# New Mexico late winter bull tag



## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

So i cant seem to get the wife to sit out in the woods w me here in UT for a week long elk hunt, but i did go ahead and buy her a NM late season bull tag for rifle hunt. If you draw blood you eat your tag, she is a great shot, prob better than me with any rifle we hand her, but the only variable i cant practise with her is what her buck fever may be like looking at a big bull through the scope. I have been taking her shooting each weekend, get her tired, make her hurry up and shoot, tell me where to shoot, when not too, etc, but the buck fever could be bad or not at all. Just in case i picked up a new 300 PRC so if she happens to hit a shoulder , that baby is still going down:mrgreen::mrgreen:

Any body hunted unit 12 in late DEC ? Dec 27-31st is the hunt and they have ALOT of land to hunt on, so i have a good believe that she should be able to at least get a poke at something 350 or bigger. I will be proud as hell with anything she gets but for the price of the hunt i told her she will prob be passing on a few before we give her the green light. Its high desert so i figure it will be kind of like UT where it is 15 in the morning and 50 by noon? Anyway, i am super excited for her and i cant wait to go. I will write up the entire story for you guys even if we come back with tag soup, STAY TUNED :mrgreen:


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## 3arabians (Dec 9, 2014)

cdbright said:


> So i cant seem to get the wife to sit out in the woods w me here in UT for a week long elk hunt, but i did go ahead and buy her a NM late season bull tag for rifle hunt. If you draw blood you eat your tag, she is a great shot, prob better than me with any rifle we hand her, but the only variable i cant practise with her is what her buck fever may be like looking at a big bull through the scope. I have been taking her shooting each weekend, get her tired, make her hurry up and shoot, tell me where to shoot, when not too, etc, but the buck fever could be bad or not at all. Just in case i picked up a new 300 PRC so if she happens to hit a shoulder , that baby is still going down:mrgreen::mrgreen:
> 
> Any body hunted unit 12 in late DEC ? Dec 27-31st is the hunt and they have ALOT of land to hunt on, so i have a good believe that she should be able to at least get a poke at something 350 or bigger. I will be proud as hell with anything she gets but for the price of the hunt i told her she will prob be passing on a few before we give her the green light. Its high desert so i figure it will be kind of like UT where it is 15 in the morning and 50 by noon? Anyway, i am super excited for her and i cant wait to go. I will write up the entire story for you guys even if we come back with tag soup, STAY TUNED :mrgreen:


Never hunted out of state but you have my attention! Looking forward to the report back. Good luck!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

I live about 2-1/2 hrs from your unit. You are pretty close with weather as far as cold goes (normally) with teens at night and mid to upper 40's in the day and maybe even some low 50's. You can see some pretty bitter cold temps though in late Dec so pack as you normally would for any winter hunt. You will be hunting in the unit north of the unit that probably holds about the most elk in the state and next to the Zuni Pueblo reservation that holds some real whoppers 

The two archery hunts and first two rifle hunts are listed as HD (high demand) hunts, it's usually a pretty decent unit. Success rates from the harvest reports show 60+% for the early rifle bull draw hunt and private land tags and mid 40% range for the later bull draw hunts in late Oct and early Nov.

Snowing in that part of the state (and at my house as well) as I type this.

I too will be watching for the low down after the hunt 

Good luck!


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

Definitely watching this thread as I have recently been getting very interested in out of state Elk hunts.

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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

KineKilla said:


> Definitely watching this thread as I have recently been getting very interested in out of state Elk hunts.
> 
> Sent from my SM-N976U using Tapatalk


Colorado isn't bad, lots of OTC units where you don't have to draw a tag and you can pick one of at least 4 different season dates. Plus it is not a spike hunt, however most units have a 4pt or better restriction.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

What's funny, is I leave NM for out of state hunting in UT because of opportunity not offered at home.


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

High Desert Elk said:


> What's funny, is I leave NM for out of state hunting in UT because of opportunity not offered at home.


