John Gisi's 2010 241" Auction Tag Buck

I have posted these pictures before but here is a liitle detail about how the hunt went down.

My good friend John Gisi bought the Arizona Commisioners tag for Mule Deer in 2009. This tag is good for one 365 season starting on Aug 15th. 2009 and running until Aug 14th 2010. After much effort by many others, John had to yet to kill a buck when the Spring of 2010 rolled around. He gave us a call and a plan was formed.

I started scouting around the 4th week of June. The Strip was as green as I can ever remember seeing it and the monsoons had not even started yet. As I began to refind old bucks and discover new, one thing was clear, antler growth was un-freakin-believable! I was joined by Bryon around July 15th and by then I had already seen gobs of bucks over 200" including several over 220" The giant we knew as the "Fifty Incher" (buck pictured on the title of this blog) was one of two bucks that had are close attention. We figured "Fifty" to be over 40"wide and well over 230" gross. We also had a menagerie of backup bucks that were between 220" and 230" when John arrived to start hunting on August 1st. Sounds hard to believe I know but 2010 will go down in history as one of the best ever seasons on the Arizona Strip.

Aug 1st-Let the troubles begin. Right before we commenced hunting, things began to unravel. An enormous amount of non-stop monsoon storms racked the Strip daily. This threw most of our bucks patterns into chaos. Our two top bucks changed country and no amount of effort was going to turn them up. They had simply retreated into unhuntable, unglassable, dog hair thick country. Combine this with the fact that Strip bucks are very elusive by nature and don't allow the luxury of being able to find them at will, and we were quickly running out of time. We kept spreading out and looking, as well as starting to keep tabs on a few of our backup bucks. Time wore on and after 10+ days and only a few days remaining in the season, we decided it was time to shoot something.

On Day 12 we caught a break and when we spotted one of our best back-up bucks. We immediately seized the the moment as John and I made a long stalk and got in position. As is so common on the Strip, the buck and his buddies had retreated into a dark, nasty thicket of cedars to bed for the day. We posted up on the only marginal vantage point available and hunkered down underneath a tree. We had waited for several hot hours for something to move when Bryon and Ben made an awesome spot on John's buck from well over 3 miles away. They informed us that the bucks were exiting the thicket on the backside. We grabbed our gear and cut right through the bedding thicket going straight at the bucks. As we neared the edge we stopped and and started watching for anything to move. We kept slowly closing ground and finally a buck moved into view. It was not the big buck. We stayed put, eventually making one more small move and there he was feeding in a small opening between two trees. John readied himself on a tripod in the standing position and after watching the buck for an extra second or two to make sure he was the right one, John hammered him.

We were all very pleased to have harvested this buck after taking the hunt down to the wire. With only one day left in his 365 day season Johns awesome buck grossed 241". His frame was a tad over 210" with over 30 inches of trash. He measured over 23 inches of mass per side and had an outside spread of over 34" inches.

A huge thanks go out to John for his many generous contributions to Arizona wildlife. Without the purchase of these types of tags there would not be the funds available to manage and improve so many of the delicate areas these bucks call home. Thanks to Bryon Goswick and Ben Wells and everyone else involved for all the dedicated hard work.

Auction Tag Hunt with Pax Prentiss

A few years back, client and good friend Pax Prentiss purchased one of the Arizona Commissioners Mule Deer tags, also known as the Auction , or Governors tag. I had hunted with Pax the year prior on the Kaibab and that hunt ended with the harvest of a 194" buck in fading light on the last evening. He not only took home a nice buck but that started the fire burning for a giant mule deer.

After purchasing the tag, Me and Bryon and Blake went to work on the Strip the third week of June. We scouted long and hard for over a month. We found many great bucks but it wasn't until around July 25th that we finally glassed up a buck we knew was "The One". One look and we knew this buck was over 40" inches wide with an insane amount of mass. We were able to get some grainy video from long range and quickly sent it to Pax. We tried our best to get an estimate of what we thought this buck would score, but due to his odd antler configuration and the fact that we were unable to refind the buck in the field, we were never quite certain. However we did know that he was a giant and even without a solid number estimate we decided to hunt him.



