game & Fish Department as well as biologists who work on the Coconino National Forest. For a solid hour, the Forest Service painted a bleak picture as to the future of Aspen trees in Arizona and how there were multiple reasons for the demise. The following is a list of those reasons: drought, heavy canopy from Ponderosa trees, infestation of fungus and insects, sheep and cattle that find the bark tasty to peel off and last but not least, those marvelous marauders of the forests… elk. I found it to be a fascinating presentation, but as always when that much firepower comes and makes that long of a presentation, you know that there is bad news in the wings. The bad news was that the Forest Service had requested a 50% reduction in the elk herd for a period of 10 years in the units that have aspen growths that are in danger.

To their credit, the Board asked pointed questions and the Department stated that they would not go along with any 50% reduction. But… they would go along with a increase in bull tags in those units so that the herd could be slightly reduced. The Forest Service stated that they were in the planning stages and that their NEPA work was on the board for this year. For anyone familiar with the Forest Service, any financial planning that they do is sometimes called creative writing. With budget cuts and fighting forest fires in the summer, there is virtually no money left to do anything during the rest of the year. They could not guarantee that

they would be able to do the NEPA work. They could not guarantee that by reducing the herd size we would be saving any trees. They could not specify a time frame for how long it would take for the trees to get to maturity. They would not acknowledge that by fire suppression for the last 100 years they have mismanaged our national forests. The only thing that they wanted was a 50% reduction of elk for 10 years. So once again, our favorite ungulate bears the brunt of human error and nature’s whims. It has become entirely too easy to point a proverbial finger at elk as the only problem child that can be managed. The Board, working with the Department, will revisit his issue next year. The Department is charged with ascertaining whether or not there is any progress on the forests by the Forest Service. So, our next years’ increase in bull tags will be what I term a good faith agreement by all parties. But there will not be ANY action on the ground by the Forest Service during that year… so why increase the number of bull tags? I would hope that perhaps the “Aspen Lovers Of America” will come to the table to help support fencing off trees and doing more studies on what is causing this decline… oh… that’s right, only the conservation groups put money on the table and fund any of these studies. For every million dollars we have put on the ground in the past 10 years, we have witnessed a reduction in the size of the elk herd. I long ago said that I felt at one point we would be raising $5,000,000.00 per year for elk… but that the herd size would be roughly 3,000 animals. If you think I’m crazy, start looking at the numbers… they don’t lie. Just wait ‘til “BB” hears about this one.

IN THE CROSSHAIRS: THE USUAL SUSPECTS...ELK! by John Koleszar

Photo by Joe & Marisa Cerreta


After the seminar, many free raffle items and goody bags were handed out to all the kids. John Toner of Continental Divide Knives was on hand again this year to donate a custom knife to the oldest youth in the group. (Thank you John for all you do). New this year, we held seminars about predator hunting opportunities in Arizona at noon on both Friday and Saturday. Predator hunting expert Ray Evridge from Phoenix Varmint Callers Inc. gave an entertaining seminar showing kids that hunting can be a year-round event. All the youths received a free predator call.

The Arizona Elk Society brought out the archery equipment for all the youth hunters and other kids to shoot. Volunteers were on hand to instruct the new bow shooters on how to shoot the bows. From the time we set up the targets and equipment, to the time we put it away, there was non-stop archery shooting going on. I think our targets have never received so much use as they did this weekend.

Friday morning there were a couple of prizes for the first girl and first boy with an elk. It wasn’t too long before they came by the camp. First up was Luciette Vance with her cow elk. This was Luciette’s first elk and she was very excited. “Congratulations Luciette and we hope to see you in the future with more successful hunts like this one”. Luciette was presented with a gift certificate for free game processing from 4 Peaks Game Processing in Phoenix. 4 Peaks Game Processing had a trailer set up across the highway and is a partner and donor to this elk camp. The next elk in camp was a toss up, two young men came in with two elk to show off. It took a few minutes to decide which one was harvested first. It seems they both shot at about the same time. These young men are pictured and the first one to shoot received a gift certificate for a free hide tanning from Wes’s Western Taxidermy.

2009 UNIT 6A JUNIOR ELK HUNTER CAMP

by Steve Clark

This year’s Arizona Elk Society Junior Elk Camp was a rousing success. After setting up Thursday Oct. 15th, we were able to feed 170 people including around 90-100 youth hunters. After dinner, the youths attended an informative seminar that included topics like hunter safety, finding elk, what to do after the shot and many other tips to making their hunt successful and fun.


This is 11-year old Tim Lehmann with his cow elk. This was Tim’s first elk hunt. Congratulations Tim.

Friday morning was a little slow for the youth hunters but the afternoon hunt and all day Saturday we saw many of the young hunters bringing in elk. For those who were having a hard time finding elk, we had outfitters and guides in camp that spent some time in the woods checking the locations of the herds. Lots of parents and kids stopped by camp with maps for information about where they might find elk and be successful. All in all, it was a great camp with the youth hunters having a great experience.

Many thanks go out to Terrance & Chi-Chi from Happy Jack Lodge for the all their help in making this a great camp for the kids. The volunteers from the AES and donors of items for camp included Arizona Game & Fish, Happy Jack Lodge and RV Park, 4 Peaks Processing, Wes’s Western Taxidermy, Swafford Guide Service, Continental Divide Knives, John Toner, Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Arizona Elk Society, Performance Suspension and many others. This year’s camp was funded in part by a grant from Arizona Game and Fish and NSSF.


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12 The Tracker - Fall 2009

ARIZONA ELK SOCIETYMEMBERSHIP OR RENEWALS

The Arizona Elk Society truly appreciates your support as we strive to improve the elk population, wildlife habitat and our hunting heritage. As a member of this great organization, you have been instrumental in helping us achieve our successes. None of this could have been accomplished without your membership. Please continue to help us in our quest.

In nine years, the Arizona Elk Society has funded 224 projects, helped restore 182,000 acres for wildlife and affected over 200,000 acres.

We need your membership to continue our mission. Please take the time and renew today. On-line renewal available at our website: www.arizonaelksociety.org I guarantee this is the best action you can take to ensure the future for AZ elk, their habitat and our hunting heritage.

