Wyoming Application Question

[devinandmissy]

I am applying for antelope this year, I have one preference point and want to keep collecting points. My question is if I dont draw my first hunt how does the second choice work? Do points play a role there? I am looking at the drawing odds report for the preference points and they dont list second choice. If I dont draw my first choice am I put in the random draw for my second and thrid choice? I would like to collect points and be able to hunt as well. Thanks

[Snake River Marksman]

If you don't draw your first choice, your points don't get used and you gain another point towards next year. Also, points don't go towards doe tags so you can apply for doe tags in your first choice area and hunt does there and use it as scouting for the time when you eventually do draw that area. For your second choice area, choose a unit that has higher odds of drawing with lots of public land. Or just buy over the counter tags after the season starts in some of those areas that aren't maxed out and have place you can hunt.

[devinandmissy]

Ok, I am going to apply for my first choice on a tag that I wont draw so I can get a point for next year, I would still like to draw an either sex antelope tag, how do I research which area to apply? I live in omaha so south eastern wyoming would be ideal but not mandatory, also I will most likely only be able to hunt the second week in october. Thanks

[Snake River Marksman]

Purchase the Delorme atlas and gazetteer map of wyoming. It shows public land pretty well as well as the roads that traverse the area. It's far from perfect, but it gives you enough data to plan a hunt area off of. Once you get your tags, you should get the actual BLM Maps.

From the game and fish website, get the description of each hunt areas boundaries In the vicinity you think you'd like to hunt and draw them on the map. Now you can determine how much public land is in each area. There are other websites that have the hunt areas overlayed but I don't have them on this computer and won't be back to the office till Tuesday. Hopefully someone else will chime in as well.

Now go back to your draw odds. Anything with really good odds that has a fair amount of public land is where you should apply. Don't forget to look at the hunter management areas and the PLPW areas.

I start to worry about the weather starting the second week of October. As often as not a big storm that is either a blizzard or just rain moves across the state sometime around then and once it does, the prairie gets to be impassable for a couple of days or more. You'll be forced to hunt from the paved roads and that is a significant disadvantage. It can be done, I've done it and we had a great time but it's better when the prairie is dry and you can move around more easily.