So what's the scoop on New Mexico Oryx? I know the tag is $1600. How many yrs of applying does it take? Reading the previous posts, guys r 50/50 on hiring a guide. Is there lodging close or is it camping? Is it once in a lifetime? I've completed several other western big game species...looking for something different. Love to do Aoudad someday too.
Scoop on Oryx ?
- Thread starter Trigger50
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oldman357
New member
We don't do Points here so you have a chance to draw the first time you put in (i'm working on 3 years applying)
Only Oryx hunt i've been on was a buddy, we just got up @ oh my dear Jesus thirty and drove down from ABQ he didn't have a guide just had some advice about where to look found a good one passed on many smaller ones.
It is once in a life time unless you draw a broken horn or off range tag (off range is really hard on out of staters) or depredation tag.
Only Oryx hunt i've been on was a buddy, we just got up @ oh my dear Jesus thirty and drove down from ABQ he didn't have a guide just had some advice about where to look found a good one passed on many smaller ones.
It is once in a life time unless you draw a broken horn or off range tag (off range is really hard on out of staters) or depredation tag.
sbhooper
Well-known member
I killed three when I lived in NM. It was back when the permit was $41. I killed one on a once-in-a-lifetime tag and two on depredation hunts. Even back then, some people put in for years and were not drawn. I was very fortunate.
I have no idea how bad the draw odds are now, but it is a neat hunt if you get drawn.
I have no idea how bad the draw odds are now, but it is a neat hunt if you get drawn.
MNHunter
Well-known member
The odds for the OIL hunts are around/under 5% for most hunts and likely worse as they cut the tag numbers. It’s a random draw so you have a chance every year. I drew on my 2nd attempt, hired a guide, and killed a beautiful bull. If I did it again I likely wouldn’t hire a guide simply because I’ve done it once. Rather, I’d probably call a couple buddies like nmelktrout and see if he wants to go. He’d a wily oryx veteran now.
Lodging is really your preference. I know people camp but when we hunted the Stallion we stayed in Socorro. For the RC hunt there lodging nearby as well.
It’s a different hunt but definitely one of my favorite hunts. I would urge you to put in if you are interested. The odds are low, the non refundable fees are low, but if you draw the rewards are high.
Lodging is really your preference. I know people camp but when we hunted the Stallion we stayed in Socorro. For the RC hunt there lodging nearby as well.
It’s a different hunt but definitely one of my favorite hunts. I would urge you to put in if you are interested. The odds are low, the non refundable fees are low, but if you draw the rewards are high.
pointingdogsrule
Well-known member
My cousin drew his second try. 5% odds. He choose to hire a guide as it is a OIL tag. We will hunt the last week in FEb of 2013 in the Stallion range. Most people talk as MNHunter does.... if a friend is lucky enough to draw then go on your own the second time.
Really looking forward to this hunt.
good luck to all
the dog
sagebrush
Active member
My wife and I have both drawn our OIL hunts as non-residents. Just keep putting in and it will happen eventually. No need to camp for a 2 day hunt with no scouting allowed, a couple nights in a motel in Alamogordo if you draw Rhodes Canyon. You can apply for dates that fall outside the usual hunting seasons, so no conflict if you happen to draw.
chasendeer
New member
The scope is they are tasty. Easy to hunt, stay in a hotel, and they are good to eat.
Jay
Jay
sbhooper
Well-known member
Best meat that I ever ate.
Very fun hunt. Worth the tag fee. If you have good optics, hunting experience, and are willing to study up to learn what a good oryx looks like you definitely do not need a guide. Like others have said, fabulous eating! Motels are close by. You cannot camp on the range.
havgunwilltravel
Active member
As has been said, take a bit of time looking over a few oryx pictures before the hunt, there is a bit of variance between the males/females, horn weight and styles, some flair a bit as they grow up and others are straightish. They do break up a bit as they are keen fighters so look at the last couple of inches of each horn if you want to make sure you get an even one and be careful approaching them when they are on the ground. They have the will to live and certainly injure plenty of hunters in Africa. Lastly, do yourself a favour and take a look at their anatomy online, like most African species their engine room sits a little different to what you might be used to and shooting one broadside a few inches back from the inside of the front leg half way up the body might get you in no mans land pretty quick.
