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New Mexico Elk Success!

@SCliving Outdoors just saw this post brought back to the top. I had a great trip myself I really need to sit down and do a write up soon. Two years in a row for me also.
 

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@tnywragge this guy lives in SC and has killed bulls in NM the last two years. I think he would say it’s worth it for a non res.
I think that’s great. Was it non-resident with no guide? And again, this is just conversation about odds. Your going to find that small percentage that get the tag every year absolutely. I’m just weighing the odds of applying in NM VS buying some raffle tickets. As you can see this post has generated “those” individuals that drew in NM with such a low percentage. Great , I’d like to be one of those people too 👍🏻😃 but realistically the odds are super low; sometimes <.01%. It’s like saying you can’t win the lottery without buying a ticket, I get that but there are other lottery games to play as well with better odds. I’m just weighing my budget and application options. This thread has definitely created some great conversation for people to look at and think about 👍🏻 Thanks for the reply. So far we have found the 2% of the 1000 applications for nonresident that drew. Anymore? 😃 remember this year the hunting license is non-refundable. Does that effect your hunting application budget? I’m sure there are a lot of people thinking about that this year.
 
I think that’s great. Was it non-resident with no guide? And again, this is just conversation about odds. Your going to find that small percentage that get the tag every year absolutely. I’m just weighing the odds of applying in NM VS buying some raffle tickets. As you can see this post has generated “those” individuals that drew in NM with such a low percentage. Great , I’d like to be one of those people too 👍🏻😃 but realistically the odds are super low; sometimes <.01%. It’s like saying you can’t win the lottery without buying a ticket, I get that but there are other lottery games to play as well with better odds. I’m just weighing my budget and application options. This thread has definitely created some great conversation for people to look at and think about 👍🏻 Thanks for the reply. So far we have found the 2% of the 1000 applications for nonresident that drew. Anymore? 😃 remember this year the hunting license is non-refundable. Does that effect your hunting application budget? I’m sure there are a lot of people thinking about that this year.
Yea both elk were with no guide. He also pulled an ibex tag in NM this year. Whatever you decide I wish you the best.
 
I think that’s great. Was it non-resident with no guide? And again, this is just conversation about odds. Your going to find that small percentage that get the tag every year absolutely. I’m just weighing the odds of applying in NM VS buying some raffle tickets. As you can see this post has generated “those” individuals that drew in NM with such a low percentage. Great , I’d like to be one of those people too 👍🏻😃 but realistically the odds are super low; sometimes <.01%. It’s like saying you can’t win the lottery without buying a ticket, I get that but there are other lottery games to play as well with better odds. I’m just weighing my budget and application options. This thread has definitely created some great conversation for people to look at and think about 👍🏻 Thanks for the reply. So far we have found the 2% of the 1000 applications for nonresident that drew. Anymore? 😃 remember this year the hunting license is non-refundable. Does that effect your hunting application budget? I’m sure there are a lot of people thinking about that this year.


I’ve drawn two tags in two years in NM for elk. No guide. DIY. One was in a pretty good unit but the odds were still about 5-7%. The other was in a “not so great” unit according to what I read and the odds were more like 15 to 20%. I saw elk every day in both units. I killed a 5x5 bull last year and a 5x6 this year. The bull this year was a really awesome bull. Even though New Mexico doesn’t give you your license cost back the price of their license is still less than a lot of states. I don’t really apply for raffles because I feel like they are a serious waste of money. I only buy a couple raffle tickets per year and that’s bc I’m already applying in those states. New Mexico has a lot of units that the draw odds are 5 to 20% depending on what you’re looking for. While most raffle draw odds are 1 in 10,000. It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if I drew elk again next year because of the amount of research I do. New Mexico allows you to put down three choices. If you’re really smart with those choices your odds of pulling a tag aren’t bad. The only units that have those .01% for elk are the super premium units. I don’t apply for those units even for my first choice bc it’s basically a raffle ticket and I don’t want to waste a choice. New Mexico doesn’t offer over the counter hunts (except for some bear/lion hunts) so any unit in New Mexico is good especially if you know what you’re doing and can get away from the roads. I understand everyone’s budget is different but raffle tickets are basically just giving a donation to the game and fish department of that state. No one should realistically expect to draw a raffle tag in 10 lifetimes.

Everything I wrote above is referring to animals that aren’t sheep, lol. I apply for sheep in 5 states, but I don’t apply for sheep in NM bc financially it doesn’t make sense for me with the odds.
 
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