Anyone regret their point situation?

[MuleyFever]

Anyone regret how far down the rabbit hole they have gotten with points?

I have come to the realization that I think I would rather have not gotten to where I am but, am now in too deep to stop in a few states. I am burning 7 elk points this year on a maybe 4 point unit. Recovery from my problem is hard but its time to go hunting and not point collecting.

Maybe its because as I get older I put more value on hunting in general and less value on antlers size. I may not be the same hunter I was 10 years ago when I started putting in for western states.

 

[flyingbrass]

Arizona! I'd take my money back in a heart beat. point creep here is criminal, a waste of money but at 14 points I guess I'm still in for now

 

[ridgefire]

Once I draw my deer and elk tag here in Washington I will be done with the point game besides in Wyoming where I will hopefully be done next year..

 

[jmez]

I don't regret mine. I drew a good tag in WY this year and wasn't in real deep, 7 pts. It isn't the unit I was after when I started the points game. It is the only state I've collected them in. I'll only buy them in WY in the future to hunt general units. Though, if the creep keeps up I'll be too far behind to even make that work.

 

[Trial153]

Yes for sure. However I cant say that all money I laid out in points has in anyway taken away from my bowhunting.
I think that my expectations are now different. What I mean by that is if you asked me a 12 years ago I expected a greater return on my investment. Now I expect a diminishing return.

 

[realunlucky]

I know a bunch of guys burning tons of points in Colorado on the same units they could drawn 10 years ago. To many point collectors out there right now without a plan and you see them every year at application time --- I have a bunch of points what do I do please help. Then you have every old guy with a YouTube channel that just keeps saying you better start collecting points now! It's damn frustrating if you actually have to draw a tag to hunt.


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[lif]

I think the key to collecting/buying points, is to have a plan what to do with them before you start. If your planning on drawing a 10+ point unit and are just now starting then you are pissing into the wind. Finding those 2-4 different states you can rotate through at the 0-3 point level is the ticket in my opinion. I have 3 friends who BUY points in Nevada every year. It kills me. They don’t seem to want to understand the math I guess.

 

[Charon]

Tag.

 

[5MilesBack]

If anything I regret missing several years of points that I could/should have had. I was the opposite with trophy size. When I first started hunting, and the many years after, I'd use points for cow tags. Trophies weren't important, which is why I never applied for moose, sheep, and goat as well. Then I picked up archery and everything changed for me. I suddenly wanted to chase a bighorn sheep, moose, and goat with a bow. And I discovered how much fun chasing big bulls was during the rut. That's when I started collecting points.

I have something like 16 deer points, but deer don't excite me much for whatever reason. My elk points get used on lower tier units so I never have many of those, and sheep, moose, and goat.......I'm at the mercy of the random number generator and draw system so those are what they are.

 

[FLAK]

no regrets here, I don't have any points. I saw the writing on the wall many years ago.

 

[Blackdirt Cowboy]

Not sure what I think about this. I’m just sitting started with points, so this year I swung for the fences, hoping to draw an awesome unit in the random draw. I don’t think I’ll hold out for a 20 point unit, because my age is going to catch up to me. I’d really just like to hunt a variety of western states for the experience, and a chance to see different areas of the country. A 400” bull would be icing on the cake, but I would be just as happy with a 300” bull. All that to say that I’ll proably use my points to rotate through a few different western states every 3-5 years.

 

[timekiller13]

No regrets here, because I really don't have any points!! When I started to really get into western hunting a few years ago, I researched and realized that I was way too late in the ball game for most states. I made the decision to not throw my money into the points game. I have 3 points in Colorado for elk, deer and pronghorn, and the reason I have them is because I hunt OTC elk out there nearly every year. My intention is to keep a few points in Colorado just in case they change the unit I hunt to a draw unit. I will not keep banking points. I will burn all my points within the next year or two, then will build them back up to 3-4 points and burn again. No intentions on holding on to them for the "blue chip" units. I do not gather points in any other state. I give my my money to New Mexico, since it's all random. And I throw in for Kentucky elk, since it's a 3 hour drive from my home and all random as well. As for the "big 3" (moose, goat, sheep) I will not throw my money into those draws, because I am not waiting 30-40 years to get a tag. I will just save my money and hunt moose in Alaska and maybe one day have enough saved for a guided Dall sheep hunt. Or just move to Alaska.

It is depressing, though. Especially for someone just getting into the game. The top tier units are pretty much out of reach for a newbie, unless something drastic happens, and by drastic I mean several thousand top points holders would have to die or just get out of the game.

 

[jolemons]

I buy points in most of the western states. I see it as a charitable contribution to wildlife managment.

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[cnelk]

In the past 27 years Ive hunted Colorado units 10, 61 and this year I applied for another decent unit to use my 6 PPs.
And Ive hunted elk each and every year for longer than that.

Never a regret. I'll keep applying

 

[MtGomer]

Arizona! I'd take my money back in a heart beat. point creep here is criminal, a waste of money but at 14 points I guess I'm still in for now

Plenty of great tags to be had with less points than that.

 

[Netherman]

I'm trying to stay in the 3-5 point range. I think a lot of the higher point guys will have some major regrets if the state they have max points in dissolves the point system. I could see states going down this path as hunter recruitment continues to decline. Inability to draw tags and hunt is just one more hurdle for a new hunter.

 

[Wapiti1]

No regrets. I have points in most western states for elk, deer, sheep, goat, moose, quail, rabbit, squirrel, dove, coatimundi, and javelina. I expect to burn a few on lower point hunts here and there, but that is just how it is. I can't change it. But I do want to hunt when and where I want to the best of my ability, and I need the points to do that.

I'm about multiple quality hunts. The way I spend points gives me the opportunity to hunt great units every couple of years and get out of the more crowded units more often.

People get hung up on only applying for the best and overlook fun hunts that only take a couple of points.

Jeremy

 

[WoolyBugger]

I wasn't able to afford points in addition to tags in college, so this is my first year buying points. I guess I don't really regret anything because I don't see myself sitting on more than a few points for any species in a state. Going to try and rotate around species/states like others stated

 

[5MilesBack]

I think a lot of the higher point guys will have some major regrets if the state they have max points in dissolves the point system. I could see states going down this path as hunter recruitment continues to decline.

For Colorado there is no problem with recruitment at this time. In 2018 there were 233,164 first choice applicants.....just for elk.....and only 97,541 tags were drawn. That's quite the pipeline of applicants, and those are only elk draw numbers. I haven't even looked to see how many OTC elk tags were sold.

 

[LandYacht]

Wish I’d been applying for a point when I started archery elk in CO. Was just happy to be hunting and learning how to get close to them. Should have listened to my dad! Would be hunting 61 this year....


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