I PM'd Chris and this is his response. Thanks for getting back with me right away Chris. I have a 3 day backpacking scouting trip planned for next weekend. I appreciate you writing the articles, very valuable information.
"I'd try to do some scouting to actually lay eyes on some of the 49 bulls right now. We had GREAT forage production last summer into fall in that area, and a relatively "easy" winter. There SHOULD have been plenty of bulls going into this spring that had great body condition to really kick off some great initial growth. Most of the time, dry summers only affect "later" antler growth (4ths, 5ths, and beam length) but that is much more accentuated on bulls that GROW LATE. ...if they start their growth LATE, they can be affected, if they start growing EARLY (like many have done this year and POSSIBLY in 49), they can be less affected - if at all.
Go up and start glassing this summer and see what you see. If you SEE a bull (or bulls) that look good enough for you, keep the tag. If NOT - maybe turn the tag in. My GUT tells me most of the bulls over there SHOULD see 85-95% of their full potential this year even though it's dry. They SHOULD have started early, and been able to take advantage of the good feed and body condition from last year to give them some decent head-gear.
But there are a lot of "shoulda, coulda, woulda, and ifs" in all that - so I'd try to verify!
Chris Roe - Roe Hunting Resources"
