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This is something that my wife and I both want to hunt in the next couple of years in a trip over from Europe.

Would love to see pronghorn pictures on here! What are you looking for in the way of size and mass. How old is an old pronghorn? Bachelor herds? Single old bucks? Body size ? Calibers ? Distances ? The questions go on ....

Appreciate greatly if some of you would take a moment or two on here to post a picture or two and write a note to "educate" us (ie me) non US hunters as to what you probably see as an every day animal but what is to us quite a unique species! Sure I can google and search the web, but AR is certainly a better real source of hunting info!

Thanks in advance!

Charlie

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25-06.
look at the palmation to be near the top of the ears for a real nice one.
antelope are only territorial during the Rut, but the Does come and go as they please through those areas.
the rest of the time they are where you find them.
a herd can consist of 5 bucks and a doe, or 20 does and a buck of any size.
it just depends on which area they are in, the weather that year, and what time of the migration it is.

Charlie:

We used to shoot 'em with 150gr in the '05 as that's what we had for years. Then I got a 7mmag. Only shot two and three mulies with it. That will reach out further than sensible shooters need. We'd dogged a buck and 4 does for miles in the truck. Finally Dad said "you have a flat shooting rifle take a shot" "nah, too far" "just try it"

I went to a nearby fence post and held what felt good and fired. They were running hard quartering away. I don't know how much I held over and ahead. Hit him in the ass and out the shoulder. Flipped 3 or 4 times end over end. It surprised me more than the buck that I hit it first shot. Uncle measured it off in the truck and said: "that was right at 600 yards". Too damned far to be shooting game in my opinion. If not for Dad insisting I'd of passed it up. That's the only one the three of us got that year.

I'd been doing a lot of prairie dog shooting with it and several other rifles that summer. Best shooting practice there is no matter what gun is used. We used to go pop a few just before seasons even with Dad's .375 H&H.

Since then I've gone to a .243 and 100-105gr.
Range of shots mostly depends on how much they've been shot at. IF a lot, they'll take off at a half mile or more and run for miles just at the sight of a truck they believe is hunters after them.

The last six I've shot were from 30 yards to not over 90.

As for where. I'd recommend Wyoming as there's more up there than anywhere else and last I knew far easier to get a tag.
Connect with: Wyowildlife.com and see if that's the link and stay with it to learn when, where, and their laws. You'd probably fly into Denver and drive up the 100-200 miles depending on where you decide to hunt. No guide required. Connect with some of the guys on here from up there and save the money.

About 75-90% is public lands open to anyone. Just pick out an area and go to it. I don't know the ownerships up there. I saw a valley half mile west of the hwy within 50 miles south of Cody just covered with antelope for miles being used as a fawning grounds from the looks of it. Many hundreds at least.

Funny thing. Driving the LKV rig (semi to you other guys!) Saw quite a few goats and stopped to take a walk to the ridge to see what was over there my first time in the area.

On the way back to the truck I about stepped on a 2 week ? old fawn that took off the way I was going on a slight down hill open slope, For the hell of it I took in after it hard as I could run. It was young enough that I was faster than it was. When I'd gotten within about 20 feet it doubled back and I couldn't turn so gave it up. Wife was along and watching. Said I had gained over half the distance between us from when it jumped up. It couldn't have been over two weeks old or I'd never had a chance. Didn't anyway, just did it for kicks as it got up so close to me. Expect one of the does that ran up to the ridge was it's mother. Wife told the 14y/o step dau about it. Kathy said: "yes I know Porgy can really haul ass he chased me down once".

I know there's lots of 'em in the Dakota's too. That's all I know about up there. Here in Colorado there's so many hunters it's hard to draw a tag. Far as I know Wyo has lots of leftovers and a hell of a lot of antelope, plus so much public land with free access.

Horns with the fork above the ears, the further above the bigger the buck. Ears are about 6-8" long. Horns over a foot high are starting to be average. Lots of 14-16" out there. About the biggest horns I've seen was 19". I'd watched that buck by the hwy all summer. Even walked out within 50 yards talking to him several times N New Mexico. A local I knew said he'd been killed that morning and where. He drove me to the guys place to look the buck over.

They stand around 30" tall. Does 70-85lbs bucks about that for a young one, and up to around 125lbs for a good sized older buck.

They can be real curious, or wild as anything you ever saw. Their eyesight is amazing. The close one crossed a pasture ahead of me and across the road within 50 yards and went under the fence and stood there concentrating on something in the distance. It hadn't been spooked. I parked and got the rifle, walked ready to shoot when he took off. Got to the fence about 30 yards away and shot him. Never knew I was there as he was concentrating on something in the distance. Sometimes they'll just stand and watch you.

