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Any of y'all ever done a DIY Antelope hunt in WY?

slickyboyboo

slickyboyboo

Member
Myself, and some friends are planning on putting in for tags this year, and will plan on it being completely DIY. Just looking for any good tips, if any of you have ever done this.

Also I know there are trophy units that require a couple of years to get drawn, but what are some other units that are easier to get drawn in, that have some decent bucks and populations as well as public access?

Thanks for any help!
 
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Bow or Gun? We bowhunt BLM ground around Gillette and do good, but not a ton of public so you have to take care of what you are hunting. Not running them off everyday. We get the tags there every year. Antelope are a blast to hunt and not much difference between a good one and a great one, so I would not get too hung up on harder to draw trophy units.
 
Are you gun hunting or bow hunting? If you are gun hunting, you used to be able to apply as a group, and as long as one person got drawn the whole group got drawn. That's the way it used to be 5-6 yrs ago anyway. Bow hunting I've never had a problem knocking on doors, and getting on private ground.
 
I personally would rather archery hunt, but everyone else is dead set on gun hunting, so the plan is to rifle hunt the first time out.
 
We only bowhunt and rarely see another bowhunter. Gun will be another story. The public will be a war zone so you will want to line up something private I think.
 
6x6, thanks for the info, what units do y'all hunt over there?

I actually worked in trophy units 91-93, back when I was in college as a summer job with the U of WY, I just don't have near as much knowledge about the other not so trophy units. We were planning on applying for a trophy unit, but putting our 2nd & 3rd choices as units that we would likely get drawn in. This would give us a chance to get out there and see what a hunt would be like, to be better prepared when we do get drawn for a trophy unit.
 
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I have been out to Wyoming twice on DIY hunts. Both trips we only hunted public land.

In 2010, we hunted unit 7 near Newcastle. We drew this unit without any preference points, but since then it has gained popularity and you might need 1 point to draw. We went the first weekend of the season and saw a ton of goats, but also a ton of other hunters. There were two of us and we tagged out in two days.

Here's my antelope
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This last year, we hunted in Unit 63. We tried to draw for Unit 9, but were unsuccessful. After the draw, all of the leftover tags will be for sale. These become available at a certain time/day and it is first come first serve. I got on as soon as it opened and got the tags. Unit 63 is considered somewhat of a trophy unit.

This time we were a little smarter. We waited until the 3rd week of the season to head out. We tagged out our 1st morning by noon and only ran into 1 other hunter.

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My best advice is to become very familiar with the Wyoming game and fish website.
1st: figure out what units you will have a good chance of drawing in. This will probalby narrow it down to 10 or so units.
http://wgfd.wyo.gov/web2011/Departments/Hunting/pdfs/DRAW_ANT_RD_NONRES_20120002491.pdf

2nd: check for public land or get a landowners list. You can get names of landowners who allow hunting, for free or small trespass fee, from the regional offices found towards the end of the non-resident hunting regs.
http://gf.state.wy.us/plpwhmprogram/frmWalkinHuntingHome.aspx

3rd: fill out application and wait for the draw. If you don't draw, you will probably be able to get tags in the leftover draw. However, these areas usually don't have great public access.

Good luck and if you need any more info shoot me a PM.
 
Also you can contact the area game warden or biologist and they are more than happy to help you with questions. Good luck.
 
goatman said:
Also you can contact the area game warden or biologist and they are more than happy to help you with questions. Good luck.
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That was not my experience. When I called asking to contact the regional CO in the area I was going to hunt in WY, I was discouraged from calling them by the main office. I didn't push it.

Found it an odd change from the year before, when I called and exchanged emails with a VERY helpful CO in NM.
 
Must have changed Bronc. Few years ago the warden put me in contact with a owner that needed thinned out. They are hard to get ahold of though.
 
WY DIY Antelope

Areas with a good amount of public ground that take no points to draw will have a ton of hunters on it. I went out last October to units 20 and 21 between Casper and Buffalo. We saw a ton of antelope but a ton of hunters as well. We were also mule deer hunting, so we only focused on antelope hunting for a couple of days. We each shot does. I'd also recommend applying for doe tags or buying them over the counter if they're are usually leftovers in the zone you want to apply for. There are tons of antelope out there, but they can get pretty skittish the first week. As soon as your truck slows down or stops they take off and are gone over the ridge before you ever had a chance. I'd recommend going out after the first 1 or 2 weeks of the season. There won't be nearly the pressure. Another thing to consider is the property lines out there. Landowners are not required to post their property, but it is the hunter's responsibility to know where they are. We bought a chip for our Garmin that showed all the public land and we would have been lost without it. The GPS chip was easily the most valuable piece of equipment we brought with us.
 
Driving I90 from Gillette to Sheridan last fall, I saw TONS of antelope. Not sure how much of that was public ground.

I wished I had the chip for my Garmin GPS when I was out there.
 
I would love to go bowhunting in Wyoming someday. It is definitely overwhelming trying to figure it out with all the different units. I need to get one on the wall. I think they are amazing animals!!
 
I went out this year with my Dad and brother in law on a unit near Casper. We hunted only public land and all 3 of us got our antelope in 2.5 days of hunting. The antelope were skittish, but not 'un huntable'.

My tips are:

-Don't just stop the truck and get out. Drive around the corner, over a hill, etc out of sight, then get out and sneak in. They are OK with moving trucks, but as soon as they stop the antelope will run.

-Go out after the second week of the season. That'll calm down the hunting and you'll have a chance to see more antelope instead of hunters.

-Get really familiar with the WY game and fish website. It basically tells you everything you need to know.

-Get yourself a good GPS and chip. Two of our 3 antelope would not have been shot without the chip. The public land is very spotty in some areas and the maps from BLM are hard to read.

-Don't be afraid to hike. Most guys want to hunt them off the road so if you hike over the rises, etc you'll see antelope.

-If rifle, be capable of shooting 300-400y. We shot ours at 178, 257, and 455.
 
Ive hunted from Lusk to northwest of Sundance many years all on public land, never had a problem filling tags. Any of the areas close to area 27 have produced! Yes there is pressure but dont let it discourage you. We hunted 7 back in 06 and killed 3 bucks in two days, one of which a booner. They were spooked pretty good by day 3 so the last one was about a 425 yard poke! In the last couple years the numbers have dropped a bit but there still out there.
 
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