Never hunted them or even interacted with the beasts other than from afar... it takes ~ 15 years to accumulate enough points for a tag here, but I'm going this year!
It's going to be hot. THAT'S weird. Guessing a guy better have block ice in coolers ready to go at camp.
I'm bringing two rifles, my heavy long range 7 WSM and an unblooded 6.5 SAUM I built earlier this year. Both are loaded with ELD-M's. The heavy 7 has a big Nightforce (5.5-22) and the 6.5 SAUM has a 3-10 SHV. I'll also bring my little 8x Swaro SLC's and my "Big Eyes" Minox 13x's. I don't currently own a spotter.
My Leica rangefinder struggles past 750 or so in bright light.... but then so do I. In fact I hate shooting when it's hot. That will reel my range in some for sure.
Probably set up my wall tent to have a place to retreat to in the heat of the day- unless lopes are active then?
Basically any advice about hunting them will be appreciated. I know nothing.
Keep ice on hand in the cooler. We skin and quarter immediately and throw on ice in cooler. Do not drive around with merely gutted or even worse, ungutted antelope in the bed of your truck.
We don't shoot at stupid long range, so I think you're overgunned for the kind of goat hunting we do. Yes, I use my .264 on occasion, but have grown out of that and most of the time it's something smaller like a 260, 243 and the like.
We hunt all day long and often kill 10-15 in a weekend and almost all of those shots will be under 300. They can be really stupid in the early morning and we pass on difficult animals to stalk to find another herd that may be easier when doe hunting. When they are bedded, they are difficult to approach, but usually on the crest of a hill that, if the wind is right, you can get behind them for 20-50 yard shot. Stalking antelope is FUN! Worrying about wind drift on live animals isn't.
Find an area, even if a long way from hunting grounds, that is out of the wind for the wall tent. Where I've hunted them in Wyoming, Colorado and Montana, it can get very windy. Or just get a motel. This one of the few hunts that a motel can be worth it for me.
I'm assuming you've got a buck tag, so start looking at antelope to figure out where your standards are if this is a once in a lifetime thing. If you expect you'll keep hunting them, pop the first one that tickles your fancy.
"For some unfortunates, poisoned by city sidewalks ... the horn of the hunter never winds at all" Robert Ruark, The Horn of the Hunter
