What would you do?

DH56

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Let me throw out a question and tell me what you think. If you have 17 Wyoming Shiras Moose Preference points, and with the odds getting harder every year and point creep getting worse, along with the price of a pref point now at $150.00, would you keep trying to accumulate points to potentially have a shot at a decent unit, or call it and try to to get drawn and hope for the best in a unit that may not have the potential at a 40-45" Moose? I wanted to try to get drawn in unit 1 or 34 and possibly area 38, but with the draw odds and the points that I have, I most likely will never draw there even when i get max points. The Tetons may be an option in unit 23/26.

Add in I'm not getting younger and will be retiring soon and being able to wait another 10 years may be knocking me out of contention to even do the hunt. Cost of points and non-resident tag is getting much more costly to even stay in the game.

I have hunted Wyoming several times for Mule Deer and Antelope and enjoy it, and even last year did well handling the 7-10 mile treks each day but I suspect I am running out of time to get this hunt in.

What would you do and why?
 
I would take the price of a Wyoming moose tag and put it towards a DIY moose hunt in Alaska. You can do an Alaskan moose hunt for 5 to 6k and have a nice looking bull on the wall. 90% of the bulls I’ve seen people tag in wyo the last 10 years are dink’s even for shiras.
 
With the wolf and grizz situation things are likely not going to get any better in most Wyo moose units....and may even get worse and worse (fewer tags available. I was super lucky and got a Wyo moose tag many years ago in a respectable unit. Unfortunately I saw the writing on the wall and pulled my son out of the moose draw around 10 years ago...bummer he'll never have the opportunity I had in Wyo!

With that said, you have a lot of time and $ invested in the Wyo moose draw. If I were you I would research and scout the heck out of a 2nd tier unit and go hunting.
 
Appreciate the reply gentlemen. I know alaska is an option and parts of Canada as well. I am so invested in the draw I hate to throw it away. I know that time is running out for me to even do a hunt. I’m in good health now and can hold my own today but time is ticking away and only god knows when he will pull the plug or limit my physical ability.

looking over the draw results I can most likely get into a lower tier unit at some point. Just trying to get thoughts from others that may help me understand what I am up against and maybe get some additional input I may not have thought of and may be missing.
 
I took a 2nd tier hunt 3 yrs ago, Hunted hard and long and killed good bull on my 12 day of hunting. I got tired of always being one point behind unit one. I think I killed just as good of bull as I have been seeing in unit one in a unit that is 2 points behind and easier to hunt....I wouldn't wait!!
 
I took a 2nd tier hunt 3 yrs ago, Hunted hard and long and killed good bull on my 12 day of hunting. I got tired of always being one point behind unit one. I think I killed just as good of bull as I have been seeing in unit one in a unit that is 2 points behind and easier to hunt....I wouldn't wait!!

Good to hear- I am doing some homework on finding a second tier option. I'm leaning on getting this done earlier and not waiting. Thanks to all for your input.

With the wolf and grizz situation things are likely not going to get any better in most Wyo moose units....and may even get worse and worse (fewer tags available. I was super lucky and got a Wyo moose tag many years ago in a respectable unit. Unfortunately I saw the writing on the wall and pulled my son out of the moose draw around 10 years ago...bummer he'll never have the opportunity I had in Wyo!

With that said, you have a lot of time and $ invested in the Wyo moose draw. If I were you I would research and scout the heck out of a 2nd tier unit and go hunting.

Several good points. I have been tracking the wolf expansion since their reintroduction in the mid 90's. Don't like them and never will.
 
Easy to blame wolves but it’s much bigger than that. Moose in the east have died off and there isn’t a wolf anywhere close.

Easyelk could you share a pic of your moose? Glad you got a good one! Congrats!
 
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Not to hijack your thread DH56 but I'm sitting on 20 non-res pref points and still don't know what to do. I would rather burn my points now and not have to pay the $150 point fee every year until I can draw an upper tier unit. I know there are some really good 2nd tier units out there but most folks are pretty tight-lipped about sharing information... I think at this point we should just burn those points and get to huntin'!!! Best of luck and wishes to you on getting a big bullwinkle on the ground and then on the wall!
 
