This may seem like a silly far off question, but I'll ask it anyway.
As I close in on long term improved finances I am considering how best to pursue my dream animal which is a big, chocolate colored rocky mountain bighorn ram. Not a short haired desert sheep or early season animal. I envision snow and dark fur.
I am 33 now and have no points anywhere. I see myself hunting deer and maybe elk in multiple states down the road and like to hunt every year, but I would plan to do THIS once. In looking at hunts in BC, the trophy fees can be ridiculous, and for whatever reason, doing a hunt in the states and buying points to draw a tag has some element of appeal to me. It just seems different to potentially kill one here, and go through the process of points, research, draws, etc as opposed to buying a hunt. On top of that, guides in WY are in the $10k range, and $20 years of points is only $2k, which is less than most trophy fees. Maybe I am missing something.
I would plan to start buying points next year (2017) and have looked at WY, as it is easy to buy points, and it seems like the sheep situation there is stable. From what I can tell the other states that would offer the type of animal I want would be tougher like MT, UT, CO or don't have point systems, ID.
I along with some friends are already building points in WY for deer and PH, and will probably start on elk next year as well. I'd rather not do the Canada thing for bighorn. I would consider going up there for goat, dall or other things, but for some reason I'm stuck on wanting a lower 48 bighorn. I would consider DIY when the time comes depending on a lot of things, but imagine this as a guided trip, for purposes of success primarily.
Is getting in on the ground floor in WY pointless?
Anywhere else I should be looking for building points?
At 33 you are probably too late to draw in states with point systems.
Here is a PM I sent to someone with similar questions in 2014 so some of the info is a bit dated and has worsened for a newcomer in certain states:
Thanks for your question. Between my immediate family and I, we have drawn seven sheep tags. I've been seriously applying for 30 years and have made a science of my applications. I will not apply for hunts or in states where I think I will likely not see a return on that investment. When I try to determine if its a good investment, I look at my costs compared to my draw odds. For example if you spend $100 for a 0.5% chance (1 in 200) for a sheep tag, if you instead had saved that $100 two hundred times you would have $20,000 saved or enough to buy a sheep hunt in Alaska. With the point systems most states have in place, I recommend to all new guys asking about this to save their money for a sure thing, a Dall sheep hunt in Alaska or the Yukon.
Years ago applying for sheep tags could potentially save some money, but I don't believe that to be the case anymore. I think to start applying for sheep tags now on the ground floor is like investing in gold when its an an all time high and hoping to make a bunch of money. I DO NOT ascribe to the "someone has to draw" idea that the app services promote. They are in it to make money and are selling hope. That is simply "gambling" for tags. That's like trying to get rich buying lottery tickets, rather than through hard work and expertise. My family spends our money strategically to draw tags.
Of the seven sheep tags we drew: All three that I personally drew were drawn with max points (CO, NV and WY). The two in Oregon were drawn by my brother and wife were drawn as residents (far better draw odds), in units that I was certain (from a ton or research) would have good draw odds that particular year. The final two tags were drawn by my sons and were the result of a crazy amount of research to find the very best chances to draw. Consider that my family has submitted hundreds of sheep applications.
The exception to what I have told you is this.... most states require you to buy a hunting license to apply, so if you are ALREADY buying a hunting license in a state to apply for other species, it's worth spending say $15 or $20 to throw your name in the hat for a sheep tag.
Now for the scenario in various states and why I think it's not a good idea to jump in hoping to draw:
Montana: Montana squares its preference points. The max point holders have 14 points, so 14 squared is 196. So if you apply this year, the top applicants have 197 chances to draw (196+ 1 for the current year) and you will have one chance. A poor investment. Montana just began a significant non-refundable application fee last year, and even though I had max points I dropped out for mountain goat because my odds were so poor (even with max points). I am still hanging in for sheep since I have max points and I want to kill a really big ram in my lifetime, but my odds even with max points are around 0.2% to 1%.
Nevada: Similar situation as Montana (squared points) except the point system has been going on for 22 years and to earn points you have to buy a non-resident hunting license. You have applicants with 22 points who will have 485 chances to draw (22 squared + 1 of the current year) compared to your one chance as a newcomer.
Idaho: I rarely apply in Idaho, I think it's a very poor investment. I have maybe applied for Idaho sheep 3 times in the past 30 years. In Idaho you have to buy a non-resident hunting license, you earn no points, and if you apply for sheep you cannot apply for ANY other species. On the surface Idaho draw odds "appear" to be good, but if you dig deeper, non-residents have a cap on the percentage of tags they can draw, 10% cap I believe. When the cap is reached, no more non resident tags are drawn. The odds in Idaho are far worse that they appear. If you want to get an idea of the draw odds, determine all the non-resident applicants for sheep, and the total number of sheep tags drawn and you will get an idea of what reality is in Idaho.
Arizona again has a point system which now has applicants with 26 points. I have 25 points and even my odds are far less than those with max points, because a significant portion of the tags go only to those with max points. Again you have to buy a non-resident hunting license to even apply. Many of the tags offered can only be drawn by those with max points and a LOT of guys are spending money applying and don't realize that.
New Mexico was one of the best places for a new guy to apply because the out of pocket costs were low even though the upfront costs are high, and there was no point system. That changed in 2014 when they lowered the non-resident quota, and nearly eliminated the chance to draw a non-resident sheep tag. This year New Mexico had over $6000 of my money when they made that change, and my wife and I ended up with virtually no chance to draw.
Oregon: You have to buy a non-resident hunting license to apply. If you are buying one anyways I would spend the extra $8 to apply. Draw odds are far too poor though to justify investing in a license only to apply for sheep.
Utah: Utah has very few sheep tags and astronomical odds and you have to buy a license to apply By astronomical, I mean close to 1000:1. I have max points (22 points), and my odds are still awful. The reason I stick with it, is if they ever give 2 non resident tags out for a given hunt, one tag will go to the person with the max points and there are only about 30 guys with max points.
Wyoming: Wyoming has a point system and max point holders have 20 points. You will never catch a max point tag in your lifetime. Only 25% of the tags go to those without max points, and in most units you are required to hire an outfitter due to wilderness requirements.
Colorado is still a bargain to apply, but you have to apply three years before you even have a chance to draw, and there is a point system that has guys with a 17 year jump on you. I am in the max point pool and my odds are still long (0.5% to 1%). You have to front the substantial tag fee to apply, most of which is refunded. In your fourth year to apply your odds for a good unit will be around 1 in 300.
For those who finally beat the long odds for a sheep tag, most guys will then hire an outfitter to make the most of it. In fact in Wyoming you have to hire an outfitter for most units. We hired outfitters for 3 of our 4 out of state sheep hunts. Today, that will add another $7K to $10K on top of the investment to apply and the tag fee. Lets say you invest $10K in app fees to draw, and $2K for a license and $8K for an outfitter, you have $20K invested. That is another reason I say go for the sure thing and save for a Dall hunt.
If you choose to go the application path, be prepared to invest a lot of money, and hundreds of hours into research. If you have an app service handle applying for you, you can let them do the research and have higher costs. They also will be applying you in areas where they apply their other clients. lowering your odds.
This is why I now advise new guys to go for the sure thing and save for an Alaskan hunt. Again if you are buying a license somewhere and for $20 more you can apply for sheep...go for it.
Jim