NM 16B/22 DIY or Guided

[WIBowhunter23]

Well my lottery ticket hit this week and I landed a 16B/22 2nd archery tag. I have now started the frantic investigation and research on google earth, onx & of course forums. I really want to go DIY, but it would be my first solo elk hunt and this unit may be a tough one to cut my teeth on. I hunted near Chama last year with Rios Brazos on a guide tag and was lucky enough to take a 5x5 bull with my bow. Been immersed in elk articles, shows, elk 101, elknut app, elk podcasts & practicing my calling since I left NM last September. I guess you could say I'm officially addicted!

My brother & I have been gearing up with all of the DIY essentials for the past 6 months in preparation for a WY general tag backpack hunt, but now I was lucky enough to pull possibly a once in a lifetime tag in the infamous Gila, so withdrew my WY application today. DIY would be extremely rewarding if I could get it done, but on the flip side I don't want to waste an opportunity at such a great unit and huge trophy potential. Torn between DIY with packer out, drop camp (in & out) & fully guided. Fully guided may be tough to swing financially with this year's events. Hard to predict the complete impact of what is yet to come. Interested in hearing from anyone that has gone DIY and how the experience went. Also looking for packer/ drop camp contacts. Any info anyone is willing to share to help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance for helping another addicted rookie elk hunter!

 

[Jardo]

I have decided if I draw a Gila or 55a tag, I’m hiring the best damn guide I can find.

My reasoning is I have spent thousands on mediocre elk hunts and if I get a chance to hunt these premium units, damnit I’m gonna have the best hunt of my life.


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[jpe5714]

PM sent. I drew a 16B/22 second rifle tag last October. And a 15 first muzzy tag this year!

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[Firewater]

I might be able to help I have hunted this unit for many years. You have options depending on your budget whether its a drop camp or guided. Send me a PM. @WIBowhunter23

I might be able to help or get you in contact with a really good packer out there.

 

[kboatman107]

I hunted it 2 years ago diy. We camped on the edge of the unit and hiked in everyday 1-3 miles. Didn’t kill an elk but had plenty of opportunities. That being said if you can hire someone for a drop camp that might be better just to get in a little further. Either way you’ll have a good hunt!

 

[codym]

I would at a min hire someone for a drop camp/pack out. I think there very few people that j hangout just to do packouts anymore. I would hurry up, most guides fill up super quick if not already booked.The unit is tough country and can be very hot and dry in September. If you can't get a bull out fairly quickly you will loose meet. Sadly I've seen guys bite off more than they can chew or start chasing bulls and end up with one down 6-7 miles from a road. Never ends up well. Good luck, one of my favorite places in the world. I will be in there for the 2nd hunt.

 

[280rem]

I hunted there in 2017 1st rifle, also hunted it in 2002 early archery. That unit is a tough hunt, really. Huge unit with very limited mobility. I’ve been all over it with horses. I took horses from Missouri and rode about 140 miles in 10 days there in 2017. I was successful and so was my hunting partner. In hindsight, I became acquainted with Becky Campbell while there, when I inquired of what she charges for a guided hunt I felt pretty stupid for hauling horses that far and all the extra work I was putting into it. There are several outfitters to choose from, but no one has the knowledge of that area that she does, growing up as a kid in that backcountry. You’ll do what your gonna do,but I know what I would do, hire Becky at her extremely reasonable fee. That is awesome country, I love riding in it, you pretty well have the best tag for that unit and I congratulate you and would love to have that tag but honestly in my opinion the elk hunting kinda sucks in 16b. With the heavy bear population and wolves the elk numbers are nothing like what they were 15-20 years ago, I don’t care what the biologists say for elk numbers are.

 

[trophyhill]

I hunted there in 2017 1st rifle, also hunted it in 2002 early archery. That unit is a tough hunt, really. Huge unit with very limited mobility. I’ve been all over it with horses. I took horses from Missouri and rode about 140 miles in 10 days there in 2017. I was successful and so was my hunting partner. In hindsight, I became acquainted with Becky Campbell while there, when I inquired of what she charges for a guided hunt I felt pretty stupid for hauling horses that far and all the extra work I was putting into it. There are several outfitters to choose from, but no one has the knowledge of that area that she does, growing up as a kid in that backcountry. You’ll do what your gonna do,but I know what I would do, hire Becky at her extremely reasonable fee. That is awesome country, I love riding in it, you pretty well have the best tag for that unit and I congratulate you and would love to have that tag but honestly in my opinion the elk hunting kinda sucks in 16b. With the heavy bear population and wolves the elk numbers are nothing like what they were 15-20 years ago, I don’t care what the biologists say for elk numbers are.

Have to agree on the bear population. Everytime I go for a hike in the Gila these last couple of years, I see bears. They have wreaked havoc on the elk population. I believe when they dropped the quota for bears, they did a study on the elk mortality. That was in 2002. To my knowledge, there has never been another study and they are still working off that model. Kinda like these quacks on tv regarding the Chinese Covid virus.

