If you didn't get to NM this year put it on your bucket list. This is my second year and again had a great time. I got here early this year and got some hunting in before the Hunt. Picked up a dog and scoped out a lot nice country from the Mexican border to Truth or Consequences and from Las Cruses to Lordsburg.
Hunted with a native NMican and had fun we explored some country he's been wanting to look at for awhile.
The first day of the hunt I hunted alone and found one of NM's really aggresive coyotes, came at a dead run for nearly a quarter mile and leaped up in the manzanita bush and ripped my caller down, Same thing happenned last year with the same sound at a different location. Never got a shot this year the coyote kept the only bush around between him and me( the one the call was in)between us the whole time. It is a rush to see though.
Second day I hunted with a call maker from Ill. and we were able to call one in that circle downwind of us just a little farther than we wanted to take a shot with out shooting sticks. But the highlight of the day was the badger that we called in to about six feet from our boots, finally had to raise my arms and and spook him, I think he thought he had just hit the bananza with two of the biggest jackrabits he'd ever seen.
The Egg Shoot was fun again, I made it through the first round and the wind kept getting stronger, I kept holding farther up wind with each shot in the second round but ran out of oppertunities befor I found the right hold off. TC the winner said he was holding 4" off the egg to hit it. The 1st place prize was a beautiful custom built AR with an engraved dedication as being first in the Egg shoot. If you like to shoot this is fun and the comraderie is great, you never feel intimidated at the shoot, even as a 1st timer last year it felt like I'd been shooting with these guys befor.
We had three nights of great food and seminars by Tom Austin and Byron South and the third night was the raffle with a list of prises that are hard to beat. There were numerous e-callers from four different makers, decoys of every shape and size, hunting lights, scopes, guns, and justabout everything you can think of for predator hunting. The guys at my table won a Nightforce scope, decoys, DVD's, e-calls and on and on.
I had a great time and am already planning on next year
The combo gun strikes in NM.
