Well, I finally got confirmation on a new job. Last couple years have been pretty rough, but things are starting to work out! What I am thinking of doing is saving every penny I can, buy a class A rv, a new .454 or .475 linebaugh, and hunt as much as I can in the off season. The job is road construction, so I get a few monthes off a year. I am single, and really have nothing keeping me anywhere.


My Pa died when he was 57. He always wanted to go out of state hunting, but we had a dairy farm and he worked a day job. He never got to realize his hunting dreams. I want to.

If you were in my shoes, would you consider the same? If so, where and what would you hunt in the winter monthes?

Have a great day everybody!!

Mark

GO FOR IT!!!

Tomorrow is promised to no one.

Some of the states hunting seasons are early in the fall, so construction might not be quite over. I would look at ranches in Texas during the off season. There are alot of nice exotics there to hunt.

I will look into that Tigger. I never even thought of exotics! LOL I really want a elk and a moose, well, pretty much all of the native wildlife here in the US!

And I have always wanted to kill some pigs. I just don't know where to go and do not know anyone where I could.

Thanks

I live in Texas. Elk are exotics here. Many good hunting ranches and there are no seasons on the exotic animals. I recommend to Y O Ranch at Mountain Home, Texas. I have been going there annually for about 15 yrs. In addition, it is warmer here during the winter than up in MN.

A LOT warmer! LOL But thats where the rv comes in. I wanna see the country while I can, and I can save quite a bit on hotels. This company does most of it's work out of state. I'm headed to Seattle soon.

What is the charge for a elk hunt in Texas? I'm not all that concerned about hanging anything on the wall.

Prices vary a lot. Cows are cheap. Big bulls are very expensive. Red deer are an interesting alternative. Not as big as elk but much bigger than our deer. Many ranches run specials on "management" animals --- bucks or bulls that do not quite measure up to trophy class. Check the website for the Y O and others. You will get an idea. However, until you actually get there and see these bigger ranches, it is difficult to appreciate the variety of hunting experiences that are available. For your information, the Y O is more than 40,000 acres with almost no internal fencing. The exotics have been there since back in the 1940s. For many species these are not "canned" hunts (some of the super exotics are maintained within a high fenced pasture that is only a couple of sections). However, the animals are varied and numerous.

I did check out YO's website and a few others. From the few I looked into, YO looked like about the best of 'em. I am going to keep that in mind!

So what does Oryx taste like?

Oryx is a very good antelope. I am told that eland is the best. But my experience eating Oryx was positive. However, Thomas, the cook at the Y O is a master in the kitchen.

I'd definitely go for it. I'd check regs on line for off season hunts in other states as well as the ranches. Here in Oregon there are controlled anterless elk hunts that go until march. These are Roosevelt elk and in the coastal units but it is a hunt you have to apply for and unfortunately in oregon you have to buy a license to apply but other states may have similiar hunts on general tags or at least not require you to pay for a license just to apply. We do have some eastern oregon hunts for Rocky mtn elk that run in Nov but most of them are also controlled.

Thanks guys. I would be happy with a cow for a first elk. I have been researching here and there. I looked into bison today, but thats one animal I would definatly want a trophy of. After reading about some of the hunts on here, it's hard not to!

The prices on the larger animals at the YO are higher (much) than at almost all of the ranches/preserves in the northeast and in the south. I have killed many exotics, most here in NC, and checked into many of the preserves in the U.S. and ranches like the YO and the 777 are between 2-3 times higher in trophy fees than ranches not in Texas. Like I have noted before, I have killed many exotics and the honest truth about exotics is that they are not as wary as white-tails. It doesn't matter if you hunt on 40,000 acres or 1,000, the animals by their species are not as wild as our native wildlife. The most wary would be blackbuck, nilgai, and auodad. That said, you shouldn't overlook the ranches closer to your home than TX.

marsarg, Welcome to HHM.

Follow your dream whenever you can.

Colorado has a very liberal private land cow elk season. It starts Sept. 1 and ends Jan. 31. If you get over Colorado way, maybe I can set you up with a cow elk hunt. I need more elk film footage!

Gregg, did CO. raise the 2010 NR license fees for either bull elk or buck deer?

Marsarg,

It may not fit your schedule, however, a small group of us 15-20 handgunners hunt annually at the Y O in late September. The ranch provides a "special package(s)" to us which usually includes a Sika deer and possible other species. The package is for meals, lodging, guide, & the trophy fee.

If you might be interested, I would be glad to provide the details when we get them for 2010.

I will not be able to do that, wtroper. Thanks for the invite! I have no idea where I'll be in September, but I am sure I'll be in the middle of a highway somewhere in the US. It would be GREAT though. But, you never know, I may be somewhere in Texas.

Hey Gregg, it would be pretty cool to get my first elk on film!That season will fit my schedule. I'm gonna start researching the Co. website now to see what I can find out. Thanks!

marsarg, Let me know if I can be of any help.

