Wyoming Elk Area

[spriest]

I am seeking help on what area to apply for in Wyoming next year. I only have 1 PP, so I know many areas are out of reach. I have a friend that is planning on applying as well that is an active farmer here in Ohio, so we would like either early or late season to accommodate harvest. We are not opposed to bow or rifle, and would rather do public land rather than an outfitter.

I appreciate any and all help with this.

Is it viable to apply for one of the trophy areas and a general tag for a second choice?

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Does your friend also have 1 PP? If you want to maintain your PP and go hunting this year, you could apply in the higher priced special draw for a unit that you can't draw along with buying another PP and list the general tag as your second choice and you should draw the general tag. If you want to use your 1PP, you could put in as a party in the regular PP draw for the general tag as your first choice. That draw was 100% with 1PP and with <1PP was 46.37%.

 

[spriest]

We both have 1 PP. We were thinking of entering the regular draw for a trophy area that we will probably not draw as a first choice, get another preference point, and use the general tag as our second choice. according to the website in the regular draw 1 point last year was 100%.

We are planning as applying as a party.

Are there any areas that you would recommend to apply for, or to go to should we draw a general tag?

I've been looking at the website, maps, etc. but nothing beats first hand info.

I appreciate the help

 

[MNHunter]

The key to Topgun's advice to drawing the Gen tag as a second choice is that you must do the Special draw (double the price). You will not draw a Gen tag on a second choice in the regular draw.

 

[spriest]

Thanks MNHunter, that clears it up a lot. I was thinking I could do the same thing in the regular draw.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

spriest---You WILL NOT draw the general tag as a second choice in the regular draw! If you did what you mentioned, you'd strike out and they would refund your money and you'll be sitting back at your Ohio farm this Fall. If you want to go hunting in 2012 and not spend the extra $400+ that a special draw tag costs you can draw a general tag with your 1 PP in the regular draw and then you will be at 0 PPs for 2013 because you can't hunt on a first choice tag and buy a PP in the same calendar year. If you want to hunt this year AND maintain your PPs and have 2 for the 2013 draw, then pay the extra $400+ license money, buy another PP, and apply for an impossible unit as your first choice and the general tag as your second choice. You will draw the general tag, have 2PPs for the 2013 draw, and will have until early Fall to decide amongst all the general tag units where you want to go. There would be no sense in trying to draw a LE tag with 1PP for a single unit when 1PP will draw the general tag where you can choose between a lot of different units.

Edit: I see you posted while I was typing this out. I hope this gives you a good feel now of how you will need to go about things.

 

[spriest]

Thanks Topgun. I appreciate the help. As you can tell this is our first foray into drawing tags (It's all OTC here, not much public land, but OTC tags)

We may be just applying for the general tag for this year and resetting our PP, but we will see.

Thanks again for the help and advice.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

No problem! Good luck on whatever you decide and I hope the farm does well this year!!!

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

I believe 1 point will give you a 46% shot at a {regular} general elk tag,,,100% chance at the {special }price.no chance as a second choice in the {reg} draw.

 

[spriest]

According to the Wyoming game and fish website (see link below to regular elk draw odds for 2011) in 2011 with 1 point in the regular draw there was 100% success on first choice applications and < 1 had 46.37%.

Unless I'm reading the website wrong, if we put in the regular draw with our 1 PP we should be able to draw a General Tag, Correct?

If we apply this way or through the special draw, we will probably end up with a General Tag one way or another.

Any recommendations on a General Area to Hunt?

Link to odds I have been using: http://gf.state.wy.us/web2011/Departments/Hunting/pdfs/Draw_Elk_PP_NonRes_2011.pdf


Thanks to everyone for the help and guidance here.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Dan---Please don't confuse the guy any more than he was before we got him squared away. What I posted and what he just posted are correct. 1PP is 100% draw in the reg PP drawing. The symbol < means "less than" and those would be party applications because a person always has whole points. When people apply as a party and their PPs differ, you get into fractions of a point. That is where you have to be careful because even if a party has 1.01 PPs, they will draw before someone or a party that has 1 PP because Wyoming doesn't round up or down when they avergare a partie's PPs.

 

[spriest]

Thanks Topgun. I thought I had it right, reading the website data. But, I've been wrong before

We haven't quite decided which route to apply yet, but do know we will probably end up with a general tag this year.

Any recommendations on a general area?

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

you are correct,,,46% chance at anything under 1point average.I missed the part where his buddy had a point also.

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

I am thinkin of doing the general tag also,,,does anybody out there know whitch would be some decent areas to start from? thinkin about west/central area for starters?

 

[spriest]

After much debate, and advice we have decide just to purchas PP again this year. We are gonna look at the leftover tags for cows in order to come out this year. Any advice on a good unit for this? Most seem to have some leftover every year from what I've seen.

Thanks to all for the help and advice.

 

[5Speedjim]

I would figure out where you really want to hunt bulls, and apply for the cow/calf tag(not the antlerless elk tag).that way you can hunt this year and learn the area. This way you can have a chance at a tag if their aren't leftovers. You may find the area isn't worth wasting the points on.since you didn't apply for a full price tag you can still buy a pp

 

[spriest]

We figured this option would let us hunt, collect points, learn the areas, and see if the area is worth burning points on in the future.

 

[WapitiBob]

ditto to Jim's advise.
You need to look over those type 6 tags that get left over as many are in sub areas of the unit.

 

[spriest]

Does anyone know anything about area 100? We have looked at this area as a possibility, but don't want to waste our time.

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

unit 100 will take 4 points {reg}to pull,but is supposed to be a great unit.