Steve Clark - President

Host youth programs such as:

Wapiti Weekend - a camp designed to introduce children to the outdoors, wildlife and hunting

Junior Elk Camps - camps designed to assist the youth during junior elk hunts

Elk Hunting Clinics - designed to teach elk hunting basics for successful hunts

Host work projects such as:

Burro Creek - fence removal project

Adopt-a-Ranch

Buck Springs - fence removal project

Fund habitat improvement projects such as:

Pinon/juniper thinning

Water tank & pipe line constructions

Controlled burns & Grass land restoration and more...

Retire grazing allotments to insure wildlife habitat such as:

Burro Creek Allotment - over 26,000 acres

Big Lake Allotment - 4,500 acres

Buck Springs - 73,000 acres

Membership in the Arizona Elk Society has enabled us to:


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L I F E M E M B E R I N C E N T I V E

MARCH 20, 2010 Join Us for a Night of Fun While Helping Arizona’s Elk & Other Wildlife.

GREAT DINNER CASH BAR RAFFLES AUCTIONS SURPRISES!

YOU COULD WIN Big Game Trips Fishing Trips

Rifles Bows Camping Equipment Jewelry And More!

DON’T MISS THIS ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY!YOU COULD BE THE WINNING BIDDER ON ONE OF THREE AZ GAME & FISH

COMMISSION SPECIAL TAGS! ANTELOPE - ELK - BUFFALO

ORDER YOUR TICKETS, TABLE OR DONATE TODAY! For Tickets, Contact Ticket Chairman Kathi Thompson, 480-882-9477.

For information on Corporate tables, please call Cookie Nicoson at 928-635-1074. To be a Donor, contact Dee Clark at 623-594-7074 or Cookie

Nicoson at 928-635-1074.

VISIT WWW.ARIZONAELKSOCIETY.COM FOR MORE INFO.

MISSION STATEMENT: The mission of the Arizona Elk Society is to raise funds to benefit elk and other wildlife through habitat conservation and restoration and to preserve our hunting heritage for present and future generations.

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SION STATEMENT: The mission of thezona Elk Society is to raise funds toefit elk and other wildlife throughitat conservation and restorationto preserve our hunting heritage

present and future generations.

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December 17, 2009, I lost my best friend, Mike Kennedy.

He passed away suddenly that morning. I sit here now

remembering the times we spent together and his big

booming voice. Mike had a great love for his family, friends

and the outdoors. Mike had a way of making people he

met feel like they had become his new friend.

We spent many days in the outdoors, hunting, fishing,

shooting, scouting and camping. I have a ton of great

memories of Mike. They will be kept alive in my mind every

time I am outdoors or at any of the many functions or

places Mike and I visited.

Mike had the biggest heart of anyone I know. It always

amazed me how kids would gravitate to Mike, even the shy

ones. Mike loved spending time with kids and introducing

them to the wonders of places like Cabela’s and the

outdoors. He was a devoted volunteer for the AES Wapiti

Weekend and our Junior Elk Hunters Camp.

One of my favorite memories was at Wapiti Weekend.

Mike and I were sitting in the kitchen and little Sara was

wandering by. Sara is Shelly Hargis’ daughter. She is very

shy and it was obvious that she was tired and needing

comfort. Mike was sitting in a chair and as Sara walked by,

he spoke a few magic words to her. She put out her arms

so he picked her up and put her in his lap. She immediately

felt safe and fell sound asleep. A photo was taken of this

precious moment and to me it will forever symbolize the

way Mike was with kids of all ages. He was their friend, their

mentor and a safe and comfortable place for them to go.

You could always find Mike when you were out at an

archery 3-D event. All you had to do was listen for his

booming laugh. He loved to laugh – especially when the

joke was on him. Mike was a big guy, with a big heart who

always made you feel special. He was also a little kid at

heart stuck in a grown-up body.

When Mike’s grandson Connor was born, he was all excited.

Mike and his wife had two daughters. Connor was his

first boy. (No offense Kara.) He was really looking forward

to spending time with Connor. Teaching him about the

outdoors and hunting.

MIKE KENNEDY

1.26.57-12.17.09

HUSBAND, FATHER, OUTDOORSMAN


Please keep Dee, Kara and Bethany in your

prayers. They lost a husband and a father.

For the last four years, Mike worked his dream

job – a manager at Cabela’s. He always said that

if he didn’t need the money to live on, he would

do this job for free. He loved working the floor

and meeting the customers and the kids. Many

of you have seen Mike at Cabela’s – he was the

“Big Guy”. I know my wife and I will forever think

of the Cabela’s Glendale store as Mike’s place. His

presence will be felt every time we visit.

I am usually reminding you to remember the

wildlife, conservation and the hunting heritage.

This time I cannot stress enough to take a

moment every day to cherish your family and

your friends. by Steve Clark

Michael Kennedy Marvin Robbins

Donald Cobb

By making a donation to AES in memory of a loved one or friend, you will help ensure that their memory lives on in helping Arizona’s wildlife and hunting heritage.

In memoriam donations will be recorded in our Tracker newsletter and on the AES website. In memoriam

donations can be made as a special tribute for a birthday, anniversary or in memory of a friend or relative.

In Memory Of:


BB’S COLUMN:“BB” VS HORSES & BURROS!by John Koleszar

On the holiday weekend when all families try and gather together, I got

the call that “BB” wanted to talk and he wanted to talk NOW! Armed with leftover turkey sandwiches and a drumstick that I had carefully hidden from the rest of my family, I made the trek up to the Big Lake Recreation Area. “BB” was not hard to find, as he had a gathering of some of the most impressive bulls I had ever seen. It kind of felt like an old time religion revival meeting as I watched “BB” parading in front of no less that 30 bulls. He seemed to be communicating to them in a fervor that I had seldom seen. Since I do speak elk, I tried to nuzzle read what he was saying. Even at a distance the message was pretty clear – “BB” was telling the other bulls that he wanted them all to drop their antlers at a specific location in the weeks of February and March. He then said that they were going to place the shed antlers on the heads of horses that had been sullying the neighborhoods along the Rim. His thoughts were that the humans would switch from shooting deer and elk and finally convert over to bagging horses. The bigger the racks on the horses, the higher the possibility that hunters would begin to view them as trophies, and that was the message for the day... outing the horses! At the end of his diatribe, the herd began to disburse and he started to trot over to me. From the short distance, I noted a distinct limp to his stride. Immediately I became concerned as to his welfare. I looked at his right rear leg and said ““BB”, what the heck happened to you. I thought that no hunter would ever get to you…are you okay?” “BB”