Bryon and I continued looking for the buck for several more days to no avail. The country he inhabited was flat and thick with a limited number of vantage points. Pax arrived on Aug 1st and we continued to spread out and scour the country. Finally on Aug 6th, over 2 miles from his original location, we caught a quick glimpse of the buck as entered the thick trees to bed. Pax and me quickly positioned ourselves in a spot that would provide a shot if the buck fed back out in the evening. After a long and hot day we snuck out in the dark after never seeing the buck.

The following day the buck was not spotted, but the next day he was. This time he bedded underneath a small dirt hump in the trees that was no more than 15 feet high. Following direction from Bryon and friend Blake, Me and Pax snuck to the top of the mound a mere 60 yards from the bedded buck. The trees and brush were so thick that we couldn't see more than 30 or 40 yards in the direction of the deer. By standing on my tiptoes, I could look down and see the antler tips of the bedded buck. There was one lane that extended down through the trees for a little over 100 yards but it wasn't near the bucks location. We knew that we had no chance unless the marginal wind held, the buck either moved into our lap or traveled into our only lane.

Over the course of the day the buck changed beds 7 times. We caught a few glimpses of his antler tips and could watch the dust rise over the trees and hear him he pawed out new beds. We broiled in the sun for over 10 hours and as the sun sank we started to get nervous that we again weren't going to get a shot. Then, like on a string, the buck just rose and started angling toward our only lane. As we watched pieces of his rack steadily moving toward the opening we realized this was it. The gap was less than 2 feet wide, and as the buck strode into it I bawled like a varmint call. The buck stopped and Pax's crosshairs were already in place. He instantly pulled the trigger and just like that the hunt was over.



As we approached the downed deer we knew that he was big but we had no idea how big until we lifted his head. Pax was in shock and could barely breath. I just sat down next to the buck and admired him in awe. The buck is almost 42" inches wide with well over 50" inches of mass. His 10x11 antlers complete with over 5 inch eyeguards, 29 inch beams and over 38 inches of inside spread totaled an official SCI score of 268" and placed him number 4 in the world Non-Typ. After being joined by Bryon and Blake, we all were humbled to be able to hunt and take such an admirable deer.

Special thanks to Bryon Goswick and Blake Chapman for the hundreds of hot hours behind the glass. If not for them this buck would not have died. Thanks to Chad Smith for organizing the details of the hunt, and of course Pax for allowing us to do what we love and help him harvest one of the biggest bucks to ever come from the Arizona Strip.

Below are just a few of the bucks we will be watching this coming season. The Arizona Strip has received a tremendous amount of early storms this year so far. It is my opinion that this early moisture goes way further toward good antler growth than rains later in the summer. As we speak the Strip is green as it can be and the deer are in awesome shape. I believe we could be looking at another year as good as last year. Time will tell but we are off to a great start! Sorry about the digital altering in some of the backgrounds of the pics, but, ya gotta do it...Thanks

This old heavy brute is obviously older than the hills but it will be fun to see what he is this year!



Great frame with some good extras starting. Could turn into something special.

Tons of mass, tons of width and some awesome non-typical points.



Great frame and long extra points. He should explode this season.

Picture does this buck no justice. Saw him upclose last year and he is a super stud!

This buck has it all as well. Big frame with giant G4's. Great extras. Should be huge!!



Here is a clean typical that should smash 200" with this years moisture.



Bad photo of a stellar buck. Saw this buck in person as well and he has a ton of potential. Elusive buck that we could not find during the season.

This buck is a giant! Enormous frame with huge beams. Can't wait to see him this year!!

2011 Deer Regulations now available.

The 2011 Deer and Sheep Regulations are now available online here www.azgfd.gov/h_f/hunting_rules.shtml Get applied early and best of luck!

Here are a couple bucks from 2010. With the great moisture the Arizona Strip has recieved this Spring so far, the bucks that are coming of age should EXPLODE!!!

