Elk, Antelope and More Strip Bucks

The online Arizona Elk and Antelope application period is now open, and can be accessed here by clicking here-  https://az.gov/app/huntdraw/home.xhtml

New for 2013! We have acquired some of the best private land in the state for huge bulls. This 65,000 acre ranch takes in both unit 9 and 10 and is split almost equally down the middle. It has had virtually zero hunting pressure on it in the last 20 years and we are very excited to be offering a limited number of hunts on it for the Archery, Early Rifle and Late Rifle hunts. This ranch harbors giant bulls every year and has long been a pressure free sanctuary for hundreds of elk each year. It will be a tremendous opportunity to hunt private land and harvest an big unpressured bull. This ranch is also the first and only exclusive private land hunt ever offered in unit 9. We are going to harvest some unreal bulls from this property and are only going to book a minimal number of hunters. If you are interested please call or email for all the details. 928-713-9575 azmattman2000@yahoo.com



I also wanted to post the rest of the bucks we harvested on the Strip this year. As stated before, it was a tough year and the bucks antlers were badly droughted. We knew this going in to the hunt, gave it all we had and this is what we came up with. To read about the two whoppers we already posted, click here- http://arizonastripbucks.blogspot.com/2012/12/2012-rifle-hunt.html

15 year old Tevin proved to be a warrior after 7 hard days on the Strip. He passed some awesome bucks in his search for a true giant. As his time dwindled, he chose to shoot this awesome typical buck. This buck intact gross scored in the low 190's. Congrats Tevin and Thank You!

 

 

Tevin was joined by his Father Rich and his Grandpa Gary.

 

Mark and Allen also hunted with us this year and Mark closed the deal on this awesome, old and ancient 5x5. Congrats Mark and thank you!

 

Mark, Rube, Bob, Tyler, Johnny and Bryon

 

Alan put the hammer down on this buck and went home with another buck grossing over 190" Thank you Alan and Huge Congrats!

 

 

New For 2013!! Sonora Mexico, Coues and Mule Deer

After a 5 year hiatus, we are again starting to outfit private land hunts in Sonora, Mexico for both giant Coues and Mule Deer. We have an extremely limited number of hunts available for this coming January and February and a limited number of hunts available for the 2013/14 season.

The average opinion of Sonora these days is that it is unsafe, shot out, and not even remotely worth the money that it costs versus the true chances of harvesting a big deer. All of the above can be true depending on where you roam and whom you choose to use as your outfitter.

First, the safety. Here is a great link that puts the safety of Mexico travel in true perspective.  http://travel.booklocker.com/2011/05/18/travel-safety-in-perspective-usa-vs-mexico/

If you read it in detail you will find that your true odds of getting harmed in old Mexico are about the same as visiting Albuquerque. If you are scared to visit Albuquerque then hunting Mexico is not for you. The bottom line is that if you get the proper paperwork and follow the laws and rules, statistically you will be just fine. Can something bad happen? Sure it can, but the odds are the same as they are in the good ol' USA as they are in ol' Mexico. If you want to go roam around the dark alleys in the bad part of town then, well, you are on your own...

Call or email if you want to the hunt this buck. This 13,000 acre ranch has never applied for permits until this year. It is available for two hunters this January.

 

 

 

Second, the shot out thing. Is Mexico shot out? As in, are all the big deer killed and gone and the glory days are over? The answer is yes....in some areas. The entire state of Sonora is virtually all private ranch land. Landowners can apply and get landowner tags similar to some U.S. states. Some landowners choose to sell as many hunts as possible each year and many ranches get rotated around the outfitting community regularly. Other landowners take great pride in the quality of bucks that "their" ranch produces. Similar to the Sonoran cattle business. Some cowmen raise as many common cattle on their property as possible and other choose to focus on quality and take pride in the health of their ranch, their product and their reputation. The hunting is the same. Any ranch we intend to book hunts on will be owned and operated by landowners that put quality first and are proud of the role their ranch will play in your success. The same practice we have maintained while building AZSB.

