Which of the big 3 in Colorado to keep going after?

[npaden]

Well, my son has just turned 18 so we are having to have some serious discussions about which states and species he wants to keep applying for. Points for the big 3 in Colorado is going up to $100 each from the $0 we have been paying. I've been applying for him in pretty much every Western state for every species since he has been eligible but this year it's going to actually start costing real money to keep those points piling up.

Mountain goat was always one of my #1 priorities on drawing and odds in Colorado for mountain goat are about as good as you can get (still not great) but he isn't super pumped about mountain goats for some reason. He is more interested in Shiras moose than I am and odds in Colorado for moose are also decent (like 5% with 15+ points). Sheep is just crazy everywhere but I think if he keeps going he might legitimately have a chance to draw a sheep tag in the next 30 years in Colorado which is more than I could say for about anywhere else. Of course by then he will have $3,000+ worth of points assuming they stay the same price which isn't very likely.

Looking at cost differential, you can hunt moose in Canada in a few different provinces for under $10,000 for a guided hunt. Really that isn't way far out of line when you think you get to pick the year you are going to do the hunt and when it is going to cost $2,000+ of points plus the tag cost IF you end up drawing it at 5% in Colorado.

Mountain goat is a little more spendy but I think you can find something in Alaska for $15,000ish probably a chance at a bigger goat as well.

Bighorn sheep is going to set you back $40,000+ so even though the odds are terrible it is pretty much either get lucky in the draw or never hunt one for most of us. Even though that is the worst odds, that is the one I am most inclined to encourage him to keep applying for.

I'm probably going to be paying for his application fees for the next 4 years while he is in college but I'm not wanting to pay full price for him for the next 4 years only to have him not be willing to keep buying points when it comes out of his pocket so we are having this discussion now.

When the Utah, Nevada and Arizona draws come around we are going to have the same discussion.

Just thought I would throw this out there to see if I can get any HuntTalk wisdom to help us in our decision.

Thanks, Nathan

 

[MTGunner]

Bighorn sheep are a trophy of a lifetime. Albeit, it may lead to a desire for the other species of sheep. Hmmmmm…..to be 18 once again to chase sheep. MTG

 

[mevertsen]

Simplify it.

"Son, I can only afford one, your license plus..."

"Which one?"

Then tell him he's on his own for the rest.

Life sucks.

He won't die because he doesn't kill a sheep, and he may not want to anyway. And he will likely die before killing a sheep even if he has max points.

I've killed one sheep. I stopped applying for the other 2 species here after that. It was fun, they're cool, he looks good on the wall, tasted good, had a good time. But it really isn't any different than a curly horned deer in the end. Similar country, similar camp, it was just a different critter. Some people don't get wound up about it

 

[Bowhuntrben]

If his thing is moose, I'd do that....if you are insistent on keeping one going. You can always have him keep applying and just not build points...

I would focus more on keeping building points for species/states he has a real chance of drawing in the future. I gave up on my WY moose points after the price hike and NR quota reduction. It was a good decision. Building points (in that case) was just something that gave me false hopes and caused stress on whether or not I should continue spending money.

Back in 2019 I went on a guided hunt for moose. I would've preferred to go do it on my own, but this way I got to go without wondering if I'd EVER draw a tag. Even better, and most importantly, I got to do it with my dad. I gained a friend out of it as well. If you can, do the guided hunt (or save for it), and create that memory that can be appreciated for many years. That said, I'd wait for him to be a bit older so that he can truly appreciate it..maybe even not tell him about it until it is closer so he can dream without it being an expectation. Doing it this way, you can enjoy the hunt with him, and he can enjoy having you there with him. For me, it was the happiest I've ever seen my dad when we did that hunt. Doing the hunt would've meant little to nothing to me without him there.

 

[TheTone]

18? That’s his decision and his money to spend IMO

 

[Sheltowee]

Simplify it.

"Son, I can only afford one, your license plus..."

"Which one?"

Then tell him he's on his own for the rest.

Life sucks.

He won't die because he doesn't kill a sheep, and he may not want to anyway. And he will likely die before killing a sheep even if he has max points.

I've killed one sheep. I stopped applying for the other 2 species here after that. It was fun, they're cool, he looks good on the wall, tasted good, had a good time. But it really isn't any different than a curly horned deer in the end. Similar country, similar camp, it was just a different critter. Some people don't get wound up about it

^this. Put him to work and tell him to buy his own points.

