Going into regular draw with 4 points. Considering units 55, 48-1, and 100. Never hunted 48 or 55 but shot a nice buck outta unit 100 years ago. Looking for a chance at a 75" or bigger buck. What are everyone's thoughts on these units? Enough public land in 55? Any other suggestions on units we should consider with 4 points in regular draw? Thanks! Appreciate any info!
WY unit help
- Thread starter rob270340
- Start date
kesand72
Active Member
Those r awesome units! 73, 74, n 75 in central Wyoming would also fit the bill! I took a great buck in 67 in 2011, but you would have to go with Special Draw for that. Looked over at least 4 bucks on opening day above 75".
Good luck!
Good luck!
I like the lower tag numbers and less pressure in those units. Leaning towards 48-1. Anyone have any experience or thoughts on 48-1? Success pics?
Hilltop
Veteran member
I shot my only Boone and Crockett buck ever in area 55 15 years ago. He scored 83 1/8" There is enough public but you have to watch where you are at. My friends drew the area last year and hunted hard to three days. They shot one buck that was 77" and one that was 81". Out West Safaris guides in that area and they kill BC bucks every year. They have a good majority of the private ground leased. That being said, I know they shoot the occasional guided buck on public. 55 is an excellent DIY archery area. It is very dry and the antelope concentrate on the few water holes. My last three bucks from this area were taken with a bow. For rifle hunting, I believe the best hunting is later in the season. You will almost never see another hunter and many of the private ground antelope move on to public as the weather starts to get bad. In my opinion 55 is better than any other area of the state if you do your homework...
Thanks Hilltop, I'll look closer at 55. Going in the draw with my dad and my son. It'll be my sons first antelope hunt so he won't be picky and my dad isn't necessarily a trophy hunter so I'm probably the only one wanting to hold out for a bigger buck. Hoping for a chance at an 80" buck.
Hilltop
Veteran member
Good luck! I hope you draw... I know you would have more than one opportunity at an 80"+ buck. The real issue becomes actually being able to field judge and select the right buck to harvest. Great optics are a must! The mass and the prong are what will push the score up. Spend some hours looking at pictures. I have guided and hunted them all my life and I still make 5" mistakes frequently in the field. A 75" buck looks really dang good at 300 yards. Height is the most recognizable feature but most of the mature bucks in this area end up between 14" and 16". I usually tell people to shoot the one that looks like he has very small ears in comparison to the horns. I have also found that the biggest bucks aren't usually the ones with the large herd of does. I have taken all the really big ones either by themselves or in a group of 2-5 animals.
Musket Man
Veteran member
55 is listed as dificult access and is a checker board of public/private land. IMO public land and access are the most important thing when choosing a unit. Of those units 100 would interest me the most but I think there are better units to spend 4 points on.
kesand72
Active Member
55 was my 2nd choice unit in 2011, and I had my fingers crossed until the draw results hoping to get my #1, which I did thank God. You won't find a more checkerboarded unit in the state I don't think.
I'm sure you could get it done there if you had to, but you will be watching your GPS ( with chip) and maps more than enjoying the hunt. The buck in my avatar came from the 2011 hunt, in 67.
If I was looking to hunt this year with 4 points I would look more towards 48, and 73-75 units. Those are the units I'm considering for next year. Good luck!
Musket Man
Veteran member
What does that 67 buck score? I killed a nice 67 buck too, as in he just came out of 67 into the unit I was hunting
kesand72
Active Member
That buck was actually the first critter I ever attempted to score and I came up with a rough score of 78" gross. I'm sure I could be off by a few inches. I would love to have it officially scored but have no idea who would do it here in Illinois. The guys at the meat locker in Riverton Wy said it should go high 70s.
Musket Man
Veteran member
Do you have any local outdoor or hunting shows in your area? I take mine to our local show and they score them free if you leave them there for the show.
libidilatimmy
Veteran member
Get on the B&C website and you can look up official scorers in your area. You can then call and ask these folks if they can score antelope, which I'm willing to bet they can.
kesand72
Active Member
Was kinda figuring on taking a giant whitetail this year n then having them both scored.....that didn't work out tho Lol!!
Topgun 30-06
Banned
Why in the world would anyone even think of hunting unit 55 that is completely checkerboarded and only has one public road running through it unless they had access to a ranch there?
Musket Man
Veteran member
LOL maybe you will have one next year! I take mine even if they arent real big just to support the smaller show. I also like to get an accurate score on all my animals for a reference for field judging. Being able to look at all mine side by side anytime and knowing the score helps alot when you get out hunting!
kesand72
Active Member
Well, I can only speak for myself, but in 2011, 55 was the highest rated lope unit in Wyoming that could be drawn as a 2nd choice, and if you had the GPS chip and were careful you could get it done there. I see it takes a lot more points now, and it would never be my 1st choice with all the quality units to choose from with 4 points.
Hilltop
Veteran member
Because all that checker boarding deters many guys like you. There are huge bucks and plenty of land to hunt. It looks intimidating on a large map but seriously how much ground do you need? Think of it this way- if you have just one square mile of deer ground you feel like you have a huge piece of property. We are talking about miles and miles to hunt here with plenty of antelope. It is easier to draw than the other areas close to it because you do have to pay attention. I would also like to point out that the game and fish contracts some of the private land into HMAs in this area as well. Some of the white on your map is huntable... I wouldn't even mention it on here if I planned on antelope hunting again but I have numerous heads and have switched gears to elk. I grew up in Laramie and have hunted antelope all over the state- It doesn't get much better than 55.
Topgun 30-06
Banned
Checkerboarding deters smart people like myself that don't want to take a chance on trespassing or hunting "little" square mile chunks of property that are surrounded by private land with ranchers that will tell you that you're on their land and try to get a trespass ticket written even if you're in the right! That happens regardless of whether you have a GPS with a chip in it or not and that's why I stated that I wouldn't hunt it unless I had access to a ranch, meaning either by paying a trespass fee or going to a HMA or WIHA if there are any of decent size in the area. I've been hunting Wyoming dang near every year for over 20 years, so I do know my way around and what can work and make a good hunt or one that can backfire and cause more trouble than it's worth. IMHO most of those checkerboarded areas are the latter unless you can get on a ranch legally like I mentioned.
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Musket Man
Veteran member
I dont think it is detering that many people since it now takes 4 points to draw it. Its the only unit I have noticed with poor access that takes any points to draw. I would consider a unit like that 2nd choice but to me there are alot better units that can be had with 4 points. Luckily we all look for different things when choosing a unit or we would all apply for the same unit and the draw odds would be 10,000-1 while all the other units had leftover tags. lol
woodtick
Veteran member
You looked into 91 or 92?? I don't know how many points there taking but we've hunted that area several times.