Is it due to the length of time it takes to draw? I bit the bullet and paid extra to have a tag for sure. I have a patience issue :mrgreen::mrgreen:


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

I have been having a hard time getting my new 300 PRC to break in and group like it should. I spend 3 hours at my gunsmiths shop today cleaning, bore scoping, re-cleaning, and got super educated on barrell science. Hope to have a window in the snow tomorrow so i can go see if she groups how she should now and stretch her out to about 900 yards. I really doubt she will need to take a shot out that far, but she hits the target no matter how far out we move it so if he is big enough and she is confident at that moment, i would let her ,let er fly. A guy would think we will have time to close the distance but with not knowing the land , i am going prepared for anything


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

cdbright said:


> Is it due to the length of time it takes to draw? I bit the bullet and paid extra to have a tag for sure. I have a patience issue :mrgreen::mrgreen:


The only length of time is bad luck. Everyone has the same "chance" every year as points don't exist in the Land of Entrapment.


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

Heading down tomorrow after Xmas breakfast. Gona get to Albuquerque tomorrow evening and stay there then head down into camp Saturday afternoon and spend some more time on their badass range. Hope to be throwing lead Sun/Monday, will keep you all updated and hope to have some col pics to share


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

well she got a nice little 5 point the last day. We had a wild trip , totaled the guides vehicle one night on the wayhome and the cow came through the windshield on my side , i will get pics loaded and give full story soon


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Whoa! Sounds like it'll be quite the ride...


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

Glad you were successful and were able to survive the adventure!


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

So we got there day 1 and had the afternoon to do what ever we wanted , i went and shoot the gun some more to make sure it was still on after the drive out. We spent Xmas in St George and spent a couple day out shooting in the desert to get her used to shooting in the prone position. Like i said before she is a better shot than me so i had no worries with ability. I ended up shooting at the their 100-800 yard range with a few other guys who where showing up for the same hunt so i got to know the group as well so we could all tell lies to each other about our previous hunting adventures. It was guys from all over , MN, FL, NC, MA, you name it, and all had a wide variety of caliber and shot skills. It was a fun afternoon of shooting out to 800 yards and seems like it was all going to be a great week. I had my biddies 28 Nosler as my 300 PRC was not grouping like i wanted yet.

Sunday morning was the opener and we went with or guid to the spot he selected and it was a separate ranch that they lease that they wanted to grow big elk on so they made a 330 plus rule for this spot. We saw bulls first morning as we drove to the top of a mesa and has the ability to glass in all directions to see what was moving. We had a great view of the valley below us and all around as if you know what NM is like it has big mesas that you can get on top of and see down into the valleys below and see where the elk will climb and sit on the slopes that lead up to the tops of the mesa. There is mahogany all over for them to eat and spruce/oak shrub bushes all over for them to eat/move in between. 

They (NM), had a dry year so with the bulls not getting the water they needed, their antlers were ,malnourished and fragile, so after the rut fighting and fighting over water sources many had broken main beams and some had broken tips all over. We saw 6 point 1 sides bulls first morning and all kinds of broken bulls from all sizes. We went to that same area for the first 3 days and saw bulls each day but were all broken or too small to take that in that area. The fourth day we went to a different ranch and only saw cows but knew we were in a good area as there was great sine. The entire time we had a FULL moon and it was basically daylight all night so the bulls were not moving much in the morning but just to get back to their bedding area or when they decided to just lay down and eat from their bed. 

