Bowfishing Caballo

As a hunter, there are lulls in the season during which there is not much to do. This happens typically during the late spring and throughout the summer. This is a time when all forms of wildlife are bringing new young into the world, the big herds come down to lower ground to eat the new growth in the low valleys and meadows, and the hunting seasons are put on hold. Usually during this time the outdoorsman turns to large lakes and fresh streams to pursue that elusive Largemouth bass and German Brown trout. It is no different for me.

It was a couple of years ago that I was introduced to a different kind of off season “hunt.” Patrick Meitin, an outdoor writer and family friend, took my brother an I out on Caballo Lake in southern NM for a little bow fishing. I had heard of bowfishing before, but this would be the first time out for me.

If you already have a recurve bow, you can set yourself up with a bowfishing rig for about $60-$80. Lucky for us when we hunt with Pat have the gear and experience on our side. Ty and I have experience with a bow, so the only instruction we got was, “Aim below where you see the target.”

So with that we headed into the shallow waters on the north end of the lake. We started out on a flat bottom boat, to more quietly sneak up on the groups of fish, and ended the day wading the narrow channels on the far end of the lake.

Pat was right, aim a little low, and after a few shots we were ready for hours of action. We ended up shooting quite a few fish that day with Pat bringing in the biggest. On a few occasions we were lucky and hit two with one shot. This now is one of my favorite off season hunting activities.