Contributor: Will Bowen
I know whitetails. No, I’m not a biologist or a subject matter expert per say but I’ve spent a couple decades in the woods. I have been fortunate enough to experience almost everything a whitetail hunter can experience…except for killing a giant buck of course. But I’ve recently learned that being an adequate whitetail hunter doesn’t perfectly translate to being a good western hunter.
This past August, I made my first attempt at hunting antelope in New Mexico, and let me tell you, it’s a completely different ballgame. Vast, open landscapes, lightning-fast quarry, and a lingering against-the-clock anxiety only added to the challenge. Antelope aren’t whitetails and if you are going to hunt them, you need to forget what you know.
Stalking Speedgoats
As the sun started to set on Friday, I was filled with nothing but confidence in the following day’s hunt. Saturday would be opening day of New Mexico’s first rifle season for antelope and we were sitting pretty. A half-a-day of sighting in rifles and scouting proved eventful considering we laid eyes on four or five good bucks. The plan was simple in my head. Return the next morning, find the goats, get close, and take the shot. As we all have come to find out, plans are often only easy on paper.
Saturday morning arrives and I’ve got my mind on the task at hand. Several of the bucks we spotted on Friday were in perfect spots, either along two-track banks or near brushy areas that would be perfect areas to make stalks. We would visit those first. We pulled up to the first area on the property and started glassing. It didn’t take long to find one of our targets but unfortunately, he had made his way onto the neighboring state-owned property (my tag is only good for private land). This buck would have to wait.
We drove for several hours that morning looking for the other bucks that we bookmarked but with no luck. We were seeing antelope, just not the quality or in the area that we needed. I started to feel my first bit of anxiety. I thought this was going to be a for-sure thing this morning and I had only two days to hunt. I pushed back those thoughts and we decided to move on to the next property. This property, we hadn’t scouted the day before.
We pulled into a massive greenfield and parked by the grain silos and farm shop in the corner. We had some slight elevation so this was a good glassing spot. A couple quick scans and we had found antelope everywhere, they were scattered however. We turned up several does and small bucks before finally finding a shooter. He wasn’t a giant but he had unique character with his left horn curling straight back instead of the usual inward lean. “I’ll take him” I said. He was in the wide-open field and a stalk would be difficult but we decided we should try. Maybe we could at least get within 300 yards of him.
I was hunting with some newly acquainted cousins, Kyle and his wife Nicki. Considering they were raised in the area I was going to take every bit of advice I could get from them. The plan was for Kyle to drop us off and move the truck, while Nicki led me on a stalk towards the buck. We crawled for well over 150 yards before stopping to get a range on the buck. He was just over 300 yards but was starting to get nervous. I dropped to my belly and put my eye in the scope. The stiff wind was blowing my crosshairs all around the target. “No shot” I whispered to Nicki. About that time an ATV and a pickup truck passed on the gravel. The antelope bolted and were on the next property in a matter of seconds.
I was filled with a mixture of disappointment and excitement. We were so close. He wasn’t a giant buck but he had some unique character. I would have loved to take him. We all convened back at the pickups and chowed down on some ham sandwiches for lunch. We spent the hour talking about what we had all seen. My dad and older cousin, Michael, had made another loop on some separate properties but had the same luck. After polishing off our sandwiches we decided to try a different property to the north. Maybe we could find some luck there.
The next couple hours were spent without seeing many antelope, just scanning the grass and sage. Finally, we received the sign we were asking for. A call from my Michael and my dad lightened our mood, “big buck down!” We worked our way across the property to their location. When we got there, we could see the white belly laying in the distance. “How far?” I asked dad. He responded “well over 300.” That’s a crazy shot for a native Arkansan, where even seeing 300 yards can be a rarity.
After recovering the buck, quartering him in the field, and throwing him on ice, we headed back towards the southern properties to find the afternoon goats we had seen the day before. We had a lot more energy and confidence this time-around. Dad’s buck was a giant and would end up only being a couple inches shy of the Boone & Crockett record minimum. It was going to be hard to beat that so I definitely wasn’t going to try.
