OIL options

Oneye

Active member
Joined
May 26, 2015
Messages
683
Location
Utah
So, my budget only allows for me to put in for so much, and I'd just like some opinions while I'm still young enough to start building them. I currently put in for Moose as my OIL in Utah (which may never happen at the rate it's going). I also currently apply for deer/elk/pronghorn in Colorado and Wyoming, so in Colorado I now will be purchasing their small game license every year. I'm just wondering what OIL species outside of Utah you would recommend starting to build points for. I don't really care if it's Rocky or Desert Bighorn or Mountain Goat, I'm just looking for a realistic chance to build points and draw the given species in a different state, as what my best options might be. Appreciate any input.
 
People will say its too late to start if you have 0 points. This is my first year and I'm applying for points in all states except Idaho and New Mexico. I figure it cost somewhere around $1500 a year so I cut back on things. I start to pack a lunch instead of eating out and put limits on how often the wife and I eat out for dinners. I'll eat cold bologna sandwiches everyday if it means I can apply in more states for more species.
 
Colorado points for MSG will cost you $300 per year combined. You need 3 points to have a chance which means you will have $900 invested to have a chance. The reality is you will likely never draw in CO. The $100/year fee in CO will likely cause a lot of people stop applying, so the odds will increase. I don’t think there is anywhere in the lower 48 where you are guaranteed to draw MSG in even 30-40 years, but you can’t win if you don’t play.
 
Idaho has some of the best moose opportunities and there are some random draws out there that are decent odds (or at least give you a chance). NM is a great example.
 
When I started looking into this about 7 years ago I came to the conclusion that I would not be able to get enough points at my age to ever be able to guarantee a sheep tag (I was 42 or 43 at the time I started applying).

I came to the conclusion that mountain goat would be the best option for me so I started applying in Colorado and Utah for mountain goats. I think I may have a chance to draw a Colorado mountain goat by the time I'm 60 if I am reasonably lucky.

Of course then I got lucky and drew a random Wyoming mountain goat tag just a couple years into it. I'm still applying in Colorado and Utah though.
 
Based on current odds in Utah you have a 3.4% chance of drawing at least once in 22years. Max points is around that. If you’re just starting then by the time you get to 22, max points will be around 40, and your odds of drawing once in those 22 years will have been less than 3.4%.

Because I’m applying in Utah for elk and mule deer anyway, they can have ten extra dollars for a slim chance at a moose tag, but I would not buy a license in a state just to put in for OIL unless my application budget was essentially unlimited. I haven’t checked Wyoming, but due to their convenience fee, I would put them near the bottom of the list unless their odds are a lot better, which they very well may be.

I’m not focusing on OIL species right now, so I just throw in on a few where the cost is low and I’m already applying there anyway.
 
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Exactly, you also have “a chance” in some of the other OIL tags also. Not a very good chance but a chance, which is better than no chance and having to pay for points....
Matt

Agreed. Please, non-residents Idaho is your place for OIL draw chances! Residents please, please, and pretty PLEASE (with all natural cane sugar on top) stay out of the OIL tag I’m putting in for.

Just had to say it... i’ll be quiet now.
 
Look to the eastop too, at least for moose. I have been buying points in several eastern states for very cheap for quite a few years. It is a long shot to draw but I'm still fairly young. I'll get a chance to hunt moose there if I keep buying points. The odds are low but there are less hunters on the east coast. You can't draw when you don't apply.
 
I may be missing a few places, but in general points aren’t going to get you any of the OIL type species unless you’re young or already have quite a few points, so the random component is what you’re shooting for. Maximize your odds by applying for the easier to draw hunts in as many places as you can afford. If you can’t afford them all, then I would prioritize first based on where you’re going to be getting a license anyway, and then based on the highest random odds. In the West NM and ID are your friends for sure. There’s a little bit of a random component everywhere, but if you have to pick and choose which ones to apply in, you need to focus on the ones with the highest random odds.
 

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