Anyone Hunted the Malpais/Valley of Fires

mad4muleys · Nov 30, 2008

I am new to this site and I was just wondering if any has hunted the Malpais near Carrizozo. I am sure there is a few of you out there. If so I would love to here any stories and see any pictures of deer taken from there. It is such a different place to hunt that if you have hunted there I am sure you have a interesting story. Here is mine.

My dad, grandpa and family friend had been hunting the Malpais for several days, only seeing does. Finaly one mourning my dad, grandpa and myself ran across about 8 head of deer and in it was a little fork. My dad let me take the shot and beeing young I missed just like so many begining hunters do. I watched as they ran away, and I was sure I would never see them again. My grandpa said I know were those deer are going. I remeber thinking to myself ya right you crazy old man, but I followed him and holy crap there they were. They were about 200 yards out, again I missed with a couple of shots and finally my dad put him down. Well te next day my dad not go out with us and boy is he sorry. I missed on the forked horn and got so lucky to find this guy. This time I did not miss. My best buck to date and a hunt I will never forget. Thanks grandpa.

leftturnabq · Dec 1, 2008

Cool story.

That thing's got some great brow tines.

mozey · Dec 1, 2008

That is a neat story and an awesome deer. I've hunted around the cone but never saw anything that looked like that. Much congrats to you.

mad4muleys · Dec 1, 2008

Ya my family has hunted there over 50 years and that is the biggest we have taken from there. My grandpa took a nice 3x3 about 26 wide from there in the 80's. I took this one in the early 90's. Its a cool place to hunt. Its just so different from anywhere else. My grandpa still loves the Carrizo though.

Lets go Huntin

trophytruck1 · Dec 2, 2008

I hunted the Malpais back in 1992, and just never made it back in there to hunt, I relocated from southern NM. In 1992 I killed a 28 inch 4X4 that dressed out at 250 pounds. I was not far from the peak. Sorry, I will have to try and figure a way to scan an old 35 mm picture of the buck to post.

It was one of the greatest hunts i had ever been on. That country is unbeleivable. You would not think that much forest existed in the lava, and the Native ruins, the little caves. How cool!!!

I saw several differant groups of deer and found many sheds from big deer.

One day I will get back in there and chase a big boy.

bugle100 · Dec 2, 2008

I am also new to the site and have hunted the malpais just recently during thanksgivig looking for aoudad sheep. I didn't see any, but two rams were taken from that area during the same time and one was 33" and the other a 31" both where huge. I have a picture of the bigger one on my cell phone but don't know if i can post without owners permission.

mad4muleys · Dec 2, 2008

>I am also new to the
>site and have hunted the
>malpais just recently during thanksgivig
>looking for aoudad sheep. I
>didn't see any, but two
>rams were taken from that
>area during the same time
>and one was 33" and
>the other a 31" both
>where huge. I have
>a picture of the bigger
>one on my cell phone
>but don't know if i
>can post without owners permission.
>
My dad took an Aoudad from there in 88. He was not a big ram. But for him it was kind of a bonus. He hunted deer there all his life the Aoudad was new and kind of a added bonus to a deer hunt. I will see if I can get some pictures of it up. Hey Bugle100 what did you think of the rocks. Did you enjoy it or will you never go back?

Lets go Huntin