On Wednesday night on our way back to camp which was about an hour and a half trip we happen to smoke a cow elk with or guids Jeep. This is a 1995 Jeep Cherokee with a slight lift and mud terrains and a light bar and was a great hunting rig with a big rack on the roof. It originally came from Japan so it was a right hand steer. We were prob running about 60 MPH and were on the lookout as we saw many elk on the road each day and another guid had totaled his Dodge that same morning when he came around a curve and there were about 50 head on the road, he made it through about 4-5 then finally tagged one dead on and totaled hs truck. We had been talking about it al day , so we were on the look out. Out of the blue, we saw a cow dart onto the road and all we had time to say was "oh sh" and boom...... She was walking across the road from left to right so as i was sitting shotgun and in the front and it was a right hand steer vehicle, i was right in line. I saw her neck stretch over the hood and i did a quick dive into the driver's lap as her head came through the windshield until the A pillar wrapped around her neck and pulled her back out of the cab as she ripped of the mirror and flipped into the rear tire and somehow took our left rear tread. I came up and was happy to know the driver kept the vehicle on the road as we tried to assess the situation . The windshield had exploded and we had billions of pieces of glass everywhere. I immediately started saying i was good and to keep it on the road so we wouldn't crash in the ditch. We determined we had made it OK and was trying to limp it home to camp as we were only about 10 miles away. Even though the windshield was hanging in my lap, we tried to make it but soon found out that we had a flat and it was not going good. We pulled over and luckily another guid from camp was behind us and picked us and all our gear up so we could get back. 

The next day was the last day to unt and the owner told our guid that we could go back to the 330 plus area and take what we wanted as it was end of season. 

As the sun came up we saw 3 bulls on the East face of a mountain so we made a plan to go after them. The wife and I went back to the truck to drive around to try to get a little closer and hike in as our guide stayed on the cliff and gave us directions. Before we got there he found 7 more bulls on a ledge closer that we would almost drive to on the way there so we decided to go after them as well. He has 7 bulls on the edge and was going to lead us into them so we could get set up close enough to get a shot. We parked at a spot and hiked in about a half mile and ended up just above them and should have a nice shot. As we crept in, we happened to bump a 8th bull that nobody knew was there and when he ran , it sent the rest running as well. Our guid hit me on the radio and said we were busted and they were on the move so we hustled over the little hill that i did know was there just in time to see then running up the the next ridge. My bad ,as i was not able to pinpoint them in time and i was also not able to get her set p in time to get a shot. I knew i had failed miserably as i didn't find them in time and we had blew it. Now we had noticed that i had also found a great cactus for us to set up on so we both had many many needles in us at this point. Good news was , the guid said he still had eyes on the original 3 bulls on the far mountain top. We got back to the truck and drove over toward it to get as close as we could to see if we even had a chance to be able to see them as our guide was on a cliff a mile behind us and had another 1,000 feet of elevation to glass from. We were in my truck (the new guid truck as the Jeep was totaled from the **** cow night prior), and he hit me on the radio and said STOP, this would be the best place from the road to see if we had a chance to see them or not. There was a small bluf off to the side of my truck so we grabbed the spotting scope and hiked up there to see if we could see what he saw. Well, we got the top and we could see the 2 bulls in bed, so i knew this was prob our last chance. I hit him on the radio and said wwe could just barely see them and said he could not tell the distance from them to any safe place for us to set up to possibly get a shot. He said it was my call so we went for it. 

We dropped most of our packs and went with the bare minimal and the gun and a pack and decided to make a mile long stock on them to see if we could get close enough for a shot. I could see a sandstone rock tat was about 40 feet about the floor on the way there that we could maybe get a shot from , IF we could get there without being spotted. We darted from tree to tree and tried to stay as hid as we could as we moved up to the spot that i hoped we could get a shot from. I did not know how far we would be but i figured this was our only last chance so lets go for it. There was a few times we had to slip between cover and non to get where we needed so i told the guid to hit me if they stood up as we scampered from bus to bush. We finally got to the area that had the sand stone mesa that i hoped we could use to get enough elevation to see them. We finally made it there and i belly crawled to the top to peek over to see if we had a view. 

