LAST EDITED ON Mar-03-16 AT 01:34PM (MST)[p]as a non resident I was upset at first too when they changed the draw system a few years ago. However, I apply each year for elk in NM and feel it is a great state for NR overall (16% is better than most states for the draw). I apply for over 50 hunts each year and have been for 6-10 years depending on the animal and state. Each state has their system and they all have pros and cons. It depends on what your goal is as a hunter. Meat hunter, trophy hunter, guided vs DIY, etc etc. I like the fact the most of the states are different so I can plan out what my future hunts might look like. The key for us NR's is to recognize where the opportunities are and formulate a short, medium, and long term plan to achieve your goals. For example I know Utah, Arizona, and Nevada are my trophy elk hunts. Wyoming (unit 45) will be good but not great elk hunt in 2-3 years. I'm burning my 10 CO pts next year and doing my first guided hunt with Mike Lawson in unit 40. I applied for a really good but not great unit in AZ for a late rifle hunt and will go with either A3 or Chappell for that hunt (I have the points it took to draw that tag last year so we'll see what happens with their new split). I've hunted CO (10-12 times otc diy), MT (twice in the breaks), UT, NM (twice with the draw, and twice with LO tags, $1200 and $1800, shot 4 bulls all public land DIY, & Oregon for elk. I always look forward to the entire draw process and NM is no exception. I have just as good of odds as anyone else that applies. Depending on if I go with an outfitter (did twice and didn't draw either time, drew on our own in '08 and '09 for first season rifle tags in a mid tier unit). I think NM gets an unfair bad rap by most NR's considering all the species that we can apply for and have a chance of drawing each year. No state has it perfect, look at all the negative press UT is getting lately about the expo (good late night reading though!) The fact of the matter is the popularity of hunting out west has grown and we have a supply and demand problem when it comes to tags. I've stopped complaining and simply do my best to stack the odds in my favor for this year and many years to come. I am fortunate to have the income to spend on all the apps and points and to hire an outfitter if I want or need to. However when I started building points it was a stretch but I new if I ever wanted to go on some great top end hunts in the future I had to make the investment in it. Good luck to everyone in the draw! For those of you too upset with NM to even apply, thank you I appreciate it!