One year some guys painted a likeness of a buck just about the full size of a 4'x8' sheet of plywood staked out. I was within half mile or so of it and heard a shot. Drove down there and they'd killed one that had walked up within ten feet of the painting. They'd been hidden in the weeds and tall grass. Hell of a deal!

Best wishes to you, hope some of this helps you out. They are easy to kill, and they STINK like one of those old nasty pigs you shoot. We call 'em Goats because of the smell.

George

I would start by buying a preference point for each of you in Wyoming. They are on sale right now. If you have a couple points each you can get a slightly better tag.

They are one of my favorite animals to hunt, I chase them every couple of years in SE wyoming north of Cheyenne.

I've never killed anything but 12" goats, but larger have been taken in the area we hunt.
http://forums.accuratereloadin...9261067452#926167452

We have taken them from 75 - 400+ yards. I think my average shot is around 150.

They are not difficult to kill. in Wyoming you need a .24 cal minimum last i checked, so anything from a .243 up will work just fine. We've used .243, .25-06, 6.5creed, .264win, .270, 7mag, all work great.

Find an area in wyoming you can draw with a decent amount of public land and go hunting. If you're willing to put in a few miles of walking you'll find antelope, then you get to start stalking. It's a really fun hunt with the possibility of multiple stalks a day.

The closest shot for me was with my Winchester 1895 .405 WCF - about 15 yards. Longest shot was 240 yards last year with my .308:


I have also used .264 Winchester, Winchester 1886 .45-90 (110 yards), .308 , etc. Last year one of our party took his with a muzzle loader.
Most of mine have been in the Texas Panhandle and in northeastern New Mexico. They are very good eating and easy to take down with a shot to the chest.

This is the outfitter that we hunted with in the Texas Panhandle:
https://www.huntsintexas.com/?...v5Ui6TokXMOy7gdsGhNs
As you will see, they hunt in many states, not just Texas.

Hunt Wyoming
One killed, get the meat immediately on ice.
As said previously, a “fork” above the top of the ear is usually a good buck.
Compare the mass (width) to the width of the eye. If the horn mass looks wider, usually a good buck.
It’s amazing how genetics can change by region. Near my house in Utah, bucks are more narrow and less mass. It’s tough to find an 80” buck. An hour and a half in Wyoming, the bucks have more mass, from what I’ve seen.
Antelope are usually an easy hunt compared to deer and elk. It’s a great and relaxing time in my opinion.
I’ll likely be drawing a good public land tag next year. I’ll b3 glad to send you pics.

I have pics here on AR if you go back and look for it of a 16" buck I shot here in CO a few years back. I shot it with a 280Rem. using 140 gr. Winchester Ballistic Silver tips.

Mostly I use a 25-06 with the same bullet in 115 gr. Both rifles shoot their bullets at a little over 3,000 fps, which I think is a great velocity for Pronghorns, as sometimes you need a little reach. I've shot (7) over 300 yds. from 305 to 361 yds. I've also shot them at 50 yds. So far, I have taken around 60 pronghorns over the years, and my wife about the same.

Good luck on your hunt!

quote:

I saw a valley half mile west of the hwy within 50 miles south of Cody just covered with antelope for miles

that sounds like the Shoshone-Bannnock reservation.

Charlie, as mentioned buy the Wyoming preference points for antelope. If you get serious about going I know the area and land owner that has piles of them and most years you can sift through many herds to find the one you want. Like most animals anywhere you hunt, the truly big ones are not behind every hill. It’s a great hunt with salt of the earth ranchers.

Charlie, whenever and wherever you choose to hunt them, you and your wife are in for a good time! Depending on your finances, please consider going with a guide in New Mexico for a whopper and then public land hunting in Wyoming or Montana, Wyoming being the better choice IMHO. Guided hunts for antelope in New Mexico, given the trophy quality, seem very fairly priced at least to me.

The fun thing about antelope is that you almost always see them a long way off and then you get a long distance stalk and setup. Sometimes, though, you come over a rise and there they are and if they see you - they'll give you about 5/10 seconds and then they're gone, often running miles away. The scenery can't be beat.

Anything from a .223 on up will work, check for minimums and bring whatever you shoot well to 300+ yards. My last two were spot on at 350 yards and I use 7mm-08 or .270 for the 30 years combined, though I did shoot one with 9x57R from a double rifle drilling about 25 years ago, up close and personal.

The meat is outstanding and given that you're from overseas I assume you can't bring it back, so plan on cooking the tenderloins and backstraps the evening you get one. The key, as always, is to take good care of the carcass and meat quickly. If I'm a few miles off the road, I'll quarter or bone it out, get everything in game bags and get it to a cooler w/ice in the truck as soon as possible. Regardless, antelope is always excellent IMHO.

I've failed at every pic attempt here for years or would post a few. My guess is that I've taken 20 - 25 of them over the years and can't wait for the next one!

