New Year - New Friends - New Mexico

by John Shelley

 Sales Director/Pro Staff

New Year’s Day 2007 dawned cold and clear in the desert of southeastern New Mexico for me and James Ferguson of Bowhunting North America, LLC. We were there for 5 days of hunting for the big New Mexico Desert mule deer.

For me the trip started at 6AM two days earlier when James pulled into my driveway and we quickly loaded my gear into the trailer and headed west. It was a 12 hour drive that included a detour through El Paso to meet up with our guide Chris Barlow. After Chris treated us to a great meal at a local restaurant joined by his wife Heather and daughter Miranda, we headed up the road to mountains that would be our hunting grounds for the next few days. It was late when we arrived at our campsite, so we made quick work of unloading and setting up camp and hit the sack for some much needed rest. Sunday would be spent scouting and setting up blinds to begin the hunt when the season opened on New Year’s Day.

On the way out we got a call from Chris with some disturbing news. Our hunting area had received 1 ½ inches of snow that morning. Since the plan was to hunt at water holes, the snow was not welcome news. This would give the deer more options on where to water and we knew we were in for a tough hunt.

The nights are short in deer camp and morning came before I had all the sleep I wanted, but there was work to be done so we got to it early. Chris first showed us the place he had scouted for me to hunt – a water trough at a windmill about 11 miles north of camp. We set up my Double Bull Matrix blind (graciously loaned by my friend Johnny Johnson), brushed it in and placed some of my gear inside. The spot looked great and I had high expectations as the mud around the edge of the trough held some impressive mule deer tracks.

After stopping back by camp for a quick lunch, we mounted 4 wheelers and started down the mountain toward the stock tank that Chris had selected for James’ location. The road was long and rugged and took more than an hour to ride. James’ hunting site looked promising too and had a history of producing some good bucks in years past. We set up the Matrix blind and gathered some surrounding brush and weeds to hide it and started the long rough ride back to camp.

Before dinner Chris drove James and I to some other areas that we might want to try later and we were pleased to spot several deer during the tour. We were excited and anxious for New Year’s Day to arrive. Chris treated us to a great dinner and we turned in early, knowing that the day would start early since we both had to ride over an hour to our hunting sites. To top off the day, Chris presented me with a shiny new custom knife made by Jesse Heart who was also sharing camp with us.

Our home for the next 5 days would be the BHNA cargo trailer that James is converting to include living quarters. It’s a work in progress but we did have comfortable beds, a refrigerator, and microwave inside. Other cooking would be done outside on a camp stove and electricity provided by portable generator. Since the bathroom and shower were not yet installed we’d have to make do in that department with water heated on the stove and answer nature’s calls in the woods. I had no idea what a luxury a real toilet was until I spent five days hanging off a limb in 20 degree temperatures!

Our day on Monday started at 4:15AM when some crazy tune on James’ cell phone jolted us from slumber. Electric heaters warmed the trailer quickly and we got to the business of getting dressed and ready for the hunt. After loading our gear onto the ATVs, we headed out to our hunting areas and planned to spend the entire day in the blind if needed. Mule deer tend to water about any time of day so we knew we’d need to stay there all day to avoid missing any opportunities.

Eleven miles on a 4 wheeler in 26 degree weather is grueling but I finally reached my blind just as dawn arrived. I had left a small propane heater in my blind the day before and wasted no time in getting it lit. It helped, but I can’t exactly say I was comfortable.

A few minutes after 8AM, a young mule deer spike made his way cautiously to the water trough for a long drink. Our hunting permit only allowed us to take one mule deer buck and it had to have at least 3 points on at least one side to be legal. The spike was safe in spite of the hunting permit as I had my sights set on something bigger. I spent the rest of the day staring at barren desert mountains without seeing another deer. A small ice chest packed with a lunch and snacks helped me pass the 11 hours in the blind, but I was beaten down by the time the sun finally set. It was a long cold ride back to camp only to find that the other hunters had had similar experiences the first day. James did see a nice shooter buck at about 3:30 that afternoon but he was in hot pursuit of a doe and never gave James a chance for a shot.

Tuesday started early as well but this time with cloudy dreary skies. The ride to the blind was no shorter or warmer but I settled in long before day break in anticipation of a better day. It wasn’t to be. About noon a heavy snow moved in and I decided to call it quits for the day and headed back to camp for some lunch and to do some scouting for a new area (delayed by a sweet short nap). I never saw a deer from the blind or on the ride around the area. James toughed it out and stayed all day again, but didn’t see a single deer either.

Another hunter in the area, Bob Baker of Wharton, TX did manage to arrow a nice 8 point that he stalked during the snow storm. Bob made a long shot on the buck and a quick clean kill.

We ate dinner and then Chris helped James and I move our blinds to another area where he had been seeing some deer over the past few weeks. We elected to hunt a travel corridor since the deer did not seem to be coming to the water holes with any regularity. Setting up a blind in the dark is not exactly the easiest thing to do, but Double Bull makes it about as easy as it can be done. We both felt good about our new hunting spots and returned to camp for the night.