looked up with a fiery look in those big brown eyes. “Hell boy, no hunter has ever come close to doing me in. Took a damn poacher to stick me with one of those puny sticks and even then, he barely caught me in the leg. I can tell now when the rains are coming but it seems to have healed up quite nicely. Can’t you guys do something about poachers?” I thought about the problem of poachers and how humans can do some pretty stupid things. “BB” had always been a great looking bull, so it should have come as no surprise that someone would want his prized antlers. “I am sorry “BB”, the Arizona Elk Society as well as the Arizona Game & Fish Department are really trying to discourage poaching. Every commission meeting, someone is brought before the commission and they lose their license for 5 years and then have to pay a hefty fine on top of that. Then they can’t hunt in all the western compact states, so they really lose more than it seems. But poachers and hunters should never be talked about in the same sentence. We are as different as night and day. Poaching and hunting have only one thing in common…an animal on the ground. We abide by the laws. Poachers have no laws, follow no rules and are flat out selfish”. “BB” mulled that statement over and nodded as if in agreement and then lit into me.

“I have read that we have a congressional from Tucson who is trying to increase the size of the Wild Horse and Burro range. Has he lost his mind? Has anyone shown him the facts about habitat and range conditions? Is it possible that we will be a nation of all horses and no other big game wildlife?” I was amazed at “BB” as usual and at his political insight. I tried to calm him down. ““BB”…let’s not jump to


conclusions here. Yes, we have an esteemed congressional representative that is trying to protect the ever-expanding number of wild horses and burros. His thoughts have been expressed to a number of people that I personally know and I can tell you that it is all politics. Seems that some of his constituents are wild horse lovers and whatever the machine wants in Tucson…then he will do it. It has no regard as to the right thing or the wrong thing. They are simply dealing with this emotional fantasy about wild mustangs that are a symbol of the nostalgic past of the Wild West. Most of these folks have no clue about what wild horses and burros do…and that is the shame of it. Director Larry Voyles testified in front of him that it would be devastating to open more lands… Do you think that they heard anything?...nope…So we have all these facts regarding the destruction of habitat and resources on one hand and then we have the pure emotional outburst on the other… Who will win?...My guess is that we will have some crazy adaptation that makes no sense….So yes, grab as many of the stallions as you can find this spring and wedge those shed antlers on their big domes…After all… maybe France does have one good idea regarding fine cuisine.” I noted to him also that the strangest of bedfellows were conspicuous by their absence. I told him that the Sierra Club and the Center For Biological Diversity had become strangely silent regarding this bill. It is a shame that something so destructive to wildlife and habitat can be so blatantly ignored by those who regularly preach about treating EVERYTHING by the letter of the law. Where are all the lawsuits that need to be filed? Where are all the NEPA documents that they regularly scream about?... Where are the ESA and EIS questions? I looked at “BB” and sadly smiled. “Well “BB”, hopefully the AES and other groups will file suit if we have to. There is no possible action other than reducing the wild horses herd size. Emotion has no place in this discussion. Some horses need to be removed so that ALL wildlife can utilize the resource.”

“BB” had a glazed look on his face as I rattled off the particulars of who, what and where. He finally brightened after I started talking about the fall hunts. “BB” got that

big grin on his face and started to chuckle. “Yep… saw more than a few frustrated archers this fall. Seems that the combination of heat, little rain and so few cows in estrus made for some mighty quiet days and nights. Heard tell that as few as 20% were successful in terms of bagging one of my brethren. We had a group meeting just before Labor Day and it seems that some of my lectures were finally listened to.” I was curious as to what “BB” had dispensed in terms of a lecture. “What did you tell everyone “BB” I asked? “Well boy, I passed on all those years of learning. I told them NOT to bugle at any time during the daylight hours. I told them it was OK to bugle at night near houses and near campsites at night. It keeps hunter up at night and makes them sluggish during the day. I told them to water only at night. Those water holes are loaded with people during any daylight hours. Last, I told them that if someone tried stalking into their bedding areas, make sure that they had plenty of cows at the perimeter. The combination of dry woods and no rain made stalking damn near impossible.” I thought about the wisdom of “BB” and thought about all the modern tools that we had at our disposal. With scopes, tree cams, high tech equipment and word of mouth, the hunters still had to see something during daylight hours in order to b e successful. It appeared to me that Mother Nature and the wisdom of “BB” had prevailed for the early hunts. I wished him well in his quest to antlerize the horses and asked when we would meet again. “BB” pondered for a moment and then said. “God willing, the creek don’t rise and the poachers find integrity, let’s meet up after the snow melts in the high country.” I looked around at the gray skies and knew that perhaps a time of peace might be in store for my gimpy friend. I didn’t bother talking about anything else in his foul mood, but I knew that we had to talk about other serious issues, but with that gimpy leg and grand wild horse plans I left well enough alone. As I rode down to the valley, I saw one of those billboards that advertises Chik-Fillet and a picture of two cows writing the message to “eat more chikin”. I could only hope that “BB” didn’t get any bright ideas about “Stallion Steaks”. We shall see what the future holds.

Put your product in front of thousands of Arizona outdoor enthusiasts and hunters. Place your ad in

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Or contact Steve Clark at [email protected].

The Tracker is a quarterly publication for the members of the Arizona Elk Society. Letters, comments, news items, articles, pictures and stories are welcome and will be considered for publication. You may mail or email any such items. Materials mailed for publication will not be returned to the sender unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

Arizona Elk Society, P.O. Box 190, Peoria, AZ, 85380 | [email protected], 602-885-0835


by Steve Clark

In March of 2009 the Arizona Elk Society facilitated the retirement of the Buck Springs Allotment in Northern Arizona. This allotment had many issues that made many parts of it challenging to the family that had worked it for years grazing cattle. Many threatened and endanger wildlife species live in the area and with the restrictions to grazing it wasn’t economically feasible to graze cattle. The AES signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Forest Service to work towards improving and restoring the natural elements of the habitat for the wildlife and our future generations.