We did, so i got the wife to climb up there with me and we made a little prone position spot that we could barely see them in bed and got set up. It was now about noon and they had no chance of standing up or giving a crap about anything. After we were on them and she had them in her sight, i told our guid i was going to start with a cow call just so maybe they would stand up. I tried, .........nothing, tried again........nothing. They were starboard as the wife, but thew 3rd bull we could not see finally stood up but would not move over enough for us to see his body or get a shot. We could now tell he was a nice 6 point and the other 2 were 5 points. After watching the 2 we could really see revealed they were 2 -5 points and 1 was a little better than the other. At this point it didn't matter what stood up first as she was ready to take anything as we only had a few hours of season to burn. I decided to keep ripping my HORRIBLE cow call to see if any of them would finally stand up, she laid there ready to shoot over and over again as we kept making plans to get them to stand up. She was looking at them for prb the 1,478 time and was on my 358th cow call that make any bull run away and finally 1 of the 5 points start to stand up , prob to tell me to shut the hell up as i call like an idiot. As i saw his rear legs make stand and his front legs to start to follow, i said "babe, i think he is staaaan" BOOOOOM, she lets a bullet fly. It shocked the hell out of me as i was not ready , nor did I have any ear protection so it scared the hell out of me. (side note, i tried to get her ready to be ready to reload and always be ready to throw more lead at him until he is down), well she had it down and ready....After the first shot, i saw him in my binos and he was still standing there, so was starting to say " hit him again....BOOOOOM" she let him have it again, followed by BOOM, then BOOM.Now i knew she was out of ammo and i had to reload the clip-3 (plus 1 in chamber), but by them our guide could see all 3 of them on the run. He said he couldn't see a flinch after the shot but he was over a mile back so we went up to see what the beds looked like. 

After we got up there and found the spot they were at ,we found blood.............., now i knew the hunt was over, BUT, we had a chance. The guid said he saw all 3 run fine and went around the corner from us so we knew they didn't seem to hurt. The blood i found looked bright color so i knew it was a lung OR a brisket shot. It was a 542 yard shot but she said she held steady and the shot felt good. Our guid said if we drive around the point , we may be able to see if they wet to go bed or not and i assumed if he was injured, he would want water. 

We made it back to the truck and drove around the corner (about 3 miles) to to get top the back side of the mountain they ran to. After finding it has 60-100 foot cliffs all around the mesa i knew they did not come out to the planes. I parked my truck and decided to hike up the ****ty cliffs to see if i could see in there to find them. The wife said no way in hell and i was nuts to try, but i figured it was last day and this is the only way we are here. 

I spend the next 2 hours climbing the gnarliest rock cliffs ever to finally get up to the top and could see where they ran after her shot. I made the top and was able to speak to the guid va our radio and e sad i was right were he saw them run after and he had lost them right in this area. i found there fresh tracks and decided to see where it goes. He said " have fun, it is crazy country that way ad to report back if i find anything". I got on the tracks and was able to track all 3 as it was fresh snow and sand underneath so i knew i was silent and maybe i could find a bed with or without blood. After a couple hours and miles was able to bump a small 5 point. He ran for a second then stoped and stayed in a small tree with his rack sticking out the top. I set the scope on him, not really sure what i was going to do, but i at least had to see him. There was no way the wife was going to keep up with me on this climb to find him but i knew i could finish him of if i had to, especially if he was injured. Once i had the scope on the little 5-point, i heard a sound to my left, so i looked and it was the 5 point that she had hit and the 6 point that was bedded with them. I knew the difference between them all as we had stared at them bedded for hours. I moved over to the one that i knew she had shot at and was wounded. They were both at about 40 yards and i surprisingly was able to kreep up on all 3 of them. You know what happens next , then i was able to get to him to see what the wife had shot. 

