I've been submitting my appl. for a Bull Hunt in the Wichita Mtns near Lawton the last 18 years. I checked today and the wait is over!!!! I was drawn for the Nov 14th hunt. Does anyone have experience with that hunt and how it's run. What are your suggestions.

Congrats! I got drawn in '98 I think.

Basically you will be divided off into groups of about 10 and be assigned an area of maybe 20-30 square miles. You can hunt anywhere in that area except they want you to return to a designated spot so they can pick you up in the evening.

Each group gets a DOW or refuge employee (guide) who may or may not be helpful in advising where to hunt and loading up your elk. The DOW employees know less, but will drive right up to your elk, while the refuge employees can tell you where to look, but won't drive off the road to help.

Bring freinds, if you can, to help with the pack out, or just ask for help from the pool of helpers who others have brought and are bored sitting around waiting for a call.

Also, be willing to stay the three whole days. For some reason that escapes me, a lot of guys went home after striking out the first or second day.

You will see a lot of great elk, have fun and remember that the refuge wants you to be sucessful.

Hey..Congrats on your elk tag!! I put in for a KY elk tag this yr...but not crossing my fingers.

Rob; I am envious. I have been putting in for me, my wife and son for 11 years. This morning I just had a feeling that this was my special day, until I checked the website. I have hunted the area you will be in for deer, but saw some huge elk. You must be doing backflips!

Be sure to give us a full report and have a super hunt.

I was amazed when I saw that I had been drawn in fact I did it again just to see it come up on the computer screen. Although I need to talk to the wildlife dept about making the letters about 10 times larger. I still only half believe it.Trophy of a lifetime here I come.

Rob

I'm jealous I have been putting in for that hunt for over 25 years and haven't hit. Could we meet for lunch so that I might touch your clothing. I could use your luck for next year.

Please post your post hunt pictures

Good Luck !!!!

I went in 1990 and had a great trip. You will like it and enjoy the people. Get a big one!!!!

After reading this post-I was hoping year 18 would be lucky for me as well. No such luck. There is always next year.

Perry

No luck for me either. I've only been putting in for the past 5 or 6 years so it looks like I have quite a while to wait. No luck on the antelope either; however, I did get a land owner permit last year for the antelope from a friend of mine. I'll be going back out there this year with a landowner antelope doe permit in my pocket though!!

Congrats on your draw!!

You DOG!!!!!!!!!! Iv been puting in for that since i was 14 or 15 ( 37 now).
So I guess we know what you are going to use

Prdator,
Yes Sir the 338-06 with either the 210 TSX or 185 TSX. Im taking my 7mm Rem as a backup. I have a good load for the 175 gr Partitions with that rifle. Took a cow elk in Colo last year with it.

Rob

You should have a great time and take a nice bull.

I drew the elk hunt in Dec. 2001 and took a bull the first morning. I had decided not to take anything smaller than a 6X6 until the last day, this was the 5th bull I saw and I killed him about 9:30.....he rough scored right at 300. I second guessed myself for shooting him, but I was hunting the 3rd hunt of the season and several bulls had been killed in my area during the previous hunts......somebody at the check station said he was the biggest bull taken so far that year, but I don't know if that is true.

I was at the check station by 11:30-12:00 and I couldn't believe the little spikes guys were killing on bull tags!!! There were guys at the road ready to quit by 9:30 of opening morning!!! Strange thing about the refuge, the success rate on bulls is about double that of cows......





Oh yeah, I grew up in Lawton, I think I started putting in for the elk hunt when I turned 18.......I was 41 when I drew the hunt! I hunted the last year before it became a once in a lifetime hunt, so I can start applying again in 2011!

I have a cousin that will be on the same hunt as you and I may go along as a helper......

Good luck!!

Gonhuntin,
Hey, I hope you can make to the hunt.

Does anyone know of any special equipment I might need. I have a Range finder and GPS. How far off the road system is the hunting??

Damn nice elk there GonHuntin!!

One of my dad's friends got drawn the first year it became a once in a lifetime hunt and decided not to go. What an idiot!! He really didn't have a reason other then 'I don't want to go'. I guess some have their reasons.

Rob1SG,

Congratulations. Not to divert your post too much, but does anyone have any experience, advice, luck with hunitng the Elk on ranches that border the preserve?

I have been offered a ranch (for lease) that borders the preserve for the Elk/Deer season, just wondering if anyone knows anything about this kind of hunt.

I have not looked at the ranch yet, but certainly will to check it out before making a dsecision.

Thanks.

Rob

You can be a mile or more off of a gravel/dirt road, depending on where you hunt. I took a new plastic tarp with plans to field dress and quarter my elk on it......as it turned out, they could get a truck within about 1/4 mile and it was mainly grass between my bull and the truck (very unusual!), so we put the bull on the tarp and pulled him to the truck so they could weigh him whole (field dressed)....I had 3 helpers and it about killed us.....took us over 2 hours to drag him 1/4 mile!!

I'd say the GPS and rangefinder are great ideas.......take a flat shooting rifle too!! I'd take a wheeled deer cart if I had one....leave it with the helpers and they can bring it in when you get your bull. Bring a good camera too!

You will likely get to see areas of the refuge that are off limits to most visitors.....you will see buffalo, longhorns and there are some HUGE whitetail bucks too.......

Graybird

Thanks, he's not bad for an Oklahoma elk! I can think of a few choice names for people who enter the hunt drawing, get drawn and then don't go......they just steal the chance from someone who REALLY wants to hunt.

Wendell,
I don't have any experience but I have read articles in the Wildlife Dept magazine that say it can be feast or famine.

Rob

Wendell,

I had an old roommate that lived around the Granite area which is west of the WMA. From what little I know, the lanowners don't really want the elk because they eat quite a bit of the crops grown in that area coupled with very little rainfall and it is a receipe for disaster. Of course you know what a decent size herd of elk can do to a crop field within a few weeks. However, having said that as Rob stated I think it can be feast or famine depending upon the area, yet there are some large numbers of elk running around outside the WMA.