NM Off Range Oryx

[bigsky2]

I lucked out and drew an off range oryx tag for December as a non-resident. Has anyone ever done one of these hunts or know anything about them? It sounds like they can be tough, so I am prepared for that. I am just trying to get any info I can.

 

[Austink47]

A tall vehicle you can glass from the roof of will come in handy. A lot of the county they hang out in is pretty flat and you can’t see over the brush.

 

[Tmac]

My brother did that hunt. Use an elk capable rifle and glass them good. He had two walk behind a bush, both walked out broadside, he shot the tallest one, turns out the second horn was broken off. Almost funny. Years ago I took my son on a youth hunt for MD on the WSMR, Oryx were all over. It seemed to me to be similar to antelope in that they were often out in the open. But that was there and 20 years ago. Beautiful animals, good luck!

 

[sndmn11]

If you get in touch with Albuquerque RMEF, the two gentlemen who help put on their banquet are infatuated with those Oryx and would fall over themselves to help with your questions or probably more if you let them.

 

[Tmac]

If you get in touch with Albuquerque RMEF, the two gentlemen who help put on their banquet are infatuated with those Oryx and would fall over themselves to help with your questions or probably more if you let them.

Excellent suggestion, my brother had local help on his hunt. Helped a bunch.

 

[bigsky2]

If you get in touch with Albuquerque RMEF, the two gentlemen who help put on their banquet are infatuated with those Oryx and would fall over themselves to help with your questions or probably more if you let them.

Do you have any idea who those guys are?

 

[jonnycoder]

My friend and I drew the on-range Stallion Range hunt this past Nov 6-8 and it was actually moved to the Rhodes Canyon. We got to hunt starting Friday at 12:30pm. I got my oryx midday Saturday and my friend got his midday Sunday. It was a lot harder than I expected because majority of them start running if you get any closer than 400 yards from them. It's mostly road hunting, and frequently stopping at slightly higher vantage points to glass. We would see them at 400+ yards from the truck. They always see you no matter what. I repeat, they always see you!

Avoid coming to a complete stop if possible and keep driving, or stop and let the shooter out and keep driving. That worked perfect because the group of oryx all turn their head towards the moving vehicle allowing the shooter possible opportunity at getting within 200 yards. All of our shots plus all potential shooting opportunities were standing up, so have a tripod ready and extended. You may not get the absolute perfect shot opportunity where you are completely still and the oryx are close, so keep that in mind.

My friend's group of oryx were at 250 yards and slowly moved away and that's a really nice shot situation. He had 2 misfires but still sealed the deal. Don't get discouraged if you keep finding oryx but they always run away. We never chased them because they will just keep running and will get lost easily. Just keep road hunting, stopping every 15 min to glass even if it's a tiny hill that gives you a slight vantage. We had good luck near the Malpais volcanic rock because it keeps their escape trail parallel to the road. PM me for any questions.

 

[Felix40]

Things will be very different on an off range hunt.

 

[FLAK]

They do seem to know where you are,,,,,always.

 

[Fitzwho]

I would plan to hunt the border of the WSMR, might find one right off of it or 5 miles off the border.

 

[roadrunner]

We have killed several off range. Being consistent in an area you are seeing sign in is your best advantage. Cover the area by vehicle stopping frequently to glass from the bed of your truck or standing on the floor board while your door is open for quick stops and looking.

Although some areas are pancake flat, others have small rolling swells or undulations that provide the oryx cover from view and can appear suddenly out of nowhere.

Hunting them is similar to hunting antelope. Tattle-tale sign is they will swish their tails when they are getting ready to run.

 

[TBass]

BigSky2 - I shot you a PM. I wanted to know after your hunt if you have any advice or suggestion you would be willing to pass on.

My hunt is coming up in exactly a month & unfortunately I am not going to be able to get down there to scout before hand.

 

[DawnPatrol]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, everyone. Such striking and delicious animals--a DIY off-range oryx hunt is on my bucket list.

Is there a "better" time of year for an off-range hunt? Do oryx do different things at different times of year? Or are there weather considerations (other than HOTT in the summer)?

Thanks all!

 

[406life]

I did the WSMR hunt last year and what I can add is using a copper bullet and the right shot placement put mine down quick. They are known for soaking up lead. So, their vitals are forward compared to elk/deer.

 

[TBass]

I did an off range hunt just about a month go... March 6th to be exact. Here is my 2 cents.

The temp around this time is ideal. Just about freezing early in the morning and warming up to be very pleasant In the afternoons. But I can attest that the wind can pick up making longer shots a little tricky. I can’t imagine what hunting these guys in the dead of summer would be like... but I’ve gotta think that it would pretty much suck.

The hunt was a lot of fun, and as luck would have it a buddy and I tagged out the first day we hunted. That being said, we were fortunate to see two oryx and to shoot two oryx (both of which were bulls). And I can personally attest that these critters can soak up some lead. In the end my 6.5 Saums put him down but it is the only animal that I have ever shot that TRULY required more than one round. Next time I think I would use a different rifle and bullet combination... but then again it did do the trick.

 

[Tick911]

I lucked out and drew an off range oryx tag for December as a non-resident. Has anyone ever done one of these hunts or know anything about them? It sounds like they can be tough, so I am prepared for that. I am just trying to get any info I can.

Following.