Wyoming non res antelope help

[dclv50]

I am planning an antelope hunt for 2020 season. I was wondering what are the best areas for non-res to put in for with 1 preference point and a decent amount of public land. I would also like to put in for a deer tag and hunt the same area at the same time. Wyoming's website is a little confusing so I figured I'd ask here. Thanks.

 

[Bigjay73]

After this years draw, who the hell knows. wyoming has become extremely popular seemingly overnight. Gimmie tags are a thing if the past. My best answer would be to download the draw recap and go through the hunt planner. There's no guarantee that 1 point units this year wont be 2 point units next year unfortunately. I personally would stick with the special draw with 1 point, but its hasn't been a necessity in the past.

 

[manitou1]

Not many folks will surrender the areas they researched and studied for weeks, months or years. The WGF website will tell you what you need on draw odds (from this year... an anomoly, and years past). Then seek out public access. Find some easier draw areas with public land, get in touch with the local road dept guys and game warden in that area. Mark the public roads on your maps that you should have... or make a list of them and study them on ONX, which you should have also.
Good luck to you. It isn't rocket science and can be a little intimidating, but is actually not that hard after you do it once.
Like stated above, SOMETHING happened this year whereas the 100% draw units were inundated with folks cashing in points. The price hike, the additional processing fee, who knows. Folks that drew their tags this year had more luck on their side than what was previously required.

 

[Rmauch20]

As others have stated go back and look at the draw odds 2015-2018. I would skip 2019 odds, it was crazy town. Units that used to have leftover tags or maybe had a 50/50 chance of picking up as your third choice had 2-3 times the first choice applicants. I really hope 2019 is not the new normal.
You’re more than likely going to have to look at the eastern half of the state.

 

[JWP58]

I am planning an antelope hunt for 2020 season. I was wondering what are the best areas for non-res to put in for with 1 preference point and a decent amount of public land. I would also like to put in for a deer tag and hunt the same area at the same time. Wyoming's website is a little confusing so I figured I'd ask here. Thanks.

Shit areas with terrible access. Ok that's a little sarcasm, but a little truth. These are the hay day of people wanting to hunt vs. tags available to hunt.

Feel free to PM me for advice on specific areas, as airing info on a public forum isn't wise if you want to draw.

 

[Fishforfun]

As others have stated go back and look at the draw odds 2015-2018. I would skip 2019 odds, it was crazy town. Units that used to have leftover tags or maybe had a 50/50 chance of picking up as your third choice had 2-3 times the first choice applicants. I really hope 2019 is not the new normal.
You’re more than likely going to have to look at the eastern half of the state.

I think 2019 is the new norm. 2020 will be tell tale but I believe that is the new norm.

 

[manitou1]

I hope you are wrong, but I fear you may be right.

 

[Fishforfun]

I hope you are wrong, but I fear you may be right.

The availability of tags and animals is going to make antelope in WY tough for the next few years. People have realized they can drive 15-20hours, hunt for 48-72 hours and come home with multiple animals for less than $1000. I love these forums and FB but I hate to admit they are giving people the confidence to do these hunts they used to think we’re out of reach. Just need to work a bit harder and get the less sought after -2 tags and secure places to hunt.

 

[bobbyghunts]

I’ve been going to Wyoming since I was 4 years old that’s 41 years. I’ve hunted in prolly 10 different areas over the years. Only 3 of those areas were in areas that had a lot of Public lands. We would just pick an area and show up 3 days early find the BLM and hunt. We have never came home empty handed just go do it. Get maps for the unit you are going to hunt have a gps and go learn an area.

 

[archp625]

I hope this helps you out, I would go on the Wyoming game and fish website and look up draw odds for this year. Get all the data and put in an excel spreadsheet. Next sort the data for units that needed 0 or 1 point this year to draw. Once you sort the data, take the rest of the units and delete the info. Don't even look at it. One caveat is you need to figure out if you want to pay for the normal tag or the special tag. This would make you have two data sheets.

