Looking for AZ shooters

[TAP]

Anybody from the AZ area, looking to move that way in the fall of this year and was looking for some info on the Prescott area. Job situation, housing, etc. I am a machinist and my wife will have her CPA by then ( I hope ). Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Tim

 

[SUNDEVIL]

I live in Tempe. AZ is great. I ve been through Prescott numerous times, but am not familiar with the job market there. Welcome to AZ!!

 

[TAP]

Thanks. The more I check into it the better it sounds.

 

[Bulzeye]

TAP,

I just moved to Prescott a little over a year ago and have no regrets!!! I lived in the Phoenix area all my life but it just got to big, busy, and spread out. We love it here and really enjoy the slower pace and cooler temps.

The Prescott area is growing and as a result new businesses are entering this market all the time. With the new business brings more people, homes, etc.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Good luck!
Tim

 

[azsugarbear]

Lovin' AZ

As a native son, I have lived in AZ for over 50 years and have seen a lot of changes. Prescott was once the capital when AZ was just a teritory. The early founding of the town had a lot to do with mining. Bucky Dent, a famous Rough Rider with Teddy Roosevelt, is one its more famous heroes.

Prescott has an "old town square" with lamps, lightposts and a courthouse - just like Mayberry. It has successfully maintained a small town feel, while experiencing tremendous growth. Housing is a little less expensive in Prescott Valley, than it is in Prescott itself. A lot of Phoenicians (people from Phoenix) have summer homes there to escape the Phoenix heat in the summer months. Many also retire there. Californians began flocking there about 10-15 years ago. They found they could sell their expensive CA home, buy a better & larger home in Prescott for half the cost, and bank the difference to live on. Prescott is also promoting its "artsy" community as well. Some pretty cool bars.

Prescott sits at the 5,450 ft. elevation. Unlike Phoenix, it has four distinct seasons and you even get a dusting of snow in the winter. You can get most fruit trees to thrive in Prescott with a little green thumb. The summer days can be quite warm (90's +), but the evenings always cool down. To the north you have lots of flat, open range and BLM land around Paulden for long distance shooting.

Hunting - AZ has many great species. The good news is: the hunts and game are of very good quality. The bad news is: most hunts can be tough to draw out. Get yourself a bow as deer tags are still "over-the-counter". You will use it during the many seasons when you don't draw out. Prescott has fantastic antelope right out your back door. Varmint calling is 10 minutes away, as are the mule deer in the Bradshaw mountains. Prescott is centrally located in the state, so all big game animals are no more than 2 hours away )unless you pick some real remote areas. Snow skiing is an hour away, as is the pool and palm trees - and you can do both on the same day. So...come on in - the water's fine!

 

[Mntngoat]

The two best things in my life are from Az. My wife is a native and Rex our GSP came from Chino Valley.

Prescott is a great little city. we have some property up there and can't wait to get out of Kali and get on up there and start building our house.
Lots of antelope too.

ML

 

[gamehauler]

Anyone else from the Prescott or Payson area??
Mike

 

[Deadman's Pointers]

I'm actually located in the Northern Phoenix area; however, antelope and elk take me to Prescott and Payson regularly. Are there any locals that do 1000 yd practice near Table Mesa anymore? My 'personal' range just got bought by a mining company....

 

[TAP]

Don't know about there, but I have a friend that shoots around the Sunflower area. Can get to over 1000 pretty easily.

 

[jayran]

hi there i live in flagstaff and i am a diesel tech. machinist work in prescott ??housing shouldnt be a problem in the last 5 years there has been alot of new communities built in prescott area. Az is a real diverse and beautiful state, and prescott area is real nice ,enjoy and good luck.

 

[Chief1942]

Tap,
I live in Pine (13 miles NrothWest of Payson). My circumstance is certainly different than you since I am retired and work(ugh!) is not an issue any longer. The wife and I retired here over 12 years ago from Kali and have been rejoicing ever since. In the short number of years we have lived in Arizona, we have seen substantial growth. Prescott got Fortune magazines best town to live in award back sometime in the '90s. Things really took off from there. I tend to stay away from the '"Valley", Prescott, and Flagstaff since they all remind me of the same environment we moved to get away from.
Appreciating that the job market is an important issue then I think Prescott is worth consideration. Flagstaff is also growing by leaps and bounds as well and should be a consideration in your decision. If you can take a little more summer heat, you might also want to look at those areas in the Verde Valley. If you are used to comutes to work, it wouldn't be too much of a change and the property costs could be much less and the pace of life is generally a bit slower.
I think 60% of Arizona is in govenrment hands (Feds and state) so what population there is tends to concentrate in the big city areas, the Valley, Prescott, Tucson, Flagstaff, etc. As has been noted earlier, the quality of game is about as good as one will find in the West. The caveat is being able to draw a hunt permit for the "biggies", ie. elk, antelope, bison. Javelina, turkey, and "over the counter' archery deer tend to be less of an issue, especially for bow hunters. I finally drew a trophy bull elk tag for this years archery rut hunt right in my back yard, but it took 12 years to get that tag. I grew up in Colorado and the hunting throughout the West has changed considerably since I hunted with dad as a kid in Colorado. We would go to the local sporting goods store, buy a license and tag and go hunt anywhere in the state. Still I think Arizona is about as good as one will find all things considered. Do be cautious as some parts of the state will fry your brain in short order, it gets that hot.
Do your homework and I think you will enjoy this state. I know I do.

 

[TAP]

Re: Looking for AZ shooters *Update*

Thanks everybody for the info. Moved to PV last summer and am getting settled in. As a matter of fact, we are moving into a house we bought this week. Both my wife and I were fortunate enought to get jobs pretty quickly. Trying to enjoy what the state has to offer. My 10 yr old daughter and I went through the states hunter safety course earlier in the year. Been a while since I went through! Drew an elk tag for the any elk area. Figured it would afford the best opportunity while going to school and working full time. Found some places to do some shooting and am making some shooting friends . Always looking for more, though . Thanks again for everybody's help.

 

[bushmasterar15]

I live in Holbrook about a hour east of Flagstaff or three hours from the Valley.

 

[srttim]

My girl friend and I are looking into moving to Prescott to finish school. We just got back form AZ a few weeks ago and loved it out there. She is a machinist and I am an airplane mechanic so i hope the job market for us is better than here in FL.