What Western state hunts are fun as an Oregon guy?

[UpSideDown]

As an Oregon resident I can always hunt deer and elk localy, either with a draw tag in the East of the state, or with an OTC tag in the dense western forests. I enjoy hunting Oregon but I also enjoy traveling and I love the western states. Are there any good deer or elk hunts in Idaho, Montana or Wyoming that are reasonable to get into as a non-resident? I'm not looking at 6-10+ points to pull a tag kind of thing, though if there's some of those I should save for for a lifetime hunt opportunity in a decade I'd love to know. I'm more interested in knowing if guys are familiar with what seasons I can grab a tag for that don't overlap with the Oregon seasons.

Yeah, I'm another out of state hunter, but I would take a local Oregon hunt over an out of state hunt if the dates overlapped, and I'm open to going to less pressured areas. I like to hike and don't mind having a spike camp. What say you guys?

 

[CObywayofUSAF]

I can tell you for sure, Colorado has some really solid hunts you can do archery or muzzleloader in 4-5 years.

 

[BigTimber56]

Going to be tough sledding for a couple of things here.

1) With how popular western hunting has gotten everyone is going to be pretty tight lipped about "good and reasonable" out of state hunts. The boat has sailed about that by about 15-20 years on forums. Guys do not want to give info up that will put them out and rightfully so.

2) With those states you listed you should look into their opportunities for OTC and drawings. Get to know how they operate for nonresidents. Idaho is "first come, first serve" Dec. 1. Its a glorified lottery. Just drawing the General nonres tag in Wyoming is now requiring 4+ points. Point creep has ramped up wildly. Montana has a general elk tag that you may draw the first year or the third. There are several companies, IE GoHunt, that do that work for you, should you not want to take the time and energy to figure it out.

3) With the amount of individuals that have been stockpiling points there are way more point holders than tags for premium draw hunts. Some states you may get lucky as they aren't true preference points. Most others you will be at the bottom with no chance of catching up.

Best of luck. Its a dog eat dog world.

 

[Tmac]

I’ve yet to find a western state I could hunt that was not fun. I’ve hunted a bunch of them. I tend to look for places I can hunt often, at least 2-3 times over a 5 year period at a minimum. Had my best results that way vs so called top end units you are in once. Good luck.