My intention wasn't to lobby for more non-resident tags... because I know that won't ever happen... and it certainly wasn't to bash western resident hunters. I just wanted to throw out some views on the allocation process and get some feedback from western resident hunters. I live out west now, but have also lived much of my life in the east. I think there are significant differences in what hunting opportunities are available, and this is probably a biased view since I'm on a western hunting forum, but I would take the western hunter's "plight" any day over that of a non-western hunter.
Personally I think western residents should consider themselves lucky that the states control the wildlife/tag allocations. I know you might feel like hunting opportunities are limited but you really do benefit incredibly from federally provided lands and the non-resident hunter that dumps tons of money into hunting/attempting to hunt out west. Having said that, for the vast majority of non-western resident hunters a western big game hunt is out of reach and a true trophy unit hunt is something they will only ever see on TV. As a western resident you have access to huge public lands and in almost every state the ability to draw tags on a yearly basis (I know it might not feel like that, but you do). Compare that to a lot of non-western states where access to trophy areas and not tags are the issue. Lots of midwest and eastern state hunters will never be able to hunt trophy areas for the simple fact that land is all privately owned, while as a western hunter you have that ability to hunt the best of the best in most cases. Some states you might have to play the odds, while others you simply know I will as a resident be able to hunt this trophy unit with a few years of points, obviously there are still some super super high demand areas where this is far from the case, but trophy game can be found in plenty of units and most of those uber high demand areas are that way because access and the hunting is easy. I was literally with a group of middle aged Arizona resident hunters the other day and 3 out of 5 of them had won and harvested trophy desert rams, if that doesn't make you feel lucky and blessed I can't help you!
Let's look at NM resident bull elk hunting opportunities... according to gohunt draw odds there are 11 hunts with 100% draw odds, 20 with 75% or better odds, and 50 with 50% or better odds.. and those hunt areas are spread across the state and all have plenty of public land and many are in units that could realistically provide what most would call a trophy bull. Hell even in the best areas like Gila and Cibola there are numerous hunts with 30-55% draw odds and with NM's ability to stack your hunt choices I feel like you can shoot for an incredible hunt with your first couple choices but always draw a third choice hunt that is decent. Yeah that third choice might not be in the unit you live in, but hey you are still hunting for good bulls within a few hours of where you live in all likelihood. Honestly IMO and I don't mean this as any disrespect... but if you aren't drawing as a resident you either aren't looking at draw odds, being realistic about the odds or you just don't really want to hunt that bad.
Now if a western resident hunter wants to hunt eastern game then all you need to do is fill up your truck with gas and buy around a $100 nonresident license and tags. Go to Virginia and as a non-resident for under $200 you can hunt all year and basically until you run out of ammo. That's literally the price for access to basically unlimited game (sorry you're limited to 1 Bear, 3 Turkeys and 6 Deer for that price, but hey if you want more deer tags you can get 6 more for $31) They also will give access to 2.5 million acres of state lands, national forests and wetlands for your hunting pleasure, no draw. Hell even some world class public waterfowl spots in VA, MD and NC are only about $50 in licenses away from non-residents.
Obviously there are trade-offs in hunting opportunities but I personally believe most western resident hunters have it pretty good all things considered and like Doghed said.. "Happy hunting to res and non res alike. May the hunting gods shine brightly upon you." Good luck to everyone this season.
