Creating my own Novice Guide To Hunting The NM Gila Wilderness

[Live2huntelk]

Just got back from my 16b second archery hunt and thought I would share a little about my experience. I would echo most of what Gila and BrokenArrow have stated.

My hunting partner and I planned on hiking in and setting up camp 4-5 miles from the trailhead and hunting from there. We found a spot that had 3-4 tanks around it that we thought would hold water. Once we arrived at the trailhead, we were fortunate enough to run into another hunter coming out. He had shared with us that they were 5 miles in and camped near the same tank we were planning to reach. Unfortunately, they hadn't found any drinkable water since leaving their truck. He was hiking back to the truck for a water run. That was an immediate mood crusher. On the bright side, he shared that they had heard bugling elk that morning.

We decided to go ahead and hike in with a modified plan. We discussed with the other group and chose to go a little different direction from them since they were there first, and set up camp about 3 miles in. My hunting partner offered to be the "water b*tch" and hike back to the pickup whenever we needed water (very thankful for that!). We got camp set up right at dark anxious for the next morning.

The first morning we hiked out to a high point to glass and listen for bugles at first light. Immediately, we heard several different bulls about a half mile off and gave chase. That morning will be a memory I will carry for a lifetime. Being in the middle of 3-4 different bulls bugling back and forth at each other was incredible. We finally laid eyes on a really nice bull with about 6 cows, a satellite bull, and a spike. We closed the gap to 135 yards and that was all the closer we got that morning. We were feeling pumped about being in bulls right away. At that point, we were down to a liter of water each, so my buddy made the trek back to camp to get us enough water for two days. I had intended on sitting a water hole in the meantime, but as we found out, water was non existent. I met my buddy back at camp that evening and we rehydrated and listened for bugles. We heard a couple in the same drainage from that morning shortly after dark.

The next morning, we went back to the glassing point and heard bugles again. We chased after a couple bulls to no avail, but they were talking and we felt confident we would get an opportunity eventually. The temps in the middle of the day were reaching the mid to high 80's, so we conserved energy by staying in at camp that afternoon. My partner told me that during his pack out to the truck for water the day before, he had come across an unmarked tank (not on onX) that had a small amount of water in it and elk tracks around it. I decided that I would hunt water that evening because it was so hot and it was the only water we had found or heard of within 3-4 miles.

I got to the water hole at 5:30 that evening and sure enough, there were recent tracks and a little bit of water only fit for animal consumption. Because we were nearing a full moon, I wasn't very optimistic about seeing any elk on water during shooting hours. But, it was the best option we figured since it was so hot. Low an behold, a bull came over the tank berm at 6:20 for a drink. He stopped at 35 yards and I was able to loose an arrow that hit near perfect and he ran 5 yards and was done. I couldn't believe my luck! This was my personal best bull! A Royal Bull. I was ecstatic as the plan had worked and on the second day!

That's when the work started. We were able to get him quartered and got all the meat to the pickup and on ice by 2am. It was tough, heavy, and it blistered feet, but well worth it. We camped at the truck for the night and hiked back in to get camp in the morning. It was a short trip but a great one.

Again, to echo some of previous points about the Gila: It is tough country and you will get out of it what you put in. I know it was a quick turnaround, but we were putting on 4-6 miles a morning and the Gila will eat you up quickly. Water is very hard to come by. We got lucky and punched a tag early in the hunt. We figured we only had one more day of being able to make our current strategy work as hiking back to the truck to get water wasn't sustainable. The bulls are plentiful. There is great genetics in the Gila and "trophy" class bulls for sure. There aren't a lot of cows to go around. The most we saw with one bull was 6 (and he had a satellite bull competing). The Gila is an awesome place. We have hunted in CO, WY, and MT for elk and this was very different. I would highly recommend a drop camp, guide, or bring your own pack stock as the terrain can eat you up quickly. If you're hunting more than a few miles from the trailhead, have a plan to get the meat packed out timely as it is HOT in September.

Thanks to the OP for starting this thread and I appreciate everybody's input. I was very fortunate to have a great hunting partner and to have success in the Gila.

Very helpful information for guys that get lucky and draw 16B archery tag. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Live2huntelk]

View attachment 195179

Very nice bull