The End of the 2012 Bowhunt

Well, here is the final chapter on our archery season. We started the season off with a bang with Gary Galford's huge 6x7 on opening morning. His story is below this one.  As season rolled on, the hunting got tough. This was expected and we had prepared for it. We started the season spottin and stalkin, as water was everywhere. We hunted hard for a couple giants that we had seen preseason as well as we had numerous back-up bucks. Overall we experienced 4 missed shots total. The hunters that missed these shots were rightfully heartbroken. Shots are few and far between when you are focused on the biggest of the big and often one or maybe two opportunities is all you can expect on these big mature bucks. The hunters that missed had a tremendous amount of grit and persistence and stayed the course until season closed. My hat is definitely off to them!

The grand finale came at 2:00 pm on the lsat day of season. Brian had used our scouting service and spent the entire season hunting a true giant! Nobody knows how challenging this is until they have spent 20 days straight hunting one old smart buck. Brian is as knarly a bowhunter as there is and when the final day of season finally came, he made short work of the awesome back-up buck below. Brian stalked into spitting distance and placed a perfect arrow into the bucks vitals. Brian's wicked typical buck was 30" wide and grossed over 190" One heck of a last day consolation prize!

I want to thank all of our valuable clients for trusting us with their tags. Each and everyone of them hunted their guts out. Some connected and some didn't but the whole ride was awesome and already has us looking forward to next bow season. Also, to the entire AZSB crew. Another hunt in the books and many more to come. Thanks to all!...Matt

2012 Strip Archery Hunt

Aaaaand were back! Wow, a guy goes scouting and hunting for a little while and 2 months go by! My apologies for the long absence from the blog. I give my word it won't happen ever again. In fact, we intend to ramp up our blog activity and hopefully build a faithful following. Anyways....

One of the best pieces of business advice I feel I have ever received is this. "Surround yourself with people better than yourself." I have worked hard to do this and can honestly say that it has been achieved. Case in point is the unreal job that AZSB guide Bob Dykeman, Hunter Gary Galford and assistant Tyler Tyree, did on the opener of the 13B bowhunt...

In early July while hitting all my old spots I found a great buck that appeared to be half grown. He was a 6x7 and, although a dandy, didn't strike me as something we would be hunting. My initial opinion was that he would finish a bit over 200" A dandy for sure but not the type of buck we focus our attention on. So, I dismissed him early and gave him little thought as the summer rolled on. In case you haven't heard the Strip is suffering a below average year this season. Bone dry conditions thru May and June have reduced many of our 200"+ inventory list to bucks that are mildly interesting to look at. In fact, to put a number on it, we have found exactly 25% of the gross 200" or bigger bucks than we had found this time last year, or the year before, or the year before that...Anywho it is a tough year to say the least. So amongst our team we had seen 3 bucks that we wanted to kill ahead of this buck. Not to take away from him at all, he just wasn't going to be our focus. The massive amount of rain the Strip has received this summer climaxed two days before the bow hunt started with a 2.5 inch flood that removed a few roads from existence and furthered the water options for the deer even more than they had been already. So as the 24th of August approached, my gut tightened as we repeatedly failed to relocate any of the best bucks we wanted to kill...

Bob dubbed this buck "Hollywood" due to the fact that the paparazzi seemed to follow him around. He resided in one of the most popular areas in 13B and was readily visible from the main road. He was well known and we knew that he was going to be hunted HARD come opening day. Now, we normally have so many big buck options that we don't have to join such circus events but this year was different. After discussing the facts with Gary Galford, the Pennsylvania hunter that would be paired up with Bob, we decided to make a run at this buck, at least for the first two days. Bob immediately went to work putting a plan together that he felt would give him and Gary an edge over the other ten tags and guides that would undoubtedly be hunting for Hollywood. Three days before the hunt, the buck vanished. Several camps popped up in the bucks area and the human activity quadrupled in the week leading up to the hunt. Bob was able to put a pattern on Hollywood in the area that he had chosen to hide in. As the night before opening day came to a close, tension was high. It always is on the eve of big buck hunt...

