It's a real fun hunt. It takes a little to figure what you're looking for, as they don't look like deer/elk in the brush, yet they camoflauge very well. They are wide awake, and almost always when you see them, they are staring straight at you already--maybeso from 900 yards or more. Challenging to stalk. It is pretty easy terrain, but sandy. Lots of small little rises. It will tire you out in time. Slip along the draws, then sneak carefully up on a rise, without exposing yourself, and look, close at first, then extend your gaze out. If you have a 4-wheeler, I suggest you take it. Not to hunt from--that's ferbotten, but you can use it to get your critter out after he's down. Speaking of "he", it is real hard to tell hens from toms. Actually, the females tend to have larger horns, at least by length, but the bulls horns are a bit heavier. Don't be hesitant to shoot a cow. And you may well find that the sex you thought you shot is not what you find on the ground. The orientation was in the AM of the first day (2 day hunt), lasted about 20 minutes. DON'T BE LATE AT THE GATE!!! They are very serious about the no camera deal. They let us take cell phones with cameras, but emphasized not to take pictures with them. They are also serious about the no beer, etc. thing. They WILL inspect your wagon, so don't have any aboard. I stashed a cooler outside the gate behind a bush and it was waiting pleasently on my exit. There are lots of critters, so don't be in a rush to smoke the first one--but don't wait for a 40" bull like I did either--I never found one, but passed a 43" cow--bad move. Plan to have a good binocular and use it a lot, and be willing to walk. Have patience. You don't need special cloths or footwear, though a basic drab or camo is good. You'll likely be down to T-shirt level by 11:00 AM. Take water, cause unless you're a camel, you will be thirsty! You will have fun! As H&H said, shoot them square on the shoulder, not behind. Don't try a neck shot. Think ahead of time on how you'll handle your meat. In the hunt area, it will be pretty warm. If you head into the hills a few miles out, you can find chill temperatures for cooling the meat. If you don't head up into the hills afterwards to hang your meat for a night, I don't know what you'll do. You could easily loose a bunch of fine eating. They are bigger than a deer--smaller than an elk. It is a good sized carcass to get chilled, so soon as you get off the base and get your photos, get the hide off. We went a day early just so we could locate a place to hang the carcass. If you stay down low, it will likely be too warm and you'll ruin the meat--a terrible shame, as it's better than deer or elk venison. You are a lucky guy! We took a muzzle loader, but never got close enough to even think about using it. That would be a real challenge (I'm talking traditional, round ball and patch).
We are going to Rhodes Canyon Feb 28 - Mar 1, 2009. I now have a plethera of questions about my hunt. Seeing that I can't scout because I can't even go to the WSMR until the day of the hunt, it poses a problem. So... can anyone help me? Mostly, I think I need advice on how to stalk them, and where I can find the best concentration of underhunted animals. My background - I am mostly a california pig hunter. I have also taken about 10 antelope in Wyoming with handguns. I enjoy handgun hunting, but I understand I can't take a handgun on WSMR (even contender or Encore???). I imagine oryx will be wary like antelope. Please reply and let me know if you can help me.