I burned resident points last year and hunted probably the bottom tier of the units. Killed an ok 41” bull.

i didn’t think I’d ever catch up enough to get to a better unit and I wanted to go moose hunting. Glad I did.

if I were you I’d go moose hunting.
 
One consideration if you have a gob of pts is to take a drive out to some of the mid tier units to check them out to see what you can find as far as bulls, moose numbers, access, country, etc? The more time you are willing to devote to a hunt the more likelihood of success.

It's also key to find or know someone that has intimate inside knowledge of the unit. Moose are obviously extremely tough tags to come by and sometimes local guys are sometimes more willing to share a little more intimate advice on tags they may have already drawn or possibly enjoy helping others with their hunt.

If you are close to drawing a top tier unit it may be worth waiting it out for a tag...but you still will likely need to spend quality time in the unit! I drew a top tier moose unit many years ago and spent a great deal of time scouting the unit. It definitely wasn't a cake-walk but I finally harvested a dandy bull after over a week of hard hunting!
 
I burned resident points last year and hunted probably the bottom tier of the units. Killed an ok 41” bull.

i didn’t think I’d ever catch up enough to get to a better unit and I wanted to go moose hunting. Glad I did.

if I were you I’d go moose hunting.
One consideration if you have a gob of pts is to take a drive out to some of the mid tier units to check them out to see what you can find as far as bulls, moose numbers, access, country, etc? The more time you are willing to devote to a hunt the more likelihood of success.

It's also key to find or know someone that has intimate inside knowledge of the unit. Moose are obviously extremely tough tags to come by and sometimes local guys are sometimes more willing to share a little more intimate advice on tags they may have already drawn or possibly enjoy helping others with their hunt.

If you are close to drawing a top tier unit it may be worth waiting it out for a tag...but you still will likely need to spend quality time in the unit! I drew a top tier moose unit many years ago and spent a great deal of time scouting the unit. It definitely wasn't a cake-walk but I finally harvested a dandy bull after over a week of hard hunting!

Post the pictures gentlemen if you like, would love to see them.
 
There is a 2nd tier unit open this year with 2 res 1 non-res tag. Been closed for several years. It's actually 1 small unit and 1 big unit. I will bet there are a couple big bulls there.
 
Thanks to all the replied and provided your input. Right now, I decided to get this done sooner than later and I will do my homework and focus on a few units starting to hopefully hunt next fall and not wait any longer. My plan is to retire next summer and if I get drawn next year, it will give me time to spend as needed to try and fill a tag if I get drawn.

Once again, appreciate all of your input. It helped me make the decision and whatever way it goes, I will at least enjoy the hunt and the scenery at the very least. I have hunted out West since the 90's and ever since the 1st time there, I have had this love affair for the Scenery and hunting experience out West.
 
Looking at draw odds, there are 2 areas we've taken moose out of that could be drawn with both of your PP. Neither is a top tier area but moose are there for the taking.
 
DH56, I'm very thankful I dropped out when they jumped up from $7. If I were you, I'd go to Alaska and kill a big bull. Like most of us on here, you're probably going to run out of health before you run out of money.
 
Your plan is a good one. I'm in same situation, but with 19 points. I put off last couple years putting in, knowing I was going to retire, which I did two months ago. More time to scout and the whole hunt off now. Hate spending the $150.00 each year and tomorrow is not guaranteed. Need to use my investment and just enjoy hunting moose in Wyoming and start planning an Alaskan moose hunt before it is to late.

Best of luck to both of you on your decision, draw and hunt.
 
Your plan is a good one. I'm in same situation, but with 19 points. I put off last couple years putting in, knowing I was going to retire, which I did two months ago. More time to scout and the whole hunt off now. Hate spending the $150.00 each year and tomorrow is not guaranteed. Need to use my investment and just enjoy hunting moose in Wyoming and start planning an Alaskan moose hunt before it is to late.

Best of luck to both of you on your decision, draw and hunt.

Enjoy Retirement and good luck on your hunt. If you get drawn let us know how you do.
 
Hunt and do it now. I would draw soon as I could if you have nothing else on the schedule. The experience and memory is worth more than the bull in the end.
 

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