New member - Looking for advice on 1st antelope hunt

[Zzz13]

I'm from Texas and plan on going on first antelope hunt this year in WY. My buddy and I have 4 points and it looks like we should be able to draw a decent unit from my research on gohunt.
Just looking for any advice related to hunting strategy or gear.
I plan on taking my 7mm and have a pair of 10x42 binos.

 

[CougarBlue]

Check out this post. Lost of good info to get you started.

If you're hunting out of a blind, the 10x42 might work OK. Pronghorn country is HUGE country. I personally prefer something with more legs.

 

[Laramie]

I'm from Texas and plan on going on first antelope hunt this year in WY. My buddy and I have 4 points and it looks like we should be able to draw a decent unit from my research on gohunt.
Just looking for any advice related to hunting strategy or gear.
I plan on taking my 7mm and have a pair of 10x42 binos.

First advice I can offer is to verify the draw odds on the WG&F website. From my experience, Gohunt is not accurate. Keep in mind, there is no way to determine the actual odds for the upcoming drawing because there is no way to know how many will apply. Also take into consideration, there will be approximately 7000 fewer tags in the drawings this year and likely more applicants in the pool due to 90/10 discussions for the future. I wouldn't be surprised to see middle of the pack hunt areas increase 2+ points this year.

10x42 binos will work fine if you are just looking to shoot a representative buck for the area and are just using them to identify animals. In that case find a buck with prongs above the ears that looks like it has a pretty black face- it will be a decent buck.

If you plan to trophy hunt, I recommend your 10x42s, or better, and a decent spotting scope. Spend a lot of time researching field judging antelope and then arrive to the area a couple days early so you can scout and practice judging. Find a big one and be on him at legal light on opening day. You will likely have competition...

You should also research meat care for antelope. They are fantastic table fare if properly cared for. Biggest key is to get them clean and cool fast. I recommend having a good sized cooler and ice to quarter then into within an hour of the kill if possible. I aim for under 30 minutes in warm weather.

Good luck and please don't be one of those guys that posts once for advice and bails.

 

[Zzz13]

Check out this post. Lost of good info to get you started.

If you're hunting out of a blind, the 10x42 might work OK. Pronghorn country is HUGE country. I personally prefer something with more legs.

Thanks for the responses, I'll definitely read that thread.

 

[Zzz13]

First advice I can offer is to verify the draw odds on the WG&F website. From my experience, Gohunt is not accurate. Keep in mind, there is no way to determine the actual odds for the upcoming drawing because there is no way to know how many will apply. Also take into consideration, there will be approximately 7000 fewer tags in the drawings this year and likely more applicants in the pool due to 90/10 discussions for the future. I wouldn't be surprised to see middle of the pack hunt areas increase 2+ points this year.

10x42 binos will work fine if you are just looking to shoot a representative buck for the area and are just using them to identify animals. In that case find a buck with prongs above the ears that looks like it has a pretty black face- it will be a decent buck.

If you plan to trophy hunt, I recommend your 10x42s, or better, and a decent spotting scope. Spend a lot of time researching field judging antelope and then arrive to the area a couple days early so you can scout and practice judging. Find a big one and be on him at legal light on opening day. You will likely have competition...

You should also research meat care for antelope. They are fantastic table fare if properly cared for. Biggest key is to get them clean and cool fast. I recommend having a good sized cooler and ice to quarter then into within an hour of the kill if possible. I aim for under 30 minutes in warm weather.

Good luck and please don't be one of those guys that posts once for advice and bails.

Thanks for the long response. Good point on the on draw odds, I'll do some more research on that end. I am just looking for a representative buck for the area.

Would you suggest investing in binos with a larger magnification or it better to just invest in a good spotting scope?

 

[Laramie]

Thanks for the long response. Good point on the on draw odds, I'll do some more research on that end. I am just looking for a representative buck for the area.

Would you suggest investing in binos with a larger magnification or it better to just invest in a good spotting scope?

I have guided many antelope hunts and felt comfortable with 10x42s. I honestly hate looking through 12x-15x binos for any length of time. If you are just looking for a decent buck, 10x42 are all you need in my opinion. The spotting scope really comes into play when you are trying to decide mass, prong length, or if you are trying to look at animals over .5 mile away. If you decide to go with a spotting scope, don't feel like you have to spend thousands. Mine is under $500 and works very well.

 

[Spence14]

Whether its a scouting trip beforehand or the first day of your trip, cover as much ground as possible in your unit. Preferably with your vehicle around sun up/sun down with glass. You can dial in where you are seeing most of the goats and spend more time there.

 

[Zzz13]

I have guided many antelope hunts and felt comfortable with 10x42s. I honestly hate looking through 12x-15x binos for any length of time. If you are just looking for a decent buck, 10x42 are all you need in my opinion. The spotting scope really comes into play when you are trying to decide mass, prong length, or if you are trying to look at animals over .5 mile away. If you decide to go with a spotting scope, don't feel like you have to spend thousands. Mine is under $500 and works very well.

Thanks again. Good to know on the spotting scopes, prices were a little eye opening at first.

 

[Zzz13]

Whether its a scouting trip beforehand or the first day of your trip, cover as much ground as possible in your unit. Preferably with your vehicle around sun up/sun down with glass. You can dial in where you are seeing most of the goats and spend more time there.

Thanks. We definitely plan to scout for at least a day. Is it worth it to wait and go during the week after opening day?

 

[Rich M]

Not sure what thread he mentioned but you need to ready the "Beyond the Thunderdome" thread. That was pretty much what I experienced. A 4 point unit should be better, but you never know.

The 10x42 binocs are fine. 7mm rifle is fine - just be able to hit with it.

If you are worried about trophy hunting, sure bring a spotter. Antelope are very easy to spot, measuring inches of horn is diff.

I too, am trying to draw this year.
Will most likely be done hunting an hour after sunup on opening day.

Don't overthink it - antelope hunting is a lot of fun.

 

[Zzz13]

Not sure what thread he mentioned but you need to ready the "Beyond the Thunderdome" thread. That was pretty much what I experienced. A 4 point unit should be better, but you never know.

The 10x42 binocs are fine. 7mm rifle is fine - just be able to hit with it.

If you are worried about trophy hunting, sure bring a spotter. Antelope are very easy to spot, measuring inches of horn is diff.

I too, am trying to draw this year.
Will most likely be done hunting an hour after sunup on opening day.

Don't overthink it - antelope hunting is a lot of fun.

Thanks, I'll look for that thread. Not really trophy hunting, just trying to have fun and try something new.

 

[baz77]

best advice I can give is don't shoot the first one you see....lol. Like the others said its antelope hunting don't over think it.

 

[Spence14]

Thanks. We definitely plan to scout for at least a day. Is it worth it to wait and go during the week after opening day?

For the hunt? I think that is up for different opinion that could go either way.

If you mean for a scouting trip, I personally wouldn't take a dedicated scouting trip from Texas to Wyoming for antelope. They're out there and you will find them when you go on your hunt.

 

[Ajax2744]

Unless you really like looking at antelope I wouldn’t spend the time to do a pre season scouting trip. Antelope are easy to find and you can cover a lot of ground the first day and probably glass’s lot of your hunting area. And if your not picky it’s not hard to fill a tag on opening morning

 

[Zzz13]

Yeah, not planning on a pre season.