Novice NM Hunters looking for tips on how to NOT be "that guy"

[icgamer]

So my sons and I were lucky enough to draw first rifle in Unit 32 and we're really looking forward to it.

I've been reading up all I can and it sounds like that unit gets quite a bit of pressure on (what sounds like) not a really large deer population so we're not expecting anything to be handed to us, but that being said we're hoping to get some sound advice on how to not step on too many toes on what promises to be a congested hunt.

Advice we've rcvd from the local game officials seems to be to:

Get off the roads.
Show up early, and stay late.

So we plan on doing a lot of walking.

Aside from the obvious safety protocols to follow and doing our best to try and give anyone we see a wide berth, anyone have any obvious suggestions for "do's and don'ts"?

This post was largely inspired by the post currently going around under "General Hunting" about a lack of courtesy, so I'm keeping a close eye there and taking those comments to heart.

Cheers and GL to all my fellow public land hunters out there.

 

[mozey]

If you haven't already, go to the NMDGF Hunting Lands & Maps, and get familiar with the Unitization Agreements in 32. Also take a GPS system that tells you whether land you're standing on is BLM, State, or private. Good luck.

 

[icgamer]

Thanks so much for the tips.
I've already found out that one large ranch that was posing a problem with my sons and I finding early access to areas we want to hunt, well it turns out they have an agreement to allow hunters on their property during hunting season, so a win there.

I've got On-X downloaded on one phone, but that device took a crap just yesterday, was able to restore it, but now understand the pitfalls of relaying on technology, so will be sure to have a backup as well as paper copies of maps just in case.

Thanks again!@

 

[Muleman]

It's actually a pretty good deer unit. It's good for killing a buck, not good for quality. It's open country so glass and get away from roads. Lots of land locked and hard to get to public land. But if your willing to walk you can get to most of it. You should have a fun hunt.

 

[icgamer]

I appreciate the words of encouragement, we'd heard as much from some game wardens we had the odd circumstance to come in contact with (started out as an official visit to sort of investigate our draw but ended up a friendly visit once things sorted out correctly...NOW THAT was a story!)

I can attest to the "land locked" status of much of the public space. It took us over a month of driving back roads, and phone calls to the Dept of Game and Fish in Roswell, a bit frustrated I might add, to finally figure out a way to get where we wanted to go in a legal manner, some of these ranching operations really do have a strangle hold on access.

As for quality, as long as he's got forked antlers, he's fair game is what I've told my kids lol. Nothing to impress the neighbors, but a story and an experience we can share among ourselves and some meat in the freezer is what we're looking for so we'll be excited to get anything legal in our cross-hairs to be honest and I won't be ashamed to post a pic of a little forky to lower the expectations for others lol.

 

[mozey]

The one on the left is a Unit 32 buck:

I wish I could tell you that I actually shot him, but these are just his sheds...

 

[icgamer]

Thanks for the share and I guess that's proof there are some decent size animals out there! about 3 weeks out so getting close!

 

[Reuben_Soady]

I think your OnX account is usable on any device. Set up the app and log in ahead of time on backup units.

I concur on starting early. I was in a pretty congested part of my unit too. I drove down some second tier dirt/double tracks, parked and kept hiking. I always park off the road so the "ambitious" can drive in where I'm walking and it rarely happens. I also try to figure out where other guys are hiking if I run into their vehicles, and I make sure that I hike the opposite direction. So I didn't actually run into or even see any one else hunting this year, and I was on public land only 90 minutes from Albuquerque.

*If someone else gets to "your spot" before you do, it's not because they got up early, it's because you got going too late. I've headed in to "my spot" two hours early so that I could be the first one there. No whining.

*Close gates behind you.

*Manage your own trash and pick up after others to make up for the junk you loose but don't know about.

*Take it easy (uh, slow down) driving dirt roads, the visibility is typically shorter then you'd get on paved and you don't want a wreck and neither does anybody else.

*Help out where you can. I met some guys who were winching their cow elk up on a trailer so they could cut it up at the cabin. It was after dark so my buddy and I joined in the adventure. We pushed and pulled on that huge old cow for two hours before she finally slid up on that trailer. It would have taken about that long (or less) to cut her up on the ground and toss the quarters up on the trailer, but that's what the guys wanted to do. No, they didn't share their beer.

*use binoculars. Usually if someone sees you scoping them with your rifle scope, they scope you right back. Then it gets uncomfortable for you too.

*If you see antlers bobbing through the PJs, don't shoot at them, they might be sticking out of the top of someone else's backpack. Put your orange vest over the top of the antlers it it's you bobbing through the trees. Right?

*Hunting can be hard work, so make sure to find a way to still have fun.

I guess I know none of this in new. But it's cathartic to remind myself.

 

[icgamer]

Thanks so much..sage advice.
Some I've heard, but much I've not.

To be honest I love hearing the repeated mantras (so to speak)
To me that only reinforces the importance, especially for the safety related issues.

The note on binoculars is particularly funny as I have a co-worker that described someone who was scanning with their rifle and happened to sweep over him...and he did just what u said, LOL, swept right back over them (just to prove a point)...so TWO pairs of binos and a low end spotting scope are already a part of our gear...but I thank you for "foot stomping" that point!

I'm going to re-read these posts before we head out so we'll just have to cross our fingers to see how well we can put it all into action.

 

[Bowdeadly]

2 hours of loading a cow elk on a trailer and didn't offer a beer. I would have pulled the cow off the trailer back to the ground. LOL

 

[icgamer]

Hey Mozey,
If I can ask, and of course this puts my ignorance on full display (not like the topic of this post doesn't already do that, lol)
But can you elaborate on what you mean by "these are just his sheds.."

So to the un-initiated such as myself, this would sound like those are sheds you came across in that unit, that you had mounted on some antlerless deer, or maybe a prior trophy that was damaged somehow.

I'm just trying to understand if there is some hidden aspect of taxidermy I'm missing here, lol.

Sorry for a question that is probably pretty pedestrian for experienced folks, but I guess the only way I'm going to learn about these things is to be bold enough to admit I don't know and just ask.

Thanks in advance...

 

[Bowdeadly]

Sheds or ranch cut off can be mounted up just like a normal kill. It takes a bit more work to get the sheds put together. Cut off require to sculpt in the burrs with epoxy sculpt then mount onto a reproduction skull cap. Lots of folks get their sheds mounted using a replacement cape.

 

[icgamer]

I get it..
thanks so much for the info..I'm learning more and more here every day thanks to folks like yourself.

Cheers!

 

[mozey]

What bowdeadly said.

I found the sheds while barbary hunting. If you count the brow tines he is a pretty nice 6X6.

About nine months later I harvested a 23" forky within a few hundred yards of where I found the sheds. I was not interested in mounting the forky, but his cape seemed like a good match for the sheds. My main hunting buddy occasionally does a little taxidermy on the side, so it seemed like it would be a fun experiment. I like how the project turned out.