Pay to “Learn how to hunt”

[knockonit]

tunnug, forgot the biggie, hookers and blow, if you can't get that, well.............a good bottle of hooch goes a long way,
hehehe, sorry i'm just and old guy, having a hoot of time harrassing folks on websites
Rj

[laserguy]

The biggest road block you will have is that most hunters have worked hard for years getting to know their hunting areas and they are very careful about giving away their secret spots.

Join some of the hunting groups on your favorite social media sight and watch for posts about someone asking for info on an area that they have never hunted before. It is very common for an experienced hunter to get drawn for their 3rd choice hunt unit in an area that they dont know very well yet, these guys are much more likely to let you tag along on their scouting trips and share their general hunting knowledge with you.

[Vinnie B]

I would start by just getting out in the woods. You can find game just about anywhere. Get a good map (Flatline) of an area close to you and go explore. Learning how to hunt (depending on ones definition) takes years of boots on the ground, glassing, time in the woods etc.. You can get some good pointers from people but everyone kinda needs to find what works for them. Then you have the problem of finding animals is one thing, getting them killed is another.. I would look for glassing seminars coming up and maybe start listening to podcasts like Jay Scott. He has done these with some very successful guides and hunters and they give up some very useful knowledge in them..

And if RJ has hookers, blow, and Rye in his camp, I will come help them pack elk any time lol

[Lobo2087]

I personally like hunt map though flatline are great as well

[Vinnie B]

I personally like hunt map though flatline are great as well

They are both great...
much better than the old FS maps

[Gunslinger55]

My 2 cents. As a lifelong hunter who mostly figured it out on my own after many decades and have hunted all over the world my suggestion is.......Read up a lot. Get educated as much as possible, get in shape learn to shoot whatever you intend on using ( i prefer early elk hunts with bow) and search out knowledgeable people and see if you can tag along and get mentored. Your results will vary.

Personally you want to get up to speed fast do the above get a tag and see if someone will go with you as a mentor. Since that may or may not work you can save a lot of time and learn a ton by hiring a guide. A good one. Lots in AZ. If you can't afford one I understand but an elk tag is pretty valuable in AZ as its one of the top Elk states in the USA and you will solve a lot of your problems by going with a experienced outfit. Save up for it after you draw. Its usually not that bad for the common species. The money will be well worth it from my experience. Pay attention to everything they do and learn, learn, learn. Ask questions and voila you will be light years a head. Scouting, camp,food, glassing, trophy evaluation, stalking, gear, shooting positions/setups, recovery, gutting, skinning, transport to processing facility. Keeping you from screwing up....Lots of benefits for the money. After you "pay" to learn you will be way ahead of the game. I never hired a guide till much later and my trial and error process was fun and lengthy but pretty rewarding overall but lots of wasted time and tags... With super valuable tags and with species I am not familiar with a guide is well worth it and I continue to learn to this day. Now I am a pretty successful hunter by most standards. I have more trophies than can fit in my house now and freezers full of meat. Just killed a cow with my boy last Oct so I am teaching him. I killed my AZ desert bighorn in December last year. It becomes and obsession but well worth it.

After you hire a guide and pay attention you should be ready to go on your own depending on overall woodsman skills etc. for the same species or similar ones. It's not rocket science but there is a lot to it if you want to tag out or get good trophies consistently..

This is what I recommend it hindsight looking back. Especially if you are willing to pay. Any way you do it will be rewarding

hit me up I may be of help to point in the right direction

[mtuck]

I've been a tag along as a camp chef. It's a great way to watch, learn, and be helpful around camp. Learned a ton of stuff, especially while I was building points for a tag. See if you know anyone going out and offer to volunteer.

[Gunslinger55]

Man I could of used one many times!

[laserguy]

One thing you might consider is to put in for hunts with a very high success rate for getting drawn, so many people only put in for trophy hunts and as a result they will often go many years without getting drawn. If you want to learn then you need to get drawn, apply for cow elk tags and high draw success deer tags until you learn a few things and kill a few animals, then you can save your bonus points year after year trying to draw that early bull tag.

[knockonit]

look into some varmint groups, most of them varmint hunt to hone their skills for the big game, good place to learn concealment, tracking, mapping ect. and of course shooting.
I grew up hunting, as it was a way to put some extra meat in the food locker, beef and pork and chicken got old after awhile.

another option is to join a bird hunting group, from there branch out, bird hunting is a hoot, and pretty much all i do now, NOT DOVE hunting that taint hunting thats shooting, jmo though
the only hunt there is to find a spot to shoot.

and if all else fails, the fall back is hookers and blow, in what ever order you wish to abide to
best of luck, one thing hunting teaches is patience
Rj

[Gunslinger55]

That’s where over the counter tags come in. Many in AZ. Save those bonus points for the good stuff...

One thing you might consider is to put in for hunts with a very high success rate for getting drawn, so many people only put in for trophy hunts and as a result they will often go many years without getting drawn. If you want to learn then you need to get drawn, apply for cow elk tags and high draw success deer tags until you learn a few things and kill a few animals, then you can save your bonus points year after year trying to draw that early bull tag.

[Edge]

Interesting topic. If you read AZGFD regs on guiding, pretty certain you can't go afield and pay to learn to hunt unless you're dealing with a licensed guide.

[was21]

Get out and learn to ‘see’ animals. Take a camera along and ‘hunt’ with that. Had my buddy in hunt camp for many years always grumbling about ‘ there ain’t no damn deer around here’.... had to point out on 2 occasions while he was saying that that there was a deer right on the edge of camp looking at us.

Took another friend out for some coyote work and he never saw the one I called in... even when it jumped right across his legs coming to my call... he may have been asleep!

Other thing is read the AzGF rules.... can be a lot to take in.
Don’t be like the last guy I tried to help on my last coyote hunt... he forgot his license, had a light on his rig and showed up wearing shorts. Come to think of it I may need some better friends! LOL

[smithers599]

Just a small caveat. On two occasions when I was trying to learn to hunt, I was invited by groups of "hunting buddies" whose idea of "hunting" was to build a huge bonfire and drink alcohol until they were drunk as skunks. Passing around and admiring guns was part of the "bonding." Gunhandling was atrocious, but it was "OK; it's not loaded." When I went out before dawn to actually hunt, everybody else was still sleeping in their tents.
I wrote it off as a good lesson, and moved on to the next hunting opportunity. Most of my mentors were ethical, responsible hunters.

[Wrenchman]

My best reccomendation is game and fish dept. They have a lot of information. Then find someone going on a hunt in the forums and ask to tag along for a day or two and offer to pay for fuel and food.