Ideas for the Members Research Section

[hoshour]

We're always looking for ideas for the Members Research Section (MRS), either topics or details.

Last year we really expanded and upgraded the MRS by adding pages, lots of new charts and maps and much more information in the tables. I think it's a lot easier on the eyes, more useful and more engaging. I hope you agree.

Is there information (other than a map of our honey holes) we don't currently run that you would like to see in the MRS?

How about info you would like highlighted in charts and maps?

You can also email me at [email protected]

Thanks.

 

[tim]

How about Desert Sheep availability? There seems to be all kinds of private hunts or hunts that don't neccesarily go thru the normal channels of getting a tag.

Part of me feels, I will never draw a tag and I might have to save lots and lots of dollars to buy a hunt. It would be nice to get some idea of how many thousands I will have to save to fulfill a dream. There are a lot of hunters that can't afford this, but there is also a lot of hunters who can.

 

[ore hunter]

I would like to see some more information and charts on utahs general deer tags,{archery,muzz and rifle} as it seems that it is about the only thing that can be drawn in Utah without 10 bonus points?everything else seems out of reach,,,also Utah general deer is one of the most affordable tags out there as a non resident. I would also like to see some info on nevadas 2nd thru 5th choice options on tag apps as even so so medioker units seem awful hard to draw even down in 4th and 5th choice options?

 

[Musket Man]

I agree on Utah. When you read the mrs it seems like if you dont have 15 points its not worth applying. Some info on areas you can hunt every few years would be great!

 

[hoshour]

How about Desert Sheep availability? There seems to be all kinds of private hunts or hunts that don't neccesarily go thru the normal channels of getting a tag.

Part of me feels, I will never draw a tag and I might have to save lots and lots of dollars to buy a hunt. It would be nice to get some idea of how many thousands I will have to save to fulfill a dream. There are a lot of hunters that can't afford this, but there is also a lot of hunters who can.

This issue of EBJ has all the raffle and auction tags available in the states. Besides those and the regular draws, the only way I know to hunt desert sheep is in Mexico. You'll probably need $50-60,000. Contact some of the nonprofit foundations like the Wild Sheep Foundation. There are a couple of other sheep nonprofits listed in the auctions table.

We could at some point do a special article on Mexico hunts.

 

[Musket Man]

Some Canada and Alaska info would be great too! Even just some basic info to help a guy get started researching these hunts would be helpful.

 

[Wyoming Hart]

I was thinking, maybe in addition to the state draw timeline table on the first page of the MRS, might be nice to have the preference or bonus point purchasing time period in an additional column. Hoshour, the MRS is the best piece of information in any magazine out there. We thank you and the entire staff for the hard work putting it together. Anything in addition to what is normally in there is just icing on an already pretty sweet cake. Thank you!

 

[packmule]

This issue of EBJ has all the raffle and auction tags available in the states. Besides those and the regular draws, the only way I know to hunt desert sheep is in Mexico. You'll probably need $50-60,000. Contact some of the nonprofit foundations like the Wild Sheep Foundation. There are a couple of other sheep nonprofits listed in the auctions table.

We could at some point do a special article on Mexico hunts.

Landowners get an allotment of DBH tags here. Roughly the same cost, just don't have to mess with customs and wondering if you'll get your trophy home.

 

[hoshour]

Wow! In many western states it pays to be a landowner and skip the draw. Texas is probably the only state to give sheep tags to landowners. I need to check that out

 

[tim]

I think new mexico is doing it also. I just put in for a raffle thru the Arizona desert bighorn society that is giving away a DBH hunt in march. All one private land.

 

[packmule]

Wow! In many western states it pays to be a landowner and skip the draw. Texas is probably the only state to give sheep tags to landowners. I need to check that out

Roughly 20 tags available. 2 draw, 1 raffle, 1 auction (IIRC)...the rest go to landowners. Texas Bighorn Society usually keeps track of prospective buyers who contact them and get them in contact with landowners.

 

[hoshour]

I think new mexico is doing it also. I just put in for a raffle thru the Arizona desert bighorn society that is giving away a DBH hunt in march. All one private land.

A raffle tag is different from a landowner tag. The raffle tags I have listed in the current issue of EBJ.

 

[hoshour]

Roughly 20 tags available. 2 draw, 1 raffle, 1 auction (IIRC)...the rest go to landowners. Texas Bighorn Society usually keeps track of prospective buyers who contact them and get them in contact with landowners.

Do the landowners sell the tags at whatever price they can get? They must, or the whole country would be beating down their doors.

 

[hoshour]

The TX Bighorn Sheep Society says that TX landowners got 17 desert bighorn tags this year to sell at whatever prices they can get. The TBSS does not get involved, though they certainly are as aware as anyone when it comes to what is going on with Texas sheep.

 

[tim]

hoshour
I understand the difference. I was just getting at that it looks like the Arizona desert bighorn society might have bought a new mexico landowner tag to raffle off. Does new mexico have other landowner tags like texas?
does that make sense?

 

[packmule]

The TX Bighorn Sheep Society says that TX landowners got 17 desert bighorn tags this year to sell at whatever prices they can get. The TBSS does not get involved, though they certainly are as aware as anyone when it comes to what is going on with Texas sheep.

They know full well which landowners get tags because there's not many landowners who qualify based on the sheep populations on their properties.

 

[hoshour]

What I meant was they don't hear the sale prices anymore, nor do they know who is buying the tags. Everyone knows who the landowners are that get the tags.

Now I hear that Jeff Bezos, the multi-billionaire CEO of Amazon bought 290,000 acres (over 450 square miles) in that area to build a spaceport, including land that gets desert sheep tags. Other super-wealthy guys like Elon Musk, owner of Tesla have been buying land there, too. What is this, a banana republic?

 

[shootbrownelk]

Hoshour, the reason you don't hear about what these tags go for is if they gave out that information a lot of resident hunters would be Pissed-off about it. Then again, there isn't much public land in the biggest of the lower 48 states that hold sheep.

 

[gonhunting247]

Try to cover opportunity hunts as much as possible. A lot of the top tier tags and units are out of reach unless you have a ton of points already. Maybe these hunts could be based more on success rates, say 30% or higher, instead of trophy quality. Like some others have said UT general would be one that would fit this, as well as MT and ID general, etc. That said, one of the reasons I like the Eastmans MRS is that it digs a lot deeper into mid tier units than most. Thanks!

 

[hoshour]

Hoshour, the reason you don't hear about what these tags go for is if they gave out that information a lot of resident hunters would be Pissed-off about it. Then again, there isn't much public land in the biggest of the lower 48 states that hold sheep.

The prices that people hear about are in line with auction prices. In most other states, Utah being the huge exception, a very low percentage of the tags go to auction, usually just a couple. Texas is different in that they are giving a whopping 17 tags to landowners.