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Non resident mini-rant

JNRBRONC

JNRBRONC

Well-Known Member
So I drew a 2012 NR Wyoming archery elk tag. I found out that part of the national forest in my zone was designated as a "wilderness area". As an unguided NR hunter, I was not allowed to hunt it by myself. I could hike, camp, fish in the wilderness area, just can't hunt it without hiring a guide. I own that land, as does every American citizen. Since it is a national (forest) resource, everyone should be able to access it, IMO.

I was talking to a local I ran into. He said he could run to town and pick up a guide certificate for free and take me in. That didn't feel right to me, almost as if I was cheating the system, similar to party hunting with a shotgun tag in Iowa I guess, so I declined.

I guess the outfitters banded together to push this restrictive legislation for their benefit. I suppose there wasn't much opposition from the residents, as it didn't affect them directly. Could serve as an example and warning to other states in regards to legislative activitiy...
 
Anybody familiar with hunting in Wyoming should be familiar with this rule. If you're gonna hunt WA's, you're gonna need somebody local with horses to get an elk out of a wilderness area regardless. There are quite a few states that give better draw odds and accessibility to those that hire a guide. NM, NV, and UT are other big ones. That's their way of getting you to spend more of your money in their state... and it works.

You can hire a guide or go with a resident to access the wilderness areas. What that dude was referring to isn't shady at all and is very common. I plan to hit up a friend in Greybull when group of buddies and I draw in about 3 more years.

If you drew a limited entry tag tho, I'm sure you'll do well in or out of a wilderness area. What unit did you draw?
 
Whether I drew a tag or not...

Whether I knew the regs or not...

It is the reg, so a person has to deal with it. ;)
 
I was researching an elk hunt a year or two ago and remember running into this as well. If I remember correctly the wilderness areas had grizzly's and that was the reason for a guide... I could be way off though.
 
loneranger said:
True? Or making a point.
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If I felt like it, I could scan the tag in....

What I typed is 100% true.

drawresults.jpg


Never saw a bear while hunting, let alone a grizzly. Even if there were bears, I don't need a guide to protect me.
 
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Fishbonker said:
His "bear protection plan" was to take me along cause he knew he could out run me. Once I figured that out I gracefully declined the invite.
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The first image that popped into my head was Bonk running his arse off wearing shorty cut-off scrubs and clinching an old mud.:drink1:
 
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