Laguna Atascosa 2020

[jronning77]

Protip bring ultra light knee pads if your fat and out of shape unless you like thorns and bloody knees [emoji45].Just bumped into some pigs after a 100+ yards of crawling. Nilgai bumped out to 400 now time start over before the sun sets.

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[piercebronkite]

Today I had a button buck and a small doe within 30 yards of me. The button buck couldn’t figure me out and had a stare off for about 10 minutes. That was fun. Walking out of my spot for the day I saw 6 nilgai cows at 590 yards but they were just at the edge of the refuge and in to private property. ****!

Overall passed on a bunch of does but still can’t get over having two bulls at 45 yards and only to have my arrow knocked off by a tree branch. What a fun hunt though!

Also saw two TOADS of bulls....on the east side of 77 driving back! [emoji13]

[TenRing]

For those wondering....(because I have no @&$)idea why everything has to be a secret)....everything on the board that I can confirm down to the nilgai was killed in 8.....including my doe and my buddy’s buck (that were checked in online but aren’t listed including a few other deer I know of) We were both first timers there. Needed 60 more yards on a bull for a shot but didn’t come together. Had 3 sets blown on nilgai. Passed on 3 yearling 6’s only to watch a crossgun hunter loose a bolt w/a fixed blad broached WAY further than he should have....learned a lot about hunting that country and got to punch a tag and came $&@$ close to letting fly on a bull. 6 being closed screwed a LOT of people up. No access to 3 from the North is bull-ish....ticks can’t read a map.....will probably hunt again but man....could be SOOOO much better.....I guess at $130 a pop and all that Nilgai meat they are selling commercially, hunting has become a business for them like most everywhere else.....met some good people out there and if people would share info and help others....they would find their personal hunts would go so much better. Soapbox away. If anyone needs any info for upcoming hunts or if you’re looking to do a hunt out West....feel free to hit me up....

[jronning77]

Threw the long ball at ole ear tag look like it got hit searching now for blood / arrow.

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[SneakyPhil]

Threw the long ball at ole ear tag look like it got hit searching now for blood / arrow.

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Good luck! Keep us posted!

[Romulan]

I'm with you TenRing - don't know why they aren't posting the units - not like they're giving GPS coordinates ... plus they're only a handful of units to hunt - I have a "honey-hole" I'm willing to give up ... units 1-8

[piercebronkite]

For those wondering....(because I have no @&$)idea why everything has to be a secret)....everything on the board that I can confirm down to the nilgai was killed in 8.....including my doe and my buddy’s buck (that were checked in online but aren’t listed including a few other deer I know of) We were both first timers there. Needed 60 more yards on a bull for a shot but didn’t come together. Had 3 sets blown on nilgai. Passed on 3 yearling 6’s only to watch a crossgun hunter loose a bolt w/a fixed blad broached WAY further than he should have....learned a lot about hunting that country and got to punch a tag and came $&@$ close to letting fly on a bull. 6 being closed screwed a LOT of people up. No access to 3 from the North is bull-ish....ticks can’t read a map.....will probably hunt again but man....could be SOOOO much better.....I guess at $130 a pop and all that Nilgai meat they are selling commercially, hunting has become a business for them like most everywhere else.....met some good people out there and if people would share info and help others....they would find their personal hunts would go so much better. Soapbox away. If anyone needs any info for upcoming hunts or if you’re looking to do a hunt out West....feel free to hit me up....

I do think its silly that the pics of the units have been cropped on this thread. News flash everyone, there are bucks and bulls in every unit! It's just a matter of being in the right time and the right place. I get not giving out exact gps locations but this place is huge and animals are everywhere.

However, I will say I have met a lot of great people during the hunts and we have helped each other out.

[FlyGuyy]

Well, that’s a wrap! I had high hopes but my Final day ended up being the slowest day I’ve ever had out there. I bumped 2 does on the way in, then saw nothing until bumping two Nilgai on the way out but looooong past legal shooting light had ended.

Oh well, laguna doesn’t give up her treasures easily. I had my chances for sure and could just as easily be coming home with a bull and a 10pt buck. Those will haunt me until I get back out here. I really do love this place and this hunt. Love/hate, really... but I keep coming back for more punishment. I had such a good time. Hope I get lucky draw again next year.

Now I’ve got one last tag in my pocket for this season and I’m really looking forward to it. DIY Barbary Sheep in NM for the second half of February. This will be My first time to hunt them in NM so I’ve got lots of research to do and that’s where all my focus will be for the next two months.

Best of luck to everyone and safe travels on your way home.

[RobertT84]

I do think its silly that the pics of the units have been cropped on this thread. News flash everyone, there are bucks and bulls in every unit! It's just a matter of being in the right time and the right place. I get not giving out exact gps locations but this place is huge and animals are everywhere.

However, I will say I have met a lot of great people during the hunts and we have helped each other out.

Well said! I was in the 11/20 hunt. I spent all my time in units 3, 8, and 2 and all i saw was a couple does but there were Nilgai tracks everywhere. We hunted the mesquite trees with high grass, open areas, tree lines, even a ditch. No matter what we did we couldn't find Nilgai or bucks. Everyone I ran into shared their (very few) sightings with locations and offered help. It was just hot and animals were not moving that week. No need for the secretive BS, the point of these forums is to share helpful information. If you are just here to get a pat on the back because you got lucky you have bigger issues.

If anyone can offer some tips at finding the Nilgai next time, I'm all ears. I wanted to check out the southern tip of unit #1 near the agriculture fields you can see from satellite pics. There were always so many trucks in that parking lot, we decided not to try. Maybe that was a mistake? Next time, I want to spend some time there and check out unit 5. I'm definitely getting an ebike next time. I made the mistake of of pushing myself too hard the first day and I was in too much pain to travel very far the rest of the trip. That's the best piece of advice I have to offer.

[FlyGuyy]

Anybody know what the final bird looked like?

[FlyGuyy]

Anybody know what the final bird looked like?

*Board, even

[Mr. Public]

[QUOTE=piercebronkite;15312199]I do think its silly that the pics of the units have been cropped on this thread. News flash everyone, there are bucks and bulls in every unit! It's just a matter of being in the right time and the right place.

Agree, obviously there are bucks and bulls in every unit.

Just a matter of being in the right place at the right time? No, I don't agree with that fully. That's like saying my 4 consecutive years of taking mature bucks and mature nilgai on archery hunts is due to dumb luck, because I am JUST being in the right place at the right time. Nerp! Sounds kind of preposterous to me.

Other hunters saw me in units 1,2,3 & 8, and I have experienced a couple times of folks either follow me on scouting days, come looking for me/bike during the hunt, or try and hunt down spots I hunt or figure them out(or at least think they have found them[emoji1787]). I countered that with some extra efforts I also learned and don't divulge.
I chose to post a pic of the board without units as to not disclose the unit I harvested a bull in. Since there are "bucks&bulls in every unit" then the units on the board shouldn't matter much with that logic.

Everything shared on this thread is up to each individual user. I'm on the verge of going silent with my experiences like many others who pay close attention to this extensively discussed hunt.

Lastly, big shout out to the new and IMPROVED federal game wardens that I met this year. Those guys were a refreshing experience and are some stand up fellas. I was told the putas "are long gone".




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[RichExotics10]

I like turtles...


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[Mr. Public]

I like turtles...


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You can see turtles down there, I'll tell you where exactly too. All units, on the roads![emoji1787]

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[RobertT84]

I like turtles...


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Found a tortoise on my first trip, must be my excellent skills. Don't ask me where I found him, its my secret.