My 25 year old son and I are thinking of some sort of western U.S. do it yourself hunt next year. I'm leaning towards some sort of semi-guided hunt, but he wants us to do it ourselves. Any thoughts?
Jeff

Lots of places to go where you don't need a guide. I'd suggest an antelope hunt in Wyoming - they're abundant and fairly easy to get. Draw odds are good as well, and you have a good chance of getting a left-over permit, if you don't draw first time.

Anther possibility is a whitetail deer hunt in Northeastern Wyoming - lots of permits and many deer.

If you happen to draw a Area 100 Wyoming elk, it's a guarantee you'll get a nice bull. Unfortunately, getting a tag is touch, but worth a try. You won't need a guide.

Regards, AIU

You could definitely accomplish a DIY pronghorn antelope hunt in Wyoming. Look to the eastern edge of the state for undersubscribed units -- meaning units with more permits allocated than hunters applying for those units. Units 23, 24, 26, 29, and 7 are all examples of such undersubscribed units, but I'm sure there are others. Note that there are also ample numbers of pronghorn in these specific units, but maybe not the biggest heads. If you are seeking an above average head, other considerations are involved about which I am not informed and cannot advise you on.

You can pay a trespass fee to hunt on private land. To find out about this, call the field office of the Wyoming Department of Wildlife closest to your hunting area -- such as Buffalo, Wyoming for units 23 and 24 -- and ask for a list of land owners that accept trespass fees. Look through the list and begin calling folks up. Call several people, because you will find the deals and circumstances will be quite different from one rancher to the next. Ask about how many others will be sharing the land at the same time. Ask about how big the ranch is. If you are interested, ask if you can camp on their land. I paid a trespass fee of $100/gun for three days of hunting my first trip to Wyoming to hunt pronghorn.

Alternatively, you can hunt on public land. You can get a Bureau of Land Management (BLM)map that identifies the public lands (state lands, national grassland lands, or Bankhead-Jones lands -- all public and open to the public for hunting) and how you access those lands. Be advised that you may not be able to drive across private roads to access public lands, so take note of what roads may be used to access the desired public lands.

Hunter success for pronghorn is about 90% to 95%: pretty much everyone who shows up with a rifle and cartridges takes a pronghorn. It is not like deer hunting: you don't have to be on the hunting ground before first light. The pronghorn stay out all day long and don't run and hide when the sun comes up. Thus, you can have a leisurely breakfast at your hotel, plus an extra cup of coffee, and drive out to your hunting ground and start hunting at 9:30 AM. There is no advantage to hunting at 7:30 AM versus hunting at high noon: the pronghorn will be out there all day long. Have a plan in place for taking care of your pronghorn meat. When well handled -- killed cleanly, not shot after they have been running, field dressed promptly, cooled off promptly -- pronghorn are excellent eating. I have read a recommendation that you take a couple of bags of ice on a hunting trip and when you get your pronghorn, field dress the beast and promptly put the two bags of ice in the body cavity to begin cooling the meat down. Skinning promptly is a good idea also, as the skin and hair of pronghorn are very effective insulators and promote the retention of body heat. Pronghorn can smell pretty strongly, so have a tarp to lay on the floor of your SUV if you are using an SUV.

DYI is easily done any where in Mt for elk, whitetail,mulie, speed goats, black bear, ect.. lots of public land and block management available. A good place to start is to contact Mt fish And game. I think that you can find them at FWP.MT.GOV they can send you a lot of info

I would agree and look at Wyoming antelope. Most of the time the hardest part of hunting "out west" is drawing the tag. If you haven't been building preference points, antelope would be your best best. You could do a deer hunt but even in Northeast Wyoming, places that have tags or good draw odds have very tough access.

ddj

quote:

Originally posted by Ackley Improved User:
Lots of places to go where you don't need a guide. I'd suggest an antelope hunt in Wyoming - they're abundant and fairly easy to get. Draw odds are good as well, and you have a good chance of getting a left-over permit, if you don't draw first time.

+1

Loki gave the best advice in my opinion.

For a first time D-I-Y Big Game hunt, pronghorns are the way to go.

The neat thing I like about pronghorns is that depending on when you did the hunt, an actual Trophy Speed Goat, B&C registerable is a possibility anywhere they range.

Pronghorns are different in many ways from either of the deer species, but as Loki pointed out, success rates for Pronghorn are the highest of any of the normal Big Game animals in America.

I agree with the antelope suggestion in Wyoming. You could also add a deer tag and do a DYI combo in some of the eastern regions.

We were talking, and archery cow elk looks interesting. Is something like that reasonable for a first timer?
Jeff

Its an option. the reason I would vote for antelope for a first timer, is the high success rates. Alot of areas have 80-90% success rates for antelope. In alot of elk areas, 20% is a good archery success rate.

Success isn't measured in killing game but it is nice to take how some meat the first time "out west".

ddj

If you are thinking elk than Colorado is your best bet. Not the best for trophies but the most chances. I have done it twice there. But with a rifle. DIY with a bow, your chances are still low but better than other states.

DIY cow elk with a rifle sounds like a lot of fun.
Jeff

Why not Montana mule deer?

All of the east side of the state has excellent access and good deer numbers. I have made three hunts there and have had good results. Even a casual glance at a map of Montana will show a large amount of public land.

To insure drawing a tag I apply for the "Big Game Combo" and eat the elk tag.

I'll be applying and hunting again this year.