As soon as the documents were signed the Arizona Elk Society was planning our first work project to get on the ground and put our volunteer efforts to work. July 25-26th 2009 was picked as the first work weekend and the planning started.

Word of our project found its way into the Arizona Wildlife Conser-vationist Committee where the AES has been at the table. The groups at this meeting felt that the AES Buck Springs project would be a good way for many groups that are at odds with each other most of the time could come together and find some common ground where we could work together. This was the catalyst that made this project one of the largest Wildlife Habitat Projects in Arizona.

The Arizona Game & Fish came to the table and asked to partner with the event to showcase an On-the-Ground work project with their annual Conservation Workshop. Many of the groups that typically attend the Arizona Game & Fish event already had signed on to volun-teer at the project and the AZGFD decided to partner with all the volunteer groups and the Arizona Elk Society. The Department really helped out in a big way with many of the logistics that were created because of the number of anticipated volunteers.

BUCK SPRINGS


The Arizona Elk Society worked with Robert Garcia to identify barbed wire fencing in the allotment that was in disrepair and unneeded that could be removes from the Forest. Fencing was designed for cattle but in many cases becomes a danger and a barrier to wildlife safety and natural daily and yearly movements from food sources and bedding and to long range migrations.

So the stage was set, camp site picked out, camp volunteers signed up, fencing to be removed mapped and designated. Then they came. From all over the State volunteers started showing up. At the high point the Arizona Elk Society fed 175-180 volunteers lunch on Saturday. We had identified 6 miles of fencing to remove but with the numbers of volunteers that portion was completed on Saturday so Robert Garcia from the Forest Service and his team went out and found another 3+ miles for the Sunday crews. The volunteers on Sunday were exceptional, we usually try to be back at camp by noon to pack up and even after nearly running out of water and energy the Sunday volunteers decided to stay out till all the identified fence was removed.

Thanks to all the volunteers we were able to remove over 9 miles of barbed wire fencing to improve wildlife habitat. Until you go out and work at one of these projects or see firsthand the before and after effects you may think that it won’t be noticeable but many of the volunteers commented on the visual difference especially in the open areas with the fencing removed.

It was very rewarding to the Arizona Elk Society to see volunteers from all the diverse groups come together to physically accomplish this type of on the ground work. Larry Volyes, Director of Arizona Game and Fish commented that “When people and groups come together for a common goal great things can happen”. There were many people working side by side that may have had philosophical differences but on these days all were committed to doing something for the wildlife of Arizona.

There were so many people and groups to thank for the success of this project I know that I will miss a bunch of them. I will try to name some but please know that even if you don’t get mentioned, your individual contribution to the Buck Springs work project is very much appreciated. “Thank You”.

Some of the people or groups that made this project successful include: All the volunteers of the Arizona Elk Society, Arizona Game and Fish, USFS Blue Ridge Ranger District, the Arizona Wildlife Conser-vationist Committee, the Sierra Club, Sky Island Alliance, Mohave Sportsmen’s Club, Anglers United, Ducks Unlimited, Tracks, Animal Defense League of Arizona, Mogollon Sportsmen’s Association, South Eastern Arizona Sportsmen, Coconino Sportsmen, Arizona Wildlife Federation and other groups. Individuals included: Director Larry Voyles, Ron Sieg, Jim Devos, Robert Garcia, Sandy Bahr, John Toner, our new AES camp kitchen boss Richard Mead, Commissioner Jennifer Martin, and many others that stepped up to help out.

WORK PROJECT


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My son, Rick II, struck out on his first two junior elk hunts, but each time learned some valuable lessons and came back wanting more. We were excited when he was drawn again this year for Unit 6A. We put in with our good friends and neighbors, the Smiths, so our hunting party consisted of Parker 13 and Kaler 12 (the Smith kids), Rick 14 and the dads (Brian Smith and me) as chief cooks, bottle washers and guides (probably in that order).

Brian and I put in some long hours on two consecutive weekends scouting before the hunt. The sign looked pretty good in the area, so we felt fairly confident someone would get a shot. Opening morning turned out to be unproductive, so to keep the kids’ spirits up, we went squirrel hunting midday. That was a good decision, because they harvested and had a great time doing it. The opportunity to shoot something small also gave young Kaler a needed confidence boost.

Friday evening, Parker, Kaler and Brian sat on a water tank. At about 5:30 P.M. several cow elk came in and Kaler dropped one at the water’s edge! The kids were naturally excited, but Brian held them quiet and had them wait. Sure enough, not five minutes later another cow walked in and Parker dropped it with a double-lung shot, right next to his sister’s elk! We had no luck at the tank we chose, so Rick and I helped the Smith’s load and transport their two elks to the processor.

We had no luck again on Saturday morning or afternoon, and by then I was starting to get worried that Rick might get his “third strike” on this hunt. Even though it seemed unlikely, we hoped maybe the elk hadn’t been spooked at the “Smith’s tank,” and so we finally decided to sit there. For good luck, the Smiths joined us in the homemade blind Brian had built. Like clockwork, a little before 5:30 p.m., two cows silently walked in. They were wary, and before Rick could take aim, they bolted and ran. That was a big disappointment, thinking it might have been our only chance. But, about 20 minutes later, Rick spotted a small herd of cows, feeding about 100 yards off. They milled around for a while, and then low and behold, they starting coming in single file! Rick waited until he had a good-sized cow broadside at 30 yards, and then took the shot. Bingo! Three-for-three, and for Rick, the third time was a charm after all!

Above is a picture of all three kids with the elk Rick II harvested.

2009 JUNIOR ELK HUNT: THIRD TIME’S A CHARM!by Rick Wilson

They milled

around for a

while, and then

low and behold,

they starting

coming in single

file! Rick waited

until he had a

good-sized cow

broadside at 30

yards, and then

took the shot.


I spent 2-3 days a week for 6 weeks prior to my hunt to learn new areas and scout out places I thought would hold bulls. I had this same hunt a couple of years ago and knew much of the unit from scouting for my previous hunt. This year, I was determined to find a few new places that held big bulls so if one area was cold, I could go to another. In hindsight I am glad I scouted so much, the hot and cold hunting had me moving all over the unit.

We spent a ton of time watching bulls in 6 different areas

and it paid off by having somewhere to hunt when the elk shut down in a tough hot and cold hunt.

