Here's my annual hunt calendar

This article was first published in my email newsletter in November of 2025. I've added it to my website, because I think the information is useful in general, not just for the month it was published. If you'd like to keep up with the latest hunting information, including my open dates and available hunts, you can subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of this page.

Each year, I follow a standard calendar for my hunts. I aim to schedule each of the hunts I do at the time of year that’s best for that hunt. I base that on animal criteria, like rut; on weather patterns; and on legal hunting seasons here in Texas.

I’ve posted that calendar on my website, but I think it might be useful if I explain it in a bit more detail. That detail might help you to understand the best time to schedule the hunt you want, whether you choose to do it with me or with someone else.

For me, the hunting year begins the day after Christmas.

DECEMBER AND JANUARY: MULE DEER

My hunting calendar for 2026 will really begin at the end of 2025, the day after Christmas, when I’ll be in West Texas hunting mule deer. I’ll do that for two weeks, going into the first part of January.

There are two reasons I hunt mule deer during that period. First, because mule deer are a native animal, we’re governed by the State of Texas and the hunting seasons that it defines. That gives me two windows for hunting mule deer. The usual window is in late November to mid-December — that’s the standard mule deer hunting season. Then there’s a second, wider window, that requires a special permit for the ranch. That window, from early November to late January, is for what’s called “managed land deer permits” (MLDP), and my ranches have those permits.

The problem with the standard season is that it’s pre-rut. Thanks to the MLDP, however, I’m able to run my hunts during the rut. That makes it a heck of a lot easier to find bucks. We spot a lot more of them, they spook less, and it gives my hunters a better chance to find and choose exactly the buck they want.

Getting that special permit takes some extra work. The ranch needs to be assessed by a state biologist (or a private one that you hire) to determine what level of hunting the land can sustain. Of course, all my ranches manage their animal populations to maximize quality of trophies, so that’s not really a burden for us. We’re doing it anyway.

FEBRUARY AND MARCH: JAVELINA AND AOUDAD

In February and March, I’m still hunting in West Texas, but I move on to javelina and aoudad.

At this time of year, as we move into spring, the weather can get volatile in West Texas. It’s hard to predict. I can pretty much guarantee that it will be windy, but we might also get a blizzard or some hail or sleet.

For that reason, I start with javelina hunts.

That’s because the cold, windy weather causes aoudad to seek cover. The javelina, on the other hand, are out foraging. At this time of year, a lot of the plant life is dead, and the javelina have to spend more time finding food. Of course, less plant cover also means that the animals are easier to spot. So this is a good time to hunt them.

Toward the end of this period, I start hunting aoudad. During the javelina hunts, I’m already scouting for aoudad, so, by the time we start the hunts, I’ve got a pretty good idea where we can find them.

But keep two things in mind: Bad weather is still a possibility in this period, and hunting aoudad at this time of year is harder than hunting them in the fall. If you can make it work for your schedule, you’re better off hunting aoudad in September and October, which is the primary rut. Of course, that’s everyone’s first choice, so those hunts are hard to get.

MARCH AND APRIL: TURKEY

My turkey hunts are for Rio Grand turkeys. I have ranches in both the North and South Zones and start my Spring turkey hunts in South Texas.

The state seasons vary for the two zones, but are about six weeks long, starting in mid to late March and running through late April or early May, depending on the zone. Although the state seasons run for six weeks, I do all my hunts in the last two weeks of March and the first two weeks of April.

Incidentally, my turkey hunts work a bit differently than the other hunts I run. They’re semi-guided. That means we provide meals, lodging, and transportation around the ranch, but we take you to the area you’re going to hunt, and then you hunt the way you want. You’re on your own.

Normally for our turkey hunts, we’ve got five or six turkey hunters on the ranch.

MAY THRU EARLY JULY: AXIS

I start axis hunts about a week or ten days into May, and I continue with them until just after the Fourth of July.

That’s the optimum time to hunt axis. Any earlier than that and you’ll find that a lot of the deer are still in velvet and they’re not fully into their rut. And I stop after July 4, because it’s just too hot.

