State: North Dakota

North Dakota Game and Fish
North Dakota Overview

North Dakota info provided by Buschy

While many outdoorsmen are aware of the fantastic waterfowl and upland hunting opportunities in North Dakota, big game hunting is often overlooked.  Non-resident sportsman are allowed to hunt the following big game animals with the following weapons:

Whitetail Deer

Whitetail deer are found statewide and in the Badlands they are most often found in the river bottoms.  While it’s helpful to have permission to hunt private land, and this can usually be gained by knocking on a few doors, it’s not necessary to have a good hunt.  The North Dakota Game and Fish Department (NDG+F) has opened one million acres of private land to public hunting by implementing the PLOTS program.  PLOTS stands for Private Land Open to Sportsman and maps of every PLOTS location in the state can be downloaded and printed from the NDG+F webpage.  In addition, deer hunting is allowed on the following National Wildlife Refuges:

On these three refuges, hunting is by permit only.

• Upper Souris (701-468-5467)
• Tewaukon (701-724-3598)
• J. Clark Salyer (701-768-2548)

On these refuges, any person posessing a license in the unit the refuge is located may hunt

• Arrowwood (701-285-3341)
• Audubon (701-442-5474)
• Chase Lake (701-752-4218)
• Des Lacs (701-385-4046)
• Lake Alice (701-662-8611)
• Lake Nettie (701-442-5474)
• Lake Zahl (701-965-6488)
• Long Lake (701-387-4397)
• Lostwood (701-848-2722)
• Slade (701-387-4397)
• Sibley Lake (701-845-3466)

While the whitetail deer herd in North Dakota is managed more for opportunity than trophy quality many 130-150 bucks are harvested every year.  Non-resident archery tags can be purchased over the counter.  Rifle and muzzleloader tags must be applied for through a weighted lottery.

Mule Deer

Mule deer are generally found in the western third of the state.

The area identified as the primary range above encompasses most of the North Dakota Badlands.  The Badlands is comprised of roughly one million acres of public land.  The Badlands contains good populations of mule deer with a density of 9.1 deer per square mile in fall of 2008 and 8.5 deer per square mile in the spring of 2009.  North Dakota mule deer usually “fly under the radar” of most trophy hunters, but 160 - 170″ deer can be taken with some hard work.  In both 2007 and 2008, non-typical bucks were taken by rifle hunters that scored over 220″.  Nonresident any-deer bow licenses are limited and must be applied for through a lottery with a deadline of March 1.  Rifle tags must be applied for through a weighted lottery.

Antelope

Like mule deer, antelope in North Dakota are generally found in the western half of the state.

Nonresident antelope hunters are limited to archery hunting only.  The Badlands, especially the southwest corner, provide the greatest numbers of animals and subsequently the most opportunity.  Where needed, permission to hunt antelope is usually quite easy to get from landowners and you will not have a lot of competition from other resident or non-resident hunters making for an enjoyable experience.  If you are going to bow hunt antelope in North Dakota, plan on applying for a non-resident any-deer tag as you will most likely run into some mule deer on your hunt.       

Bighorn Sheep

Because there are so few Bighorn sheep in North Dakota, most tags are allocated to resident hunters.  Non-residents can apply for bighorn sheep, but are allowed only one tag per year, with a total of five tags usually given out.  It is important to note this is not a guaranteed non-resident tag though.  Bow hunters may start hunting one week earlier than rifle hunters and most years the harvest success rate is 100%.

Websites

Below is a list of helpful websites to begin researching you North Dakota hunt:

http://gf.nd.gov/ North Dakota Game and Fish

http://gf.nd.gov/maps/map-interactive.html North Dakota Game and Fish Interactive Maps

http://www.fishingbuddy.com/ Fishing Buddy - dedicated to North Dakota hunting and fishing

http://www.nodakoutdoors.com/ Nodak Outdoors - dedicated to North Dakota hunting and fishing

North Dakota Hunting Lottery Information

What limits does state law impose on nonresident deer licenses? The law restricts nonresidents to one percent of the licenses in a unit through the second drawing. After the second drawing, nonresidents are eligible to apply for remaining licenses.

How do bonus points accrue in the weighted lottery? An applicant unsuccessful in drawing his first choice permit in the first lottery this year receives a bonus point for next year’s lottery. See the following table:   (Note that in years 2, 3, and 4, the points are doubled; and, for years 5 and beyond, they are cubed to increase the applicant’s chances of drawing a permit.)

In the previous example, isn’t the applicant guaranteed a permit in year four or five? No. There is no guarantee. The lottery is a random drawing. In most cases, a person who reaches this point is likely to draw a permit. However, for some tags, particularly antlered mule deer, where demand for tags vastly exceeds supply, many applicants have the same number of bonus points and it simply takes longer to draw a permit.

Can I miss a year in the weighted lottery and keep my bonus points? Previously, an applicant had to apply every year to maintain bonus points.  Beginning in 2005 a one-year grace period was instituted that allows an applicant to miss a year without losing points; however, an applicant loses bonus points by failing to apply for two consecutive years.

If I receive a permit for my second deer choice do I lose my bonus points? No, bonus points apply only to first deer choice in the first lottery.

If I have bonus points and apply with a party, how does this affect me? On party applications the person with fewest points sets the level for the entire application. Applicants with more bonus points than others in the party have a better chance applying separately.

ND Non-resident Application Deadlines

Animals Taken in North Dakota by On Your Own Hunters

My 2006 rifle antelope from SW North Dakota

2008 rifle mulie hunt in the Badlands (Left - Greg Busch, middle - Bruce Busch, right - Kirby Evanger)

My 2008 rifle antelope from SW North Dakota

Ryan Strand 2007 archery antelope from the Badlands

2004 archery Whitetail taken east of Bismarck

My 2007 archery Mule Deer taken in the Badlands