Next, once you know the units you can potentially draw, start looking at amount of public land. After that, get on onX or something similar and look for units with big chucks. some have a lot of public land but its hard to access it.

This has been my approach and has worked out so far. Good luck. Once you get going it will all start coming together.

 

[Mike Islander]

Newbie question: What are you learning from the draw odds? Are you comparing odds vs. points? Do you then only target 70% or higher with 1 point, or some variation of that, or are you checking for 100% odds with one point?

 

[Bigjay73]

Im looking for any units that I can draw with however many points I have. I look for 80% or higher success rates. I'll also look at the odds over a period of a few years to get a better feel for the current years odds will be. It sounds like a lot, but doing the research can be a lot of fun once you figure everything out.

 

[Fishforfun]

Newbie question: What are you learning from the draw odds? Are you comparing odds vs. points? Do you then only target 70% or higher with 1 point, or some variation of that, or are you checking for 100% odds with one point?

Yes...to answer your questions. Historical points required can help plan for future hunts. 2019 was an anomaly from previous years. Many units that could be drawn on 100% odds as a second choice were now not 100% as a first choice. It’s supply and demand. The state sets the supply and the points required shows the demand. I, along with many other have been using a strategy that allows you to hunt every year while still accruing points to hopefully one day hunt a trophy unit. 2019 draw kind of blew up that strategy.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Dont discount leftover draw and OTC tags. Non resident left over doe tag is 34 bucks... They may not be in the best unit with the most public land but it beats sitting on the couch. YMMV

 

[Fishforfun]

Dont discount leftover draw and OTC tags. Non resident left over doe tag is 34 bucks... They may not be in the best unit with the most public land but it beats sitting on the couch. YMMV

That used to work, but this year I think there were only a few units in the left over draw and most were -2 tags.

 

[ClearCreek]

Just a note of caution. Be careful using OnX maps when you are trying to figure out if you can get access to public lands. You can not tell from looking at OnX maps if the road you are seeing on the map is a public road that hunters can use. Just because OnX shows what appears to be a road it can be either a private road or there may not be a road there at all (this happened a few years ago in the Black Hills of WY; OnX maps were showing something like 23 roads or road segments that did not exist on the ground).

ClearCreek

 

[Sccritterkiller]

That used to work, but this year I think there were only a few units in the left over draw and most were -2 tags.

Worked this year too..I snagged type 6 tags to go with the type 1 tag I drew.

 

[NoWiser]

As others have stated go back and look at the draw odds 2015-2018. I would skip 2019 odds, it was crazy town. Units that used to have leftover tags or maybe had a 50/50 chance of picking up as your third choice had 2-3 times the first choice applicants. I really hope 2019 is not the new normal.
You’re more than likely going to have to look at the eastern half of the state.

I'd actually skip the 2015-2018 odds and go by the 2019 odds. 2019 odds will look good compared to 2020 odds. It's not going to get any better anytime soon. A year like 2019 leaves a lot of people 1 point richer and itching to hunt. A massive increase in tag numbers is about the only thing that's going to slow down point creep and if that happens, those eastern units will be so full of hunters on the limited public lands that it won't be worth the drive. It's the sad reality.

 

[menhaden_man]

Send me a message and I'll let you know where we've done well (and not). I've also got a spreadsheet with all the data compiled that I don't mind sharing. I'd also take a hard look at calling landowners and paying a trespass fee. The state used to provide a list to hunters but stopped doing it a few years back (I believe it was because the ranchers were getting inundated with calls).

This website is also pretty slick for eyeballing some areas (although odds are changing):

DIY Hunting Maps

DIY Hunting Maps

diyhuntingmaps.com

The guys are right that it's getting tougher, but we've still whacked a dozen plus goats in the last five years.

 

[dclv50]

Thanks ill send you a message but I'm a new member so ill have to wait until next week first. I guess you have to wait a week to be able to send messages