JULY AND AUGUST: NO HUNTS

Legally, you can hunt year-round in Texas, because there's no closed season on exotics, and we’ve got lots of exotics. But if you know Texas, you know it's just too hot to spend the day hunting in July and August.

I basically take the summer off, from July 4 through August. That’s largely because Texas is just plain inhospitable during that time period. In addition, however, I need the break, especially with the really heavy schedule I’ve got coming up in September and October, and the hot weather is a good time to take off

SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER: AOUDAD, PRONGHORN, AND ELK

Starting right after Labor Day, I have a full schedule of aoudad, pronghorn, and elk hunts throughout September and October.

This is the optimal time period for hunting aoudad. They’re in rut, the weather is pretty stable, and this is the time of year where we’re going to find the best selection of big rams. I try to move around a bit during this period, not sticking to a single ranch. I’ve found that even with suppressors, you can’t keep pestering the sheep for weeks at a time. You need to give them a break.

We also hunt pronghorn during this time period. Pronghorn are a native species, so our hunt season is governed by the state. These days, that season is fifteen or sixteen days long, but we stick to a nine-day schedule that matches the original season as it was defined by the state some years ago. That just fits best with the overall calendar.

Then, in late September, we start hunting elk. That’s when they’re in rut and they’re bugling. The bugling makes them easier to find, of course, but it’s also fun just to hear them.

I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again: There’s an incredible demand for elk hunts, so top outfitters are booked way into the future. In my case, I’m not quoting fees for future hunts, because I can’t predict what the costs will be that far into the future.

In the meantime, I’m happy to add you to my waiting list and let you know when I’m accepting new bookings or if I get a cancellation on an existing booking. First refusal on those hunts will go to clients with whom I’ve already got a relationship — people who have done other hunts with me -- and I’m pretty sure that’s how it works with other outfitters, too.

NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER: LOCAL HUNTS AND WEST TEXAS AOUDAD HUNTS

During the last two or three weeks of November and up until Christmas, I do local hunts here in the Hill Country and aoudad hunts in West Texas.

The reason for the local hunts is pretty simple: As the calendar moves toward the holidays, I like to spend some time close to home. I also like to lighten my schedule a bit. So I keep a lot of days open around this time period and fill them with hunts I can do in the Hill Country. I’ll schedule hunts for whitetail, blackbuck, fallow deer, scimitar — for the most part, I’ll be hunting exotics.

This is a good time for hunting buffalo, too. Their hair is longer during these months, due to the cold, so they make a much better mount than if you were to shoot one in August, for example. But I do like to warn people: While buffalo make terrific mounts, they don’t make great hunts; it’s just too easy. You can walk right up to them. But still, buffalo are iconic, and I totally get it if you want that mount. Anyhow, this is the best time of year to do it.

As for the aoudad hunts during this period, well, that’s pretty simple, too. There’s just a lot of demand for aoudad hunts, so I try to make time for them when I can. This time of year the weather in West Texas is pretty stable. It’s cold, but it’s stable, and you’ll still find some rutting activity, too.

All in all, it’s a pretty decent time for aoudad hunts. And, of course, since those hunts are in West Texas, I’m also scouting for the mule deer hunts I’ve got coming up right after Christmas.

WRAPPING UP

Right now, I’m in that November - December stretch, and then pretty soon I’ll be heading to West Texas for mule deer.

I’ve built my annual calendar around what seems to provide the best results, year after year.

You’ll notice that I’ve got a lot of time set aside for aoudad hunts. There’s so much demand for those hunts, that I try to set aside as much time as I can for them (and I love sheep hunting myself, so I lean a bit in that direction anyhow).

The rest of my schedule is pretty much driven by a mix of Texas-mandated seasons, rut, and weather. I have to take all those things into account when I plan my year. The aim is to give you the best hunt I can.

I hope this explanation of my calendar helps you figure out when you’d like to schedule a hunt. If you want to talk about it, just send me a message and I’ll get back to you.