With only a few hours of daylight left, we spotted a bedded buck almost a half-a-mile behind the landowner’s house. We parked in position to get a spotting scope on him. He appeared big enough to stalk but we couldn’t make out any details. Kyle would accompany me on this stalk and would serve as my coach. The buck was approximately 600-700 yards away from our location. The above-knee-high haygrazer field would serve as good cover and would allow us to sneak towards the buck.
In order to cover some distance, we crouch-walked for the first 200 yards or so, trying to stay below the cover of haygrazer. We stopped to get a range on the buck and reset. He was still nearly 400 yards away. Now the stalk got a little more intense. We would crouch walk 20-30 yards at a time and stop to range the buck repeatedly. I led the front with my rifle and shooting sticks while Kyle crouched directly behind me with the range finder. 350 yards became 320, and 320 became 280. We were almost to where I felt comfortable.
Suddenly the buck stands up and starts walking at an angle away from us. I started to panic. Kyle quickly interjected “if he’s moving or his head is down, just start steadily crouch-walking at him.” So, I did. This went on for a couple minutes when the buck suddenly stopped again. I dropped to my knees and found the buck in my scope. He was about 260 yards, within my range, but my increased heart rate and breathlessness made a shot impossible. “I’ve got to calm down a second” I said out loud.
God must have seen it fit, because the buck, out of nowhere, turned and started walking towards us through the haygrazer. Step by step he closed the distance, and beat by beat I started to calm. On my final call for a range, the buck was 190 yards. “Money” I thought. I beared down on my crosshairs and put it right behind his shoulder. “Boom!” With a sound of the muzzle firing, I had my first pronghorn buck. As I approached the downed buck, I was met with a surprise, it was the same unique-horned buck that I stalked that morning almost two miles away. You can’t make this stuff up!
Pronghorn Hunting isn’t Whitetail Hunting
It was quickly apparent that I was out of my element. I’ve gathered tons of experience hunting whitetails but this was way different. Thankfully though the coaching of experienced antelope hunters and a little bit of luck, my dad and I were able to seal the deal. It can be done. If you are interested in chasing antelope, forget what you already know! Here is how antelope hunting differs from whitetail hunting.
Stalking as Opposed to Ambushing
When you hunt whitetail, 90% of your time is spent waiting on a buck. You pick an ambush spot, and wait for him to come to you. While there is a small element of this in antelope hunting, the majority of your time is spent seeking antelope. And once you find one, you move to him. The average whitetail hunter has very little practice in the spot-and-stalk tactic. It’s completely different. Another thing to remember is that in antelope habitat, there is often very little cover to hide behind, so you might have to get creative.
Long Range Marksmanship is a Must
As a whitetail bowhunter, most of my hunting marksmanship happens within 30 yards. I can’t say the same for antelope. The first thing my cousin Michael said when we arrived was “we are going to have to find a way to extend your range to 300 to 400 yards.” Even with an accurate shooting rifle, I’m not very confident in my ability to shoot that far. A few hours at the range will raise confidence but the best option is to try and close as much distance as possible. But like I mentioned in the story, I stalked the buck for hundreds of yards and still had to settle for a near 200 yard shot.
You Have to Beat the Heat
Considering most antelope seasons are early in the fall or late in the summer, heat is definitely going to element that you have to face. Heat will affect you on multiple levels. First and foremost, you have to stay hydrated to ensure that you can perform at optimal levels, plus it’s a safety hazard. Secondly, you have to absolutely be prepared to take care of your harvest quick in order to prevent spoilage. We traveled with ice and quartered one of our bucks in the field to prevent this issue. You have to consider the possibility of extreme heat when antelope hunting.
Antelope hunting is not deer hunting, that’s obvious now, but it’s one of the most fun hunts that I’ve ever experienced however. I hope that everybody reading this gets a chance to try it on their own one day. If you do, just remember to forget what you know and be ready to learn!
