WY Opener Dates - need to be there on the opener?

[TheViking]

Looking to drop a few points on a WY rifle tag this year. Season date starts on October 1st, which is a Tuesday.

I am doing a big elk trip in September which will eat a lot of PTO, plus more trips later in the fall.

I am hoping to just go up Thursday night and hunt a long weekend (about a 5hr drive from CO).

Am I going to be missing out by not being there the first few days of season? Not overly familiar with public land antelope hunting, but I hear it can be a war zone.

 

[MuleyFever]

Missing out on what?

 

[TheViking]

Missing out on what?

All the good goats getting whacked!!

 

[wapitibob]

There won't be anything left on day 2 except 10" bucks. I'm sure of it, mostly.

 

[wytx]

Opening days can be a zoo but Tuesday would probably be mostly NRs out and about and a few residents with a good buck spotted.
Opening weekend may be very busy, but lots of so so bucks will get taken leaving mature bucks for later in season.

Haven't hunted an opening day in years and still take mature bucks every year.

 

[jbelz]

Opening day will be like the Battle of Gettysburg. If you can get there before opening day, find a good buck, camp out on him and dust him first thing in the morning of the opener, great. If not, you'll probably want some time to hunt a little harder. All of the good bucks within 200 yards of the road will either be dead or on a ranch.

 

[Kurts86]

I’ve hunted openers and I’ve hunted later in the season and I’ll just say it’s different. I think the obvious bucks get killed on the opener, mostly the bucks living near a drivable blm road. I think a fair number of bigger bucks survive because they hang out in hidey holes or on the edge of private.

I would be more willing to hunt later in the season if it’s a unit I have hunted before or generally know the off the beaten path places to find pressured pronghorn. I don’t think it holds up quite as well in a new unit or for a less experienced pronghorn hunter. If I was new or had a lot of points tied up my preference it to show up a few days early, scout bucks and kill them opening day.

My later season experiences have typically yielded more fun stalks and more effort per pronghorn killed. That isn’t to say it was hard because honestly it’s still an 80% success hunt. You don’t get busted at 800 yards on opening day, you definitely can a month into the season.

 

[TheViking]

Appreciate the responses.

I am an experienced hunter, but not an experienced prong hunter. I think I will go up Thursday afternoon, hunt Friday - Sun with the potential for Monday. I'm not going to be super picky, but won't shoot a dink either. I will always have the following weekend as well if needed. I expect pressure, and most likely that opening wknd will be busy, but that's just hunting!

 

[cnelk]

I using my 6 PPs in Wyo this year - and I don’t even know when the opener is.

 

[sndmn11]

Appreciate the responses.

I am an experienced hunter, but not an experienced prong hunter. I think I will go up Thursday afternoon, hunt Friday - Sun with the potential for Monday. I'm not going to be super picky, but won't shoot a dink either. I will always have the following weekend as well if needed. I expect pressure, and most likely that opening wknd will be busy, but that's just hunting!

 

[TheViking]

I using my 6 PPs in Wyo this year - and I don’t even know when the opener is.

Some units actually have different dates. Some rifles open in September, most are Oct 1 and I saw a few what are Oct 5....

 

[TheViking]

View attachment 688946

Would love to have you tag along! You're 1000x more versed in judging them than I am!

 

[cnelk]

Some units actually have different dates. Some rifles open in September, most are Oct 1 and I saw a few what are Oct 5....

My point is I’ll get there when I get there.

 

[RyanT26]

I’ve only been to opening day/weekend antelope hunt in Wyoming. Never again.

 

[CBar]

Opening day for rifle antelope is entirely what you make of it. Stick to the roads and you’ll see what you’d imagine - people riding all over in trucks and side by sides, sometimes making ethical shots and sometimes blazing away at running bucks.

Hike a mile or two away from the roads / trails, and the people thin out quick. I used to hunt the opener as a resident every time I drew, and harvested decent bucks by just walking further into the public land. More effort hopefully will yield a more positive, peaceful experience. Now, if you can wait a few weeks, there are fewer strong age class bucks but significantly less pressure. Have a great hunt either way!

 

[Hoffy]

The importance of opening day can also depend on how many tags are being given out in your unit, especially with the droughts of the last 20 years really knocking the tag numbers down in most places. Are you hunting a unit with hundreds of square miles of public land with only a few tags? Opening day won't matter much. Or are you hunting a mostly private unit with lots of tags and local hunters? In that case, you probably want to be there before all the antelope have figured out what happens when vehicles stop or people start walking around on the prairie.

I used to hunt wide open units, and we would hunt weeks after the opener without any difference. Now that we have to go to less optimal units to still get tags most years, we are always out on opening morning, and we try to get things taken care of as quickly as possible, since the antelope are already far more skittish by day 2. If you're hunting a unit that takes 6 preference points, you're probably fine to go a couple days late.

 

[Scorpion]

I’ve hunted antelope with a rifle twice, both times we spent the first 3-5 days hunting mule deer in a different part of the unit.

I was able to take two nice bucks, but all the big ones close to roads with BLM access were smoked or at least harassed. They get pretty skittish after the firing squads have their way with them.

Hunted deer only another time during the second week of the season and there were only a few hunters and the antelope were herded up pretty good.

If you can’t make the opener I’d focus on e-scouting areas of the unit that can get you 1/2-1 mile away from access roads. That will get you away from at least 80-90% of the hunters in most cases.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I've had really good luck skipping the opener and hunting later. Still seen and killed some nice bucks on those trips. Much more enjoyable experience imo.

 

[Rich M]

It all depends on the unit you hunt. Some places don't have places where you can walk a mile or two back on public.

You can go a couple weeks after opener and still kill a buck. It all depends on what you are willing to kill.