 

[280rem]

trophyhill, I went there in August for a little logistics scouting trip, I saw groups of cows feeding and wouldn’t see a single calf with them. Locals claimed the bears had become efficient at getting calves at calving season. On my hunt there were areas that had more bear sign than anywhere I’d ever been. The freshest tracks we would usually find were bear tracks on top of whatever others tracks. I love that wilderness it’s a very special place, hard to find that kind of remoteness. I was there on a pack trip in September of 1992, big screaming bulls every where! 2002 early archery was dry but we found elk decent enough. 2017 showed me that for elk that place isn’t what it use to be when it built its reputation. Sad! When you don’t see calves there literally is no future in that. I don’t game and fish have any accurate pop numbers, or worse, aren’t honest about it, I suspect they spend no money to do any estimates anymore. Hunters need to stand together stronger, with the talk of wolves in Colorado, we just loose opportunity all the time. Not sure how effective the Mexican wolf in the Gila is as a predator on elk, but I’m sure they are get their share. Talked with a guy that hunted 16b last year, said he called wolves in on 2 occasions.

 

[Beendare]

Personally, I think the only reason to hire an outfitter is for their pre scouting and knowledge of the unit. Good reasons for sure but if you can do your own due diligence or will be happy with a decent bull all of these Gila units are not difficult to kill one DIY.

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[WRO]

Personally, I think the only reason to hire an outfitter is for their pre scouting and knowledge of the unit. Good reasons for sure but if you can do your own due diligence or will be happy with a decent bull all of these Gila units are not difficult to kill one DIY.

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16b is all wilderness, meat recovery is also an important factor..

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[SDHNTR]

One thing I haven’t seen mentioned yet is the Gila gets hot! And does not cool down enough at night during archery elk seasons to leave meat hanging more than a day or two max. If you have some elk hunting experience, you do not need a guide, IMO. Elk aren’t hard to find. But you definitely do need to have a meat extraction plan, and that’s where a packer is more or less mandatory. Unless you plan to limit yourself to hunting within a short distance of a trail head. And with that quality tag in hand, to me that would be a mistake and not doing the tag justice.

 

[traviswdalton]

I know the hard core elk hunters look down on anyone that uses a guide but if you’ve saved for years and waited for years to basically draw your once in a lifetime tag I’m using an outfitter. I want a hunting trip not a camping trip if you know what I mean. After 3 short years I drew a unit 15 tag gave up on 16. Went with a guide and got lucky. I didn’t have the time or money to make any scouting trips nor did I own any camping equipment. Good luck and let us know how it went.


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[elkhuntinut]

Great unit and not easy to draw so congrats. When we hunted that back in 2009/10 we had to pack in our water. If you are planning on staying in overnight or so, plan for that.

 

[Riplip]

I hunted there about 6 years ago and we hired an outfitter to do a drop camp (which he no longer offers), best of both of worlds as we had someone familiar with the area drop us deep enough that we were away from the backpack/day hunters, and we had a packer on call if we got something down. I would call around to see if you can find someone to do a drop camp with packing services, if not I would go ahead and hire a reputable guide with horses to make the best of the tag. The wilderness is vast and its difficult to access some of the better areas without a plan to get the meat out.

Also the monsoon season can get pretty bad down there, as small creeks can turn ugly very quick, so watch where you camp and cross.

Good luck it a beautiful area with some great animals.

 

[TX_Diver]

I hunted it with Tom Klumker (San Francisco River Outfitters) in 2018.

If you go guided call him and book immediately if he has a spot left. He's been hunting the same area for 30 years and seems to go about 100% opportunity for archery elk.

When I was in camp I rode out on the last day as I'd killed an elk, that evening one of the guy sent 2 arrows over a 400ish bull. Last year I think they took a 370 something during archery and one over 400 during the rifle season.

San Francisco River Outfitters | New Mexico Hunting

sanfranciscoriveroutfitters.com

 

[Riplip]

I also used Tom for my drop camp.

 

[HankNM]

Never drawn it but know it some. I do know that getting an elk out is the hardest part.
As others have stated it's logistics.
Know Tom Klemper @SFRO & if I did draw & go in farther than the edge,I would hire him if possible.
Otherwise I would find one of the locals to help,and I'm a lifelong solo hunter.

 

[WIBowhunter23]

I hunted it 2 years ago diy. We camped on the edge of the unit and hiked in everyday 1-3 miles. Didn’t kill an elk but had plenty of opportunities. That being said if you can hire someone for a drop camp that might be better just to get in a little further. Either way you’ll have a good hunt!

Thanks Firewater. Good info. AI think I have a solid DIY plan put together based on my research on forums and a bunch of very generous people willing to share details, but could always sharpen my details a bit. I will shoot you a private message. Thanks for the help!

 

[WIBowhunter23]

Never drawn it but know it some. I do know that getting an elk out is the hardest part.
As others have stated it's logistics.
Know Tom Klemper @SFRO & if I did draw & go in farther than the edge,I would hire him if possible.
Otherwise I would find one of the locals to help,and I'm a lifelong solo hunter.

Thanks HankNM. I actually talked with Tom a little over a week ago. He is definitely the guide I will chose if ultimately decide to go that direction. I agree with your assessment on getting one out. By far my biggest concern about going DIY is getting it out before spoiled, but believe I have a good contact to pack it out if I do go that route. Thanks for the input and advise!