NM unit 51

DidIDraw · Mar 9, 2009

I didn't apply for NM this year but I'm putting together my 'plan' for upcoming years. Can anyone give me a bit of information about unit 51 in NM for rifle or ML elk? Are there good elk herds, is there enough public land to have a good hunt, could one expect a resonable chance at a mature bull, etc?

Thanks in advance. Good luck to everyone in the drawings (except those who applied for the same units I did

)

Todd

joesikora · Mar 10, 2009

Todd,sent you a PM.

Joe E Sikora

whitetailaddict · Mar 11, 2009

>I didn't apply for NM this
>year but I'm putting together
>my 'plan' for upcoming years.
> >Thanks in advance. Good luck
>to everyone in the drawings
>(except those who applied for
>the same units I did
>

)
>
>Todd

So you did apply or didn't?

DidIDraw · Mar 11, 2009

I didn't apply this year. Next year I want to apply.

Any advice for this or other NM units (rifle or ML)?

Thanks,
Todd

nmelkman · Mar 12, 2009

hunted the first rifle hunt last year, tough hunt, a lot of hunters but they cut back the number of tags this year, very thick country only huntable on foot or horse, saw three elk during daylight and about seven or eight in the headlights, two of the three in daylight were bulls, the first was at about ten yards and i got bull fever and tried to get a better shot but ended up not getting one at all, he was a very heavy dark horned 5x5, the second bull was across a canyon about 450 yards just at the edge of cover didn't get a real good look but at 450 yards could tell he was a six by six with the naked eye so he was huge but went into thick thick cover right as we saw him followed by a cow. fun hunt not as many elk as i would have liked but i had my chance just blew it. draw odds are tough too for the first rifle hunt the other hunts are so much tougher because the elk get so pressured

DidIDraw · Mar 17, 2009

Thanks nmelkman for taking the time to respond.

1FastGambler · Mar 25, 2009

I was lucky enought to get one of the extra December cow tags that the G&F sold online for Unit 51. I had never been in this unit before and with a Jan Unit 2 deer hunt coming up I didn't want to take any time off of work. We left Farmington around 5AM and were back in Farmington with a nice young cow in the back of the truck by 2PM. We hunted up high at first and there were elk tracks everywhere in the snow, but all the elk were down low in the sage country. It was the shortest elk hunting trip I have ever made and we saw literally hundreds of elk. One really nice bull too. I wouldn't hesitate to put in for this unit for MZL or rifle.

Good luck!

"WIndage & Elevation Pilgrim, Windage & Elevation"