The truth about 13A and 13B

DISCLAIMER- The following post contains some numbers and opinions that are mine and mine alone! I did not conduct a controlled scientific study, I simply spent around 800 days, spread out over 11 years looking for the very biggest bucks I could find in units 13A and 13B. Anything contained herein is strictly my own opinion and nothing more! Thank you, Matt

Arizona Strip deer units 13A and 13B are world renowned for very good reason. They produce staggeringly gigantic mule deer bucks and have since the beginning of time. Unit 13 genetics are second in the world to only one other place, the Kaibab, also in Arizona. In reality the two gene pools are similar, but the Kaibab (unit 12A,B) does have more top end bucks in the book then Unit 13. You may not believe that statement after witnessing what the Kaibab has produced in recent history, or rightly what it HAS NOT produced, but that is due 100% to the gross mismanagement of the tag numbers....Ok, redirect.....

13A and B are some of the most sought after deer permits in existence. High quality magazines are regularly filled with pictures of Strip bucks. You will be the envy of everyone you know if you draw one of these tags. People will tell you "your gonna kill a giant!!" So, one common mistruth is that drawing the tag is the hardest part. Wrong! As hard as it is, it will pale in comparison to trying to kill a big deer there, UNLESS proper preparation has been made. Some may naturally believe that there must be tons of huge deer to be had and all you have to do is show up and hunt around long enough and you will shoot one. Wrong again! The Strip country is beyond huge. There is literally YEARS worth of country to explore and never have to go to the same place twice. Much of it appears to be prime deer habitat with huge Cliff Rose thickets, and lush greenery during the wetter periods of the year. The fact remains that most of both 13A and 13B hold a surprisingly low number of deer. Not just low buck numbers, but low deer numbers period. We regularly scout huge pieces of country loaded with browse and feed, ample water within a moderate distance, yet there will be zero deer using the area. Not one! The water sources will show zero tracks. During the dry times, Strip deer must come to established water. Not every day mind you, maybe not even every week in some areas, but they must eventually come to water and leave tracks. Live water is rare and very far between and most deer survive on a man made water catchment of some sort. In my opinion, drought years just often enough, rampant predators and lack of water is why the deer numbers are so low and have been for a long time. It just the nature of the Strip environment.

So, what does this mean for a lucky guy with a deer tag in his pocket? It means that, if you hope to put your tag on one of the huge deer this country is known for, then there is an awful lot of work that someone needs too do. You can elect to take this task on yourself. Many do each year and are successful. But if you do, you will need time. Time measured in weeks, not days. Time measured in months if you really want to take your tag to the highest level possible. Deer alone are hard to find if you do not know where to look, much less a buck over 200". I have my own numbers and opinions on the big buck numbers in the 13 units. I have formed these opinions from spending over 10 years of my life scouting for big bucks in these units as aggressively as I can using every method available under the law. I figure that ON AVERAGE there are roughly 50-60 bucks each year that will gross over 200" in units 13A and 13B combined. This can vary widely on drought to wet years. In fact, on the driest of years just finding a 200incher gets tough enough. But on an average normal year between 30-35 of those will be in 13B and 20-25 will be in 13A. When you look at how many bucks over 220", that number drops to around 12-15 bucks. That is 13A and B combined! If you know how big the Strip is, do a little division and you will find that is roughly one 220" buck for every 208 square miles!! Bucks over 230"? Try about 4-6 of them, or 1 for every 520 square miles!! Some may think you can breeze up there and shoot a huge deer just because you drew the best tag in the world, think again! So what is the solution? Check back here for a whole run of posts about how we scout and hunt this very special place...