Help Request In New Mexico

[Topgun 30-06]

My buddy just got a big surprise when he got an email informing him he drew a second choice rifle mule deer tag for unit 2b (11/5-11/9) that borders the Jicarilla. We already have hunts scheduled in AZ and several in Wyoming and will have no chance to get there early to scout. Any information at all that anyone can pass our way about this unit would be greatly appreciated. This was a real shock for him to draw it because that unit had only a 4% chance to draw for several years and last year it was still only at 10%. My email addy is: [email protected] Thanks in advance for any help that is offered!!!

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

I also drew unit 2b but muzzleloader in sept,unit supposed to have monster bucks,anybody with any info would be thankful,,,im over 1400 miles away so i wont be able to scout till i get there on the hunt.

 

[Mudranger1]

sounds like a weekend "banzai!" trip to me...at least that is what CH would do

 

[manzanomadness]

2b

Congrats on the draw guys. Been trying to draw unit2b for some times but no success. Good deer up there but sometimes depends on the snow fall up in Colorado to start the migration. Buy you maps and study them hard. Get away from the roads and walk up to goo glassing points. I have hunted this area with friends in the past and had good success finding a spot sitting down and letting all the locals scare up the big ones. People dont realize head up high to see all the action. Couple god places to start is on the South border of the Southern ute Rez. Big Canyons to explore! Good luck this fall. Need anything else drop me a line.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Thanks! ANY information will be appreciated.

 

[sotherncoloradoguy]

guys be patient if you dont see anything riteaway there aer somr BIGG deer in there. that area ant to far from me, its been afew years sence i have been there but this last winter wasnt to bad. tiats a very good thing. keep your eye on annual rain fall.

 

[Brudno]

Bring a 4wd with good tires, mud terrains would be best. Tire chains, and vehicle extraction equipment, straps, hi-lift jack, shovels. Seriously those forest service road and gas roads in Carson are like grease after moisture, I'm still washing dirt off my truck. I had mud tires on my truck a 6" lift and 35's and I still nearly high centerd my truck when it slid sideways down a hill because I wasnt driving fast enough. Thankful I got out, an enormous tow bill, and the down time would ruin any hunt.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

My goodness, were you muddin or huntin! Thanks, and we will have a good 4x4 and chains if we need them. We plan on hunting 5 hard days and if it happens it happens. If we don't see what John wants, we will have tried our best. Thanks guys and any other information we can get will be appreciated!

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

thanks for info guys,i already been runnin mud ta's for years,,although im figuring on warm dry weather end of sept on muzz season,does anybody know if rosa road will go all the way up by colo border? is the road ok for a 4by with pickup camper? im thinkin that middle and northern sections sound like place to start,,,any other tips will be thankful.

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

if anybody has any info on resident deer areas south of the 64road or bordering 2c{in the 2b unit} i would be thankful,september 24th -30th probly wont have any deer migrating yet.

 

[sagebrush]

Top

If the last rifle season in 2B was your buddy's second choice, what in the world was his first? I can't imagine a better hunt in NM. That tag is one of the best there is.

I drew that tag four or five years ago. The best deer we saw were resident deer near the lake. You must hike in a long way on the closed gas roads but it's worth the walk. We had no snow on my hunt, but the last two days the deer really started pushing in from CO. Tons of does, forks and 3X3's. Another week and we would have been overrun.

That would be my game plan. Hunt the lake the first couple of days, then start working to the north, unless you have some early snow in CO. I didn't have the time to spend on the east side near the Jicarilla, but that would warrant a good look as well. There are lots of roads, so its pretty easy to move around the unit, yet there is plenty of ground to hunt off the road. We saw only one other hunter that hiked in and he was using a guide, everyone else was road hunting.

If I ever draw that tag again, I will spend a week before the opener scouting, it's that good of a tag.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

sagebrush---I believe his first choice was 2c, but I couldn't swear to it. He puts in for 30 to 40 hunts every year and I don't think he can even keep track of them all, LOL! I would imagine from the information that we have so far that we'll be up north somewhere if the weather has started to change and move deer in from Colorado. If not, I guess we will go down south and find some rough country to try and find a good resident buck. Whether it's north or south we will be on foot well away from the roads as we've already been told that a lot of guys glass right from their vehicles. We walk 7-10 miles a day on our Wyoming hunts, so getting out in the boonies to find a good buck will be no problem. We are going to try to scout the unit for a day or two, possibly more, on our way to and from a two week archery elk hunt he drew the middle of September in 6A in Arizona. Thanks for your tips!

 

[BOHNTR]

I've bowhunted 2b several times in January. Listen to what was written above about the roads......they can be very bad. Make sure you keep some survival gear in your truck. (although it's probably not as cold on your hunt as it is in January)

There are several good sage / bitter-brush flats I'd check in the Northern portion of the unit near the Reservoir........they'll require a walk on a closed dirt road, but it might be worth the effort. Bucks will bed on the Mesas above the flats and move down into the flats to feed.......

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

has any other hunt talkers drawn the 2b muzz hunt out there for this year? would any of them like to meet up out on the hunt? i know there are 174 other tags out there?

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

has any body out there hunted the 2b new mex unit and know what to expect for the september muzz hunt?is northern area the best place to start or does anybody have any tips for the southern part of 2b,,,thanks

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

does anyboby out there know how the fall monsoons/area conditions are lookin like for 2b,it appears that moisture has finnally came a bit.

 

[Medic734]

I live in Navajo Dam, right at the bridge, about 150 yards from "Abe's Motel & Fly Shop", in then Community of Navajo Dam. I've lived here for close to 10 years and tried to get unit 2b for quite some time, but usually end up getting unit 2a, more less in my backyard. I have "topo maps" of that entire unit and I am willing to loan you the ones I have to borrow and use while you are here, if you'd like. We really haven't had a whole lot of rain and it's really dry out there right now. Yes, there are some monster bucks up there, but I haven't done any scouting, per-say, except here in unit 2a. It seems that they are still up in the higher country It's just been so dry and hot here, in the low to mid 90's pretty much every single day. We've had some isolated thunder showers go through late in the afternoons, but not enough rain here in Navajo Dam to even make a puddle in my driveway. You can contact me at my email [email protected] if you have any questions, need anything, and I can give you my phone number. Early bow season starts this Thursday, Sept, 1, and I'm hoping, God willing, I can bag that 4x4 I've been seeing pretty regular just down from my house. Take care and maybe we will be chatting soon.

 

[DavidKeenan]

Can't get a lot more help than this Dan. that's a huge head start. go get em!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

thanks medic 734,will e-mail ya,im looking forward to this hunt.