I don't think it is just the type of game offered in each State, but the quality of the hunt. I judge hunting on the experience and the friendships during hunting. Not who offers the most. JMHO.

I lived in Colorado for 5 years and 10 other states for varying periods of time.

I find hunting medium to large game VERY enjoyable almost anywhere I hunt but I've found that some states have painfully short hunting seasons and that REALLY put me off of Colorado.

If unfavorable hunting weather or other conditions come up you can end up with a whole years hunting spoiled.

Are there any western states that offer elk and mulies with reasonable hers that have long(er) seasons?

I don't expect to find the 3-5 month long gun seasons we have here in the southeast but I'll be danged if I'll spend a bunch of money and reorganize my life for a week long hunt that might be ruined by any number of "issues".

$bob$

quote:

Are there any western states that offer elk and mulies with reasonable hers that have long(er) seasons

LD-In Idaho the units I hunt are for Elk from October 10 thru November 3 and the Deer(Either sex Mulie or Whitetail) is from October 10 thru November 20 or so.Both at the same time...

Jayco

It's all a matter of timing. In Mt, you'd need some draws, but. You could get early backwoods Bull tag for mid-Sept, antelope starts around the second weekend of Oct and general season runs from the last weekend in Oct through the last week in Nov. So, in theory you could get in 2.5 months of big game hunting. There are also some late season hunts that run through Jan and of course spring bear hunting. You can fill most of your year with a little luck.

schromf
are you hunting my Burke/Murry area?

One factor no one has mentioned yet is upland bird hunting. Throw that in and Idaho and Montana edge out Wyoming.

We have some pretty good chukar, hun, grouse, and pheasant hunting. Along with some very good goose hunting. And the simple fact Wy is the 10th largest state with only about 500,000 people. The antelope out number the people!

Shhh....Kudu, we don't want anyone to know what we have down in these parts for hunting and fishing...let them argue all they want between Idaho and Montana!!



MG

Ya' know, I'm going to shock you all, but CA has one hell of a lot of hunting and fishing opportunities. And the seasons are earlier and longer than most Western states and the weather is conducive to being active year round.

I'm my area of coastal NorCal I can take two black-tailed bucks and a bear with over the counter tags. Pigs if you've got access to private lands with em', which I do.

And because my deer seasons are earlier I can hunt other states, which I used to yearly and will again.

Lot's of varmints, particularly ground squirrels and varmint calling is excellent.

And the bird hunting is damn good for both upland and waterfowl. Diverse too, I'm pretty sure CA has the greatest number of allowable species of any state.

And CA is about 1/2 public lands, for the guy who appreciated the experience of hunting, I'd suggest a hunt for black-tails in the Trinity Alps.

And I don't think it's even a fair comparison to equate fishing in CA with the inland states. I'll take halibut, lingcod, the assorted rockfish, salmon, various sharks, albacore, surfperch, sanddabs, abalone, clams, crabs and spiny lobsters when I dive down South. Having an ocean is kinda nice.

And there's still pretty good salmon and steelhead runs in our rivers and I've never found a problem catching trout when I want to.

I don't even bother with the warm water, lake species but they're here.

I can hunt or fish for something pretty much any day of the year.

Skinner, I think we were talking about the USA!

Another that state that you all will laugh but offers a wide range of species is Washington. I would never argue that it is the best, but it has been a well kept secret for years.

Deer- Blacktail, WHitetail and Muleys
Elk- Roosevelt and Rocky Mountain
Moose
Mountain Goat
Bighorn Sheep
Black bears
Cougars
Turkeys- Merriam, Eastern and Rio Grande
Wild Pigs
Ducks, Geese, Chuckar, Huns, Grouse, Pheasant, Quail, Ptarmigan
Coyotes,Bobcats

The only real big game it lacks is Antelope. The other thing about Washington is that Non-resident tags are not allocated by percentage, any non-resident has an equal chance at drawing some of the draw tags equally.

IV

Skinner: I have to agree with you. I lived in California for some 20 years (Susanville and Davis) and I loved it..I never was able to take full advantage of what the state had to offer while I lived there..lots of deer and bear hunting, hogs in the coast ranges, and lots of pheasant, duck and goose hunting. It was pretty damn good as I remember it. There is more to hunting and fishing than a list of available species. (Right now I like Alaska, which has very few species...but Alaska is not allowed to play on this thread, so I will keep mum.)