Our guide knew what had happened and was on the way to help but was about 3 miles away at this point, and i had left the wife in the truck 2 miles away and 5 hours prior, so she assumes we were both dead and she was on her own from this point FWD. I started to slice up and he finally made it to my truck , so now the wife knew i found her bull and we had a plan. I had crawled up a ****ty point to make the top and it was miles fro the spot we needed so he drove my truck and the wife toward me til we found a spot we though we may be able to get up/down to pack him out as he is now in a ditch close to the top of the ridge where i let the 6-point walk over and say good bye for ever. We was able to find a narrow experienced rock climber area to make it up to to me so we could try to get some meet back to the truck. As he was making his way up i got a good fire going as it is now 6-7 PM and it was cold as hell and dark. He made it to me and we continue to cut meat and build a fire. Him and I made a half elk trip pack down to truck (hardest pack out ever!!!), then got more packs and the wife and headed back up for the last trip. We got her to make it all the way back up to the spot so she could carry dow te rifle/binos/small stuff we couldn't pack into our packs and we all made it down with the rest of the 1/2 elk and the head. It was the hardest pack out i've even done as my pack could not hold the rear quarter on the first run so i had to do it the old school way with it over my shoulder and holding the leg to keep it on my back as we went down hill at 45 degrees and slippery snow the entire way with roc climbs and cliff drops. 

After 2 of the longest trips i have ever made up/down a mountain, we had made all the meat to the truck. 

Long story longer - it was the funnest stalk EVER, and after the really ****ty pack out, it was all worth it. The wife was super happy i was to find her bull and now she s def a hunter and realizes it does not happen on the first day. We did 5 full long hard days hunting and it made her a tough SOB and know i think i can get her to sit with me or stalk our extremely hard to kill elk in UT. Their lodge was nothing special but all the guides ther and the personnel are very professional and know the area well and do all they can to make your experience the best it can be. We were fortunate to be 1 of the only 2 bulls taken this late bull season as most were pretty picky the first few days withs all the broken horn bulls walking around. YES, they has 350-400" bulls on the hoof but you don't always see them, and sometimes you still have to make the hunt hard and realize it ALWAYS hunting and not killing. I am glad we did not take a 350" stud the the first day as she would think it it always goes that way.

New Mexico is an awesome place to hunt elk and i would def recommend a hunt there if you can make it happen. 

It was a blast the entire time , they made it hard so you know what a real hunt is like, and they also let you know what to expect and how it iz going to go. I think it was a great hunt for the wife as she learned it is not easy no matter what, but also got to see what it is like to benefit fro working your ass of for a week to bring home some meet. 

Please reach out if you want the info for the outfitter we used and if you have any question about the entire hunt, i have good pics of the crash into the **** cow as well if you want.:mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

pics attached ?


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

cow through the windshield pics !!!!


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

Sounds like a great adventure. I'm glad everybody survived uninjured. And congrats to your wife for a great bull!


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

So where did she hit him with her first shot? I'm curious what your investigation showed.


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## Humpy (Apr 30, 2018)

Sounds like an awesome spot to hunt elk at and glad you guys never gave up. Just curious, if she was the shooter, did you have a tag as well so you were able to pull the trigger to dispatch it?


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

Technically, in NM, if the tag is private or you are hunting private, you don't need a tag to dispatch. 

Just sayin'...


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

AF CYN said:


> So where did she hit him with her first shot? I'm curious what your investigation showed.


It was a lower neck/Brisket shot, we found the hole when we were capping him out. He stopped bleeding after about 30 yards , so the tracking was a fun , slow, tedious job, but good thing i was in sand/snow so I was able to stay pretty quiet and crept up right on him. i ended up between him and the other 2 and about got ran over. The wind was in my favor and being super quiet i got closer than i wanted too hahahahahah


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## cdbright (Aug 24, 2016)

got the wifes bull back from Taxidermist , he fixed up the broken G3s pretty good


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## DIRTYS6X6 (May 19, 2021)

Nice. Awesome bull


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## belenom (Aug 19, 2021)

Funny pics


cdbright said:


> pics attached ?


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