Texas canned hunts ??

[three5x5s]

Got declined for all the Elk drawings so I'm looking for some kind of hunting trip this fall in late October. Thinking of trying a corasican or dall sheep or something with hooves & Horns on a Texas ranch hunt. Archery only. Any thought, Anyone been & would recommend to a friend. dont want to hunt in a sheep pen. Want it to b a hunt. I'v never been to Texas so any help would be nice.
will be driving form Kentucky if that makes a difference.

 

[Beendare]

I will admit to doing one about 25 years ago- a freebie through Onieda who I was shooting for at the time. Its more of a shoot vs a hunt, fun if you are with a group and just doing it for what it is. You may come away a bit hollow, it doesn't leave you with any satisfaction.

 

[Snowcrest6]

momma always said,......if you can't say sumthin' nice.......so, i'm keeping my trap shut.

 

[Shrek]

A better idea might be and otc Colorado elk hunt or an Idaho or Montana leftover elk hunt. Why go for a canned hunt when you could go for a real hunt. If you hunt to hunt and not collecting big antlers then there is some dynamite hunting to be had.

 

[fulldraw1972]

Yes lots of OTC opportunities available for Elk. Montana, Idaho, Co. Wyoming's leftovers will be out soon if not already.

 

[three5x5s]

I'll fly to Wy. for a week at a friends elk camp in mid Oct. No hunting just helpings as I have no tag. And I;ll bow hunt deer here in Ky. Just wanted something a little closer to hunt in late Oct. Like I said I have never been to Texas and have never been on a one of these hunts. Thougth maybe there was some that were pretty nice.

 

[cuerro viejo]

Got declined for l the Elk drawings so I'm looking for some kind of hunting trip this fall in late October. Thinking of trying a corasican or dall sheep or something with hooves & Horns on a Texas ranch hunt. Archery only. Any thought, Anyone been & would recommend to a friend. dont want to hunt in a sheep pen. Want it to b a hunt. I'v never been to Texas so any help would be nice.
will be driving form Kentucky if that makes a difference.

Depends on the ranch and what the your idea of a pen is. 4k acres in south texas is going to be a hard hunt... 200acres in the hill country not so much.

Some ranches those sheep are pretty wild some not so much. Ask for referances and call them.

Honestly I'd pick an axis buck or doe hunt. Some of the best meat around. You can find them LF or HF.

If you really want a challenge go bow hunt aoudad out in west Texas HF or LF.

You can hunt exotics year round in TX...

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

You gotta love this site! Not one real approval lol

 

[boom]

texas is an amazing place. hunts run the entire spectrum. you can sit over corn flinger and see amazing animals..or you can find a spot stalk operation on 100,000 acres and hunt your ass off, and not see anything. high fence means something different if thet fence surrounds a vast terrain.

good luck. try i free range aoudad hunt..you will be challenged in ways you've never imagined..

 

[cuerro viejo]

You gotta love this site! Not one real approval lol

I approve.... hunting challenge is determined by the hunter not anyone else. Ill never hunt pronghorn with a rifle ever again not my cup of tea, but I don't blast any one else that does.

The OP must be worried about opinions or he wouldnt of called it a canned hunt. You can hunt exotics LF or HF all through out Texas.

Canned means different things to different people. There are a lot of large HF ranches in texas that are more challaging to hunt then their LF neighbors. . All ranches are different

 

[drthornton]

You don't have to go high fence for exotics in Texas. I don't hear about TX Dall and Corsicana much but folks I know in the Hill country and South TX always have Axis stories.

I had a lease near Vera, TX. It had Aoudad. I had 2 dead to rights but got scared the Walkers wouldn't like it....in retrospect forgiveness rather than permission comes to mind. Ranger Creek Ranch now runs an Aoudad operation. The Walkers are good people and their lodge in Vera is very nice. They have lots of hogs as well. I'm sure you could add them for not too much. No high fence out there....Red Scald Country.

http://www.rangercreekranch.com/aoudad.php

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

That is true and to each their own. I don't think I could do it. It's seems like fishing in a swimming pool to me.