I would be hunting with a good friend, Richard, and all he wanted was to find some nice bulls and maybe harvest a small 6X6. I kept telling Richard that there were a lot of small bulls but in the beginning of the hunt we would be looking for big bulls.

Opening day found us sitting at the water trying to see if the bulls I had been seeing on the cameras were still around. Over the Labor Day weekend, the area got hammered with rain. Now there was water everywhere and the elk had stopped coming to the water holes. There was no bugling going on in the areas where the big bulls were hanging out. Opening day came and went without seeing a single bull. The next day was more of the same. The bulls were still silent and had moved. We spent a good bit of time glassing trying to relocate them but never found them until later in the hunt.

Sunday afternoon, we decided to check an area that held a bunch of small bulls in hopes that we could find a bull for Richard. We had glassed this area for many days during scouting trips and the day before the hunt. There had been about 9 bulls around the hills and at the water hole. Prior to the hunt, many of the small bulls had been pushing each other around. We had only seen a handfull of cow elk in the area. The day before the hunt, I glassed up a nice bull that had shown up and was now herding the cows. We


MY 2009 ELK HUNTby Steve Clark

This is one of the bulls I kept an eye (or should I say camera) on during my scouting. He would move about two miles every couple of days.

Elk hunting in 2009 Early Archery was a challenge – to say the least.


arrived in the canyon on Sunday afternoon and as soon as we got there, we heard a bull bugling up on the side of the hill. I figured this was the bigger bull that had shown up a few days ago. The bull gave us the slip while we were trying to coax him in for a better look and maybe a shot. After going around us, he headed straight for the water. That’s when we heard a lot of commotion coming from the water hole below us. Richard and I hurried to the water hole and ended up about 70 yards away watching 9 different bulls playing in the water and pushing each other around. The big bull was there and he would just stand to one side and bugle and glunk while watching the other bulls. There was a couple of smaller 6X6s in the group and we started creeping forward to get in a better position with hopes that we could get a shot. We made it to 60 yards and while we were glassing the group, the wind swirled and all the bulls ran up the side of the hill and stopped. I had gotten a good look at the herd bull and judged him to be around 330-340”. I told Richard to get ready because I thought they might come back. All of a sudden the cows and calves were at the water. It was crazy time as the cows and calves played in the water, splashing and running around. The cows obviously made the bulls feel comfortable and they started filtering back into the area. This really irritated the herd bull. He came running down the hill towards us screaming his head off and glunking non stop. The herd bull laid down in front of us at the edge of the water and rolled onto his back and began wallowing and rubbing his head in the mud. I told Richard to get ready. If this bull turned broadside when he got up Richard was to take the shot. I had ranged the bull at just under 50 yards. No such luck, the bull got up and turned straight away and aggressively began herding his cows out of the water and towards the nearest canyon. He’d had enough of the other bulls messing with his cows. All the elk cleared out

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It was crazy time as the cows and calves played in the water, splashing and running around.


and left. “Oh well, that’s hunting”. Richard sat in the trees and I walked down to a small meadow that was there. I decided to give a few cow calls to see if any elk were left and low and behold I called in a nice 260” 6X6 to my location, just about in my lap. I ran back and got Richard. We set up to see if he would come back. I started calling and the bull ran right by Richard and again was in my lap, never giving Richard a shot. This was only Sunday night so we had a lot of time to try again.

The next day we were back in the area and Richard went to sit at the water hole while I went up high to glass the area. We didn’t see or hear an elk at all that morning. I did bring a Double Bull blind and decided to put it up in a tree that was on the downwind side of the tank. We brushed it in and left. That afternoon we came back and while Richard sat in the blind, I was again on the hill glassing. A couple of the smaller bulls came to the water hole but skirted it. We were sure they saw the dark holes in the tree, the blind, and decided they weren’t that thirsty.

At camp I downloaded some pictures from a game camera that had been set up at the water hole. I was surprised that a new, large bull had been at the water hole on the first Saturday morning of the hunt. I only had three pictures of him and he was a stud bull! I wasn’t sure just how big he was but he had some extra points and long G-1s, as well as a great mane. I really liked the extra point on his left side. I showed the guys and told them that this was the type of bull I would consider taking. I vowed to be watchful and glass the area from far away until I found him. My thoughts were that the herd bull had pushed his cows out and the big bull and some of the others may of followed him.

The next couple of days we decided to hunt a different area miles away. We got into some bulls but not close enough for a shot. A couple of the bulls were in the 370” range. The bulls still weren’t bugling much but we were lucky to find pockets of active bulls over the next few days. It was tough because we would go back in the mornings and either the elk weren’t there or they would not bugle at all. It was hot and cold as far as rutting goes. The interior part of the unit we were hunting did not hold many cow elk so the bulls traveled all the time.

Well almost a week had gone by and it wasn’t getting any better. Thursday morning Richard and I decided to head to a new area that we didn’t know very well. We wanted to arrive at first light and hike in, just at daylight. After about half and hour of hiking, we arrived at an area I had been told held some good elk. Right away a herd of elk with a nice 330” size bull went by us in the trees. We followed them until we came to a real elky opening and I decided to do some calling. I was immedialty answered by two different bulls. One was above us and one was below. When I say below - I

mean down a very steep incline. We worked on these bulls for about 1 ½ hours and never got a good look at them. We decided to sneak out and come back that afternoon. That afternoon a friend, Paul, joined us to do some video taping. After setting up in the elky spot we waited until we heard a bull bugling below us. I started calling sparingly. Soon there was a herd

of elk across the opening. I glassed up a pretty good bull. Paul ran the video and Richard set up to intercept the bull if he came across. At this time I didn’t think the bull was over 330” so I was fine with trying to call him in for Richard. If he was over 350” I would have made an attempt to try and harvest him myself. After a few minutes the bull had worked his way down the hill and was coming in straight for me, Paul was taping and Richard was ready. I called and ranged the bull at 25 yards and whispered the yardage to Rich, as soon as Richard moved to draw his bow the bull looked over and bolted. I was able to stop the bull and whispered again to Richard that he was 30 yards away. Richard was so intent on getting a bead on the bull, he didn’t see a couple of small branches so when he shot the arrow twirled aimlessly through the trees. Just after this event we had another bull above us on the hill but couldn’t get him to come any closer. The next morning we returned and all the elk stayed below us so we went down into some of the steepest country I have ever been in. My friend Chuck had joined us and we had bulls all around us but decided that the country was way to steep to hauland elk out of without ruining the meat, so we looked around for a while then returned to camp. The trail we started into the area on was above us almost straight up about 1 mile and then it was another mile to the trailhead. Crawling on all fours at times was hard enough without an


elk on our back. I will definetly consider this area if drawn again but will make a deal with someone that has mules. That afternoon we rested and glassed the area where we had our close encounter a few days ago. A couple of small bulls were back at the water hole.

