Anyone know how the el paso area is on hunting, what kind of game are in that area?

Am moving there too. am also interested there are a few cool things like bobcats and lynx, Oryx, mule deers, coyotes, javelinas. but am learning that most hunts are paid hunts.

As far as I know the closest lynx are in the San Juan mountains of Colorado. You can add bear, elk, and mountain lions to your list though.

Eddie 4529 and friends,

I have been stationed here in El Paso at Fort Bliss for about two years now. Here in West Texas there is not much. There are a few Mule deer East of town. There are also Oryx or Gemsbock out here but all of the land like the rest of the land in Texas is privately owned.

If you are a Solider, Airman, Marine and stationed here at Bliss you can hunt GMU 28 in New Mexico which is actually the northern part of Bliss at resident cost. There are elk, mule deer, Barbary sheep and Javelinas out there.

I signed up for all the hunts for big game on post this year but did not get any. However, I was contacted for a depredation hunt on the Bosque Del Apache game preserve in New Mexico and got a nice bull elk just twenty minutes after legal hunting hours started on the first day but I had to pay out-of-state license fee ($550.00). There are opportunities in El Paso, but you need to seek them out.

Respectfully,
Don

There is quite a bit to do actually but yes most land is private. Within 2 hours of El Paso there are Aoudad, Mule deer, pronghorn, elk,hogs, javelina, assorted birds and predators to start and that's just on the Texas side. www.westtexashuntorg.com

Hey mike am interested in a Bobcat and Aoudad hunt ill been Texas as soon as next week, I am not used to the private land but at the same time not liking to spend a fortune on hunting and taxidermy if need be.

Eddie4529 Here is a picture oof the elk I got this year in New Mexico about 2.5 hours from El Paso

Thats awesome I just got a .375 looking for a reason to use it

Kevin check-out my website in have all my pricing and availability there. Best to call me this time of year since I'm usually tied up out in the field.

Eddie,

He is no trophy, not by a long shot, but I also did not pay $3,000.00+ to take him. Coming from Montana with loads of public land Texas takes a bit of getting used too. It boggles my mind that in a State this size there is hardly any public lands. I will be moving to the San Antonio area later next year (retirement) and it looks like I will need to either invest a large sum of money for land or travel to hunt. I do not want to pay $2,000 to $5,000 to harvest a trophy that seems ridiculous.

Respectfully,
Don
P.S. When do you sign into Bliss?

Sorry,

Last post was meant for Kevin Phillip

Respectfully,
Don

Elk at Ruidoso, NM on the school grounds.

If you are into hunting birds, I have not had a bad day yet with Ducks, Dove, or Quail. All public hunting too.

Hey,
Hubcap I just arrived today lI actually sign in on the in December justas trying to get a feel for what out there, I do agree that with a state this size there should be allot more opportunities. Leaving Alaska it a night and day difference, earlier this year I was able to set up a bait stand for black bear on government land but here everything is outfitter ran, if thats the case I will oblige but its still weird to me.

You have to look back at Texas history. Find a map which shows the original size of Texas. Its borders extended all the way up the the head waters of the Rio Grande and Arkansas Rivers in Colorado. Since Texas was allowed to "join" the US (not annexed as all the other states were), one of the provisions was that Texas must pay off its national debt before joining. That debt was $83 million dollars and the selling off of all that land was the only way Texas could raise the money. That is how Texas got its currently defined border.

And that is the reason Texas does not have as much public hunting opportunities as other states.

This public service announcement brought to you by Mrs Richardson, my 7th grade History teacher.

Mule deer, javelinas, quail, dove, auodads and varmints in the immediate area. Elk, exotics, and mule deer in New Mexico.

Daffy,
Are you will to share some of the place you guys hunt birds?

Ha, if you would have tilted the camera just a touch more left you would have got my parents house in the frame.

That free public hunting land is also paid for by yours and mine tax dollars. Every state, county, and town with public federal land within their TAXING jurisdiction gets a payment in lieu of their loss in property taxes. Sort of a welfare system for hunters in states that have a lot of Federal public hunting land.

Kevin,

Do you have disposable income? I am also in the Army and I have never had surplus income. Guides are for the people that have that type of income. They are not designed for the common man and I do not blame them for that. If I could guide for a living I would want to make as much money as I could too.

I will not pay that much unless I start making mad cash once I retire. Otherwise I would rather save my money and invest it in a chunk of land then manage the deer and anything else that stumbled on to it.

Did you shoot the bear in the picture? Baiting was never allowed back in Montana. What we used to do for bear was pass by the gut pile you left two days before. We would either see bear or lion sign near it and then wait out a bit downwind of the pile. Usually worked fine.

Thank You Mrs Richardson!!!

Dogcathcher,

I have no problem paying that tax. In fact I paid less in taxes in Montana than we pay here in Texas (Montana has no sales tax and low property tax). Where is all the money going. Texas is the 14th largest economy in the world. 62% of all of the exports the U.S. produces are produced in Texas. We pay no income tax but the sales tax here is ridiculous and the property tax is astronomical.

However, if you told me I had to pay another $100.00 a month I would in a minute to have public land.