WY 2014

[hubba_3]

Well I just bought my bonus points, so it's got me looking forward to next season already. I now have 4 points for elk, and 3 points for deer. My brother and dad also have the same amount of points. We're looking to see what are our options...

First off is 4 elk points or 3 deer points good enough to draw a tag? We are looking to draw some of the better units. Just some units where we have a good chance to harvest some 320"+ bulls, and some 160"+ bucks. Would we be able to draw either of those with the points we have??? It doesn't HAVE to be an area where we have to pack into, but that is what we prefer to do...

We are also thinking that we may want to try to draw the deer tags next year in a unit, then for the following season (2015) we could come back and hunt that SAME area for bulls (so that we already know the unit well from the deer hunts the year before). Are there any areas that have good elk AND deer numbers that we could draw with 3 deer points, and 5 elk points?? Hopefully this all makes sense ha...

Thanks for any help! PM if you would like. Always wanted to hunt WY, but I've never been able to hunt it before so I'm not very familiar with it!

 

[mulecreek]

If you are willing to work, there are areas in Wyoming for elk and deer that you can draw with 0 or 1 point and find pretty close to the quality you are looking for. In my opinion you are wasting your time building points for either animal when you can be hunting the type of animal you are looking for darn near every year. There are precious few units in Wyoming for deer particularly that are worth building points for. Wyoming is not managed for B&C animals but rather opportunity. In my opinion you are better of hunting the same area multiple years to learn the area than you are building points. Plus you get to hunt more often.

 

[hubba_3]

Thanks for the info. Well I'll remember that once we burn our points. I guess we just built points cuz we didn't know any better. But since we are gonna have 4 elk and 3 deer points for next year are there even better units we can get? Say 350"+ bulls and 180"+ bucks?? Or would it be a few more years on those units? There's no reason to burn 4 elks points on a unit we could've drawn with 0 or 1 ya know?

 

[elkantlers]

The best thing to do is go to the Wyo web site and look at the draw odds. There you can find the units that will take the amount of points you have to draw. You can also do the special fee and in some units increase your odds significantly. some not so much.

 

[brdhuntr]

first off, i would quit buying anymore points,and use the ones youv'e got like has been said go to the WF&G website and check the draw odds.you have to have 7-8 points for 2014 to be in the trophy unit game. So you will have alooooong wait to draw. I have 5 points,and i'm going to burn them on a lesser unit next year,and get out of the points game.To answer your'e question you have enough points to draw Region G for both Deer and Elk. There are still big bucks and decent bulls,and you can hunt them a week apart if you have the time.Check out Non- Typical Outfitters website to see the caliber of animals that are still in the unit.Just my 2cents,Good Luck..

 

[hubba_3]

when you say a "lesser unit" what exactly are you talking about? 330" bulls? or like 300" or less? I dont need a unit where there are 370" bulls around every hill but a unit where i can get into some rutting bulls that are good bulls, 330" plus... now if i can do that with 4 points then thats good... if i have to wait a few more years till i have 7+ points to be able to get a unit like that, i'll do it.
and brdhuntr, all those pics on Non-Typical Outfitters from region G?

 

[accubond]

It's not as easy as waiting to get to 7 points because by then the unit your chasing will take 10. The common consensus is that if you didn't get in or near the ground floor in the points game you are simply chasing your tail. I know, I'm there with the deer and just gave up and put in for a lesser antelope unit this year. Without trying to be rude I get the feeling that you're setting yourself up for a let down with some of the numbers you're throwing around. I've been down the road of "I burned 3 points, a 160" buck should be in the bag" and its just never even close to a given. You have enough points in my opinion to start expecting a decent hunt but nothing more. If I have learned anything from playing the points game it's this, it's still hunting, their still smart as hell and absolutely nothing is guaranteed. Draw a tag sooner than later, hunt hard and cherish your trophy even its nothing more than a camping trip in God's country.

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free... it expects what never has and never will be." -Thomas Jefferson

 

[Seabear]

Did not know you can buy points now..How much to buy points,are they the same for all species? Yhanks,Hubba

 

[accubond]

You can purchase points until 9/30 and its $30 for antelope, $40 for deer, and $50 for elk. You gotta pay to play.

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free... it expects what never has and never will be." -Thomas Jefferson

 

[Seabear]

Thanks Accubond.

