Planning first antelope hunt.

[idi1796]

First off I would just like to say that I find it amazing and awesome that there is so much information on this forum for someone like myself who is planning my first antelope hunt this fall with my dad in Wyoming. With zero points, we will be hunting on a second or third choice unit with limited public access, but I like a challenge. I have the Wyoming onXmap chip so have been looking extensively at a few of the guaranteed units that we will most likely end up hunting. I am wondering, and this is what my plan is unless it's not any good, to go out the third week of the season. My hope is pressure will be much less and with our willingness to hike long distances to less pressured areas we might get on some animals. Is waiting until that third week and avoiding the craziness of opening week a good plan for those guarnteed units?

Thanks.

 

[NoWiser]

I think that's a decent plan. We hunted a leftover unit this year and I think we went the 4th weekend. There were still a handful of road hunters but, once we took off hiking, we never saw another hunter. There was no shortage of antelope, either. You are doing this the right way with your research. Good luck! Pick up a doe tag, too. Those things are delicious.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

On my first pronhorn hunt, I think it helped me because I was able to put some miles in and make mistakes without worrying about other hunters as much. That being said there were also fewer animals buy if I could do it again I think I would still miss the opening week. There were still plenty around. Besides I really didn't know the difference anyway.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Going any time after the first week should be good and giving that second week a rest before going should allow the animals to calm down with a number of them possibly going back onto public land from where they moved to private with the opening week pressure.

 

[Flatland Crusoe]

I've only done the opening day thing with a full day of scouting before the opener, but this year is gonna be ugly with Oct. 1 falling on a Saturday this year being the opening day in a decent number of leftover units.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

I've only done the opening day thing with a full day of scouting before the opener, but this year is gonna be ugly with Oct. 1 falling on a Saturday this year being the opening day in a decent number of leftover units.

That may be true to get the residents out more, but a lot of times when a season opens on a Monday or Tuesday the NRs will use the weekend to drive out and save vacation and it will be worse then than if it opens on a Saturday and they have to take vacation time during the prior week driving out.

 

[Schemy]

Subbing to this thread. I'm looking at doing the same thing. Trying to get a game plan together with my hunting buddies.

 

[JohnCushman]

I've always gone late in the second week of the season or the third week and done well. It gives the locals time to get theirs and do their road hunting, then gives the animals time to settle back down. Even at home I never hunt the first couple days of a firearms season because it sounds like a war zone with lead flying everywhere at damn near anything that moves.

 

[JDH]

I did the drive out early and scout a day before opening day when I went. We were in a second choice, 100% draw unit. What we noticed was opening day was fine, plenty of antelope to choose from. The second day there seemed to be less bigger bucks around and more animals on private. The third day was a little better for spotting them on public and the fourth day they seemed to be in their normal spots. After the first couple of days there were way less hunters. So I would imagine they would definitely be settled down by then.

 

[BuzzH]

Some things for consideration about waiting.

The later in the season you go, the more the pronghorn tend to bunch up. This can be a good thing if they are on public, not so good if they are on private.

Those big herds have a lot of eyeballs and getting close can be challenging.

No matter when you go, if there are lots of doe tags issued for the unit you're hunting, they will all be a lot more jumpy. Hunters really pull some crap while "filling" doe tags....shooting too far, shooting at running animals, etc.

Snow and wet weather is more likely the later you go...again, depending on the unit, access via vehicle with significant precipitation can range between a pain in the arse to impossible.

 

[Duck-Slayer]

I've been too wyoming 3 or 4 times in the past 7 years, I can tell you the units on the western half don't get quite the pressure as they do on the eastern half i'm guessing, anyhow we went 2 to 3 days before the firearms opener, messed around with our bows while we found where the antelope were, ended up getting a couple 1 time, than we had a good idea on where too be opening morning and we usually fill half our tags which usually consists of 4-6 doe tags.... the the second half on the next morning, now buck hunting i'm sure is going too be different but antelope always need the same things, water water water.... good luck,
Matt

 

[idi1796]

Thanks for all the responses. Definitely gives me lots to think about.