antelope hunting

[Socal hunter]

I am from california.  I am looking in to going to New Mexico or arizona for antelope in fall of 2002.  Any body out there that can help me out with any info of good areas to apply for? I am not looking for a guide

 

[Fubar]

Socalhunter  I dont know about New Mexico but I have been applying for AZ antelope for 7 years. It took me 6 years to get drawn for Elk and 6 years to get drawn for deer in Kaibab. AZ only lets 10% of its tags for premium areas go to non-residents. If you really want to hunt antelope i would recommend you try Wyoming. There are lots of antelope there and the odds of getting drawn are much better. If you want to try AZ I would suggest you get a hunter safety bonus point. That will improve your odds of being drawn.                    Fubar

 

[arizona jim]

In AZ your chances to get drawn for a rifle tag are 2% - archery tag chances are about 7 to 10% depending on the area. Good units are 19A, 7,10, & 1.  They say southern AZ has some good areas but I am not familiar with the antelope areas in that part of the state. I agree with Fubar get a Hunter Ed. bonus point.

It took me 8 years & 7 bonus points to finally get drawn for antelope 2 years ago on an archery tag. Now I am starting all over again. When you get drawn you lose all of your bonus points except the hunter ed. one. If you don't get drawn you earn one.

 

[arizona jim]

In AZ your chances to get drawn for a rifle tag are 2% - archery tag chances are about 7 to 10% depending on the area. Good units are 19A, 7,10, & 1.  They say southern AZ has some good areas but I am not familiar with the antelope areas in that part of the state. I agree with Fubar get a Hunter Ed. bonus point.

It took me 8 years & 7 bonus points to finally get drawn for antelope 2 years ago on an archery tag. Now I am starting all over again. When you get drawn you lose all of your bonus points except the hunter ed. one. If you don't get drawn you earn one.

 

[Sporty]

I think I read thatwyoming is mostly private and to get an antelope you have o go on private land, but there is almost always a tresspass fee is this true?
Good luck to all,
Sporty

 

[songdog]

There's lots of public land in WY.  I've been there several times in the past for antelope.

Even the private land is relatively accessable for the asking.  Show up before the season in clean clothes with a washed truck and politely ask if you could dig a few post holes in exchange for tresspass rights and you'd be amazed at how many land owners will let you hunt.  Especially for antelope.  Locals call em goats and can't figure out why anyone would want to shoot one let alone eat one.

That is of course if you have enough time to do the pre season asking/scouting.  If not, you can still do it mid season but you might end up paying a small tresspass fee ($100).

One of the best signs I ever read was on a fence line in WY.  It said "For permission to hunt, please call xxx-xxxx".  I thought it was a joke at first.  We called and the land owner just wanted to know who was out and when and make sure we knew where the gates were.  Guys like that make you realize that there might be a light at the end of the tunnel.

He didn't ask for a thing but we (4 of us) bought him some nice gift basket type stuff and made sure we helped him move a couple of heavy things around near his ranch house before leaving.  We all sent him thank you notes and Christmas cards that year and make sure we order him a nice one of those smolked wild game packages from Cabela's each year.  A small price to pay for this and this .

(Edited by songdog at 1:10 pm on Nov. 29, 2001)

 

[hntndux]

There is lotttttssss of public land in Wyoming with good bucks.  Drawing odds for the better areas usually range between 8-15%.  It's true that your odds for a true B&C buck are better on private land, than can still be had on public land with some homework.

 

[Fubar]

I went to Wyoming in 1995. We didnt get drawn for antelope in the first draw but the Game and Fish sent us a list of leftover tags. We put in for the second draw amd were drawn. The areas we put in for were all BLM. We were drawn for deer in another area. We saw several nice deer in field and asked for permission. The rancher said no problem and even showed us some good spots. We ran into very nice people in WY. The Game and Fish will also send you a list of people who are willing to let you hunt on their property. You can call the people on the list and make plans ahead of time. This was in 95 so you might want to check this out ahead of time.            Fubar

 

[Hunterbug]

Your best bet are Wyoming and Colorado. I get drawn for antelope every year but then I apply for doe tags. For a buck tag it takes 2 or 3 years depending on where you are trying for.