Multiple state/species applications?

[EdP]

I see it recommended often to apply in multiple states for multiple species. I know how to apply, I've done that and drawn tags, but what if you draw multiple tags in multiple states? Do you just pick which one you want to go after and eat the cost of the other(s)? That could be rather expensive.

 

[belshawelk]

I build points and stagger putting in for draws. Know how many points it takes to draw what your looking at. No it doesn’t always work but put a spreadsheet together. Make sure they are states that are good for NR.

 

[Pucky Freak]

Some states allow you to return the tag, ex. CO. Some applications are due (ex. WY deer/antelope, and MT reissue), after the draw results of other tags come out. It’s possible to apply in multiple states and never have to eat the cost of a tag.

It also depends on your draw strategy. I focus on opportunity hunts. Personally, I can afford 2 NR trips and 1 high dollar tag per year. I’m buying WY elk and deer points. If I don’t draw either, I’ll do an OTC hunt. If I had more $, I’d add CO elk and deer, and just buy points for some species some years if I anticipated drawing a different tag.

Other people focus on high quality hunts. It’s typically a combination of buying points in multiple states for several species with “true” PP draws and then applying when drawing a tag is anticipated, and rolling the dice on low odds random draws in places like NM, ID, and WY. If you put in for 15-20 tags all with 5% or less draw odds, you’ve got a great chance of drawing nothing, and a very small chance of being stuck with 2 awesome tags, at which point you might want to rearrange your life a bit to plan 2 great trips

 

[Deleted member 28227]

As @ElkFever2 outlined you structure your applications to fit your schedule and what you want to do. Every state has hunts you can do every year and hunts that are <1% odds. You could draw 7 elk tags a year if you wanted or 1 every 20 years depending on how you apply.

Last year I applied for every species in CO, MT, UT, AK, then a couple in WY, NM, VT, NH, & ME. I think it was around 30 species total. I drew a 100% odds deer tag in CO and a picked up a leftover elk tag.

I've been apply for 8 years, 6 in most states and have yet to draw anything that wasn't 100% odds.

Every year on the forum there is usually 1 or 2 member that draw a couple of good tags in a single year but it's pretty rare.

 

[Forney]

Application strategy could be a college level class. I went through engineering classes that took less focus than trying to work out an application strategy, let alone a good application strategy.

 

[EdP]

Thanks guys, that's a big help.

 

[Stocker]

If you have luck like mine you’ll be lucky to draw any tag. 0/14 last year. I’ve had max elk bonus points here in Nebraska since they started it and I was one of 4 people that didn’t draw a deer unit here....... 800ish tags and 4 of us didn’t draw. Missed a Wyoming antelope unit that was 100% in 2019 with my points.

Come visit me, I’ll give you some of my luck and you’ll never have to worry about drawing any tag. Let alone too many.

 

[glass eye]

I never apply for hunts with conflicting dates. I make sure that nothing overlaps so that in the remote chance that I draw multiple tags I can pursue them all.

 

[FranklinME]

I always roll one week vacation so I have 5 weeks in case this happens. It hasn’t happened

 

[Bullshot]

Application strategy could be a college level class. I went through engineering classes that took less focus than trying to work out an application strategy, let alone a good application strategy.

A lot of truth to this. Thank God I took statistics in college, it has really come in handy with working some of this stuff out. With understanding, comes acceptance. I am no longer afraid of the long odds. Sometimes, the strategy dictates that good odds are more of a problem if conflicts are to be avoided.

You want your P(at least one) to be high enough that you will get to hunt most of the years that you want to, but your P(at least X) X being your intolerable number of hunts, or conflicting dates, to be low enough to allow you to sleep at night and just let future self deal with it if it happens.

OTC tags easily pick up the slack if you fail the first probability. But returning tags and hoping to get money or points back is not nearly as certain or efficient (or impossible depending on state) if you find yourself in the "unfortunate" position of drawing too many.