Pilot Hill land acquisition

[Hechterooskie]

WHMA approved for Pilot Hill. This fall will be the first that we can hunt on the newly acquired land.

 

[Cornell Cowboy]

WHMA approved for Pilot Hill. This fall will be the first that we can hunt on the newly acquired land.

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You mean the measly 5 people that can actually draw it? It will be effectively inaccessible during the late elk season. I was initially excited, but it will be harder to draw permission than a sheep tag! https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Hunter-Management-Areas/Pilot-Hill

 

[Cornell Cowboy]

You mean the measly 5 people that can actually draw it? It will be effectively inaccessible during the late elk season. I was initially excited, but it will be harder to draw permission than a sheep tag! https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Hunter-Management-Areas/Pilot-Hill

So in a classic bait and switch, it was initially proposed to the public last year as a WHMA, which would mean the public that wanted to hike in could access it. Instead they made it an HMA for use by only the lucky few.

 

[Hechterooskie]

You mean the measly 5 people that can actually draw it? It will be effectively inaccessible during the late elk season. I was initially excited, but it will be harder to draw permission than a sheep tag! https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Hunter-Management-Areas/Pilot-Hill

Well there is actually 80 permits for the elk hunt that they give out. But look how small the area is how many people do you think could hunt that at the same time?

 

[Carl 9.3x62]

It is still a WHMA. The hunting is regulated through an HMA though, I suspect to limit the hunting pressure as it isn't very big.

 

[Cornell Cowboy]

Well there is actually 80 permits for the elk hunt that they give out. But look how small the area is how many people do you think could hunt that at the same time?

You could make that argument for any piece of State land. But 80 is a joke (we could make it 8,000 and it would still receive the same pressure because it isn't accessible) -- anyone hunting past Nov. will struggle just to get the boundary of the HMA, much less actually hunt it.

 

[Cornell Cowboy]

It is still a WHMA. The hunting is regulated through an HMA though, I suspect to limit the hunting pressure as it isn't very big.

You are correct -- I just haven't seen too many other WHMAs around that are managed as an HMA. To me the HMA effectively negates the WHMA aspect of it. It particularly stinks because they pulled the one accessible state section bordering NF and put it into the HMA, so now that's not even accessible.