Hope you make it here soon.

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Guys, Thank you all for talking the time to post! I am reading and will read this again with great interest. As I said before what to many USA AR members is a run of the mill game animal / hunt, is to us a bucket list hunt !

Thanks again. Great info.

Charlie

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Charlie,
I have hunted them a lot, whether I had a tag, or one of my 3 kids, also have 'guided' a lot of friends on their first pronghorn. I think it is, by far, the most FUN western big game hunt.

I rack up bonus/preference points for my kids and I & go DIY. With you not living in the US, I would really consider an outfitted hunt. Pronghorn are the least expensive western trophy hunt by a good stretch.

Wyoming has more pronghorn than people (depending on the year & herd dynamics). You could definitely book with an outfitter, in an area with no bonus points required to draw tags. To plan on a big buck in WY, you need either a ranch managed for trophy quality, or draw a tag that will be quite difficult to draw.

New Mexico is probably your best chance at a real big buck, in a state where an outfitter will have landowner tags (no draw required.) For a bucket-list hunt, I would strongly consider a hunt on a big NM ranch, where you stay at a ranch house. You'll stay at the same place & eat the same food as if you were on a $12,000 elk hunt. After you get your pronghorns, you should be able hunt some coyotes & maybe some other varmints as well.

Here's an example. Paste this into your browser & take a look. For some reason I can't put it in as a link.
https://worldwidetrophyadventu...exico-antelope-hunt/

Good luck!!

Charlie64,
Tons of good accurate info given already.
I'll add that any cartridge from a 243 to a 300 mag is considered a Pronghorn gun if you shoot it well and are comfortable to at least 300 "meters" (whatever that is. haha)
Mass is KING! a 13.5" pronghorn can score 80" but a willowy 16" length buck will not BUT shoot what trips YOUR trigger. They're all cool!
I like to look for all 3 characteristics: Mass, Prong length and then overall length.
You cannot help but have fun on the hunt. Easy hunting, see them almost all the time, usually some motorized travel is used and then spot and stalk hunting.
You'll have a blast!

Zeke

quote:

Mass is KING! a 13.5" pronghorn can score 80" but a willowy 16" length buck will not BUT shoot what trips YOUR trigger. They're all cool!

That is a great point!!

Charlie,

Worry about measurements after you kill the one you like. You can start, though, by looking for one like this.

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Again, thank y'll for the comments, advice and pictures! Really appreciated and so much better than google and the likes!

Now the fun part starts in further research and planning!

Charlie

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quote:

Originally posted by Outdoor Writer:
Charlie,

Worry about measurements after you kill the one you like. You can start, though, by looking for one like this.

HOLY CRAP!! What did that measure??

Crazy big speed goat!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:
Crazy big speed goat!!!

I should clarify that it isn't mine. It belongs to a long-time friend, Corky Richardson.

It grossed 94-1/8 and had a 90 2/8 net score. If I recall, it's the only one with both horns longer than 21 inches in any of the trophy books.

Last time I checked, it was the SCI #1 archery buck, and I think #3 in P&Y behind Marvin Zieser at 91 4/8 and Les Shelton's 90 6/8-inch buck. Not sure where it is in B&C.

Cabela's in Glendale, AZ has a replica in the trophy room area.

A couple more -- albeit bad scans of 35mm slides --

This photo and the first one I posted were covers along with my articles in two different magazines.

Man Charlie, if you shoot one like Corky Richardson did, be sure to let us know!!!!!!
80" buck is a big one but 94" is a freaak-nasty monster!

Zeke

quote:

Originally posted by ZekeShikar:
Man Charlie, if you shoot one like Corky Richardson did, be sure to let us know!!!!!!
80" buck is a big one but 94" is a freaak-nasty monster!

Zeke

Corky also has the P&Y world-record bison, and his wife Cindi was the first one to complete the AZ Big Ten with a bow.

quote:

Originally posted by boarkiller:

quote:

Originally posted by Outdoor Writer:

quote:

Originally posted by ZekeShikar:
Man Charlie, if you shoot one like Corky Richardson did, be sure to let us know!!!!!!
80" buck is a big one but 94" is a freaak-nasty monster!

Zeke

P&Y traditional or garage opener?

Corky also has the P&Y world-record bison, and his wife Cindi was the first one to complete the AZ Big Ten with a bow.

?????????????????

The average exceptional buck these days seems to be 16 to 17 inches..I killed a 18-3/4? broad bemmed monster on my West Texas ranch..sold the horns to one of my hunters some years later...Texas Big Bend country from Valentine to Sanderson has some real trophy pronghorns in big numbers, as does the panhandle...Marfa and Alpine used to be the pronghorn capital of Texas, may still be, dont't know..Also very good Mule deer and some areas have great coues deer.