Dream Hunt A Decade Away

[tjmurphy]

Wanting to play a do-it-yourself elk hunt with possible mule deer combo. Never elk hunted before and due to family, work and financial commitments, this hunt would be ten years out. So my question is, if you had to wait ten years to draw a tag or build prefrence points, what hunt would you recommend? I bow, muzzle load and rifle hunt. What is the cheapest way to apply over that time period? I'm open for any and all suggestions or a point in the right direction. Not looking for any secrets or shortcuts, planning hunts is half the fun to me. Please keep in mind that my budget, like most these days, is limited. I'm from Florida so I also plan on saving vaction time because if I'm going to wait ten years, I'm going to try to at least spend a month out west. Thank you for your time and thoughts.
T.J.

 

[belly-deep]

You can't plan 10 years out cheaply...it just won't happen.

Most guys that are building points and looking ten years ahead are taking a shotgun approach, knowing that a few of the states they are applying for will be worth burning 10 points on and few won't. They'll either eat the $$ spent on applications in those states or keep applying until there is a tag worth their points. But nobody is staking an all-or-nothing on a 10-point unit 10 years away. You just can't predict hunting that far ahead. In year 9, a terrible winter could come through and leave you empty handed.

The good news is, you can hunt deer and elk in fair to good units in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho with few or no points. You won't have to spend $$ on applications until you are a year or two out from your hunt and you'll be able to plan accordingly.

 

[Terry aka Coydog]

very much agree with belly deep.

 

[mdunc8]

I'm new to hunting out here and I have only hunted Montana, so I'm not too familiar with all the logistics of applying for most other states. I do know in Montana you can't buy a preference point like you can in other states such as Colorado. However, I think the guys made a great point in their previous posts. Ten years is quite a ways out. Just look at what's happened in western Montana the last decade. Some of the sections around Yellowstone were full of big bulls and now it's tough to find one in many areas. There's potential for wolf distribution to continue expanding into other states, which may lead to drastic changes in elk populations in other states too. If that does happen, the far southwest states (New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah) may be your safest bets. Conversely, if management hunts are allowed in the next few years, things may take a turn for the better in many areas of Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho that are currently up to their ears in wolves.

Check out the resources link above, which will give you all the information you need for the drawing process in each state. I know a lot of guys look at the B&C or P&Y websites to gauge the potential for trophy bulls. Having never hunted elk before your idea of a trophy may be significantly different than some of the guys on here (like Big Fin who seems to be dropping giant animals every few days this year).