Ideas for the Members Research Section

[hoshour]

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!

We started the digital version last year to address the issue of only covering the top hunts in the printed journals. In the print editions, we are constrained by space, but we are not online. So, last year the writers started to include information on more hunts for the digital edition, sometimes all the available hunts!

I can't promise that we will grade out every single hunt in all states for the digital version, though. Some states like Colorado have an enormous number of total hunts because of all the seasons and it is just too much work. But, we are moving in that direction. Another reason to go digital.

 

[Dakota Drifter]

I'm done applying for tags that take 10 plus years to draw or cost $100+ just to apply and I'm down to just a couple tags that I apply for and already know the unit or units I want to hunt. I seldom look at the MRS as 99.99% of my hunting is OTC/general units. Research for OTC units would be tuff and time consuming but this is what I would like to see more of in the MRS. Even putting several units into a "zone" to ease the research time would be better than nothing.

 

[hoshour]

Can you guys clarify what kind of research you're wanting on the general and OTC hunts?

 

[gonhunting247]

I'm sure that there is no way Eastmans has time or space to cover all General/OTC type hunts, but maybe you could pick a species/state each month or something like that. For me the criteria would be a % of public land above a reasonable minimum and success rate per a specific species over say 25%. Just kind of a wish list Not sure if would even be feasible.

 

[ivorytip]

I'm sure that there is no way Eastmans has time or space to cover all General/OTC type hunts, but maybe you could pick a species/state each month or something like that. For me the criteria would be a % of public land above a reasonable minimum and success rate per a specific species over say 25%. Just kind of a wish list Not sure if would even be feasible.

i like this

 

[Dakota Drifter]

Maybe a little more in depth of how their system works, the units involved, projected dates. Kind of like the draw units but without the draw odds. Colorado is pretty easy but some are hard to understand/figure out without printing out their complete booklet. I know this would probably be impossible but hunt pressure from the previous years would be awesome. It seems the biologist send everyone to the same few areas every year.

 

[hoshour]

Any hunt we list in the MRS table for a state/species, and I as mentioned, we are moving toward including a lot of them in the digital edition beyond what is in the print edition, should have the hunting pressure for that hunt.

However, one big caveat to the Hunters per 100 Sq. Miles figure we post is that it is only for that hunt. This is in the footnotes.

In some states, especially Montana and Colorado, there may be other hunts going on at the same time, like concurrent deer and elk seasons, doe or cow tags. Be very careful to check the regs and see if other hunts are going on and how many tags were issued.

Also, hunting pressure is not the same 5 miles off the road as it is near the road, nor is it the same on private land as on public, so consider that as well. It is really more to compare hunts than to give you an exact number of hunters in your area.

 

[missjordan]

I think in general there needs to be more information on general units and easy to draw units. Coming from Montana our group always put in for the trophy units then fall back on units that are guaranteed draw for our 2nd/3rd choices, mainly for deer. I think really elaborating on good general units instead of making quick and short statements would be extremely beneficial to the MRS section. And probably more important to feature on your digital magazine since space is critical

 

[hoshour]

The key is the digital version.

We have expanded the print edition quite a bit and are putting out sizeable magazines during the MRS season. It's pretty hard to add coverage of low quality and general units in that limited space. But, I hear you guys asking for it.

As previously mentioned, we are adding information on many of those hunts in the digital edition.

Don't forget that you can now get all the expanded coverage in the new annual MRS book, an encyclopedia on where to hunt in the West.

 

[NDHunter]

I'm going way against the grain here and would not like to see tons of info on the OTC and easy to draw units. Easy to draw units are easier in some part because there is no coverage on them. For people that are willing to do some homework themselves, you can find some great spots to hunt every year. Personally I do most of my research in the yellow units because that's where the opportunity is to find some good animals and also be able to hunt it frequently.

 

[CoHiCntry]

I'm going way against the grain here and would not like to see tons of info on the OTC and easy to draw units. Easy to draw units are easier in some part because there is no coverage on them. For people that are willing to do some homework themselves, you can find some great spots to hunt every year. Personally I do most of my research in the yellow units because that's where the opportunity is to find some good animals and also be able to hunt it frequently.

I'm kind of on the same page but maybe for a little different reason. Living in the west, I can hunt big game every year if I'm not to picky on the units. If I'm going to spend the time away from my family and spend the money on an out of state hunt, I want it to be in a good area with lots of opportunity and or trophy animals. Otherwise I'll just stay home and hunt. So information on OTC hunts or easy to draw hunts are of little interest to me. I can understand those who don't live out west wanting info on easier to draw areas though for the years they don't draw the "coveted" tag. Guess it all depends on your situation.

 

[gonhunting247]

You have a real good point NDHunter, maybe some of these units are so good for a reason, and that is they fly under the radar. I do know units that have been ruined from too much publicity! Definitely something to think about.

 

[hoshour]

Knowledge of your hunt area is one of the most important advantages you can have.

If you have a choice between hunting a very good area that you don't know and a good area that you knew extremely well, you will likely to do better in the latter.

That's the rub with hunting out-of-state units you can only draw every few years.

 

[siwulat]

I'd like to see info on the Dakotas. I realize that they operate a bit differently than other states as far as tag allocation is concerned. But maybe some info on the areas would be cool.