RWJ, I believe the central coast of California in its pre "civilization" state may well be one of the top natural enviroments in the entire world from nearly any standpoint... just don't tell any of my fellow Montanan's I said so!

I heard that Brad. Yes, all the west coast states have excellent hunting and fishing, my argument would be just the sheer numbers of people. Although, I'm sure if you're familier with the areas you can find some secluded spots.

Brad and Mont: I agree with both of you...and I do think there are too many people in western states..that is why I'm in Alaska . But it is all good if you know where to look.

quote:

Originally posted by Skinner.:I don't even bother with the warm water, lake species but they're here.

Most likely the next world record Largemouth Bass is going to come from California and not from Lake Castaic either. Most likely it may come from Spring Lake or from Clear Lake in Northern California. Wild Boar numbers are getting to be so numerous they are being found clear over in the foothills of the Sierra Mountains in the northern part of the state down to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. Merriam Turkey hunting is fantastic and the Black Bear population(census taken in 2002 places the number over 33,000) is second only to Alaska. Some things about the Golden State are still Golden. Lawdog

You also have a better chance of taking a B&C black bear or black-tailed deer in CA if you work at it.

There are some absolute monster bears in some areas that get little to no bear hunting pressure.

And there are some phenomenal bucks out there too.

On public lands too.

Key is, better be in real good shape because the country is near vertical and you actually have to HUNT.

Best state? The one you're in. I'm partial to the state of lunacy I'm usually found in, so there you go. Hunting is where you find it, and has little to do with the game at hand IMO. Fishing...well if you can't justify a 12 weight Sage and catch a mild burn in the process, what fun is that?

Montana of course is the correct answer! If for no other reason than the chance for all licensed Hunters to Hunt Mule Deer before, during AND after the main rut! Some years the season for Elk and Deer closes on December 1st!!!
The LONG Big Game Hunting season closes on the Sunday after Thanksgiving every year and that gives it a closing date of from December 1st back to around November 25th (depending on how the calendar year runs).
The freshwater fishing in Montana is simply unsurpassed and the Waterfowl Hunting is so wonderful IT alone is reason enough to move lock stock and barrel to Montana! AMAZINGLY only 1% of all licensed Hunters in Montana partake of this amazing Waterfowl Hunting!
This includes some draw Hunting for Sandhill Cranes and Swans!
The spring Bear Hunting is also amazingly wonderful!
During the same several weeks in the fall I can Hunt Antelope (draw), Mule Deer, Bear, Cougar (over the counter), Elk, Whitetailed Deer and hopefully soon WOLVES!
Yeah Montana is the answer to this question hands down!
The Antelope Hunting has been getting better and better for decades now here in Montana.
And the Varmint Hunting in Montana is not only FREE it is year round and round the clock and includes species that are prevelent here but not found in large numbers in states like Washington, Oregon and California - the species I refer to are Prairie Dogs, Fox, Badgers and hopefully soon WOLVES!
The state of Montana is now also gearing up to allow for Grizzly Bear Hunting. At least that is the rumor in the past several days from the F&G folks - with this liberal twit democrat Governor it may be an uphill battle for the F&G folks to re-institute this Grizzly Bear Hunting!
Remember we also have wonderful Grayling fishing to go along with the other freshwater species we have here Rainbows, Brookies, Cutthroats, Brown Trout - and don't forget the wonderful Lake Trout and Burbot (freshwater Ling!) fishing we have here!
Draws for Antelope, Bighorn Sheep, Moose and Mt. Goat are ongoing year to year with bonus point plans in effect.
Two Wild Turkeys may be taken each year with over the counter tags in half the state and draws in most of the rest of the state.
Long live Montana! Sportsmans Paradise!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I've lived and hunted in CA, OR, AZ, CO and MT. The reason I moved home to MT is that despite all the hunting and fishing opportunities in those other states Montana not only has a tremendous variety but also long contiguious seasons and very high success rates. Yes, in the other states you can hunt mule deer, or blacktail ro whitetail, but almost never in the rut with a rifle. In some cases rifle elk and deer seasons are not at the same time and are spaced and timed to insure a low kill percentage. Seasons are as short as 5 days or rarely over 2 weeks. In some cases there are very high odds against drawing a tag in areas that actually have huntable numbers.

(The "opportunity" to hunt concept is BS, if I want to go for a hike I'll do it with carrying a rifle and other gear. I go hunting with the idea that I actually have a very good chance of getting something, at least most of the time.)