Third, cost versus odds. The average price for a Sonoran Mule Deer hunt is $10,000. Some ranches are more and some less, but 10K is a good average. This price has been standard for quite awhile and is a fair market value considering the cost of the tag, gun and UMA applications, outfitting, fuel, food and the several other overhead costs that go into pulling of a smooth and efficient hunt in Mexico. But....it is only fair market value if the "odds" or "chance" of killing the buck you want are truly there. Many outfitters operating in Mexico focus on rotating as many new hunters thru their ranches as they can book. They are after the one time 10K payment and after it is secured, care little about the true outcome of your hunt or if you will come back the next year. We have always based our business practice on the sound theory that if we supply a superior product, and sell it with honesty, we will surpass our competition. It has surely paid off in Arizona, and we are taking this same mindset to Mexico. We want you to come back, and bring your friends also. Our Mexican partners, landowner base, and entire business plan will revolve around this goal...providing a superior product than all of our competitors. Does this guarantee that if you spend 10 grand with us you will kill a big deer? Absolutely not! What it does guarantee you is that we have used every resource we can, to put you in a situation where the odds will be the highest we can make them. After all, that's what you purchase when you book a free range hunt...a "chance" to kill a big animal.

Please feel free to call or email if you want to hear how our approach to outfitting in Mexico is different than all of our competitors and how our plan can lead you to the buck you have been waiting for...

2012 Rifle Hunt

First of all I want to thank the clients that chose to trust us with their priceless Strip tags and allow us to assist them on their once in a lifetime hunt. Without them we would not be able to enjoy this remarkable place we have grown to care about so much. Thanks to each of you.

Well, I would be lying if I said I wasn't glad that this season is over. It proved to be tough as expected. There were not a tremendous amount of big deer to start with and most of the better ones has intense hunting pressure on them. We did manage to kill a few that were off the beaten path and once again proved that our aggressive scouting pays off on tough years like this one. I am still compiling all the pictures from our crew but here are a couple of the better bucks we killed.

The buck below was a buck we followed all summer. He was dubbed "Curly" by a good friend that bowhunted the buck in August. In November he lived in a place that gets road hunted hard but seldom does anyone get out of the truck and hunt around. Due to the vehicle traffic this buck stayed in the thick until the eve of the 6th day at which time he stepped out into Rick's waiting cross hairs. One 320 yard shot and the long slow week was over. Rich showed a ton of persistence and patience during his hunt and we thank him for that. Curly's 4x4 frame was 211.6 and his total 4x5 gross was 220.3. A true giant by any one's standard.

                             "Curly"on water at 3:00pm on day 4 of the hunt!

 

Rick and Curly together at last!

 

 

Rick and his son Travis

 

 

 

Rick and I with the customary skull shot.

This second buck was harvested by Jennifer R. This was Jennifer's first Strip buck and in fact it was her first animal harvest ever! She made a couple great shots and collected the awesome 5x6. She was accompanied by her husband and AZSB friend Michael. We scored the buck at just under 200" in camp and Jennifer's husband informed us later that an SCI official had grossed him at 202.7" An awesome deer either way and quite a little larger than the first Mule Deer buck I harvested at 11 years old!

                                   Jennifer's buck in early summer.

                                          Jennifer's buck in late November!

                                           Jennifer and husband Michael

                                 Jennifer,Stephen,Devin,Matt,Jason,and Bryon


I will update the blog with the other bucks when we get the pictures downloaded. We killed a few more great deer including a 4x4 whopper that 14 year old Tevon H. harvested after 7 long hard days of hunting. As usual we find our success as team. I want to thank every member of our crew. This includes guides, friends, family, and friends that are like family. The list is long and distinguished. Here goes. Byron Goswick, Bob Dykeman, Casey Carr, Tyler Tyree, Stephen Vohs, Bill Vohs, Devin and Bill Beck, Benny Wells, Ron Halford, Tory Brock, David Virostko, Johnny Casner, Jason Campbell and all the rest that contributed in any way throughout 2012. Thanks again gentlemen!