South Texas Nilgai

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

I just got back from south Texas on a draw hunt for Nilgai. It was 95 degrees, every step was through sawgrass, cactus, rattlesnakes or some combination of the three, but man was it a good time. Here is a little hunt breakdown.

Found out back in October I drew an exotic tag for the Laguna Atascosa wildlife refuge. I had a busy season so didn’t really start giving it much thought until mid January. I thought it was a rifle tag, but turned out it was a muzzleloader/shotgun hunt. That caused a bit of scrambling since I did not have a muzzle loader, nor had I even looked at them since maybe 05. In a couple of weeks I managed to piece together everything and get one sighted in without blowing myself up. We planned on going down for the entire week and making a family vacation out of it (hunt is only 3 days on weekend).

Thursday (Scouting day)
The day before the hunt is the only allowable scout day and the only time you can be accompanied by non hunters. My wife, son, and I drove the open roads, checked all access points, and did a little bit of walking. We didn’t see any Nilgai, but it’s a cool place to poke around. Definitely unlike anywhere I’ve had the opportunity to hunt before.

Shooting pretend jaguars


His mind was blown at a poop this large


Can’t beat the backdrop

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Friday (hunt day 1)
I wake up and get to the access point I want about an hr before sunrise. This access point was not on the map we were given, but was mentioned in the orientation email. There is a large black gate closed across the pull in that wasn’t closed the day before. I call the refuge number, wake some guy up and he reassures me it’s ok to access from that point. There are 25 tags for this unit, it is not a large unit, and I had the entire south side to myself all day…. it pays to do a bit of research!

Because of wind direction, I only have one viable hunt plan. There is a trail that runs N->S, I work down it as it starts to get light, glassing a large open prairie area to the east. I had heard these things are super switched on, great eyesight and sense of smell, so planned to hunt them as I would archery antelope. The flat is really foggy but as it starts lighting up, I start to pick out large shapes. There are two that are about 300 yards off the trail working parallel to it. I get to a section of brush that pushes out about 100 yards into the flat. I’m working forward keeping a cactus or bush between me and the Nilgai, but it’s slow going. I think they are working towards a water source so I keep working out towards them. I get a little too distracted and look up to see a cow looking at me through a palm broadside at about 50 yards. Turns out they turned at some point and came directly at me.

I have an easy shot at the cow but know the bull has to be close. I make the decision to pop up and try to get a shot on the bull. I stand up, the cow runs immediately, but the bull is standing there, 60 yards facing me. I have plenty of time, put the cross hairs mid chest for a frontal shot and squeeze one off. The bull takes off across the flat, it’s two miles to the other treeline. I get my binos on him and watch, he stumbles a few times but makes it clear across the flat and stumbles into woods! I couldn’t believe it. This entire time my phone is vibrating like crazy in my pocket. I reluctantly answer it while I’m watching him and it’s my wife calling from the camp ground phone. She had locked themselves out of the camper in their pajamas letting the dog out. I’m trying to mark where this thing hit the woods, but know I have to go. I pack out about a mile and drive 40 minutes to the campground where my son greats me from the gate office window! I get them sorted and then head back out. I did 10 miles that day looking and never found the bull. The thing was massive, it looked more like an ox. I end up seeing a lot of Nilgai that weekend, none were as large as him.

 

[Fordguy]

Wow. Tough luck. What bullet/powder/charge were you using?

 

[S-3 ranch]

Yeah they’re tough critters
a 300 mag - 375hh is recommended medicine for them
a neck shot for stuff like 308 , 270 7mm

