Tucson / Nogales Help or Donation

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Dec 10, 2017
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Fellow Roksliders- Looking for a little help. I’m looking to see if anybody would be wanting some free coues deer meat if I’m successful. Or tell me a place where I would be able to donate it. We would potentially be able to gift up to 3 deer. Explanation below…

Hunt the same unit every 3-4 years. Normally take two days to drive down and then put our bounty in a cooler and head home. But my son is going to be playing in the state football semi finals and championship (most likely) on both ends of the hunt. So we have opted to fly and don’t have a good way of getting the meat home. Will be bringing some Tupperware for camping gear, and should be able to get antlers home. Just won’t be able to get the meat home and prevent spoilage.

Anyway, if you or someone you know in those two areas have an interest please let me know asap. I’m going to start calling some butcher shops as well looking for suggestions. Thanks everybody!!
 
OP
passinggas33
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Its cool that you're going hunting and fully admit that the antlers of a dink coues deer are worth more to you than the meat of said deer.

Pay the baggage fees and bring it back with you.

I love the meat and have no problem eating it, and we usually do. I’m just not a fan of being the cause of meat spoilage. Currently, getting the meat home without it spoiling is the problem. Baggage fee isn’t the issue either. We don’t have the ability to freeze the meat, and they generally won’t let you take a cooler full of melting ice (and bloody meat) on the plane/carry it on. Plus I would have 2 more days before I could get it to a cooler due to the football games. Like I said, this isn’t about the antlers or the meat. It’s about an adventure and then being a good steward of the meat and wanting it to get used before it goes bad.
 
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Interesting take you have on it. Since when do airlines not let you fly with meat? Debone the meat and put it into a cooler once it’s cooled out properly. Tape the cooler shut and check the coolers as extra baggage. Put frozen water jugs in the cooler when you get home. It will stay cold for a long time and then only replace the bottles when the ice melts.

If hunting is merely about the adventure of it then hang up your weapons and hunt them with a camera. Not trying to be rude but I don’t understand wanting to hunt and kill
something without taking the meat. It’s good that you are thinking about giving it to someone who wants it. How about you fly in and hunt while your buddies drive and take it home for you?
 

AKBorn

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Interesting take you have on it. Since when do airlines not let you fly with meat? Debone the meat and put it into a cooler once it’s cooled out properly. Tape the cooler shut and check the coolers as extra baggage. Put frozen water jugs in the cooler when you get home. It will stay cold for a long time and then only replace the bottles when the ice melts.

If hunting is merely about the adventure of it then hang up your weapons and hunt them with a camera. Not trying to be rude but I don’t understand wanting to hunt and kill
something without taking the meat. It’s good that you are thinking about giving it to someone who wants it. How about you fly in and hunt while your buddies drive and take it home for you?
When I read your post, I ask myself "did he understand what the OP was saying?" He will be in Tucson for days after the hunt, without a way to freeze the meat. And what "buddies" do you speak of?

Not trying to be rude, but perhaps endeavor to understand what is posted, before responding.
 

BBob

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Anyway, if you or someone you know in those two areas have an interest please let me know asap.
If you need or want to give it away I'll happily take any you have to give. I'll process it and eat it or pass it around to get eaten. I and several friends would be happy to eat game meat over store bought and appreciate game meat well over the store bought as well. I have a standby fridge and freezer ready to be fired up for things like this. I'd be happy to travel anywhere down here to meet and pick up.
 
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OP
passinggas33
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Sounds like I have plenty of people willing to accept the meat and use it! That’s awesome. I’ll reach out to those that have expressed interest in the meat as it gets closer. If there are others that are still interested in the meat, PM me and I’ll figure out a way to try and get meat to anybody and everybody.
 

Johnny Tyndall

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You probably know this, but if you can't work it out with people from here the local Fish and Game office can certainly help you out with a donation program.
 
OP
passinggas33
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Pullman, WA
You probably know this, but if you can't work it out with people from here the local Fish and Game office can certainly help you out with a donation program.
That’s interesting that you mention that because they were the first people I called. Specially the Tucson office. The person I talked to said they didn’t know of any programs like that. Always makes me laugh what info you can get depending on who you talk with.
 

COelk89

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Southern AZ you probably don't have to look far for someone who will turn those deer into a couple dozen tamales...just sayin
 

180ls1

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Its cool that you're going hunting and fully admit that the antlers of a dink coues deer are worth more to you than the meat of said deer.

Pay the baggage fees and bring it back with you.

Donating meat can be pretty cool too.

I donated some to a shelter that looks after battered women a few years ago. They were in desperate need of meat as their budget constrained them to a lot of cheap/processed/carbs.

This was in the PNW
 

Geewhiz

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Donating meat can be pretty cool too.

I donated some to a shelter that looks after battered women a few years ago. They were in desperate need of meat as their budget constrained them to a lot of cheap/processed/carbs.

This was in the PNW
Maybe I'm salty about it because of an experience I had a few years ago. A non resident "friend" had a lifelong dream of harvesting a bull elk. He came out and killed a nice 5 point bull the first day he ever hunted elk in his life. Then we mule deer hunted for a few days until he killed a nice 4x4 mule deer buck. Evidently he hadn't done a bit of research on how to get the meat home after the hunt. He made a couple of phone calls and realized it was gonna cost him a bit extra to ship a couple of coolers home. He got off the phone and told me "I'd rather throw the meat in a ditch than pay that!". My attitude changed and I gave him a ration of sh!t until I finally guilt tripped him into taking it home with him.

Why even go on a hunt. Sure wouldn't sit right with me, but to each their own.
 
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CorbLand

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I think it’s illegal to fly with dry ice. Risk of explosion…or at least it used to be.
You would probably have to check with your airline but its not illegal to fly with dry ice.
 
OP
passinggas33
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You would probably have to check with your airline but its not illegal to fly with dry ice.
Thanks for sharing this. Lots more questions about this but probably more related to TSA than Rokslide.
 
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You might be able to contact a butcher in the area and pay to store/freeze the meat while you go to your sons game and then pick it up to fly home with it. Let them process it and the ones I know have boxes with Styrofoam that fit perfectly inside. Add 45lbs of meat and 5lbs of dry ice and its good for days.
 
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@passinggas33

I think you can fly with something like 8lb of dry ice. I went over that on our last fishing trip and nobody ever asked about it.

People in the Midwest and elsewhere donate thousands of deer and no one gives them a hard time about it. Good on you for trying to line up a donor ahead of time.
 

Felix40

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Its cool that you're going hunting and fully admit that the antlers of a dink coues deer are worth more to you than the meat of said deer.

Pay the baggage fees and bring it back with you.
God forbid that someone besides him eats his deer. Have you never given any meat to anyone?
 
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