3:00am came quick and as Bob and Gary and Tyler slipped down the main road, not a single light shown from any of the other camps. Bob and Gary parked and walked an old two track up into a saddle near where Bob had been watching the buck. Gary positioned himself in the saddle and Bob climbed the knob just west of Gary. Tyler hung back to start looking in some other areas that Hollywood frequented. Still well over an hour before daylight, Bob quietly set up his optics and began to glass with the little moonlight that was available. As Bob dug through an oak choked hillside he glassed up Hollywood bedded in the dark! The buck was exactly where we hoped that he would be and as daylight began to erode the darkness, Hollywood rose from his bed and began to feed downhill. Gary was 250 yards below the buck. Via signals from Bob, Gary quietly closed 100 yards on Hollywood. Simultaneously, Hollywood closed 100 yards on Gary. Gary hunkered down next to big burnt pine tree as the tremendous deer continued to come his way. Due to the thick brush, only bits and pieces of deer could be seen by Gary. That is until Hollywood stepped clear at 38 yards. Like the well seasoned veteran that Gary is, he eased his bow string back undetected. The rest is history. The 38 yards chip shot went off a second later. The two blade Rage head entered exactly where it was intended and the outstanding buck was down in less than 30 yards. The entrance hole was amazing and if it hadn't been witnessed I would have sworn that Hollywood was ax murdered! After we all gathered at the dead buck, it was instantly apparent that we had drastically under estimated the size of this buck. As is so common on Strip deer, when you approach a dead one they seem to grow on the ground instead of shrink. Hollywood's gigantic body was the reason for the under estimation. At a live weight approaching 300 pounds we were 15 inches low on our guesses. We took our pictures and butchered the deer and got him back to camp as quick as we could as the heat mounted.

After reducing the head down to the skull cap and antlers we began to tape the buck. As we figured, each measurement was much longer than we had estimated. The final tally came back at over 220"! To be sure that we had it right we taped him again. It was the same at 220.4 His frame was a hair over 192" with 28 inches of extra.

I want to say thank you to Gary Galford for trusting us with his valuable tag, I want to thank Bob Dykeman for his unrelenting drive for success and his endless dedication to AZSB. And last but not least to Tyler Tyree for the multiple rough miles hiked and the gallons of sweat he poured out for the cause. I can say with full confidence that the future of Arizona Strip Bucks LLC is blindingly bright and it is due 100% to the team of individuals that make up our company. I could not be prouder of what we are building.

PS- We still have two guys hunting and each is hot on a whopper buck. We unfortunately had a missed shot on the morning of day eight but we are still grinding and odds are fair that there will be more bucks to post in a day or two. Thanks for reading and God Bless....Matt

John H. 2012 239" Buck Mount

Here is John Holbrook's unreal 239" buck from the 2012 13B rifle hunt. The taxidermy was done by Devin Beck at www.arizonawildlifedesigns.com Devin has mounted dozens of big Strip bucks and takes his taxidermy work to a level seldom reached by other artists. He is also a guide with us here at AZSB and if he's not looking for and harvesting giant deer, he is mounting them in his shop. Enjoy...

2012 Season Predictions

Here is what we expect out of the 2012 season. As you know, the state of AZ is well behind the annual rainfall averages as of today. The drought monitor shows a terrible year in the making and there is no doubt that what little moisture left in the ground is rapidly drying up as I type. So....How will this relate to antler growth and expectations for big bucks on the Strip this year? In my opinion, the late winter/early spring storms Arizona did have were great. In fact the Strip received more precipitation than anywhere else in the state. There were a few different storms that were very heavy and wet and were staggered apart perfectly. In fact the timing couldn't have been better between them. As one was drying up another was lining up to drop it's load. The bucks had a relatively mind winter and came thru it in solid body condition and were healthy when they shed their antlers. They then had storms that brought the feed to life and they have been gorging themselves on it ever since. Combined with the fact that 2011 was a below average harvest year for big bucks and many of the bucks we expected to get harvested by others never did and they are alive and well going into this year. My hope and prediction is that the feed received adequate moisture early to carry it through the antler growth cycle and regardless of what rain we do or do not receive in the future, the antler growth will still be ok. I think a worst case scenario is that we will experience an "average" year on the Strip, which is still pretty darn good, and we fully expect to find and harvest several big deer between 210" and 230", hopefully a couple bigger... I think a best case situation would involve another storm in the next few weeks, although June is typically a dry month in AZ. This would cement a great year and provide the bucks the necessary good feed to finish their antlers strong and maximize the growth. This is all my opinion and I could be a bit off base, but I don't think so. We launch our full scale, full time scouting operation on June 28th this year and by July 10th we will be able to give a detailed and accurate assessment of where we stand. Until then we can only guess, but I see no reason to not be excited about 2012. I know we are going to find and take some GIANTS, just how giant they will be is the question...

Hunting with a Guide versus the Outfitter

Today I wanted to address an issue that seems to be on alot of peoples minds. I talk to several prospective clients each year that express concern about whom they will be hunting with if they decide to book the hunt with us. This question is absolutely legitimate and should definitely be asked of your chosen outfitter. Some guys are concerned that if they book, they will be assigned some snot-nosed kid that doesn't know his ear from a hole in the ground. This is their worst fear and unfortunatley, this scenario is not uncommon in the outfitting business. It seems everyone has a guide lisence these days from my neighbor to my mechanic. Some operators will book every last hunter they possibly can and THEN try to find guides for all of the hunters! All that is required to become an Arizona "Guide" is passing an easy test and paying $300 bucks. Not hardly a screening process that spits out top notch hunters. And that is exactly what you want and need in a guide, a top notch hunter.