The next morning found us back at the Double Bull Blind without a bugle or an elk. After the quiet morning, I decided to find the bull with the cows and his friends. We drove a couple of canyons away and got up high to do some glassing. As soon as we were set up the herd bull bugled in a canyon right below us. We confirmed that it was a good bull, grabbed our bows and were off. Soon we arrived at the canyons edge and glassed the bull and his cows going into the next canyon and headed for cover. This was the same herd bull from the water hole and he was looking better all the time. I hoped that we didn’t push him too hard. Two days later we decided to check on him again after hunting the canyon with the water hole in it. At 9:30am I got a response to a cow call and we were able to locate him on our side of the canyons. Richard and I started working our way to his location only to be busted by some of his cows. He pushed his herd off the edge of the canyon and as we stood 100 yards above him, we were able to

get a good look at him and watch them go straight down and up the other side. During his travels, he was bugling and glunking all the time. We heard three other bulls responding to the herd bull in other canyons but couldn’t see them.

Tuesday afternoon, we went back to where the herd bull was and got on the mountain side up high so we could glass. It was 3:30pm and as soon as we set up the herd bull started bugling. After about an hour, two other bulls began bugling back and forth with the herd bull. As the cows started filtering onto the mesa below us, I noticed a

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lone cow wandering around and thought to myself that this could get good. Just then I saw two more cows coming out of the canyon on our left followed by what I thought was a 320-330” bull. Now the herd bull with his harem was on top of the mesa feeding and another bull was headed their way. Both these bulls were nice 350-360” bulls. I looked down at a water hole below us and noticed that a cow was headed to the water. I didn’t know if it was the lone cow or one of the cows with the bull from the canyon on the left. Richard and I hustled down the mountain and got set up in some brush near the water hole to see if a bull was coming in. After the cow left, I heard the bull on our left bugling and decided to head towards him and see if I could call him in. I set up with Richard about 60 yards in front of me and started cow calling with a little estrous call mixed in. The bull came barreling on to Richard and passed by him, bugling, glunking, and throwing snot all over the place. He was headed for me. Richard didn’t have a shot when the bull passed him at 10ft but the bull paused at about 30 yards and was looking for me. I heard Richard shoot and started aggressively cow calling to keep the bull in the area in case he was hit. Soon the bull was circling back towards me and stepped out broadside at 40 yards looking for the cow that was calling to him. At this time I still had my bow on the ground and as soon as the bull came to a stop, I noticed that he was not hit so I picked up my bow and sent an arrow on its way. I really didn’t look hard at his rack but had decided that the hunt was winding down and he was a nice 330” bull, or so I thought. The arrow hit its mark right where I was aiming, just above the heart right in the lungs.

Now the tracking started, we gave the bull about 15 minutes, not near enough time in hindsight, and started after him. There was no trouble finding the blood trail, he was hit good. After about 400 yards I was beginning to second guess how good I thought the shot was, when I bumped him out of a small depression and he started up the mountain. I followed him a little more then decided to back out. We went back to camp to get my friend Chuck

and some lanterns and lights. On the way back Chuck asked me how big the bull was and I told him I thought he was about 330”. I shot him to make sure I got some meat from the hunt, I didn’t want to go home empty handed. We took up the blood trail with the lights and soon found the elk. All we could say was WOW. I had really underestimated this bull! His body was huge and the rack was big. That is when I noticed that he was the elk on my sceensaver. The same big bull with the point coming off of his fourth from the water hole. To say I was elated is an understatement. I ended up having the bull green scored at 377” gross.

This was the best bull I have ever harvested. I am glad I scouted hard and took the time to hunt hard. I need to thank my wife Dee for understanding my passion for elk, their habitat and my desire to introduce kids to hunting and the outdoors. I also need to thank the friends that I hunted with, Richard, Chuck, Chris and Paul for their help, as well as AZGFD for managing Arizona herds so we can harvest this caliber of bulls. I can’t forget the help I received from Christian Wolff and Cory Worischeck – thanks guys.

A reminder for those with Arizona elk tags this year – each year there is an annual competition. All entries received by May 1 of the year following the calendar year the animal is taken, are automatically entered into the competition. This year’s deadline for elk taken in 2009 is May 1, 2010. Entries received after the May 1st deadline are not eligible for the annual competition, but are entered into the next year’s record book.

For deer hunters, the minimum score for non-typical deer was lowered by 10 points at the last Trophies Committee

meeting. It is 210 effective immediately. Any deer meeting the new minimum are eligible for listing in the record book regardless of when it was taken.

The requirements for trophy entries, minimum scores and a list of measurers are on the Arizona Wildlife Federation web site at www.azwildlife.org. The price of the 2005 field copy of the record book has been reduced to $15.00. The 2000 field copy of the record book is still available for $10.00. To order either field copies, downloaded the form from the web site, or you may call Kim at 480-644-0077.

FOR THE BOOK(Arizona Wildlife Trophies)

by Bill Keebler


THE BATTLE WITHIN

by Patrick Weise

The mountains are where my heart feels at home. Being close to nature provides a peace in me that is hard to duplicate elsewhere. Chasing bull elk with a bow and arrow has become a rutting passion of mine, one I’d fight tooth and nail to never give up. When I’m at full draw, it’s like a downhill roller coaster ride. However, that was not the case this past year. Doubt toyed with my heart and mind as I wrestled with an ethical decision. Knowing what is right and doing it are two separate things, sometimes becoming blurred. Past hunts were like New Years Eve parties when arrow met flesh. This hunt was more like the day after. A struggle to enjoy as I battled, a battle within.

