The 2002 Predator Masters annual hunt will again be held at Globe, Arizona.

For information on holding the hunt at other locations, see the topic “2003 Predator Masters Annual Hunt”.

The date of the 2002 hunt has not been set. There are many conflicts, and we are waiting for Arizona to publish the 2002-2003 big-game seasons before making a decision. (We cannot use centerfire rifles or pistols in hunt units where certain big-game hunts are in progress.)

Hello
Let me know ASAP the dates. PLEASE do not have it before Sept. 26. I would not think that you would be hunting that early, but I dont know the customs in Arizona. (fur quality) Becasue on that date, I get more vacation. I will hold my remaining days of vacation (postpone some plans)until I hear from you.

And, as of today, I can say that I will be there.

Tack, I'm pretty sure it will be after that date, not before.

Ran
I sure hope so. 3 days of Arizona hunting just ain enough. . I just hope the 8 month wait on my Tikka is just a 3 week wait viewed through the eyes of a pessimistic gunsmith. (Full custom job..) I sure hope I can bring that to the hunt.

By the way, Craig, you know that Winchester coat that I presume you still must have casue I never got it? I hope you still have it, because I am gonna make it a raffle prize.

There ya go, that ought to help draw some folks. Where else can you go to win the genuine original "Worn by the Tack on the 1st Annual PM hunt" coat? A true one of a kind collectors piece I am sure you will note

Hey tack i got the load all in the mail today. I sent you a check for 20 bucks because i never aggreed that you were to pay shipping. I got a steal on it for that price so i am more than willing to pay for the shipping to get it here. I think that was the only fair way to do it. I have him all set up on the bench next to the mec. Ill try to get a picture of my new and improved relaoding bemnch asap! maybe well get ot see each other at this hunt! Heck maybe we could even carpool together since we areant to far away? Let me know what you think!

Coyotebuster
Thats and idea. My Cummins is great on gas. You have to stop and filler up about once ever 2 states or so. Last time I took the "southern route" Lincoln-OK City-straight west to the Arizona border. Wonderful drive, especially when you get into New Mexico and Arizona. It was SO pretty, it was almost surreal.

FWIW. I do not plan on making this a short hunt, unless some unforseen calamity/conflict limit me to only 3 days. The only problem with the PM get together is that it aint long enough. So last year I scheduled it for like 10 days worth of trigger time, [Kicked off by the PM hunt] 3 days down and 2 days back.

Do ya wanna hunt Mt. Lion? San Carlos Reservation [It is right next door to Globe, spent a good long time there last year, Big reservation, excellent hunting] tags are $10. per day. Reservation predator licenses were $10/day. They have several Apache guides that can be hired to help you out with dogs for the lions. I was thinking if you got a hankering for a Arizona Mt. Lion, maybe we could split the cost of a guide? I didnt get my lion last year so this year I am coming back with a double dose of want for one of these nice critters.

So that is a little about my desires and plans. Whatcha think?

Tackdriver - One thing that I need to change in your last post. The cost of a predator hunting liscence on the San Carlos Reservation is $10.00 and day plus an annual coservation sgtamp that cost $5.00 per year. Just got back (March 29-30) form a hunt on the San Caslos, naturelly it rained, hasn't rained in months but it rained when we (Bill and I) were up there. Let me tell ya something. This ain't the place to be when it rains. Even the best reservation dirt road becomes a skating rink (mud not ice) even with a 4x4. It did not rain on the second day, 1/2 day skating on mud, 1/2 day sweating and driving in the dust. Water doen't last long up there. All in all we had a great time and will be doing it again next year.

Michael

Micheal
Good catch, I edited the post. Lochi and I saw how those roads can get. There was one day when we had to run back to Globe early due to the rain. We were calling by the base of this mountain, it started to rain, but we could hear coyotes in the distance. I told Lochi we had better get back, (Reservation roads/Nebraska farm roads = same deal)and he got to see mud fly . Not that the rest of the afternoon was wasted, we went to that gun/pawn shop in Globe, the one who did the transfers at the dinner, and Lochi bought a GI camo coat. That little shop was just down the street from our motel as it happened.

So your saying i could kill a lion for 15 bucks if i shoot it on the first day???????? if so heck ya ill go!!!!!!! i would be interested in a nice long hunt, ill be a senior in hs then and il be 18 so i wont have to worry about what ma and pa think about doing some predator popping!

Coyotebuster
That is possible, and I applaud your enthusiasm, however Mt. Lion hunting is a game unto itself. In theory, you could get lucky and do as you suggest, but is probably not very likely.

I learned what I know about the longtails from Will Craig, Founder of this organization, during a long thread on the subject (archives) and some detailed email correspondence before he died.

You have to stay on stands a LONG time, 45 minutes minimum. They need time to slink thier way from rock to rock, watch a housecat working toward a butterfly, that will give you an idea of how they work. Last year electronic calls were not allowed on the Reservation, therefore you would have to run that whole stand with a hand call. As opposed to 15-30 mins for coyotes/bobs/fox. I did hear from the head game officer, that this year they were thinking about lifting the ban on electronics, because they have so many lions, for holders of a valid Mt. Lion tag. We will have to wait and see. The guides would be of benefit to us, I dont know if I will be able to hire one this year, If possible I was hoping to split the cost with another hunter, maybe. Last year before I left for the PM hunt, I spoke with a guide on the phone. I still have his number around here someplace. Dogs really increase the chances of success. Last year I got Mt. Lion tags anyway, because the way my luck runs, if I had not, I would have seen a record-breaker.

All that aside, the PM hunt is as much fun as it gets. I like to BS, I like to hunt predators, I will travel great distance to do either one or both. I would reccomend this event to anybody wanting to learn lots about calling.

Well i am deffinetly going and would be interested in splitting the cost of a guide. Ill pay the gas money to get us there if you still want to go because then ill have someone to talk to on the way down. I really want to get a bobcat and that just isnt gonna happen in wisconsin! A lion would be great to even see and i =have handcals as well as a js 612. Either way i am prepared for the hunt, ill bring the 243 and a 30-06 for the lion.

The 243 would be enough for the lion. Lions aren't hard to kill they are just hard to find.

Michael

Michael,

How about doing a big favor to the newer hunters and to those who will be traveling a ways for their first Western Coyote hunt? Since the date isn't yet set into stone, can you plan it for sometime between Oct 15 and Nov. 15?

Preferably in the last couple of weeks in October. The fur isn't going to get much better after that, and we still have plenty of young and dumb pups who come racing in at the first hint of a call.

The calling falls off starting mid November, and you have to start working for your coyotes. By planning the hunt earlier, you have a better chance of success for beginning hunters, and some large success stories from the more seasoned hunters who have never had the oppourtunity to call in an area with this many coyotes.

Tack,

If you want to go off Reservation for your hunt, some of the best lion dogs in the world are about 30 miles from here. If you are interested, let me know and I'll get you a phone number you can call for reservations and prices.

Tim

Tim - Not a bad idea. We are kicking around an earlier hunt date. What is holding us back a little bit is the Arizona Hunting regs. They will set the time and dates of hunts that we have to avoid.

A thought here. Would you know if the Coyote Gods are planning anything for this year? We'd like to avoid conflict if they are. I also thought that hunts on consecutive weekends worked out well for both the Coyote Gods and Predator Masters.

Michael

we should have it on the same weekend of the coyote gods. Then we can show them what real callers are capable of and how much better we are then they are! Can i get that number for the lion hunt with the dogs. also do you have any info on the cost of hiring a guide.