 Hiring a guide for a important hunt DOES NOT mean that the client lacks hunting ability or needs someone to hold their hand. It MEANS that they are a smart hunter and realize that trophy success is reached more thru preparation than anything else. Most people don't have the time needed to properly and thoroughly scout to set themselves up for success. If you are a working american chances are you do not have time to scout for weeks and months, which is exactly what needs to be done if you expect to achieve a truly giant animal. Booking a hunt with a reputable and honest outfitter is a very SMART thing to do if you want a top quality experience and you do not have the time to do it on your own.

Here is just a few of the bucks we were interested in last year. Plenty to go around!

So back to the original issue. At Arizona Strip Bucks, we are a team made up of 4 people. Matt, Bryon, Bob and Casey. I am Matt. I may be the person that handles the phone calls and organizes the details but each member of AZSB is equally as important as any other. Each of these guys is a complete package of ability, experience, passion, drive and integrity. Each share the same mission- to be the very best at what they do attained through hard work. So, in our outfit, clients need not be leary of hunting with a "guide" versus hunting with the "outfitter" . We book our hunts first come first served, so if you are the final call and book the final spot we have, that in no way means that you should expect anything less than a first place chance at killing a monster. Our scouting program is unreal and produces multiple big bucks each and every year. We keep track of a huge living library of bucks and know first hand how many big bucks are available each season. This information is invaluable in determining the number of hunters we book each season. We did not establish our flawless reputation by overbooking hunts and sending people home unsatisfied. But please don't take my word for it. Call and ask for our reference list of EVERY hunter we have guided in the last three years. In short, I personally guarantee that if you book your hunt with us, you WILL be hunting a giant buck. Not just a nice buck, but the true giant you have waited so long for....

Trophy Success and Physical Fitness

Your own body and mind are and always will be your two best weapons for any trophy hunt. Your mind is mega important for a million different reasons, but lets talk about the body. I have encountered numerous hunters over the years that have spared absolutely nothing on gear and equipment. They have thousands of dollars worth of of high performance hunting clothes. A few grand more spent on optics. Yet a few more thousand spent on a custom rifle. They have done everything under the sun imaginable to prepare for their once-in-a-lifetime hunt right? Wrong! They have neglected something thing that is more important than anything else, their physical fitness. They simply cannot access the areas needed to up the odds of killing the biggest buck possible. Alot of Arizona is high desert canyon and plateau country. While it may be a cake walk compared to say a Colorado Wilderness area with multiple 14,000 foot peaks, it is still rough and rocky and a days hunt can easily take in several miles of it.

 Although his hunt is over, John H. hiked dozens of miles over 7 days to harvest his Arizona Giant!


Cameron Hanes is the poster boy for hunting physical fitness. I have a few good friends that know Cameron and they all say that he can run off and leave anyone, anytime, in any country. He thrives on self punishment and trains like a possessed mad man. It is safe to say that Cameron's fitness will NEVER stand in the way of being successful on any hunt. Not so for many others. While Cam's insane training level is not necessary to be successful in Arizona, one must still arrive in somewhat decent shape if he wants to make sure that he is as prepared as he can possibly be. I have, on occasion, watched hunts finish unsuccessfully, due 100% to the lack of physical ability of the hunter. Again, you need not finish top 10 in the Boston Marathon to hunt AZ, but you should fill your backpack and hump some hills for a few months before your hunt. 90% of our AZ hunts involve, at a minimum, moderate hiking. Alot of it in the dark. We climb uphill everyday to gain elevated advantage for spot and stalk hunting. We spend the middle part of the day hiking around, cutting tracks, rimming canyons and doing whatever else needs to be done while we pound the countryside while hunting the specific bucks we are after. Guys that arrive in their personal best shape and prepared, have a huge advantage right out of the gate as opposed to the guy that has done little or no physical preparation. No matter how great of the tag you draw or how many big bucks or bulls your unit has produced, you will be at a severe disadvantage if you cannot put on a backpack and hike, off and on, for a whole day. Very few truly big animals are killed without at least some degree of physical effort. Oh sure, there is always the chance of harvesting something big without doing much but that chance is darn small and I hate relying on luck. Trying to get lucky has never worked for me.

In my opinion nothing can prepare you for hiking around in rocky country, like hiking around in rocky country. Gyms are great for cardio. But there is nothing in a gym that can adequately match the workout of strapping on a loaded backpack and hiking up and down rocky hills. Rocky uneven ground is also not attainable indoors. You don't need to be the next Cam Hanes, but you do need to be able to hike and move and hunt the country that holds the animal you are after! If you are holding a premium AZ tag, and high expectations, you owe it to yourself to at least make an honest effort, starting a few months before your hunt, to get your legs hardened up and your lungs stretched out and ready for business. It will be a sad day if your hunt ends unsuccessfully because you were unable to physically do what is necessary to get close to the animal you wanted to kill. Go for a hike!

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...