 

[hubba_3]

>It's not as easy as waiting
>to get to 7 points
>because by then the unit
>your chasing will take 10.
> The common consensus is
>that if you didn't get
>in or near the ground
>floor in the points game
>you are simply chasing your
>tail. I know, I'm
>there with the deer and
>just gave up and put
>in for a lesser antelope
>unit this year. Without
>trying to be rude I
>get the feeling that you're
>setting yourself up for a
>let down with some of
>the numbers you're throwing around.
> I've been down the
>road of "I burned 3
>points, a 160" buck should
>be in the bag" and
>its just never even close
>to a given. You
>have enough points in my
>opinion to start expecting a
>decent hunt but nothing more.
> If I have learned
>anything from playing the points
>game it's this, it's still
>hunting, their still smart as
>hell and absolutely nothing is
>guaranteed. Draw a tag
>sooner than later, hunt hard
>and cherish your trophy even
>its nothing more than a
>camping trip in God's country.
>
>
>"If a nation expects to be
>ignorant and free... it
>expects what never has and
>never will be." -Thomas
>Jefferson


Thanks for the info... i'm not really a "score" type of guy. I'm just throwing those numbers out there to give you guys an idea of what type of hunt I would like... I say 160"+ buck, but realistically I would shoot something smaller than that... Im from NV and its just a long ways to drive clear up to Wyoming for a so-so hunt where I hunt hard for 7 days and only see 2 deer ya know. I don't need the top units to hunt, and I don't want to wait 10 years to be able to hunt either. All I really would like is an area in some awesome country where there are enough animals to give me a chance to kill something that would make it worth the drive.. I'm also planning on archery hunting both deer and elk so idk if that changes any of your opinions???
And I know that it doesnt matter if you have the best tag in the world, that doesn't mean you are going to kill a monster... it requires time and hard work. I'm willing to work and do everything that I can to get a buck or bull, but I need a unit that will give me the opportunity to be able to do it...

 

[nontypical]

Apply for region G for deer. You have the points to draw, and the quality you seek is there if you hunt hard. You should also be able to draw elk as well. 300+ class bulls live there, with the possibility of 350+ class. Lots of elk in the Wyoming Range. This is the hunt you're looking for. Did you happen to look at the elk on Non-Typical Outfitters website? Same country.

 

[hubba_3]

Well technically I haven't bought my points yet. My brother did but I didn't. Could I draw region g with just 2 points or would be be safer to just get another point??
The Wyoming Range is in Region G right? I'm not really wanting to draw WY elk and deer the same year either so I can just focus on one species instead of going back and forth between the two.
And ya I checked out non typ outfitters. All that is from region G right?

 

[30Hart]

LAST EDITED ON Sep-23-13 AT 11:48AM (MST)[p]+1 to hunting a unit every or every other year to meet your requirements.

 

[hubba_3]

Well we've decided to do Region G next year and we'll see how it goes. Do you guys think the hunting is better during the archery season, beginning of the rifle season, or towards the end of the rifle season??

 

[nontypical]

Not sure if NTO guides in H as well, but he might. It's genetically all the same, really. Seems like H has the steeper country, generally speaking. Hunting is best whenever you can go.

 

[mulecreek]

The archery hunt can be very enjoyable. The opening few days of rifle can be miserable. Many hunters, all scoping the high country. I wait till the end, it is more enjoyable for me. To each his own I suppose.

 

[hubba_3]

Thanks. We'll right now we're sitting on Region G with 3 points (should be guaranteed) and we are also going for CO unit 55 or 54 archery muleys(which should also be guaranteed). This is gonna be a tough decision. We are hunting WY for sure... but not sure if we are gonna do archery in Region G and put CO on hold for another year. Or if we hunt Region G rifle, we can hunt CO archery too...

decisions...decisions...

If the Region G rifle hunt is VERY tough, it may just be best to put CO on hold, and plan on Region G archery...

 

[norcalhunter]

Why not hunt archery for 4-5 days than switch to rifle Sep 15th if you don't tag out? It will be like scouting with a bow in hand for your rifle hunt. I don't think it is guaranteed with 3 points, more like 60% this year.

 

[nfh]

what I usually tell non-residents is look into the bighorns.

No wilderness = no guide. No grizzly bears to deal with.

Plenty of elk and deer. No problem of getting a 160 class muley. just need to spend a little scouting time. couple of days of that will get ya far.

For elk there is a lot of bulls. I would go in expecting a bull 280-340. Anything over 340 is pushing it. But yes there is bigger bulls. I am basing my info on what I see on up on the bighorns and what most people shoot.

Biggest ticket is get off the road. So many roads on the bighorns and that makes it easy to road hunt for people. Hike a mile off the road and you start seeing animals.

 

[hubba_3]

thanks for the input fellas. NFH do you know where I could see some pictures of bucks/bulls taken off the Bighorns? I'd like to see some!

 

[nfh]

Try this link out in a month or 2 when people start to send in their pictures. Just a Wyoming hunting website to share hunting photos. Go back to the 2012 and previous hunting years hunting galleries. You will find some bighorn mountain animals. Some people will just say like area 38 for elk so have a map handy so ya have an idea where it came from


http://www.wyomingoutdoorsradio.com/pid/71/hunting-gallery-2013.aspx