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Saturday (day 2)
I’m pretty wiped after all the hiking and brush busting yesterday in the 90+ degree heat. I live in Florida, but I wasn’t ready for that kind of heat mid February! I still get up and get to my gate about an hr before light. Today there is one other truck. I’m not too worried about it since on the N end there were 10+ trucks. I decide he probably took the easiest route in, will likely see the Nilgai in the flat and either shoot one or spook them, so I start hiking about 2 miles to the other side where he would scare them to.
As it starts to get light, I can see there are 20-30 spread out in the huge flat. I get positioned on the other end, out a ways from the tree line in the only group of trees and just wait. About 8:30 I hear a few shots and they all start coming my way. I’m waiting and ready, have a large group coming right at me. The herd kind of engulfs me, I have a cow at 40 yards directly in front of me that is suspicious and two bulls even closer but I’d have to pivot and shoot through some brush. I learned my lesson the day before, don’t get greedy, take aim at cow, shoot and drop her.
The herd really doesn’t know where the shot came from, bulls get closer, maybe 30 yards now but I cannot reload. My primer is stuck and I cannot get it out. Did I mention there was a reason I don’t muzzleload? I hate it! It ends up being for the best because with the rising sun, so were the temps. The shot on the cow was the exact same I had on the bull the previous day, frontal with a slight quarter. Luckily it penetrated enough to get to her vitals, but just barely. I get her broken down and bagged in one hr, I’m not sure I’ve ever worked that fast. I’ve heard how good the meat is and don’t want any to spoil.
I get it packed out in 2 loads, about 2 miles from the truck. I’ll say this, off season February packouts are brutal! Especially when you add the heat! I get to the truck and all my ice had melted, so the meat went in the cab with A/C on high. I left the truck running, got the last load, came back and headed to the meat locker we had available to us. Was a great morning of hunting. I got back to the campground about 1:30 and we went into town for a celebratory meal, took the evening off.

As she laid


Entry. The blue tip from bullet was just laying like this. After investigating the wound channel, there was no way it got to the big bulls vitals the day before.


Mobile meat locker


Screen shot from video, small part of the herd

 

[TxxAgg]

Nice work

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Wow. Tough luck. What bullet/powder/charge were you using?

.45 Powerbelt 285g ELR, bh 209 105g by volume…. Not the bullet I wanted, I was on a time crunch and bought the .45 muzzle loader without researching component availability, just assumed in Jan/Feb stuff would be available…. I was wrong. The powerbelt was the only bullet I could find in stock. Really wanted the Barnes.

 

[yfarm]

Great hunt, have hunted there in the past and its tough cover. Good choice on the cow, the meat quality is exceptional. Was driving north on US 77 north of Raymondville this afternoon and saw group after group of bulls and cows within 50 yds of the highway on private ranches.saw no cattle until I hit the King Ranch. Have driven that road for years and this is the first time I have seen Nilgai there. May be a fluke or evidence of a growing population. Animals seem to be ideally suited for the environment.

 

[arwhntr]

Love following this story. I've been down there a couple of times hunting with archery equipment. Arrowed a cow with a short frontal shot that in the moment I would have bet the house was a perfect shot. Waited an hour or so to pick up the massive blood trail only to jump her, watch bound away never to be found. Heartbreaking but just proves how insanely tough of critters they are.

The rattlesnakes get anaconda sized down there.

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Day 3
I get to the access point and the other hunter is there again. I have about the same plan as the day before, but I don’t go all the way across the flat. As the sun comes up there are even more Nilgai out, probably 40, spread throughout the flat. There are several groups and one nice bull feeding towards me and all is looking good when I hear 3 shots and then rapid pistol fire from the direction of the other hunter. Nilgai start running from his direction and the ones that are heading towards me start angling away. About 20 minutes go by and I see this guy trying to stalk the Nilgai in the wide open! He then proceeded to scare every single Nilgai in a 3 mile radius into thick cover. This guy had no orange, an AR type weapon (I guess it could of been an AR shotgun which would of been legal, but judging by his other jackassery, I’m guessing not), and appeared no common sense.
I decide to just wait it out, he goes back to his truck and leaves, no visible Nilgai left. I end up seeing some Nilgai in the corner of the flat working in and out of cover. I tail them for about a mile, but the bulls stayed at the front and cows in the back. I was within range numerous times of the cows, but they kept me from getting closer to the bulls. I had one bull in range, about 120 yards, but he was about 10 yards into the no hunting zone side of a trail. I end up losing them in some cover, decide to go back to the camper for lunch and come back out for the evening.
My son (4) asked if he could go hunting with me and I couldn’t refuse! Technically no one was allowed on refuge except license holders, but if someone wanted to write me a ticket, I would gladly pay it. We went out that evening to hunt and had the best hunt of my life! We walked in about a half mile, or about 4 snack breaks deep, and set up some chairs in the brush. We sat for about an hr, saw some Nilgai in the flat, and then worked back out. I had another cow in range while walking in, she had no idea we were there, but didn’t have time to prep my son with ear pro and give him an explanation of what was fixing to happen. All in all, a fantastic hunt! We left, got ice cream, picked up the meat from the cooler and headed back.