Smokewagon, Unfortunately, the nonresident cow elk license fee went from $251 in 2009 to $351 in 2010. And interestingly, the nonresident bull elk license DROPPED $5 from $546 in 2009 to $541 for 2010.

The deer licenses stayed the same, $326 for nonresident.

Gregg, I definatly want to. I just have a few questions I have not found the answer to yet. Is it a over the counter tag? I see tags go onsale june or july 13 and are $354. I would just have to know the permit area and if the land owner wants compensation. That's all I can think of right now, so yeah, if your willing, I'm IN!!! LOL

Another exceptions to the exotics is the Axis deer, they're very wary...at least free ranging and large ranch heards. I've not been around any in small enclosures.

I have never been to a hunting ranch, how small is a small enclosure?

It depends on what you are used to hunting and where. It always amazes me that some folks here on the east coast that hunt deer on less than 100 acres think that hunting on a ranch that is 1,000 acres is a canned hunt. Are you kidding me? Try finding one particular animal in a heavily wooded area on 1,000 acres. It's not as easy as it sounds. Keep in mind that alot of folks still hunt deer on less than 50-100 acres. I think that PETA has given hunting ranches/preserves a bad rap. I can tell you from experience that hunting on most preserves is harder than hunting deer behind 30 or more deer dogs. It's not the size of the property that makes a hunt, it's the wildness of the species you're hunting. If you want a challenging hunt on a ranch go after an axis deer like Kral said or an aoudad, nilgai, or blackbuck. The exotic sheep/goats with the exception of the aoudad are just not that tough to hunt, because they are just NOT as wary. It doesn't matter how big the ranch is.

Franchise,

I take exception with your general comment on the exotic sheep. I agree that most (Corsicans, Texas Dalls, Black Hawaian, four horned, etc) are not difficult. Go & try to get one of the free ranging Red Sheep at the Y O. Usually, do not see them at all. If you are lucky, you see a red streak going through the brush.

I also agree that the "big" Axis can be tough, if not hunted in the rut (June). The fallow are usually beginning to rut when we hunt in Sept., so they are not as difficult as some of the other species. Blackbuck are a big challenge with a revolver. The Sika are so numerous, that you can usually find a dumb one somewhere. The Red Deer stags can be a real challenge.

My only experience was with the current #1 ROE overall Red Sheep. He was taken at Goldmine Hunting Preserve by Steven Greene with a muzzleloader several years ago.I was there to see this Huge ram. He still wasn't was "wild" as a Nilgai or the etc. I love to hunt exotics and my comment was so the hunter who was posting on this forum would know it was OK to hunt exotics on a ranch that was less than 40,000 acres and still have a quality hunting experience. It was in NO way to say that the sheep/goats couldn't be tough to hunt, but they by their species/breed are not as wild as some of the other introduced animals. I completed my Safari Slam of exotics this year and the "wildest" in my experience was the Nilgai and the toughest was the Water Buffalo. They were all fun to hunt and I didn't have to go to TX to take very nice trophies.

Agreed. Any species may be very wild or not, depending upon the conditions that they are accustom to and their surroundings. Some of the least wild here in Texas are the huge "trophy" whitetail bucks that are hand fed. Some of these animals are sold to "hunters" at amazing prices, $25,000 and up, and are often rattled up with a feed bucket so that the "hunter" can shoot him.

My point is that on a sizeable place and with animals that have been there for generations, a hunt for exotics is not different from a hunt for the native species. As is true on any hunt, one usually sees more of things that you are not hunting than the ones that you are. When we hunt the Y O in September, whitetail season has not begun. We see gads of whitetail bucks every where. If we were hunting them, they would likely not be that easy.

Clearly, the easiest time to hunt any species is during their rut. The red deer and sika are kin to elk and rut in South Texas in early October. The fallow also rut about the same time. Thus, in late September these species are begining the rutting process and are less shy. That does not mean that they are standing under every tree just waiting to be shot. The bigger ones are plenty wary. They did not get big by being dumb.

It is very interesting to me that the auodad are very wild and shy at the Y O. Here in the Texas panhandle they re free ranging and have been established in the Palo Duro Canyon and along the caprock for many many years. I have seen auodad rams stand within 100-150 yds and watch us shoot metal targets on a shooting range that I used to have on the rim of the Palo Duro Canyon several years ago. However, these were not subjected to the hunting pressure that they have on the game ranches and we were not hunting them. I never considered them a particularly attractive trophy and have never shot at one. Others spend years hunting them and never get one.

Everyone has their own special animals that appeal to them. I like exotics. To me many of them are pretty and make excellent trophies. As with any hunt, if one sets his sights high enough on the quality of the animal that he seeks and the tool that he uses, he can make the hunt very challenging.

Thanks for the input guys