Help with 2018 non resident mule deer and sheep draw

Going into the 2018 non resident draw I have 10 mule deer points, 17 desert sheep points and 16 California sheep points.

Having recently retired I can not afford a guided or fully outfitted hunt. The posts about deer unit 194 - 196 outside of Reno are discouraging due to private land issues. Yet the harvest reports reveal this unit to be one of the best as to harvest % and 4pt or better %. 221 late is out due to the odds to draw even with 10 points. How is 114 - 115 around Great Basin Ntl Park? Or 131 - 134 late? Any help or advice from Nevada residents who have knowledge of these areas would greatly be appreciated. I'm now 62 and have hunted all over the western states - but the clock is ticking due to age and money!
Please help.

I've never hunted 114-115 late or 131-134 late but know they do produce some great bucks. I did help a friend on his 131-134 early rifle deer hunt and saw a good amount of deer.

What type of animal would you like to harvest and how much time would you be able to invest in a hunt?

I believe any of the units in the Central and Eastern part of NV can produce great bucks. My personal opinion, for what it's worth, is the late hunts are slightly overrated. I drew a 221-223 late deer tag (resident) about ten years ago, saw some good bucks but never did run into a giant and hunted hard. That was back when the season was only 5 or 6 days long which added a ton of stress. I ended up harvesting a 170? 4x4 which I was still happy to harvest. Only noticed some rut activity on the last couple days.

Last year, I believe they added 3 days to the tail end of the late hunts which could be huge. But keep in mind that they still end in early November, which truely only allows for a couple days of hunting bucks with true rut activity. Plus, some of the top end bucks are harvested on earlier seasons by guides and other guys who spend a ton of time patterning specific bucks before the rut changes their patterns.

I've since drawn 3 other deer tags in NV in various eastern units and found the archery, muzzy and early rifle seasons to be just as fun, plus you get a substantial amount of additional days to hunt, in most cases. I've harvested mature animals on the different season but still have yet to get a giant. To me going hunting twice as often for twice the season length is more important but it's honestly a personal opionon based on your situation. Don?t get me wrong, I would still take a late tag in any of the mentioned units in any year but that's unfortunately not how it works with the draw odds.

Below are some photos of bucks I harvested in the various hunts.

221-223 late
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/47777c00eb8e641114fd594e87645a21b2aa5.jpeg

Archery buck
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/35760cc0154b8725541e282305c06f12a3e6e.jpeg

Muzzy buck
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/86717c499eae8837e4dd19a7ec78cba530aad.jpeg

I did also draw a Desert Sheep (very lucky to draw) but those odds are terrible for both NR and residents. Same as deer, NV has great sheep hunting in units that aren't always known as the top tier units.

Feel free to PM with more specific questions and I can share more of my thoughts which I'm sure may vary from other opinions on MM.

I can relate to you about the clock ticking due to age and money. I am a Nevada resident, live in Reno and have hunted all the units you have listed. I will send you my phone number by p.m. and if you want to call I'm sure I can help you out. I appreciate the fact that you had the courage to ask and also that you said please.

PM sent.

Hunted the late season in 2017 in shorts and T-shirts mature bucks were sniffing does the last days of oct but there was no rutting going on really to speak of.

6 x 7 - what unit did you hunt in? Sadly, Nevada DOW does not post the prior year draw odds until shortly before the application deadline making it difficult to plan if one also applies in other western states.

even there odds arent the true odds where you have 5 choices to apply

Can you even view your current points yet? Doesnt look like the system has been updated.

Don?t discard 221-223 late with 10 pps.

I drew with 10. You get 5 choices so you might as well be one of the 1500 that put it as their 1st choice.

I agree with most of what has been posted. There is some private land in 194/196 but it is not an issue. There is plenty of public land in that unit. The unit south of that (192) has some access issues for sure but that peavine area has plenty of good bucks on public land. 192 is not too hard to draw as a non resident and if you are willing/able to hike there is some public access into some good country.

For the most part nevada has big bucks in every unit obviously the units with more tags generally produce more big bucks. I would look more toward elko better odds I would assume.