Cool and quiet, the morning hunt started out like many others. Getting up hours before dawn and heading out into the thick of it, to find bull elk. After following a barbwire fence uphill in the dark, I bumped into my first party-crasher – a young spike who knew how to vocalize the alarm bark quite well, and was not afraid to hold his sentry position. Warm steam seeped out of my ears instead of my mouth, as I air mailed him the first rock my gloved hands could pick up. When the package arrived, he left quickly without saying goodbye. I shrugged him off shaking my head and proceeded to the top of the saddle.

As the horizon oozed out new colors, more noise became abundant. Bugles not far off provided me a face-lift to my otherwise worried expression. I now had a direction to follow. The noisy elk were screaming up a storm. Keeping a close follow but out of sight, they led me to their bedding area.

The bulls finally stopped walking when they reached a crease in the mountainside. A thick stand of pines jutted skyward casting dark shadows over the secluded area. In a bowl not far off was one bull on fire. He was screaming like mad, as he ripped the pants off an innocent young tree. I started moving in fast while he raped the branches, and froze when he stopped. I was about 30 yards from him but still had no line of sight. I crept


in another eight yards or so and froze with one foot mid-air.

Another bull had just walked out from some trees at 30 something yards and stopped broadside. Instincts took over as the bow came to full draw. The unseen monster to my right screamed again as my finger punched the release. The arrow drilled flesh as my eyes witnessed the small 6x6 trot up and over the rim of the mountain bowl. Weak in the knees, I laid down in the tall wild flowers and rolled over to my side as my eyes dilated to golf ball size. Walking towards me at twenty yards was a state record bull, 400+. Oh my goodness, what have you done? I had let the excitement of the moment take charge and shot the small bull knowing there was something larger right next to me. I was too impatient. Instead of rejoicing, I was kicking myself. The other voices in me were taunting, as they each spoke their minds.

Shoot him you idiot. Yes, the big bull. What are you waiting for? Do I need to crawl out of your head and do it for you? Look you num-skull, that bull will easily score well over 400 points. What is he a 7x8? He’s standing there broadside at 15 yards. Do you know how many other hunters would give their left arm to be in your position right now? Your tag is still in your pocket and that other bull could have ran to Mexico by now. Shoot. I could have shot him ten times already. Do it, and let the healing begin, hallelujah. The bull is big – no scratch that, huge. I have already been here next to him for ten minutes. He wasn’t going anywhere. I have to admit, I haven’t seen any other hunters on this side of the mountain all week. I camped on a dead end road and I was in two miles on foot. Who would ever know? That’s right, no one would ever know. Now read my lips, shoot the bull. If I wasn’t your friend I would just keep my big mouth shut, but that’s why you brought me. You’re unsure of yourself. You need a fresh perspective, a second opinion. For crying out loud, would you just go and pull the bowstring back. Damn it. It just doesn’t feel right. If

I’m willing to compromise my values, here alone in the field, what’s next? My wife, my marriage?

I was struggling. My mind was in a jujitsu wrestling match. I know what’s right and I know what’s wrong. Why is this decision so hard? Why can’t I just be content with the small 280 6x6 I just shot? What the hell is wrong with me anyway? The bull let out another monster scream as the forest trembled in the presence of the herd bull. The wind moved the trees as their branches bowed in respect of the old monarch. Now or never, fool. Opportunities like this don’t last forever, once in a lifetime, and your time is now. If you don’t shoot him, you will regret it your entire life. No trophy on the wall to show your grandkids. No bigger-than-life story to tell the guys at the bar – just that little pipsqueak you call a bull hanging euro-style out in the shed. Hell, I wouldn’t even hang him up.

The truth is, I was regretting even thinking about shooting a second bull. How could I live with myself after committing such a crime? I rolled over onto my back and sighed. There, I’m not going to do it. Shoot him yourself if you think you can get out of my head. I’m not going to do any such thing. Oh what a relief. I didn’t think their mouths were ever going to shut up. It felt heavenly not to worry about a decision like that. My dilemma melted into the ground as I watched the wind whip the treetops around and float the clouds on by. My mind started to drift away with them when suddenly my eyes ripped back to reality. Look out! My body violently jerked as I rolled to my right. A black hoof fell from the blue calming sky. A brown mass followed right behind as my eyes worked to comprehend the situation. Two cow elk had made it up the hill. The monster bull had been calling them all morning and now they were here, almost stepping on me. They all left immediately and I was finally alone, sort of.

I waited a while longer and then headed after my bull. I hadn’t traveled more than 60 yards when my feet stopped before my brain could tell them to. There he was. Ya, there he is idiot. You wouldn’t shoot that record book bull at 15 yards, but you shoot this small one at 35, and didn’t even kill him. My mind was right – I made a bad shot. It was too far back. The wounded elk was lying down, trying to pull the submerged arrow out with his teeth. My heart dropped into my stomach. What have I done? I felt responsible for a horrific accident. I knew one thing for sure, my bull was in pain, and it was my duty

to relieve his pain. I have no shot here. I crouched down and slowly backed out of there. I snuck around to his backside. I then crept in to within 10 yards. My gut was in knots, as I felt guilty as hell. I nocked another arrow and drew the bow back. Forgive me Lord for I have…“Smack”.

The arrow plunges close to the aimed mark, real close. The elk stands up and walks a few steps trying to fight an enemy he cannot see. His legs give in and back down he goes. His head comes up as he struggles to stand and breathe. Die damn you – just die and get it over with. I could hardly stand to watch as time took its sweet time. I witnessed his mouth speaking silent curses, all directed at me. I could feel the bull’s pain transpose into my own body, (Why me?) as I begged the Lord for a faster death. Down he stayed – surrender he must. Muscles ceased to move and breathing retired as the battle was over for the bull. This was my most un-proud moment in all my life. Bambi-slayer. See, I told you. You should have shot the other bull. My internal battle was still at odds, as the smell of a slow death lingers in the air I still breathe. I said a lot of sorrys. To whom, I am not sure, but I kept saying them anyway.

The intersection of life and death was now underneath my feet. A junction every successful hunter communes through as we take and receive. I gave respect to the young bull for submitting his life to me. His meat will build new muscle in me, thus continuing my life, perpetuating our souls. I wait as the moment lies, chiseled in time.

