throwing good app money after bad and repeat

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Arizona nonresident desert bighorn sheep tag. 13 points.


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Alaska nonresident mountain goat tag limited draw. 7 years of application.

Apply, apply, apply. You will hit when you least expect it!

Thanks again to the different groups, volunteers, government officials, and members that continuously support conservation, wildlife, and the outdoors.

We are so blessed in this country to have the opportunities that we have. God please continue to bless America. 🇺🇸

Good luck to all in the upcoming draws and hunting seasons - limited hunts or general hunts. Wheels up for me in 14 days for a bongo/forest sitatunga hunt in Cameroon, Equatorial Africa. Gonna be rough…

“Believe the incredible and you can achieve the impossible.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen.

Happy hunting this season and good luck, TheGrayRider a/k/a Tom.
 
You’ll never draw if you don’t apply - but it sure does add up after a while. Like others mentioned, with Idaho’s convenience fee, it’s about $300 I won’t get back just for a moose app. I’ve considered just saving and purchasing tags down the road, like a BC mountain goat, etc.
 
Buschy said:
Kirby,































































I have had the moment of reflection many times in the last year or two. Honestly, I don't see much positive on the horizon for DIY, public-land big game hunting. Those on the site can beat me up if they want to, but that is what I see after doing this for the last 30 years. I am strategically burning points across the west, am pulling out of many OIL and limited draws that no longer make sense to apply for, and will be focusing on more fishing and bird hunting in the next 5-10 years. You post resonates with me.



























Go to new Zealand. No tags, no license, no season, and at moment it's overrun with big game animals plus there's tons of wallaby hunting, like shooting gophers at time just much bigger.
Click to expand...
 
I'm not quitting, it's just money and if a person cares about the species you apply for, the money will help the conservation of same.

It's no different than throwing in for a raffle, who expects to win those?

You're doing it for the cause, not the prize. The prize is just to shake the dust out of the wallet.

I'm not giving up.
 
Game and Fish agencies are much like Casinos by the fact that that line their pockets from the sliver of hope they sale to the masses. Casinos would not be in business if they had to many payouts much like g&f agencies. You can guarantee the casino has the odds in their favor. Yeah I know someone wins occasionally but the masses don't, just like with trophy tags.
Probably for 99% of us a M/S/G tag is just a pipe dream, for that matter a lot of other tags are as well but some of us keep throwing our money away on the "hope" of drawing while the g&f keep making millions on "convenience fees" etc.
I know, I know, "somebody has to draw" yes true, but for every 1that draws 99 don't. So the winner is that 1 and the g&f agencies.
Not trying to be so negative but this is how I see it. And yes I threw away another $300 on Idaho moose app again this year. Not to mention other state draws.
 
Good thoughts from a lot of folks!

For Idaho I am only in for sheep if I already have a general/OTC elk tag and thus already have the required small game license. When I get boxed out on elk there, I will skip the sheep draw.

Felt like a fool applying WY moose with only ONE random draw tag for the whole state. as they say on South Park:

getyarn.io

Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb

South Park (1997) - S07E12 Comedy clip with quote Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb Yarn is the best search for video clips by quote. Find the exact moment in a TV show, movie, or music video you want to share. Easily move forward or backward to get to the perfect clip.
getyarn.io getyarn.io
 
You have to play to win. Cost me non refundable $1270 to play in 6 states for 35 tag draws. i tend to kick out a tag/year.
 
If I didn't live in Wyoming, then I would probably be more aggressive with other states.

I used to apply to Montana, South Dakota, Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming.

Now it is just Wyoming and select Tags in Utah.

There is really not a need to apply outside of Wyoming with the exception of Swan in Utah.

So, I just don't.
 
Went to the river again locally and saw, cast to, and then hooked (and lost) a large muskie on 8lb test from shore. My heart raced more from this brief encounter than I’ve experienced on many of my western hunts and without the 30 hour drive and thousands spent….

Motivated by this, I went to a stream 2 minutes from my house that I have never fished in 12 years and caught 3 native brook trout as incidentals while filling up on a dozen large chubs to use for musky this weekend…. cost $0.

maybe there is something to this fishing thing after all….


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Khunter said:
Anybody else take a moment of reflection as they throw good money away on Montana, sheep, goat, moose, bison, tags, and pretty much anything in Nevada, pick your state etc. etc. etc.
😆😂😃🥹🙃😞
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Yes, more and more every year. I’ve thought about putting that app money towards camera gear and hunting year-round. I’ve been fortunate to draw RM bighorn, moose, dall sheep, and to hunt mountain goats in AK. I’d be just fine to let someone else have a chance at those. I’d still like to draw a desert sheep, and I’d love to hunt mountain caribou. I’ll probably fade out slowly and start dropping the ones that are really displaying my IQ right now, like WY moose and sheep. I skipped ID and NM this year.
 
Buschy said:
Kirby,

I have had the moment of reflection many times in the last year or two. Honestly, I don't see much positive on the horizon for DIY, public-land big game hunting. Those on the site can beat me up if they want to, but that is what I see after doing this for the last 30 years. I am strategically burning points across the west, am pulling out of many OIL and limited draws that no longer make sense to apply for, and will be focusing on more fishing and bird hunting in the next 5-10 years. Your post resonates with me.
Click to expand...
I was fortunate to jump in back about the time you & Randy did ~ 1996, pre-internet info highway, and went on many of the best trophy hunts in the US. Way more than my share. Currently managing 445 points spread over ten states. I have exited quite a few (WY S&M, OR, ID, MT, KS & NH) and the way things are going always looking to exit more. Saw what was coming and rationed my preference based states for one OIL tag each of next 5 years. That would get me to age 70. This year it’s UT Paunsagunt deer. I genuinely feel sorry for young guys now because they have so few options. Hell, if I got 445 points and can’t draw but one premium tag/year, what do they have to look forward to?

For myself, I don’t care much as I am getting old & broken down. Actually losing some interest. Two torn Achilles & heart failure will do that. Not easy to be excited about the mountains when every step is painful. I have slowly morphed my interest towards top end Midwest whitetail & turkey, plus a lot of time towards the spring Maumee River walleye run. It’s also much easier physically. I really love these activities, and the barrier-to-entry is low to none. Not even sure I can physically handle the next five Western OIL hunts 2024-2028. Will do all DIY. Don’t care if I score trophies or not. Will stagger through these last years and just enjoy whatever happens. Would tell the newbies good luck, but in fact I know it’s gonna take a hell of a lot more than that for them to experience what I have the last ~30 years.

I have already met or exceeded all my big game hunting goals. I expect that is why I’m able to return to walleye fishing so easily?
 

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From what I’ve observed, the premium tags were out of reach to newbies ~15 years ago. And since then, I’ve watched what I consider mediocre tags drift into the abyss. So I shifted gears to low tier & general tags this year, but I still have been unable to draw. The future is bleak indeed for most guys.

Here at home, I’ve really gotten serious about scouting tons of public land where I have resident status. And while typing post above the draw results were posted, and I drew another whitetail home run at a public place nobody knows about, but sure wish they did! Lol I am quite ecstatic. Best to focus on what is realistic.
 
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Feel everyones pain. I apply for me and 3 kids. Not a fun time but the kids love hunting and if we can get a hunt or two a year its worth it.
We are in for
Colorado
Nevada
Wyoming
Utah
NM
Arizona
California

Dropped out of Idaho a couple years ago when they went to the online thing

Few more years and I will be calling one of these states home and wont worry to much about it. Does the wind blow in Wyoming
 
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