 

[WildWill]

Wish my dad would've done that! Talk with him see what his priorities are. A bighorn is probably on the top of my list with moose not far behind while I have very little interest in hunting a mountain goat. If I was told by my pops I'll pay for one of the big 3 points a year while in college I would've easily chose sheep. Then I'd have saved and scraped together a $100 for the moose point. If he misses a year or two while in college the good news is Colorado points take for ever to reset points.

 

[Oak]

Ah, to be 18 again. I'd tell my 18 year old self to throw that money into an investment account every time I got the urge to apply in another state. Then I'd be sitting on a beach somewhere right now drinking cold beers and probably not posting on HT.

Look around this place. Not many success stories about opportunities increasing, herds expanding, support for habitat protection, opposition to selling it all to the highest bidder, etc. It's hard for me to believe that hunting is going to be a shell of what it is now in 25 years. Invest in a fishing boat.

 

[nrpate05]

Does he have any interest in going after a female of any of those species?

 

[Oak]

Bighorn sheep is going to set you back $40,000+ so even though the odds are terrible it is pretty much either get lucky in the draw or never hunt one for most of us.

This just hit my inbox a few minutes ago. A deal!!!

 

[TheTone]

Ah, to be 18 again. I'd tell my 18 year old self to throw that money into an investment account every time I got the urge to apply in another state. Then I'd be sitting on a beach somewhere right now drinking cold beers and probably not posting on HT.

I’d have stopped buying one or two CD’s with each paycheck if I could go back to 18. What a waste of $40-$80 bucks a month that turned out to be

I probably could have found some farmer to sell me a chunk of land back then and used that money for monthly payments

 

[Bambistew]

I like your optimism that you belive a tag is possible though. Keeps the dream alive. Let him decide what he wants to do. Seems like its an adult decision he needs to make, maybe he can rotate though and keep the points active?

 

[npaden]

I had forgot about just applying without buying the extra point. That might be the way to go. I might let him pick 1 species for me to buy him a point as a gift.

He has 6 points for everything right now. That gets him a tiny chance at the big 3. Just $9 per chance if you don't buy the point.

 

[npaden]

Does he have any interest in going after a female of any of those species?

Not really. Several states have youth opportunities for cow elk and he never was interested in that. Female mountain goat is close enough to a male he might be interested in that.

 

[npaden]

The $101.54 Adult Nonresident Small Game license is a bit of a jump over the $1.50 Youth Nonresident Small Game license to apply.

I've been spending the $188.86 on an Adult Nonresident Turkey license but haven't been having much luck at Turkey so not sure he needs to be getting a Turkey license also.

He is set with a lifetime license for Texas already.

 

[Perlodid]

I mean it's all up to you and him of course, but for me I'm not applying for any big three species in any western state as a NR. The way things look today and the way I expect things to go in the future regarding wildlife populations and tag opportunity make it a pretty easy choice. Not worth it if you started in the past 10 years (at least). My one exception is CO moose because I expect opportunities will stay the same or increase for them over the next 20-30 years, and if I had to pick one, Shiras is #1 on my list. If I wasn't so set on a Shiras in my lifetime I would just save up for Alaska/Canada.

 

[rjthehunter]

Start saving $ for guided hunts if the big 3 are high on his list!

I'd personally stick with sheep if I was doing anything. Those hunts cost significantly more than a moose or goat.

 

[kiwi hunter]

Gosh , it's hard for me to comprehend all this when in NZ the place is awash with game for free. No licence fees, free permits, even Victoria in OZ is halfway decent, but ya got to pay for a licence, from memory it's about 60 bucks, I don't need one on my own property but do if I hunt on public land.

 

[HappyCamper]

I mean it's all up to you and him of course, but for me I'm not applying for any big three species in any western state as a NR. The way things look today and the way I expect things to go in the future regarding wildlife populations and tag opportunity make it a pretty easy choice. Not worth it if you started in the past 10 years (at least). My one exception is CO moose because I expect opportunities will stay the same or increase for them over the next 20-30 years, and if I had to pick one, Shiras is #1 on my list. If I wasn't so set on a Shiras in my lifetime I would just save up for Alaska/Canada.

Hope you’re right about the moose. I’m sure the wolves will change that population BIG time

 

[Perlodid]

Hope you’re right about the moose. I’m sure the wolves will change that population BIG time

That's part of why I specified the 20-30 year timeline. I won't speculate too much on my expectations of how the population will change over time beyond that, but of course the wolves will have an increasingly important role in regulating moose numbers if everything continues as planned. But it's a big area, complex habitat, and a small wolf population to begin with. So it will take time to establish everything and see how it all shakes out.