I hunted Area 61 over the weekend. The hunt was a fun experience with my wife and dog along for company. I spoke with a local rancher in Rawlins the day before the season started as I was buying the required Conservation Stamp and the rancher said he saw a solid 15" buck a few weeks ago but nothing better this summer. The rancher blamed the very dry spring when the horns were forming.
I concentrated on scouting and hunting the area just east of Rawlins since had heard that the Bairoil area north of Rawlins had not revealed any huge bucks when the warden was counting noses.
There is BLM land off 1-80 along Riner Road that has a lot of pronghorns. Maybe you will find the big ones I could not locate! Check with KTC who he was up near Barioil with his daughter this weekend.
Wherever you hunt, focus on the eastern hillsides just as the sun comes up. The pronghorn tend to bed in the taller sagebrush during the heat of the day and are hard to see but you will see some even in the heat of the day. Maybe coyotes or thirst get them moving. Find water and you will find animals. The only water I saw was in water troughs with solar panel pumps. All the water that was on my maps was free-standing and was dried up to dust.
Moving vehicles do not seem to startle the pronghorns. If you stop they get nervous and I found that exiting the vehicle on the side away from the herd worked but opening a door facing the herd would spook them badly. I had a spotting scope mounted on my door window and worked great.
There is a herd of 30 desert elk along Riner, too. Some mule deer on the hills. Saw coyotes but no rattlesnakes. Keep an eye out for snakes if it rains and you are walking in a low spot.
Also, be careful if leave the 2-track dirt roads because you will get catus spines in your sidewalls...luckily none of the spines went in far enough to cause a flat but I got some when I drove down to get the buck I shot.
I will continue to put in for Area 61 and those hunting areas next to it. I think a lot of WY Areas have pronghorn but the advantage for me and my wife was to be able to stay in Rawlins at night where we got get warm food. If you travel with a dog, Days Inn in Rawlins is pet-friendly.
A final tip, clean your gun as usual but shoot one practice shot as you are ready to begin your hunt. The fresh oil in the barrel can cause the first bullet going down the barrel to do strange things. I was told this at the practice range and tested that theory by cleaning the barrel and shooting 5 shot groups. The first short would tend to fly off center vs. the next 4.
Now the recap on the buck I shot. I scoped over 150 bucks during a 2 day period. I was returning down a dirt road so could go into lunch to eat at Rose's Cantina in Rawlins. My wife spotted the buck running from south to north and passed about 50 yards in front of us. I scoped the buck at 120 yards when it paused and the buck was better than what I had seen. By time got my rifle ready and stepped off the dirt road the buck was now at 320 yards standing broadside in sagebrush. Would love to say I shot once but I flat out missed on first shot. I did connect on the second shot. Was 371 yards where the buck fell after ran in a horse shoe shape for about 50 feet. Some wind as I shot but not enough for me to miss so chalk it up to user error.
Good luck! Pronghorn hunting is awesome.
I will have fun, and hopefully get a monster! Good luck to you.