Then there is the issue of hunter numbers and low success rates for public land hunters. Private access is fine IF you can afford it. There was another thread that suggested that $1000 was a "resonable" fee for a cow elk hunt. Fine, but I shoot cows for freezer wrap. If I've got to spend $1000 plus gas etc. on it I'll just buy a steer and have the whole thing cut and wraped for less!

Now Wyoming might be as good or better, so might Idaho, haven't hunted there so I can't say. But in my experience MT offers more. Oh yes, the fishing is fantastic, again with long seasons and a high chance of success.

Much as I enjoy MT, WY, ID, etc. y'all ain't got an ocean, therefore your fishing is pretty limited.

But, I also make money on the ocean killing fish and that gets recycled back into paying for more hunting.

Kind of a nice cycle

Hunter MT, I'm holding firm... Montana suscks! Tell all your friends I said so...

Everyone pretty much has there minds made up and as we speak each State is changing.Idaho still has either sex Elk without a draw but it is down to 4-days now when it was much longer.The backcountry hunts during the rut are also changing from what they were.You still can hunt Elk during the rut with a rifle but they split it up from the way it was.

I love Montana and spent alot of time there.My Uncle was the Super of the Hungryhorse Dam and we spent every summer there and love the area of Kallispell/Whitefish/Columbia Falls and of course Glacier we never missed on a trip as they lived very close to the border....

But just a couple years ago I met some folks from Kallispell/Whitefish looking for property in Idaho near McCall because Montana was growing so fast with big bucks(Not Deer) doing the talking....

Awe the old days.....Jayco

Hello the campfire:
I am more than likely too late to put in my two cents, but here goes anyways>
ALABAMA
A long Deer season. shoot as many as you want, quail, small game, hogs. Reasonable costs to hunt. Plenty of fresh water fishing in rivers and lakes.No trout, but large and small mouth bass, crappie and bream, Catfish out the ear. A great salt water fishery. Pleasant people. We need yankee dollars more than most. A chance to bag a trophy Alabama Co-ed. What else could you ask for in a hunting/fishing state?

Judge Sharpe

If you don't have saltwater you don't have fishing.

@ jayco. Theproblems you mention are pretty limited to just a few areas. Kalispell, Bozeman and Missoula. After that Mt is just as wild and unspoiled as you can imagine. Even with the growth at these towns tey're still in the 60-70k area for population which is extremely small for most states.

Montana where I grew up f course. 270,000 acres of unrestricted fun and lots of public hunting. To bad so many people have moved there a started to screw it up..

Nevada is a damm close second but now all the morons from california are screwing up Reno along with Vegas.

I only spent a little time in Plumber and it was beautiful..

Brad is right, though MT has great hunting and fishing EVERYTHING else here is horrible.

If you move here get a divorce first, it'll save time because your wife will leave you after the first 9 month winter, and no decent shopping for 750 miles. Sell your nice SUV, the gravel on the roads in the winter time will trash your windshield and take all the paint off the front end. Learn to live on $8000 per year, jobs, especially white colar stuff doesn't pay diddly. Way too much middle management skum that like to hunt or fish have floated up here. Plus the universities up here keep turning out well educated brats that will work for less than you can even live on, and the owner of the company is probably their uncle but that's another story.

In the end the best place is where you are happiest and where the sun always shines in your mind.

quote:

ALABAMA
A long Deer season. shoot as many as you want

I should be trading bear hunts in the timber here in NorCal for white-tail hunts down South somewhere.

I have no shortage of bears here.

Saw in the Bozeman paper this morning that a developer wants to double the housing in Livingston. I moved from Bozeman out to Three Forks to get away from that stuff and now things are moving rapidly in this direction as well. Might have to move back to the far north where everyone is leaving.

MontMike
Know the "developer" in Livingston, I'll believe it when and if I see it.

I doubt the realators would be very happy, it would kill lot prices here. There are just too many people who would rather not see it than who would. We're not talking average joes here, I mean folks with some serious fold tied up in a controlled growth market. However, the city is licking its chops, development fees! Should be interesting.

Might really screw up the hunting in the Bangtails though....

http://www.bozemanchronicle.com/articles/2005/06/15/news/02subdivision.txt

Here's a link to the story. Carter Boehm is his name. Lokks like a local, you may know him.

Mike Check for a PM on Carter Boehm.