Just returned from my 2024 NM bear hunt. Here is a quick break down of the hunt and some pictures.
Day 1: Took this day more as a scouting day than anything else. Had some spots I wanted to check out and was glad I did. The third area looked very promising (flat canyon bottom with a mix of pines, junipers and tons of scrub oak).
Day 2: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area three which looked very good on the previous day. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. Not long after we started glassing, several elk and deer were spotted along with one bear at around 9am. Looked like he was headed straight for heavy cover before the sun made it over the mountain. We only had sight of him for about 20 minutes or so. He disappeared in the heavy brush, never saw him again.
Day 3: Got up early again headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. Not long after we spotted a group of bull elk. At around 8AM, we spotted a bear. This one was definitely not the same one from the previous day as he was noticeably larger. This bear was on the move and we watched him as he made his way up the mountain into heavy cover. He was way too far for a shot. Only had him on the binoculars for about 15 minutes. Never saw him again.
Day 4: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. We spotted the same group of bull elk from the previous two days and picked up a bear right around 7am. This bear was feeding in heavy cover and we watched him as he made his way through the oak thicket. At the time, it appeared that this bear was making his way towards my position, so we decided to wait in order to get a decent shooting opportunity. The bear made it to 583 yds from where I was set up at and disappeared into the brush. Never saw him again.
Day 5: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. The usual group of bulls were glassed up but no bears were spotted that morning. After the glassing session we headed back to camp, took everything down and returned home.
I should mention that we sat water every afternoon thinking bears may come due to the high temperatures. On day 3, while walking away from the water tank, we spooked a bear that was making his way in. I gave chase but ran out of daylight while doing so. This was the only bear we saw near water during the entire trip
This was truly a great learning experience. Went up there not expecting to see any bears and ended up glassing them up almost daily. I put a lot of time and effort researching the areas I wanted to hunt. Tons of e-scouting, terrain analysis methods, calling biologists and game wardens paid off. Although a bear was not taken, I still feel the hunt was a success.
Strongly considering going back up there in late September to give it a second try. Family/work schedule will be a deciding factor.
Day 1: Took this day more as a scouting day than anything else. Had some spots I wanted to check out and was glad I did. The third area looked very promising (flat canyon bottom with a mix of pines, junipers and tons of scrub oak).
Day 2: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area three which looked very good on the previous day. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. Not long after we started glassing, several elk and deer were spotted along with one bear at around 9am. Looked like he was headed straight for heavy cover before the sun made it over the mountain. We only had sight of him for about 20 minutes or so. He disappeared in the heavy brush, never saw him again.
Day 3: Got up early again headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. Not long after we spotted a group of bull elk. At around 8AM, we spotted a bear. This one was definitely not the same one from the previous day as he was noticeably larger. This bear was on the move and we watched him as he made his way up the mountain into heavy cover. He was way too far for a shot. Only had him on the binoculars for about 15 minutes. Never saw him again.
Day 4: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. We spotted the same group of bull elk from the previous two days and picked up a bear right around 7am. This bear was feeding in heavy cover and we watched him as he made his way through the oak thicket. At the time, it appeared that this bear was making his way towards my position, so we decided to wait in order to get a decent shooting opportunity. The bear made it to 583 yds from where I was set up at and disappeared into the brush. Never saw him again.
Day 5: Got up early in the AM and headed straight to glassing area. Got there while it was still dark, got set up and started glassing as morning approached. The usual group of bulls were glassed up but no bears were spotted that morning. After the glassing session we headed back to camp, took everything down and returned home.
I should mention that we sat water every afternoon thinking bears may come due to the high temperatures. On day 3, while walking away from the water tank, we spooked a bear that was making his way in. I gave chase but ran out of daylight while doing so. This was the only bear we saw near water during the entire trip
This was truly a great learning experience. Went up there not expecting to see any bears and ended up glassing them up almost daily. I put a lot of time and effort researching the areas I wanted to hunt. Tons of e-scouting, terrain analysis methods, calling biologists and game wardens paid off. Although a bear was not taken, I still feel the hunt was a success.
Strongly considering going back up there in late September to give it a second try. Family/work schedule will be a deciding factor.
