White Sands Missile Range Oryx 101

[Mojave]

I drew Rhodes Canyon after Thanksgiving. Where would be the typical entrance into WSMR for RC? Trying to plan logistics and where to stay, etc. What would be the closest town? Alamogordo?

Sometimes they do Rhodes out of the Tularosa Gate, and sometimes they do it out of the SMR gate.

Tularosa gate is north of Tularosa about 15-20 miles.

Small Missile Range gate is about 8 or 9 miles past the White Sands Headquarters exit. 25 miles east of Las Cruces off of highway 70.

If there is testing south, they will run you out of the Stallion gate about 15 miles east of the town of San Antonio.
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Almogordo has hotels, not super nice ones, but the town is fine.

Las Cruces has every level of hotel.

Socorro near San Antonio has hotels.

If you have a legitimate military ID card holder with your group or you are one, you could stay at the Army Lodging ran by Holiday in on WSMR headquarters. It is a repurposed 1960's hotel from the Army days but has been recently updated. There is also a campground on WSMR contonment, but you have to be a military ID card holder.

Holloman AFB in Almogordo also has lodging and a campground. They are extremely gay about firearms on base.

Fort Bliss has both lodging and a campground.

For hunts out of Socorro/San Antonio you can camp on the BLM, I think it is the first 5-10 miles North of Stallion headquarters.

There are campgrounds in Almogordo and Las Cruces that are not associated with the miltary, and BLM and Forest service, but it will be a huge drive if you have a SMR hunt.

Rhodes if they are running it out of the Tularosa gate, you could always stay in Ruidoso or Cloudcroft and drive down the hill if that was your thing.

I drew Cloudcroft area for deer a couple years and lived on WSMR and never slept a night in the unit. Always just as easy to sleep in your own bed.

 

[yfarm]

Hunted Stallion with my son. People camped off the access road leading to the gate. Spoke to the biologist waiting to get thru the gate and after our hunt. Told us oryx tend to stay about 600 yds or so off the roads, we saw some closer but as soon as a truck slowed or stopped they were off. Son shot his at 428 yds after a 300 yd belly crawl thru foot high cover. Hunting that range after watching multiple groups of animals I would be prepared for 400 yd shots. Was cold so no snake encounters at that level, did run over a large rattlesnake on the highway leaving. Watched a monster muley buck from a ridgetop sneak down an arroyo avoiding some hunters stalking oryx. Biologist knew that buck.

 

[Mojave]

There are 5 kinds of rattlers on WSMR. Diamondbacks, prairie, mausasuaga, black tailed and banded rock.

There are a few mojave greens on WSMR, they are expanding their range as an introduced species (movement of military equipment) between fort Bliss and Fort Irwin. But they are super rare.

I have seen snakes active between 50-and 95F during the day time. A good 50 high and dry day, you might see them. We have 14% humidity average, so 50 is pretty warm.

 

[woodbird]

I sat down with Gilbert Villegas, biologist on WSMR, in my podcast to help first time hunters cover a lot of questions. Everything went perfectly for me and I killed a 36" cow in less than a hour, but that was just good fortune. Incredibly cool experience.

Elevate the Hunt | Elevate the Hunt

www.elevatethehunt.com

Listened to the podcast this afternoon thanks for posting that. I’ll definitely listen a couple of more times before the hunt.

Are there any gun restrictions? I’m planning to bring a suppressed 308. There isn’t any regulation against shooting suppressed or anything like that is it? Just have to provide serial numbers?

 

[justin davis]

My daughter drew an off range hunt. Never hunted them before. Hopefully can find one for her

 

[Mojave]

My daughter drew an off range hunt. Never hunted them before. Hopefully can find one for her

Send me a PM.

 

[Rook7]

Has anyone lucky enough to draw WSMR hunt received an email package from the base yet? Thanks in advance!

 

[Djacker]

Not me

 

[woodbird]

Has anyone lucky enough to draw WSMR hunt received an email package from the base yet? Thanks in advance!

Just got an email from Gilbert with a link to the podcast mentioned earlier in the thread. Thought about replying and telling him Rokslide was already way ahead lol.

 

[tak]

Just got an email from Gilbert with a link to the podcast mentioned earlier in the thread. Thought about replying and telling him Rokslide was already way ahead lol.

Got that email today too.
Was thinking the same!
There was a lot of good info though