Ron Halfords 2009 232" Non-Typical

In the summer of 2009 I got called by Ron Halford. Ron has been a family friend for many years so when he told me he drew 13B I couldn't have been happier for him. We commenced our usual summer scouting. Over the course of the summer many great bucks were found and refound but a certain non-typ that we have had knowledge of for the last few years was looking like his number was about to be drawn. Another good friend had drawn the bow hunt in 13B the same year and came mighty close to killing this buck but it was not to be. My partner Bryon and I were able to refind this buck in October and keep track of him sporadically leading up to opening day. Once the hunt commenced we were briefly distracted by another giant buck that showed up in the country we were hunting. This 35+ inch heavy pig tempted even the most determined among us and truth be known we made one unsuccessful attempt to kill him. The trees swallowed him up and we turned our focus back to this one. After several days of sighting the buck briefly in the thick trees he finally made his fatal mistake on day 5. We swung wide around the thicket he was bedded in and got in position at 300 yards. We waited for several hours for him and his does to move. Finally in the late afternoon we glassed up a lion slinking into the back of the thicket. After a few short minutes of intense waiting while hoping the lion didn't kill our buck before us, the deer exited the thicket right were we needed them to be. Ron pounded the old non-typ twice in short order ending the hunt. Ron's old warrior of a buck grossed 232" and that was a pleasant surprise because we were thinking he was around 220" Ground growage only happens on the Strip. Thank you to Ron, Clint, Johnny and Bryon for an awesome end to the 2009 season.

Pictures and Video of 2010 bucks

Here are the pictures and video of the 2010 November bucks that we harvested.



Michaels 224" 9x7



















































Leisa's 230"+ Monster


















Larry's Heavy 210" Incher

2010 The Year Of The Giants

As most Arizona hunters now know the 2010 Arizona Strip season will go down in history as one of the greatest ever recorded. From the archery hunts right thru the rifle hunts big bucks continuously hit the dirt. A phenomenal antler growth year combined with a few abnormal weather situations combined to create the ideal circumstances to harvest a crazy number of giant deer. Although I am happy for all the successes, I would be lying if I said I wasn't a bit sad about the inventory wipe out that occurred. But...Granted the AZGFD doesn't increase the tag numbers, the Strip will rebound for the chosen few that draw tags. The 2011 year has started in the right direction with a couple of great storms hitting right where they need to for another good year. Keep your fingers crossed as we roll into Spring...

For us here at Arizona Strip Bucks the 2010 season was as good to us as anyone. We started the season off with a bang when John Gisi harvested a 241" inch giant with only 2 days left in his 365 day season. John hunted with us in the August heat for 13 days before ultimatley taking this velvet monster. Thanks John!

Spending all summer on the Strip helps greatly in the track record that we have been able to maintain over the years and 2010 was no exception. We had located a incredible number of giants for our rifle clientele and we were all chomping at the bit for November to arrive. We had kept tabs on a number of different big bucks and after showing Michael and Larry all of our pictures a hit list was developed. The hunt started but an unusual amount of other hunters quickly changed the habits of the bucks we were after. But we stuck to the game plan, hunted daylight till dark and on the afternoon of the 4th day both hunters struck gold. Michael killed the buck he was after while we were watching a waterhole at midday. His 30inch 7x9 grossed 224" inches and out of a dozen different 200+ bucks available this was the very one he wanted most.

Next came Larry. My partner Bryon and hunter Larry had been after a dirty heavy giant since the first day, passing a couple bucks along the way that most would kill for. The buck they were after lived in a extremely thick basin with a few does and he did not leave. Other hunters continuously hunted the fringes of the basin keeping all the deer nocturnal. Bryon and Larry stuck to the gameplan and right before dark on the eve of the 4th day the beast stepped out of the trees just long enough for Larry to make the shot. The ultra heavy giant grossed 210" as 6x4. He carries his 46 inches of measured mass all the way out to the ends and is truly one impressive deer. Congrats Larry!

With 13B coming to an end for us after the fourth day we quickly moved camp to 13A. We set about trying to locate the 2 whoppers that we hoped to kill one of. Before we knew what happened opening day was here and we were perched on all of glassing spots. Shortly after daylight, at extremely long range, we spotted the extreme giant that is posted below. After a long and tough stalk, followed by some brief but very stressful moments of a quad traveling between us and the bedded buck, Leisa made a stellar 325 yard shot to anchor this super stud on the spot. Leisa's fabulous buck grossed a touch over 230" as is and had he not broke off part of his G2 and most of his dropper he would gross well into the mid 240"s!

I just want to take a minute to thank John, Michael, Larry and Leisa for trusting us with there priceless Strip tags and for letting us participate in one of the most unbeilevable seasons in Arizona Strip history. I can't wait for June 2011. Thanks again.....