Caribou Gear

Long term game plan for hunting all Big Game species in NA in a lifetime.

SwampLander

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I am a life long hunter, am now 29, and would like to, at least, pursue all 29 species of big game in NA during my life. The biggest issue is how to, and how much would it cost to get to hunt the hard to get species like the rams and goats. How do we accrue points in what states and whats the yearly cost going to be just to blow on building points? What states are our best bet, ect. I as you would love to see the points systems done away with but as of now I have to play the game. I am by far not alone in this and think it would be a great pod cast. If you have already done it let me know. Iv listen to about half you pod cast and working through them. Your cast and Meateater's is a lot better than radio today. Love the show!!
 
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Interesting to think about. Some of the "easy" to get animals such as caribou are soon to be not so easy. Canadian caribou hunting is quickly becoming very difficult.

If it is truly a dream, I'd move to British Colombia and become a Canadian resident, then move to the Yukon or NWT, and follow it up with Alaska. You could knock out a bunch of the list.

Short of doing that plan on spending upwards of $1,500,000 to get it all done.
 
John - how about you lay out your plan for the animals you think you've got handled, and we'll try to fill in the blanks?

First step would be to secure a good income so you can afford the outfitters necessary for some of the animals.
 
Yeah, unfortunately, this is gonna be tremendously expensive and you can't just blame it on the sheep. After you spend $150,000 to get your four rams, the Tule elk will be a $25,000 hunt at least. So... yeah... it's not cheap.
 
Yeah, unfortunately, this is gonna be tremendously expensive and you can't just blame it on the sheep. After you spend $150,000 to get your four rams, the Tule elk will be a $25,000 hunt at least. So... yeah... it's not cheap.

Not necessarily. I got my Tule elk bull on public land and it only cost me the price of the tag (a little over $400 if I remember correctly). Of course living in California helped me to draw that tag and the cow Tule elk tag I had a few years before the bull tag. I think I am a rare example of an elk hunter who has actually harvested more Tule elk than Rocky Mountain elk.
 
Bagging all 29 will take more than one hunt for some species. Figure 40 hunts.

You can draw 17 of those tags over the next 30 years by putting in for draws in NM, AZ, NV, UT, ID, MT, WY, CO and OR. Figure $75,000 for application-related fees and $20,000 for tags during those 30 years that take you up to age 60.

Then, you might draw a bighorn sheep or two. Getting beyond 20 of the 29 will either take some luck or opening the checkbook to buy guaranteed tags. Assume the last 9 will cost you $225,000 for first hunts and then repeat 3 to fill a tag so another $60,000.

I predict $380,000 in 2017 dollars. Factor in hunting tags and licenses for NR are going up 5-10% a year though as you fill tags then the cost no longer matters so I predict the actual dollars removed from your bank account between now and age 60 to harvest all 29 will be $1.2 MM. Just my guess, of course. Oh, taxidermy is extra plus a larger home for the full body mounts so add another $250,000 and might as well round up to be $1.5MM. Might lose a wife along the way if she is not a big fan of the hunts so that could be another expense depending on your wealth increase during the relationship. Good luck on the journey. Is a worthy one, in my humble opinion.

Here is the list:
Super Slam consists of: Five deer, Columbian Blacktail, Sitka Blacktail, Mule deer, Whitetail deer, Coues Whitetail deer.
Four sheep: Stone, Dall, Rocky Mountain and Desert.
Moose: Canada moose, Alaska-Yukon moose, Shiras moose.
Elk: Tule, Yellowstone, Roosevelt.
Bear: Polar, Black, Grizzly, Alaska Brown bear.
Caribou: Barren Ground caribou, Mountain caribou, Woodland Caribou,Central Canada Barren Ground caribou, Quebec-Labrador caribou.
Misc: Pronghorn antelope, Rocky mountain goat, bison, muskox, mountain lion.
 
At 50 years old, and scraping enough money to go elk hunting, I'll never obtain that feat. But I do have a friend who has achieved a large portion of the list. He actually started his own side business to finance the hunts and the money that he spends on buying points. He also has contact with various outfitters who call him when they have a cancellation, which he will go at a moments notice at a much cheaper rate, which helps him and the outfitter.
That's his goal and that's how he does it. So, start a business just for hunting. I hate to tell you how much he spent on two unsuccessful polar bear hunts! So as with all hunting, be ready to go home with an unfilled tag, and don't let a dead animal "check box" be the only thing that drives you. But that could be for any type of hunting!
Good luck!
 
I'd at least put in for preference points in all the places you'd ever like to hunt. Some are expensive, some like Colorado... you pay for up front, and get the money back when you don't draw, and some charge just an application fee up front. I only apply for the big tags when I know I will able to go via money and schedule. It would suck to draw a once in a lifetime hunt, and be deployed if you are military, or expecting a child in the middle of the hunt etc. I devote about $1500 per year usually spread out so it doesn't hurt much. Thank god all of the state's apps aren't due on the same day. As far as some animals on the Super Slam, I've just written that off. I will go for smaller goals i.e. each elk, bear (minus polar bear), and deer. When that's done, maybe I will get drawn for a BH Ram or something by then. You can also work on a Dall Sheep hunt (fairly cheep) with some being over the counter.
 
I'd take a good hard look at the preference point systems for some of the more rare animals (Goat, Moose, Bighorn) and add up whether applying over 30 years in multiple states with no guarantees is going to be the smarter play compared to just booking a hunt with an outfitter.
 
I've thought about this as well, except with the NA 25 vs all 29.

Be intriguing, but would end up being too much for my taste over the years. I had estimated ~500K or so, but that was assuming DIY, success on the first try for each animal, and a little (alright, a lot of) luck in draws. But then hunts you really enjoy would be overtaken by others you'd be doing to complete the slam, instead.

I really think it could be done, especially if you're willing to move to BC or some place like that with a wide variety of opportunities for some of those harder to get species (sheep, grizzly, caribou).

Obviously the goal of this and what makes it so interesting is the ability to hunt basically anywhere and enjoy everything each place has to offer. I'm not convinced I would enjoy the trek there considering the need to take an animal to register it. Especially with a family and enjoying other aspects (like trips to national parks, etc) was more important than that. Just not something for me, but I think it's a nice goal to strive for if it works for you.

I'll shoot for the big 10 to start, then if successful will slowly add other species as time goes.

Good luck if you end up going for this. Would make one hell of a read if you ever wrote a story/book about it!
 
I have 15 of them and I haven't spent anything that's broke the bank.

IMO, if it were ever a goal of mine (which it IS NOT), I would hunt some of the easier to draw and otc species first when money is tight...all the while gaining points and applying for the harder to draw stuff.

I mean coues deer, pronghorn, mule deer, whitetail, black bear, lions, elk, etc. can all be hunted pretty affordably.

It sort of sucks, but when a person really has the desire to hunt some of that stuff, and when it would be the most fun...money is the issue. When you get older, your lot in life is often better financially, but physically it gets tougher and the desire to do things like chasing 29 big-game species wanes.

Another thing to factor in is that many of the species are getting tougher and tougher to hunt for a variety of reasons, mainly due to reduced populations and less over-all opportunity.

Realistically, I'll probably only hunt 5-6 more of the 29...
 
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