My father has been on eight rifle elk hunts and has yet to put an elk down. He is not getting any younger so I thought a NM ranch hunt might be the ticket. I have never hunted elk in NM, non the less on a ranch. Is there a particular time during the season that is better for bulls on ranches? I'm taking suggestions on when they would go during the season. Thanks
NM ranch hunt
- Thread starter Jlgibbon1
- Start date
Very open ended question. Each section has different circumstances. But maybe late may be great if your dad can handle alittle colder weather. Any hunting pressure on nearby public land or other ranches might push elk onto your ranch. Finding affordable access would be more important too me than timing.
huntin' lunatic
Active member
Sent you a PM
Laelkhunter
Well-known member
Since 1990, I have always hunted on a private ranch in Northern NM (Chama area), or on a private Ranch in South Colorado near Chama. I love the early to mid October hunts because the Elk are still bugling, and the weather is usually milder. The trees are in the process of changing colors too, all making for a great experience. I have experienced snow about half the times I hunted. I hunted one year (1991) around October 20th or so, and due to the heavy snow up high, the migration seemed to be in progress. We counted over 1100 Elk on our ranch during our hunt. Outfitter said that was unusual for that early in the season. Most migrations are in November, and herds of 200 to 300 are not uncommon on some of the ranches that are on the natural migration route. Through experience, I have found several of those Ranches to be the Quinlan, Garcia, and the Gonzales. Costs to hunts on those will start at about $6000 and go up.
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AZBridger
Active member
there are some great late bull hunts to be had in Arizona that aren't very difficult to draw (As Randy knows). Someone in my family draws every year it seems like. I broke our 5 year streak of 350"+ bulls and killed a 330-340" very old bull on an especially tough year this year. you can usually start expecting a tag after about 5BP's are accumulated but your random odds are around 10-15% chance of drawing on any given year.
Steiny
Well-known member
Get on some private ground with an outfitter in northern Utah and you can rifle hunt while they are still bugling.
Did this two years ago and three of us had decent 6x6's and a 5x5 on the ground in two days. Terrain wasn't too bad either.
Did this two years ago and three of us had decent 6x6's and a 5x5 on the ground in two days. Terrain wasn't too bad either.
