Even in what most would consider a drought, the 2007 elk seasons in Arizona and New Mexico were grand, to say the least.

The Southwest offers some of the nation's best elk hunting. Photo by Jason Coil.

Many factors have changed since the end of the season, but the outlook for the 2008 season looks exceptionally promising.

2007 RECAP
When it comes to trophy elk hunting, both Arizona and New Mexico are annual hotspots.

Of the Boone and Crockett Club bulls measuring more than 385 inches and entered in either the All-time Awards or Awards Period during the 20th Awards Program, 35 percent were harvested in Arizona or New Mexico.

This past elk season was no exception. Hunters in both states bagged their share of bulls that scored near or above the magical 400-inch mark.

Last fall, Brian Stephenson took a dandy Arizona bull. However, the hunt did not go as he planned.

Stephenson had expected that the bulls would be screaming and rutting hard. But that wasn't the case. The bulls didn't respond to calls.

"The hunt had its highs and lows, and most of the hunt was slow and tough," he said.

Last season, several archery hunters across the state had similar experiences. Local hunters attributed this phenomenon to the lack of spring rain and plentiful monsoon rains, which came later in the year and caused cows to reach estrus later as well.

Under tough conditions, Stephenson changed his tactics and still-hunted areas where he had seen bulls earlier in the hunt.

Eventually, he scored on a trophy when he arrowed and harvested a massive palmated bull that gross-scored 346 inches.

Longtime Arizona hunter Jayson Coil helped his 16-year-old nephew Garrett on a late rifle bull hunt in northern Arizona.

Pre-season scouting contributed to their success. After locating several stock tanks that elk frequented, Coil and his nephew sat on a vantage point overlooking one of the tanks in hopes of catching a thirsty bull coming to get a drink in the late afternoon.

In freezing temperatures and facing a constant 15-mph wind, the two waited patiently. As the sun started to fade below the horizon, with only a few minutes of shooting light left, a lone bull finally appeared -- and moved toward the tank.

Quickly, the two closed the distance. Garrett readied his rifle and killed the bull from more than 300 yards.

Coil described Garrett's trophy as "an old 7x6 bull with a rough gross measurement of 350 inches."

Ross Johnson, of Ross Johnson Outfitters Inc., located in Magdalena, N.M., said that 2007's late-spring rains created an average rut and consequently, average rut hunting for New Mexico elk hunters -- at least in the western portion of the state.

Overall, Johnson thought that New Mexico's 2007 elk season, from rut through rifle season, was fairly average. For New Mexico, of course, "average" usually means big bulls, especially in the Gila National Forest.

In January 2008, one of Johnson's clients bought the New Mexico's Governor's Tag and knocked down a huge bull that measured 441 5/8 and broke the state record. (For the story of Tod Reichert's bull, look in the September issue of Rocky Mountain Game & Fish.)

A different 2007 hunter found the best of both worlds, so to speak.

Don Roach purchased a landowner bull elk tag in New Mexico, drew a coveted Unit 9 bull tag in Arizona as well -- and harvested two exceptional bulls.

During the early archery bull hunt in New Mexico, Roach saw numerous bulls, and got close to a few.

With another tag in his back pocket, Roach hunted hard and scored on a 335-inch bull.