 

[three5x5s]

Dident mean anything be the "canned hunt" just what I always hear them called. a friends wife shot an axis deer in a 2 acre HF pin in tenn. Its fine for them or anyone else, but not what I would be looking for. Thats why I ask. There should be some ranches that have good stalk and hunt for some kind of horned animal thats edible. Are all the hunts in Texas like shooting fish in a swiming pool?? With a bow? Or have I just ask the wrong question the wrong way?

 

[69ChrisCraft]

With this crowd I'd think you be hard pressed to find folks that enjoy to hunt out of a tree let alone inside a fence.

That being said, my first "hunt" was whitetail in South TX on a LF. I had no experience "hunting" big game and it afforded me the opportunity to at least experience the kill and determine if it was for me. I was put in an elevated box blind and the guide drove the sendero dispensing corn. I truly enjoyed myself and went back for 2 consecutive years..... Only now I realize it wasn't the hunting I was enjoying, it was the time around the campfire and the stories told. During those 3 years I had no illusions I was a hunter. I knew nothing of the animals I hunted. Didn't pattern them, or learn their habits, or study the topography.... I felt like I was observing from afar and shooting my buck was like stopping by the gift shop on my way out to grab some momento or proof I was there.

That type of hunting has it's place. It's fun, it's a great way to introduce people to the outdoors, and I couldn't think of a better bachelor party idea.....but.... Time spent pursuing game on THEIR terms is undoubtedly more noble, it breeds conservationists, naturalists.... And obviously elitists .

I wouldn't be ashamed to do it. I also wouldn't portray the experience as a hunt.

I display my euro mount, DIY, archery, forked horn blacktail with pride. My SCI silver medal Impala and Blesbok taken off a high fence ranch are stashed in the closet.

 

[cuerro viejo]

2acres is a pen.

No, I've come home empty handed on a couple hunts, even with a rifle. Like I said ever ranch is different. You have ranches that hit the 800k acre mark.

Nilagi is another hunt you may want to look into

 

[cuerro viejo]

Put it this way find a ranch over 800 acres, and you will have a hunt.

Axis and nilagi are more skirmish then whitetails and are probably the two hardest animals to hunt spot and stalk with a bow. Mulies, elk and pronghorn are lot easier to hunt spot and stalk with a boe

 

[JWP58]

If you have deep pockets, go hunt some free range elk in west texas. Private ranch, and they're still considered "exotic" by G&F.

 

[boom]

stalking a wild texas hog is just about impossible. i've tried.

the terrain is brutal. thorns wall are everywhere on my buddies place. a big hog is smart..really smart.

 

[Shrek]

I can say that I enjoy stand hunting whitetail and even over feeders. If you are the one to choose the sites , clear , plant , and maintain the stands then it's a hunt that lasts year round. If the "guide drives you out to a stand and all you did was shoot the deer then you didn't hunt. Contrary to popular belief , it's very rare to shoot a mature buck off of a feeder. You hunt near feeders and food plots but not on them to kill big bucks . There is a lot that goes into a good food plot or feeder and if you get it wrong there will be very little use or you will never get to hunt it without being busted by the deer.
I also feel that some of the larger high fence operations are legit fair chase. If the enclosure is larger than the natural home range of the animal you are hunting the there is little difference than without the fence. The fence does allow for more controlled management and exotics

 

[shamlin88]

I have done both, hunted over feeders and spot and stalk in TX and hunted Muleys in Montana. Depending on what animal they are both extremely challenging. Whitetail bucks rarely come to feeders in TX; they are too smart for that. So you have to pattern their travel routes just like in the midwest. You want a challenge, go hunt an Aoudad in TX spot and stalk. They travel in small herds, have incredible noses, and live in extremely rough terrain! Be prepared for some long shots also. Pig hunting on a spot and stalk is also extremely challenging. I would not recommend a Corsican or Dall sheep as they are pretty docile and can be shot fairly close with no problem. I understand alot of the Western hunters knocking TX, but I would challenge any of them to chase a Aoudad or Nilgai on a large ranch; it is an extremely tough hunt!