Most Important Antelope Gear

[Big Sky]

I'm gonna say a vehicle with good tires and a tankful of gas. It takes a lot of looking over lesser goats to find the one.

 

[Ikeepitcold]

Well I just got done scraping ice off my truck here in Georgia. I don't exactly get to do that every day and being stuck at home being completely unproductive trying to get some work done, I figured I would ask the following question just to see what everyone thinks:

If you had to name only one piece of equipment what would be the single most important item in your arsenal for antelope hunting. Guns don't count.

Optics by far.

 

[Elkoholic307]

I'm gonna say a vehicle with good tires and a tankful of gas. It takes a lot of looking over lesser goats to find the one.

I change my vote to this!

 

[DABAU]

It's looking like I'm going to have to invest in a good spotting scope before October. Being a southern whitetail and turkey hunter, I don't even own a spotting scope but one more thing to research and invest in for years to come. I love this stuff!

 

[Eberle]

GPS & Chip
Scope with a BDC
Rangefinders
Good Optics
Harris Bi-Pods

 

[Musket Man]

Scope with a BDC, Harris Bi-Pods

I gotta disagree. I killed an antelope with peep sights and my gun rested on my binos this year! That was alot of fun and added alot to the challenge but in all honesty Im thinking about getting a scope with a long range duplex and I almost always have a Harris bipod on my gun!

 

[squirrelduster]

My #1 item is a really good spotting scope. Seems when you find them with binoculars they are already looking at you. I have a pair of Vortex Kiabab binos that work great for antelope. Regular 10 power binos are not enough from what I have found. Their eyesight is amazing.
I agree with getting the meat cooled down quick. Lots of ice and plastic bags.

 

[AT Hiker]

In no particular order

Good vehicle and tires (with a full tank of gas)
Good optics and range finder
rubber gloves for when you do kill when, those suckers stink to high heaven!!!
cooler with ice to save your meat
good camping gear, might as well take advantage of the free board the BLM offers
GPS w/chip
a phone call to the game warden and biologist
internet access to update us on the forum after your hunt!

 

[MWScott72]

"Good optics would be #1 on my list in an area with lots of public land, if there wasnt alot of public land gps and chip would be #1."

+100 to what Musket Man says. Rangefinder is important, but I've killed 5 goats in WY and the longest shot was under 300 yards. No need for a rangefinder there.

 

[robsev]

A good pair of tweezers to pull the cactus out of your hands and knees when you accidently forget your knee pads and/or gloves.

 

[HiMtnHnter]

Hard to single out a most important item . . . But I will second the advice mentioned above about good tires. Make sure you have a good full-size spare, a good jack that will work in off-pavement conditions, and it never hurts to throw a couple chunks of 4x4 or 6x6 in the back. Also make sure you have a good tool set. Nothing will ruin your trip like having to call a wrecker out to the middle of nowhere. If you don't have cell service where you are stranded you can double the pain . . .

 

[hoshour]

I would want my iPhone app that automatically estimates the antelope's score from a picture. Not really, but it WOULD be cool.

UH -If we can look at a good picture and estimate a score or at least a range, a program could be written to do the same thing. You could make a fortune, one species at a time!

 

[Orion/CO]

A bit late to chime in, but I agree with everything already listed (good binos/spotting scope, rangefinder, shooting sticks/bipod, knee pads, BLM map/GPS, large coolers with ice packs, extra gas, tool kit, tire chains, tow rope, and good tires with a spare or 2). Cactus spines will puncture tires and I got 2 flats one time on an antelope hunt (with only one spare). That one cost me $600 for the tow truck to come get me, plus another $600 for a new set of tires.

A few things not mentioned include a tarp to skin your animal on the ground (no place to hang them up), and a sled to drag an animal out (trying to drag over cactus is like dragging over a wire brush). A kids plastic toboggan works great, or a "Dead Sled" (a rolled up length of heavy plastic with dragging straps).

 

[Hilltop]

Antelope hunts are 99% of the time cut short because you harvest your animal early in the hunt. I recommend bringing either fishing equipment or predator hunting equipment so you can make the most of your trip out west. I guided for many years and it was always an awkward feeling when my hunter was done 45 minutes into the hunt and my hunter had no idea what to do for the next few days. The outfitter I worked for on offered a guide for the hunt- after that they were on their own. My advice is to bring an after harvest plan along so you can enjoy the hunt even more.