I take off extra layers of clothing and retrieve my pocketknife and tag. I put the tag on his antlers then

watched my hands run up and down the rough ivory tipped rack. I then remove the two bloody aluminum arrows and break them in half over my knee in spite. I dig a shallow grave and bury the broken arrow pieces. I never want to see them again as long as I live.

I skin and quarter the bull with sweat-soaked clothes and hands until my job is complete. The weight of anguish that was in my empty stomach had now transferred to my shoulder, as I pick up and carry the first rear leg quarter down off the mountain. With such a long walk back to camp, I’ll have plenty of time to say sorry, and another year to better my aim. As I walked, I muscled up the courage to ask the bull to forgive me. I know it sounds silly but I swear it made me feel better. A few steps later, the satisfaction of the hunt slowly won the battle brewing inside me as a gut-wrenched smile began to own my face.

As I continue walking, a snapshot of that monster bull napping peacefully with his cows somewhere found rest in my mind. Then a cool September breeze came up from behind to help carry my load. The refreshing air brought with it a peace that had been lacking all morning. I close my eyes and inhale as much air as my lungs can bottle up. I hold my breath and absorb all that the mountain has to offer me. As I exhale and open my eyes, I realize I’m one step closer to the true meaning of life. I then crest a small hill as the familiar barbwire fence comes into view. With camp nearing and a story to tell, it sure feels good to have left the battle within, buried high up on the now quiet mountain.


It had been nine years since my last bull elk archery draw. He is still staring at me from the living room wall. Unit 7 west was not only where I drew my last tag but it is now where I live. Despite living against the forest service, my husband and I set up the camp trailer in the woods, brought out the Ranger, and set up for two weeks of hunting and camping.

The first week was very slow for bull elk. I think I saw every other animal in the woods with the exception of a mountain lion. One afternoon a boar black bear came in while I was bugling for a bull but I stood up and started making noise to send it off (that was a little scary). The next day another black bear came in with her two cubs but staying quiet in my blind was more appropriate.

Finally the second to last evening of the hunt I called in a 6 x 6. When he first came into the water hole where I was set in a blind, the wind rustled the trees and he ran for cover. About 45 minutes later he circled around and

came back in from the opposite side. The second he had both front feet in the water, I released my arrow at him. It was a 37-yard shot that sent him running.

Another 45 minutes later, myself and 8 of my friends tracked him down 250 yards from the water hole. After gutting him out it was apparent that it was a beautiful lung shot. We loaded him up on the Ranger, brought him back to camp, skinned him, and iced him down for the night.

The meat is now in the freezer and the head is off to the taxidermist for about the next eight months. This was an awesome hunt for me. 13 days of beautiful sunrises and sunsets, my husbands’ good camp cooking, and special thanks to all my friends for coming out for the glory.

Thank You God, Thank You Arizona Game and Fish, and a Thank You to the Arizona Elk Society for keeping vigil on the Elk in Arizona.

MY BULL ELK ARCHERY HUNTby Corey Tunnell Ferry


I was very fortunate to have my husband buy me the Commissioner’s special tag for javelina. I have been bowhunting these little critters for 7 years now and have not been successful – until now. Knowing how bad I wanted to get a javelina, my husband Mark could not pass up buying this tag for me. We went out to a spot on Saturday, Nov. 21st and found some pigs. I got around the canyon and to the other ridge above the pig and was within 25 yards of him. I had no shot and was trying to maneuver for one when he decided to go down the canyon. Mark radioed me and told me that he was gone, and proceeded to guide me to the rest of the herd about 50 yards to my left. When I got to them, they were coming up right at me and I had to hurry. I knocked an arrow and drew back but could not see my pins, my peep site had twisted. I let off my bow and twisted the peep and drew back again at the last pig going by. I still could not see through the peep, so I let them pass and they went over to the next canyon. I went and had a new peep site put in so that would not happen again. The next day, Sunday, Nov. 22nd, Mark and I were joined by our friends Jerry and Rodney who were to help me locate the javelina. Jerry was also going to video my hunt. When we got to the top of the canyons, we split up. Mark and Rodney went to one ridge and Jerry and I went to the next one over. After working our way down the ridge glassing both sides and not seeing anything, we decided to go all the way to the bottom and work our way over to the canyon the javelina went to the day before. As we were walking over to the edge of the canyon, we

buggered up 3 adults with babies. One of the babies got left behind. Jerry told me to stay within 20 yards of it as it would bring back the other javelinas. Then, the most awesome thing happened when the baby came over to us and stood right on top of my boot! Jerry got all of it on the video! When the baby took off we followed it very slowly and quietly. Before we knew it, a mom and baby hooked up with the little one and took off. We just stood there watching them run off. Jerry then told me that he heard some more just off to our right and to stay still and get ready to draw. We saw the pigs in front of us in some trees about 30-40 yards away. I got my rangefinder out to verify the distances and check some other spots and started seeing so many pigs. As it turned out, Mark was able to see us as we had notified him by radio that we were into the pigs and were turning our radio off. He said that we were in the middle of a big herd. I drew back to take a shot at a javelina about 30 yards in front of me. While waiting for the pig to step out for a clear shot, another one came down to my right at 10 yards. He was broadside to me when I turned for the shot, but he turned and faced me head on. I waited for a shot at full draw, he turned his head to look to the left and I took the shot. He went about 25 yards and dropped. Jerry got the whole thing on video. The javelina ended up being a young female, but I was very excited and happy with my success. Mark and I have a HAM hunt in February and I will be going out again with my muzzleloader this time, and hope to harvest a larger boar.

THE CURSE

IS FINALLY LIFTEDby Kathi Nixon



When I was just a little boyMy Daddy told me, SonWe’ll go to the mountainsAnd we’ll watch Elk run.They’ll roam wild and freeAnd the breaking of the limbsAnd we’ll hear the elk buglingHigh up on the rim.

High up on the rim, hear the elk bugling, high up on the rim

From the San Francisco PeaksTo Valleys far belowWinter’s coming inBringing on the snow.We see the bulls gatheringTheir calls they singFighting in the meadowsTo prove who’s the king


Now I take my grandsonTo the mountains with meWe watch the elkStill wild and freeWant to keep the heritageFor all of my kinForever elk a buglingHigh up on the rim


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Tracker Fall/Winter 2009

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Transcript of Tracker Fall/Winter 2009