PTgypsy: Elk Hunting: Public Land Owner

Unfortunately I shot my elk at last legal light so by the time we took photos it was dark!

The Valle
Every year my dad and I put in for public land tags in New Mexico. It's not a hard process but I always get so many questions! Here is the short answer: Every year there is an application window(Mid February to Mid March), you go online to http://www.wildlife.state.nm.us/hunting/. You look at the Big Game Proclamation, decide which units to apply for, create an account at https://onlinesales.wildlife.state.nm.us and follow the steps for applying for a license. Fortunately for me, 84% of tags go to NM residents, only 10% go to out of state residents, 6% to outfitters(my favorite part of the draw). The results usually come out at the end of April. All large game in NM is on a draw system, some hunts you can go annually and some are "once in a lifetime" hunts. My dad and I typically hunt the same units every year, but this year I drew a tag in the Valle Vidal, it's a once in a lifetime hunt! The elk herd in the Valle is incredible. We saw massive amounts of elk, we saw 11 bulls, passed on 4 bulls, and missed a giant before I shot my elk.

The Valle Vidal, I can just imagine the beauty in the summer!

I was raised by a great hunter, he hunts to feed our family. I have never seen my dad pass on an animal because the antlers weren't big enough. I have always shot the first animal I have seen on a hunt, because you might not get another opportunity! And, because hunting in NM is HARD work. You walk miles and miles and sometimes never see so much as a fly. If you aren't walking in NM, you probably won't fill your tag.

The hard part about hunting in the Valle Vidal is the massive quantities of elk, I have never passed on an animal but there are so many elk and the Valle is so beautiful that you don't want to fill your tag the first day! It's hard to balance that with the mental "this is a once in a lifetime hunt, don't go home empty handed!" replaying through your head a million times a day.

Loading up the elk head the next day, I have big plans to make this skull so beautiful!

This was probably my favorite elk hunt of my life. A few reasons; we hunted with some of the most hilarious people I've ever met, the camp was awesome, there were tons of elk, and the Valle is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been!

The thing that makes the Valle a once in a lifetime experience is just this: I passed on elk(something I have never done, nor will ever do again), we saw SO many elk, I got to hunt with my best friend, and we hunted on beautiful public land that is accessible to all americans. There are so many people that think that its the size of the animal that makes it a once in a lifetime. I disagree, if I wouldn't have missed I would've had a beautiful animal with massive antlers to EAT. The antlers would be in storage or screwed to the wall in my dad's shop just like all the rest. The experience is what made this a once in a lifetime hunt! My little 5x6 that was harvested at last light on the 2nd to last day was more of a trophy than any big animal because of the hunt required to harvest him. And, he will taste just as good :)

A little advice if you're thinking about applying for Valle Vidal: If you don't own horses, find a buddy that does! There is too much terrain to try to cover on foot. Enjoy the hunt, it is incredible.

My Hunt
Our horses were tired, we had ridden them every morning and evening hunt for 4 days straight. We gave them the night off and walked into ***** Hole(If you know where we were I'd have to kill you).
We found a little meadow and posted up in some fallen aspens. We had been there an hour and half and I was getting tired and I had just said to my dad "Can we go walk to the top of the meadow?" He said "No, we're waiting until dark." I'm glad I listened because just a few minutes later he was yell whispering(if you've hunted with my dad you know exactly what I mean by yell whisper) at me to stand up. Per the usual, I was confused. So then he yell whispered "there's an elk right there" And, again, per the usual I didn't see it. I got my rifle up over a fallen tree and had to squat to shoot and he was quartered away from me and I shot at the back of the lung(the bullet we found later was underneath the skin of the opposite shoulder blade.

I was certain that I hit him, but after missing the day before my dad had lost confidence in me and he admitted later that he thought we were going to have to search for a blood trail again! I don't blame him! I missed badly on that first elk, I had such bad "buck fever" because he was massive. One more reason I'm not a horn hunter. 😅 Luckily we didn't have to go far, I walked to where he was standing when I shot and looked up about 50 feet and there he was. That is my favorite kind of shot, a quick death for the animal.

I shot my bull at last legal shooting light. So we quartered the elk, and hung the quarters/backstraps/head in trees and went in the next day to pack it out. For the record, I can gut and quarter my own animal, my dad is just so much more efficient and good at it! I am a champion leg holder and skinner!

When I was younger I hunted with my dad to spend time with him, I basically followed him everywhere and just did what he told me. I would walk around until I shot something, and the sooner the better because I got to stop walking. I wouldn't wear binoculars, and completely relied on my dad to find me an animal. Isn't that what all young hunters do? Now I hunt because I love spending time with my dad and I absolutely love hunting; I love the walking and stalking, I love wearing binoculars and spotting my own animal(but lets be really my dad still spots the majority of them 😀)I love taking advantage of our public lands. I love knowing where my food comes from, and being responsible for ethically harvesting the only sustainable source of meat. I just don't understand people who eat meat but are against hunting. I love being able to educate those opposed to hunting and many people once they understand that we aren't horn hunters, our meat is ethically harvested, and it's the only source of sustainable, organic, free range, grass fed meat they usually support hunting!

He's so good at this, you'd think he's done it a million times 😅😅

He gave me the easy job, skinning the quarters. Yes I have several holes in this shirt. I've had it for 11 years, I have shot 1 deer, 3 oryx and 3 bull elk while wearing it. At this point it's lucky!