Also keep in mind if you are going to mount one, that the ridge of long spine hair sits in the middle on the back of the neck. Some guys like to keep this intact and just run the knife slightly off centre but parrallel so as to not cut through that hair, whilst others just run it straight up the spine like a normal centre cut.
Fun to hunt, but have your glassing eyes on when there is a herd standing nervous in front of you and you need to make the right decision fast to sort out the better animal in the group.
Good luck.
Also keep in mind if you are going to mount one, that the ridge of long spine hair sits in the middle on the back of the neck. Some guys like to keep this intact and just run the knife slightly off centre but parrallel so as to not cut through that hair, whilst others just run it straight up the spine like a normal centre cut.
Fun to hunt, but have your glassing eyes on when there is a herd standing nervous in front of you and you need to make the right decision fast to sort out the better animal in the group.
Good luck.
nmelktrout
New member
Lee is spot on: Oryx are a blast to hunt. If you love hunting pronghorn or just want to go on a fun hunt where you will see a good number of animals in some incredible country, put a neat trophy on the wall and load up on the absolute greatest meat you can imagine -- go oryx hunting.
Here is a piece on oryx hunting I threw together last year. Paste the link into your browser:
http://www.ridgelineoutdoors.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/11_June.pdf
The days of driving around and looking at hindu-cow tame oryx standing along the road are long-gone. The animals on and off range are wily and demand good glassing, good stalking, good shooting, and all around solid hunting skills to kill a mature animal. We had a deep freeze in 2011 that really seemed to hammer numbers on range, but there are still giants killed on nearly every hunt. Harvest rates are still ridiculously high for on range hunts (off range is the polar opposite) and it always seems that those struggling to harvest are the same individuals struggling to get more than 10 feet away from their vehicle... Rhodes Canyon is hands-down the best spot for mature animals. The Stallion Range is cranking out the occasional giant, but is now a tough hunt with many immature and broken-horned animals being harvested. Off range hunts are tough to say the least, hence the 30 day seasons (which run consecutively each and every month)
Do you need a guide? No. But, I do recommend a guide if you are looking for an absolute top-end (40") animal or cannot put together a crew of glassers and meat haulers.
Draw odds? The OIL hunts are tough to draw (odds available on the NM G&F website), but well worth the effort to come to the middle of nowhere New Mexico and chase trophy, free-ranging, African big game on public (military) lands. Incredible opportunity that I recommend for every hunter.
Put it this way: I go on EVERY oryx hunt I can possibly get in on, just to be "on range" and to hunt these incredible animals.
-Cody
Here is a piece on oryx hunting I threw together last year. Paste the link into your browser:
http://www.ridgelineoutdoors.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/11_June.pdf
The days of driving around and looking at hindu-cow tame oryx standing along the road are long-gone. The animals on and off range are wily and demand good glassing, good stalking, good shooting, and all around solid hunting skills to kill a mature animal. We had a deep freeze in 2011 that really seemed to hammer numbers on range, but there are still giants killed on nearly every hunt. Harvest rates are still ridiculously high for on range hunts (off range is the polar opposite) and it always seems that those struggling to harvest are the same individuals struggling to get more than 10 feet away from their vehicle... Rhodes Canyon is hands-down the best spot for mature animals. The Stallion Range is cranking out the occasional giant, but is now a tough hunt with many immature and broken-horned animals being harvested. Off range hunts are tough to say the least, hence the 30 day seasons (which run consecutively each and every month)
Do you need a guide? No. But, I do recommend a guide if you are looking for an absolute top-end (40") animal or cannot put together a crew of glassers and meat haulers.
Draw odds? The OIL hunts are tough to draw (odds available on the NM G&F website), but well worth the effort to come to the middle of nowhere New Mexico and chase trophy, free-ranging, African big game on public (military) lands. Incredible opportunity that I recommend for every hunter.
Put it this way: I go on EVERY oryx hunt I can possibly get in on, just to be "on range" and to hunt these incredible animals.
-Cody
sbhooper
Well-known member
Well said, Cody.
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