Which state to start accumulating points for Deer and Elk
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Art Vandeley
Well-known member
Colorado
LopeHunter
Well-known member
I like hunting units were few tags and better than 50% harvest rates and plenty of public land to hunt on your own if you chose to do so. That impacts how I rank states.
Wyoming. Quality hunts. Need outfitter to hunt the handful of units that are mostly wilderness. You can avoid those units and draw a good unit. Can get a very good limited entry mule deer buck tag in around 5 -7 years. This will not be the best tag in all of Wyoming but a very good tag for Wyoming and for any western state. Elk will tag longer, perhaps 10 - 15 years, to get a comparable tag. Wyoming sets aside a guaranteed pool of tags for non-residents and 75% are awarded in a random draw so you might draw the best unit the first year you apply but statistics are you would need to catch a 1 in 300 sort of long shot. You can apply for a long long shot primo unit as your First Choice until you build up the points to draw the middling units in the 25% Preference Point pass at which point you can put that as your First Choice and burn your accumulated deer or elk points. Wyoming pronghorn only take about 3 points to get a good unit. Elk, deer, and pronghorn all have primo units that will take decades to draw in the 25% Preference Point pass.
Arizona requires you buy an annual hunting license to apply for points but in 5 - 7 years your can draw a December Coues buck rifle tag during the pre-rut/rut. Is addictive and weather might be sunny and 70F or might be snowing and 30F. Elk will take over a decade to draw a decent unit (decades to draw one of the best units) but a bit less if hunt with a bow. Pronghorn take a long time.
The next tier is me is Montana then Colorado. Montana gets the edge as can hunt every year on general tags for deer and elk as build Bonus points for limited entry unit tags. Colorado has OTC elk but all deer tags are by draw and even the middling units are around a decade to draw with point creep showing no sign of slowing.
Next to have Nevada and Utah where not many elk and deer tags for non-residents. You can build points though will take some luck to draw a decent elk or deer tag.
Washington and Oregon do not offer much for quality elk or deer hunting. The focus is on fishing with hunting being an opportunity focus with predation on the rise and limited timber harvesting reducing habitat as elk want the recent cuts where grass grows and the deer move in as undergrowth shrubs and trees emerge. After a couple of decades the trees are too tall for deer to feed on them and the shade prevents grass.
Idaho and New Mexico do not offer points. Not many quality deer tags for non-residents in New Mexico.
Wyoming. Quality hunts. Need outfitter to hunt the handful of units that are mostly wilderness. You can avoid those units and draw a good unit. Can get a very good limited entry mule deer buck tag in around 5 -7 years. This will not be the best tag in all of Wyoming but a very good tag for Wyoming and for any western state. Elk will tag longer, perhaps 10 - 15 years, to get a comparable tag. Wyoming sets aside a guaranteed pool of tags for non-residents and 75% are awarded in a random draw so you might draw the best unit the first year you apply but statistics are you would need to catch a 1 in 300 sort of long shot. You can apply for a long long shot primo unit as your First Choice until you build up the points to draw the middling units in the 25% Preference Point pass at which point you can put that as your First Choice and burn your accumulated deer or elk points. Wyoming pronghorn only take about 3 points to get a good unit. Elk, deer, and pronghorn all have primo units that will take decades to draw in the 25% Preference Point pass.
Arizona requires you buy an annual hunting license to apply for points but in 5 - 7 years your can draw a December Coues buck rifle tag during the pre-rut/rut. Is addictive and weather might be sunny and 70F or might be snowing and 30F. Elk will take over a decade to draw a decent unit (decades to draw one of the best units) but a bit less if hunt with a bow. Pronghorn take a long time.
The next tier is me is Montana then Colorado. Montana gets the edge as can hunt every year on general tags for deer and elk as build Bonus points for limited entry unit tags. Colorado has OTC elk but all deer tags are by draw and even the middling units are around a decade to draw with point creep showing no sign of slowing.
Next to have Nevada and Utah where not many elk and deer tags for non-residents. You can build points though will take some luck to draw a decent elk or deer tag.
Washington and Oregon do not offer much for quality elk or deer hunting. The focus is on fishing with hunting being an opportunity focus with predation on the rise and limited timber harvesting reducing habitat as elk want the recent cuts where grass grows and the deer move in as undergrowth shrubs and trees emerge. After a couple of decades the trees are too tall for deer to feed on them and the shade prevents grass.
Idaho and New Mexico do not offer points. Not many quality deer tags for non-residents in New Mexico.
Elkhunter24
Well-known member
I would have to agree!
You can be hunting good elk and deer areas in Wyoming with 2 PP. Some sleeper areas in our state with good numbers of mature animals and decent trophy potential.
Not all" trophies" come from LQ areas.
Buy a point right now for Wyoming, all species you wish to hunt in the future. With license fee increase next year some areas may open up for 1 PP and random draw odds may better if some get out of the higher price license fees.
Not all" trophies" come from LQ areas.
Buy a point right now for Wyoming, all species you wish to hunt in the future. With license fee increase next year some areas may open up for 1 PP and random draw odds may better if some get out of the higher price license fees.
targetpanic
Well-known member
Great post lopehunter. Lots of info in there
Pretty good info here. Just to clarify, Wyoming gives 75% of tags in the preference draw and 25% random.
The main thing to keep in mind is that point creep is rampant pretty much everywhere. So, a unit that takes 5 points to draw right now could easily take over a decade to draw for you. About 5 years ago I started building points in most states and it's crazy the way things have gone with points just in that time. In most cases I'm no closer to drawing a tag than when I started and in some I'm farther from drawing a tag. But, playing the point game helps keep the dream of future fun adventures alive. To me, that is worth something.
Good luck!
Honestly, I think if your not in the points game at this point your better off staying out totally. With the exception of building just enough points to draw a specific tag, regardless of the state. At this point OTC and landowner tags look better and better.
Duck-Slayer
Well-known member
Why even mess with points? Idaho rocks for that reason and there are dandy elk, deer, and proghorn here. Some monster deer(see profile pic), also you can regularly get a 300" elk on general tags! The only other state that is even close is NV. I drew my Deer tag this year with no points, and will not buy a single point in the future. Also I do get points in WY for Antelope though, I figure if I want a "big" antelope with my bow that's the place to do it. Even thou I shot a 78" buck here in Idaho on a general unit with my bow. But after I burn the 7 points I have I will not accumulate anymore points most likely, maybe 1 or 2 in CO so I can do a High Country Mule Deer hunt.
Matt
Matt
00BUCK
Active member
I think your to the point where should should do a state by state breakdown based on your own criteria. Price, opportunity, personal goals, experience, home location, and personal hunting style are just some of the factors i used 9 yrs ago. Everyone is a little different.
I would continue to use resources such as this forum plus a paid service. In my opinion to do a true state by state comparison i would use either go hunt or a digital subscription to eastmans. Eadtmans is much cheaper I believe. They will include many charts and facts that would take a single person to long to calculate. They will also have a breakdown of the draw process in every sate and everything else you can imagine and more. Puts everything in one place. Use them as a guide then verify the info on the state website.
I am always learning and the more i learn the more gems I find.
I would continue to use resources such as this forum plus a paid service. In my opinion to do a true state by state comparison i would use either go hunt or a digital subscription to eastmans. Eadtmans is much cheaper I believe. They will include many charts and facts that would take a single person to long to calculate. They will also have a breakdown of the draw process in every sate and everything else you can imagine and more. Puts everything in one place. Use them as a guide then verify the info on the state website.
I am always learning and the more i learn the more gems I find.
Last edited:
JonathonJEB
Active member
Great info thanks
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