Wyoming BLM Hunting

[gperezjr]

Drew an antelope tag in a unit with 70+% public land. We will be there the second week of rifle season. Will we run into a lot of other hunters? First time out west and not sure what to expect in terms of camping on BLM land and being around other hunters.

 

[bullbugle307]

Not knowing what unit you drew, I'd say there will probably be lots of hunters. Most will be road hunters. Camping probably won't be a problem, neither will the road hunters if you use them to your advantage. Make a big loop once you've found a buck you like (I'm talking miles, unless the topography helps you out), and try and get behind the animals so the road hunters push them to you. The pronghorn will usually focus on the roads, and someone will likely push them towards your ambush. Whatever you do, try at all costs to not park where the pronghorn can see you before you start your stalk. It doesn't matter if they're a mile out, they'll usually bust you. That's the number one mistake I see people make, and it rarely works out for them.

 

[JM77]

Drew an antelope tag in a unit with 70+% public land. We will be there the second week of rifle season. Will we run into a lot of other hunters? First time out west and not sure what to expect in terms of camping on BLM land and being around other hunters.

80% or more of the hunters will be done and gone after the first week.

 

[bullbugle307]

JM77 makes a good point. So it really just depends on the total quota in the area you're hunting. Say you're in an area like 73 where there's 1200 buck and 1200 doe tags. 20 percent of that is still like 400-500 total tags. So in that hypothetical you might have 200-250 ish buck hunters. Your doe hunters might have multiple tags and may be buck hunters also, so it's kinda hard to tell total hunters in that scenario. I'd argue total tags matters more in terms of hunting pressure and how it relates to your hunt anyhow.

Oftentimes, the animals aren't really evenly distributed either, so what hunting pressure you have may be more concentrated in certain areas. But that isn't necessarily always a bad thing if you're willing to put in more work than others and find a good one in a less densely populated area.

If you're in an area with more limited tag numbers, you're obviously going to have fewer hunters. But they may also be covering a lot more ground and spending a lot more time trying to find the one they want.

Other things to consider are possible overlap with other species seasons, like deer. Say you have an area that opens the 21st of September, as some do. You may have deer hunters coming in the 1st of October that can screw things up for you or compete for camping spots just as much as other pronghorn hunters. Then again, I've capitalized off others hunters a fair number of times too, so it's not always bad having other people out if you use the pressure to your advantage.

Just trying to give you some food for thought. Either way, no use worrying too much about it now. Just go out, hunt hard, and have a good time. Best of luck!

 

[3855WIN]

Should be plenty of spots to camp.

 

[wytex]

You'll be fine, hunters will be out second week but in an area with that much public you should be able to find a spot that is not over run.
Camping, almost anywhere but be aware of the predominate winds. Snow fences can make for a wind break if no trees or terrain to hide behind, but they are close to the roads.
Good luck!

 

[gperezjr]

When camping on BLM land, how far off the road can we park vehicles?

 

[VikingsGuy]

When camping on BLM land, how far off the road can we park vehicles?

As far as you dare as long as you stay on 2-tracks is my understanding.

 

[Irrelevant]

When camping on BLM land, how far off the road can we park vehicles?

Recognize that if the road starts on BLM and end on BLM, but crosses even a small corner of private, you can't cross the private without permission (in most cases). This really hung me up a few times last year.

 

[gperezjr]

I'm assuming you talking about unnamed dirt roads and not named County Roads?

 

[wytex]

Just pull off near a road, look for an already used site, fire pit will be evident probably. BLM does not have a maximum distance you can drive off road to camp from what I've found. Do no resource damage to get to your spot and you should be ok. Montana allows 100 yds of off road travel for camping stated online.
This article has some info : https://billingsgazette.com/outdoor...cle_cc7ec2b0-c3c3-5807-a988-46042ff85342.html

 

[westernslopehunter]

When I drew my first antelope tag last year, I saw literally 2 other hunting vehicles the whole time and approximately 10,000 pronghorn. It was great. I think you are going to have a great hunt.

 

[JM77]

Just pull off near a road, look for an already used site, fire pit will be evident probably. BLM does not have a maximum distance you can drive off road to camp from what I've found. Do no resource damage to get to your spot and you should be ok. Montana allows 100 yds of off road travel for camping stated online.
This article has some info : https://billingsgazette.com/outdoor...cle_cc7ec2b0-c3c3-5807-a988-46042ff85342.html

This is good advise; pull off main road on existing two track, if it's a nice spot, someone has camped there before. Our local BLM Ranger here says stay close to roads, no more than 50 yards off tracks, but I'm not sure there is a rule either. On USFS it's 100 yards.

 

[antelopedundee]

Recognize that if the road starts on BLM and end on BLM, but crosses even a small corner of private, you can't cross the private without permission (in most cases). This really hung me up a few times last year.

Unless the terrain forbids it why not simply make the road go AROUND the private land? What are we talking, 100 yards?

 

[Blackcats06]

Unless the terrain forbids it why not simply make the road go AROUND the private land? What are we talking, 100 yards?

Cause it’s illegal to drive cross country on blm

 

[antelopedundee]

Cause it’s illegal to drive cross country on blm

I wasn't talking about driving across the country. Is there some limit to how long a BLM dirt road can be?

 

[Blackcats06]

I wasn't talking about driving across the country. Is there some limit to how long a BLM dirt road can be?

What do you mean by is there a limit of how long a road can be? There is not, it doesn’t even have to be on blm as long as it’s maintained by blm. If your going down the road of the forest service rule that you can drive 100 yards off a road to camp that might be a way to get around the public.

 

[antelopedundee]

What do you mean by is there a limit of how long a road can be? There is not, it doesn’t even have to be on blm as long as it’s maintained by blm. If your going down the road of the forest service rule that you can drive 100 yards off a road to camp that might be a way to get around the public.

I simply asked before why a BLM or BLM maintained road can't just bypass private land instead of going through it and requiring the landowner's permission to cross it. Not that hard to understand. If it takes you 6 hours to get permission then what are you supposed to do? Sit around and play with yourself for 6 hours? There should be an agreement that you have a ROW to proceed as long as you stay on the road.

 

[shootbrownelk]

The roads are where the roads are. BLM is not going to move a road so hunters can bypass private land to hunt. Those roads are mainly for Rancher's access to their leased BLM lands. Make your own road and you are in big trouble if you're caught by the rancher or BLM officer. That's been my experience.

 

[madtom]

then what are you supposed to do?

Get out of your truck. Put all of your hunting gear on your body and in your hands. Then, alternate putting your full body weight on each foot after placing it in front of the other foot.