Wednesday - 4:15AM – Here we go again. At least this time the ride was a bit shorter but still cold and rough. We took walkie-talkies along on this hunt and agreed to check in with each other at mid morning for a decision on what to do with the rest of the day. James called me at 11AM and reported that he hadn’t seen a deer all morning. I had seen the same thing! We decided to grab some lunch and do a little more scouting. We found a stock tank with some promising sign in a lower elevation area and decided we’d move there on Thursday if our current spot didn’t pay off that afternoon. We did see a small spike as we approached my blind, but nothing else for the rest of the hunt. The new moisture was killing us. The deer were just unpredictable. Hopefully the water puddles in the rocks would dry up soon and the deer would return to the more permanent water sources.

Thursday morning was spent at the stock tank we located the day before. The tank was about 20 miles from camp with no mountains close by with rocks to hold water. Maybe the deer in this area were still coming to the tank. It looked worth a try and we set our blinds on the same tank but on opposite sides. Two does came in shortly after daylight on James’ side of the tank and another small spike came to my side but that was all we saw for the morning. This was the coldest morning of the hunt so far. It was miserable.

James had left his Matrix blind at the first hunting sight and was hunting from his Double Bull T-2 but decided that the Matrix would be better suited for this location and elected to make the long ride back to the first sight to retrieve it. A flat tire delayed the trip by about an hour but he returned with the Matrix around 1:30 and I helped him get it set up and ready. I hadn’t seen a deer while he was away, but the 3 deer we saw that morning were enough encouragement to keep us there for the afternoon.

The afternoon passed slowly but just before last light a buck moved in for a drink. The deer was a huge 10 point that would have no doubt made the Pope and Young record book of 140” for a typical mule deer. I quickly readied the video camera and zoomed in on the buck. Before I could even hit the record button, I heard James’ arrow sailing across the tank. I could see the Lumenok streaking its way toward the buck. Good gosh – he’s gonna hit that thing! Unfortunately the arrow fell just inches short and stuck in the mud between his back feet. The buck simply walked away. So close, but no cigar! Just moments later 2 does and another great 10 point moved in even closer to James’ blind but it was just too dark to take the shot. We had to settle for some great video of the big buck and does as they walked off over the tank dam against the setting sun.

This was the best spot we had set on the whole hunt, so it was a no brainer to give it another try on Friday. Even though James had shot at one of the bucks, we were convinced the deer weren’t spooked and would return.

Friday would be our last day to hunt but we got to the blinds even earlier than normal expecting this to be the day we’d get the job done. It was another bitter cold morning and after setting there until 10AM without seeing a deer, we decided to get out of the blind and check out another stock tank a couple miles away that Chris had told us about. The new spot looked great! Why couldn’t we have found this spot earlier in the week? We saw more sign at that tank than all the other places combined, but time was running out.

James decided to stay at the same tank we hunted that morning in hopes one of the big bucks from the night before would return. I moved my blind to the new tank and we got in the blinds early to try and make something happen on our last afternoon.

I had only been in the blind about 30 minutes when a big 3X3 buck walked in and began to drink. He was broadside at 30 yards. I turned on the camera and centered the buck in the viewfinder and hit the record button. I came to full draw and settled the 30 yard pin just behind his shoulder and touched the release. My heart sank as I saw the buck duck and the arrow stick in the mud just behind him! The first shooter buck I’ve seen all week within shooting range and I blew it! I simply blew it!

I could only hope that James had had better luck, but his afternoon was uneventful as he never saw another deer. Our hunt was over and we’d have to make the long drive back to Texas empty handed. At first it was a bitter pill to swallow, but as we reflected back on the week, we knew the hunt had still been a success. We had spent some time with friends in some beautiful country, had shots at some great deer and had given the hunt our best effort. How could you call that anything but a success? It only took a few minutes of looking back to decide to give it a try again next year.

When we left camp and headed home Saturday morning, we had no idea that our excitement was not over with the last hunt. We had decided to take a different route home in hopes of shaving some time off the 12 hour drive. The one service station in the town nearest camp was closed when we got there that morning and we were running low on diesel, so the only choice was to wait 2 hours for the store to open or try to make it to the next nearest town which was 50 miles out of the way and across some pretty big mountains. Halfway to the next town the snow began to fall. Heavy snow! In a matter of minutes the roads were deep in snow and slowed our pace to a crawl. Pulling two trailers down a mountain pass on snowy roads is a little more excitement than I care to have. In spite of some treacherous conditions, James managed to get us off the mountain in one piece and we made it to the service station with only fumes left in the tank. So much for saving time!

We had one last treat on the way home – a close roadside view of a group of beautiful Pronghorn antelope just west of Snyder, TX.

There are many great ways to celebrate the ringing in of a new year but I think I’ve found the party that I’ll be attending for many years to come.

Happy New Year!

Bowhunting North America, LLC is sponsored by these fine companies!

Mathews, Inc., Carbon Express, The Gean-Edwards Company, DoskoSport, Lumenok, Tru Fire Corp., 
Limbsaver,  Huntin' Hoist,  Beard Buster,  Sure Grip Gun & Bow Racks, Advantage Max-1 Camoflauge, Nikon Sport Optics,  Barnett Crossbows, 

and Muzzy Products Corp.

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