Preference Points

[Colorado Cowboy]

Yesterday my hunting group bought our deer and antelope points. Hope we have enough for a 2024 hunt.

 

[JimP]

Got mine a couple of weeks ago.

I think that I am done chasing points and just may cash them in next year on a good unit that I can draw with what I have.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Between Wyoming and Colorado, I can hunt deer or antelope almost every year. I'll keep Wyoming on my list until it get to the point where I have to wait too long to draw. At my age I can't afford to miss any seasons!

 

[Hilltop]

Making my yearly donation soon for DEA but thinking hard about giving up on moose and putting the money towards a North of the Border hunt.

 

[buckbull]

yeah, i have to start cashing in my wyoming points I have for DEA. with the horrible past winter i'm not sure if next year is the year.

 

[DRUSS]

looking to add my wife and I for DEA but really have to decide about Sheep/Moose? Hilltop brings up a very realistic option that could at least be a planned trip in the future. i have really just hoped for a DIY type lower 48 moose hunt, and in all honesty its my wife that is most interested in a moose!

 

[JimP]

looking to add my wife and I for DEA but really have to decide about Sheep/Moose? Hilltop brings up a very realistic option that could at least be a planned trip in the future. i have really just hoped for a DIY type lower 48 moose hunt, and in all honesty its my wife that is most interested in a moose!

If you have never been on a guided hunt you need to think about it. On my bear hunt in British Colombia I was just as much of a hunter as I am when I go out by my self. But the outfitter knew where to go instead of me having to spend week, and or months trying to research the area. I was a active participant as far as glassing and trying to locate a bear, I even was able to point out a few things that the guide didn't see. But the real nice thing about it was the very little work that I had to do around camp. When I got up in the morning coffee was already made and breakfast was being made. By the time that I was done with breakfast the horses were saddled and my lunch was ready for me to place into my backpack. When I returned the horses were taken care of while I was changing into some drier clothing. Then while I relaxed a little supper was cooked.

It was a great time not having to do all the little things around camp.

 

[DRUSS]

i have been on a guided bait hunt in Saskatchewan. it was a fun trip, lots of activity on the bait sites.

i do have a couple bucket list Canadian trips in mind just have to wait and see if i ever get one booked. A multi tag 3 week horseback type adventure in the Yukon or British Columbia would be fun.

 

[tim]

preference points for a decade are way cheaper than a diy alaskan float hunt, that requires planes. I had $10,000 into my remote moose hunt, and i did all the cooking and guiding and rowing and, and... I also, had 10 into a remote float with the wife. The hunting side does add some coin.
The cost of a guided alaskan moose hunt is up there.

preference points are cheap. They may not guarantee a hunt, but you won't miss a meal because you bought some.

 

[JimP]

On the moose hunts people need to differentiate between the species and where you want to hunt them.

A Alaskan Yukon moose hunt is going to be up there in cost where as a Shiras moose hunt is going to be a lot more affordable. And since what most hunters are putting in for here in the lower 48 is the Shiras subspecies then they might look at those hunts rather than the larger Yukon moose.

 

[Hilltop]

preference points for a decade are way cheaper than a diy alaskan float hunt, that requires planes. I had $10,000 into my remote moose hunt, and i did all the cooking and guiding and rowing and, and... I also, had 10 into a remote float with the wife. The hunting side does add some coin.
The cost of a guided alaskan moose hunt is up there.

preference points are cheap. They may not guarantee a hunt, but you won't miss a meal because you bought some.

In Wyoming there are almost 12,000 non residents with moose points in line for less than 30 bull permits yearly. Suggesting it will only be a decade worth of points is laughable. At $150 per point currently and a $2,000 tag fee it is not a cheaper option if a person wants any realistic chance at hunting. People would be crazy to start into this system as they would have a very low chance of drawing in their lifetime while wasting thousands of dollars. I only have a few hundred people ahead of me and my chances of getting a tag in the next 20 years is extremely low. My only chance really would be if they changed the system to a random and then my chances would still be very low.

On the other hand I can hunt in Canada fully guided now for less than 10K.

 

[Winchester]

^^ What he said.
I bought a couple of WY moose points a few years ago and then it became clear that I'd likely NEVER draw, so I stopped.
There are plenty of guided options to choose from to get the right experience & cost for what you want to do.

 

[buckbull]

I gave up on Wyoming Moose and Sheep points when I determine I would have to live to be 186 years old.

I apply for moose in Maine but that is a long shot but not too expensive. I plan to go to Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, New Brunswick etc for moose. It seems to be the most affordable way to get a moose. Using my sheep/goat money to go to Africa eventually.

 

[tim]

I am not in love with wyoming hunting, like a lot of people on this board. So i don't even pretend to pay attention to how wyoming plays there game. What i do know is, that you can buy points for 53 years and still not equal the cost of the hunt. So points may not be the way to go on certain species, but as a whole they are cheap. but i am lucky and i live in a western state that has otc hunting and do go deer and elk hunting every year. 75% of my non resident hunting has been alaska, so it has always been expensive, and throw my sheep fetish in and it gets real expensive. And go ahead and have fun with that one.

 

[Hilltop]

I am not in love with wyoming hunting, like a lot of people on this board. So i don't even pretend to pay attention to how wyoming plays there game. What i do know is, that you can buy points for 53 years and still not equal the cost of the hunt. So points may not be the way to go on certain species, but as a whole they are cheap. but i am lucky and i live in a western state that has otc hunting and do go deer and elk hunting every year. 75% of my non resident hunting has been alaska, so it has always been expensive, and throw my sheep fetish in and it gets real expensive. And go ahead and have fun with that one.

53 years and that person still has thousands of people in front of them and is pushing 70 years old. They might outlive everyone and draw in their late 80s or 90s. I also think we all know pricing will continue to go up as well. It has doubled just in the last 10 years.

I do get your point but Alaskan and Wyoming moose are nowhere near apples to apples. Newfoundland moose hunts can still be had for under 5k if a person shops around. Alberta high % hunts can be had for around 8k. Both places produce bulls in the same class that Wyoming does.

For deer, elk, and antelope, points do make a ton of sense. For moose, they make absolutely zero sense in todays world unless you are already invested heavily.

 

[mallardsx2]

All this moose sadness makes me appreciate going moose hunting for all those years for less than $2500/year.

I went 6 times in a row because I knew the good times wouldn’t last. That same trip right now is $9500 and the only give you a cow tag. Lmao.

Ontario has went downhill so bad in the moose department that it’s sickening. If they don’t do something there won’t be a moose season in 10 years up there. Sigh…