Ready for the hunt


Cool seeing crabs while hunting


Our set up


Hiding from the Nilgai


Walk out


Walker Texas Danger doing dumb stuff


Cow in range

 

[twdjr]

Congrats!

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Finally got the time to cook some up and man, it lives up to the hype. I’m not sure I’ve had a better game meat. Wish I would have killed a few more!

 

[FloridaB]

Turkeygetpwnd38 Have you ever looked into a Nilgai hunt at any of the FL outfitters? I see a few of them offer doe hunts, I'm considering one for a meat hunt and introducing my oldest son into it before he goes to college next year. Thank you

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Turkeygetpwnd38 Have you ever looked into a Nilgai hunt at any of the FL outfitters? I see a few of them offer doe hunts, I'm considering one for a meat hunt and introducing my oldest son into it before he goes to college next year. Thank you

I haven’t, I know pretty much all the FL hunting outfitters are high fence, and not the huge Texas style. If you know that going into it and that’s not an issue, might be a good way to get meat.
There are several free range hunts in Texas for cows, might be a better experience and not a terrible drive. Either way keep us updated and good luck!

 

[FloridaB]

Thanks for the reply. That’s true, they are high fence. I saw one outfitter that claimed to have 6,500 acres but I suppose that could be total and the amount high fenced could be much less. I only have 1 experience hunting a high fence operation and it was good. They had 2,000 acres under fence and only had hogs, blackbuck and axis deer. Other than the day I arrived, I didn’t see a fence for 2 days of hunting.

This was back in 2005. I’m sure that’s not the norm now. They only do axis doe once a year now and prices are pretty high for such a small animal.

Thank you for your thoughts. I will definitely look into a free range TX hunt. I went to college in E. TX so I know that drive well, although the speed limit back then was only 55 on the interstate. LOL

 

[pwdrski]

Friday (hunt day 1)
I wake up and get to the access point I want about an hr before sunrise. This access point was not on the map we were given, but was mentioned in the orientation email. There is a large black gate closed across the pull in that wasn’t closed the day before. I call the refuge number, wake some guy up and he reassures me it’s ok to access from that point. There are 25 tags for this unit, it is not a large unit, and I had the entire south side to myself all day…. it pays to do a bit of research!

Because of wind direction, I only have one viable hunt plan. There is a trail that runs N->S, I work down it as it starts to get light, glassing a large open prairie area to the east. I had heard these things are super switched on, great eyesight and sense of smell, so planned to hunt them as I would archery antelope. The flat is really foggy but as it starts lighting up, I start to pick out large shapes. There are two that are about 300 yards off the trail working parallel to it. I get to a section of brush that pushes out about 100 yards into the flat. I’m working forward keeping a cactus or bush between me and the Nilgai, but it’s slow going. I think they are working towards a water source so I keep working out towards them. I get a little too distracted and look up to see a cow looking at me through a palm broadside at about 50 yards. Turns out they turned at some point and came directly at me.

I have an easy shot at the cow but know the bull has to be close. I make the decision to pop up and try to get a shot on the bull. I stand up, the cow runs immediately, but the bull is standing there, 60 yards facing me. I have plenty of time, put the cross hairs mid chest for a frontal shot and squeeze one off. The bull takes off across the flat, it’s two miles to the other treeline. I get my binos on him and watch, he stumbles a few times but makes it clear across the flat and stumbles into woods! I couldn’t believe it. This entire time my phone is vibrating like crazy in my pocket. I reluctantly answer it while I’m watching him and it’s my wife calling from the camp ground phone. She had locked themselves out of the camper in their pajamas letting the dog out. I’m trying to mark where this thing hit the woods, but know I have to go. I pack out about a mile and drive 40 minutes to the campground where my son greats me from the gate office window! I get them sorted and then head back out. I did 10 miles that day looking and never found the bull. The thing was massive, it looked more like an ox. I end up seeing a lot of Nilgai that weekend, none were as large as him.
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Augh, that stinks! They're so different and HUGE! We came across 3 bulls in 2 different groups hunting Axis in May. One was at 65 yards and didn't know we were there. The other 2 blew up a stalk we had going on a couple of excellent Axis bucks when we came on them in the cedars totally hidden from our view. Amazing critters.