If I start looking out into the medium/long term goals, I see Bighorn Sheep staring me in the face and I want to start accumulating preference points if necessary.

I believe some states are purely draw only, but where applicable, what state do you all recommend to start building that up in with the hopes to hunt them anywhere from 5-15 years out?

Thanks for your input as always.

There isn't anywhere that will give you a great chance at drawing in 15 years.

If I were you, I would apply anywhere I could for bighorns and hope to chance that you draw.


ddj

If you're "expecting" to hunt them in 5-15 years...you better think again.

I believe if you were to start applying in every state that offered sheep tags, you might draw one in your life-time.

I've applied for 32 years in Montana...all but 12 of them as a resident and havent drawn. Back in the day, some of the good units had 1:25 odds. No sheep tag.

I've applied for Wyoming for 13 years...no tag.

I've applied for Nevada for 11 years...no tag.

I've applied for Utah for 13 years...no tag.

I've applied for Colorado for 9 years...no tag.

I've applied for New Mexico....no tag.

But, I did draw a tag n AZ this year with 11 points.

The ONLY way to beat the odds is to apply and apply and apply. Most states at least offer a slim chance to draw, and who knows you could luck out and draw on your first application.

But, there isnt one state you can apply in that will assure you a limited quota permit via bonus/preference points in 15 years.

I encourage you to apply, but realistically you'll be lucky to draw 1-2 tags in a lifetime of applying if you're just starting now.

Alaska

Alberta and a whole lot of $.

Did I see that Wyoming has a point system for Sheep? How many does it take?

thats alot of expense as well putting in for all those states. wonder what the total costs would be putting in for all those states over say 20 years.

By the way...I know you are all just being realistic, but you really know how to knock the wind out of a guy's sails..... ;-)

Every year it takes one more point than the previous year in most areas we call this point creep. If you are just starting to apply, it might be better to just go into the random draw. I haven't figured out the numbers but I can't imagine getting max points any sooner than 50 years of applying.


ddj

The situation is bleak if you are just getting in. To hunt sheep you are going to need lots of time to wait to draw, lots of money to buy a hunt in Alaska/canada, or get really lucky in a random draw/raffle.

Even putting in everywhere costs a bunch.

Does Mt still have the unlimited units? I don't know anything about them other than folks say the odds of getting a ram are long.

Guess I better either start looking for some 4 leaf clovers, clean up my living or start selling my body for side cash....None of which will probably get me very far.

Anyone want to kick me in the nuts while I lay here and pout?

If you can sling arrows, a sheep tag is easier to get in Colorado.

My last sheep tag was for Pikes peak and that was in 95. I had to wait 5 years to be able to apply again and I applied every year until last year.Figure I got too old to do it or goat hunting.

If you don't have to kill a monster,they are easier to draw in the Sangre De Christos, unit 9. You probably can take a 3/4 curl there,but a full curl would be hard to find

BTW, you cant just put in for the random draw in Wyoming...they keep $100 of your money and you get a point whether you want one or not.

You can pay $100 and JUST get a point though.

If you're looking for your best chance at long odds...apply in Idaho, Oregon, and New Mexico. They dont have point systems and nobody has any better odds than you do. Trouble is, nobody has worse odds either.

I agree...but considering Desert Sheep are fetching 50-60K...I dont think its that bad of a deal. Plus, the money spent goes towards a good cause...wildlife.

I concur. Even though the realistic view is bleak the only way you won't draw is to not put in. A pard in ID has drawn two sheep tags there in 5 years! Some of the ID units have reality good odds. However, the odds and difficulty of the hunt are directly proportional. Good odds mean very difficult hunts. However, if you do draw the price for an outfitter is way cheap compared to AK or Canada...

TX has a true lottery for a desert bighorn hunt. One ticket is $10 I believe, buy as many as you like. Probably not what you are looking for however. Tag winner gets fully guided hunt with biologist off of game unit animal is located on and includes taxidermy etc...I have no idea how many people enter but I'm guessing it's a ton.

Apply to many states each year and take your chances. Some states will hold your application fees but return your money if not drawn. Some states have preference points that can be accumulated. Other than that an expensive hunt in BC or Alaska might suffice. Good luck! MTG

Thanks All,
I do appreciate the brutal honesty on this. It helps to understand what I am up against.

I feel your pain.. i started looking at this a few years back and realized that with all the money it costs to apply year in and year out for probably the next 15-20 years its just as cheap to get a loan and go to Alberta. I know thats not what you want to hear....but realisticlly its your best shot at getting a Bighorn. You could look at the unlimitateds but its a hard hunt with super low sucess rate, given the fact that your basically 2 days drive from the huntin area you wouldnt be able to scout so you would need a guide. outfitters in thse units want a decent sum just to take you in and then a big trophy fee if you get one. it suck i feel your pain but i guess if they were easy no one would want them.

Side note, I wish that Montana would go to a once in a lifetime tag for sheep/goat/moose and the premium elk tags for those that draw and kill.

It wouldn't help tons but it would help...

Dober

IMHO, you would be better off finding a part time second job and just do a guided hunt when the $$ are saved up. You could draw a tag in your lifetime but you're more likely to be hit by lightening.

No need, Just living in Illanoy is enough.


Apply to all states possible, but start a piggy bank for Alaska Dall.

I have 9 points for Wyoming Big Horn. Is that good, or bad ?

I started too late in life, as I didn't get going till 5-6 years ago applying for points, so I'm banking on shear luck on a draw anywhere.

The truth is, if you're only looking at a BH hunt, you're money ahead to just go to Canada now. As the prices keep going up, it's hard to save the money to keep up.

I go to the bank in the spring and get a signature note for 10 grand to cover all the tag/license fees in most states that offer Rocky/Cali bighorn tags. The end expense is around $125-150 for the loan. Total cost push a grand a year. I did New Mexico only once. Made the mistake of putting the application money on the CC, ($3160 IIRC) and they credited back my card after the draw. Since I had the $ borrowed, I couldn't pay it back for several months till I racked up enough bills to use up the credit.

I used to do moose and goat too, but the expense ended up out weighing the desire.....

I've never bought a lottery ticket in my life, and don't plan to, except for the Mega Sheep Hopefully in Your Lifetime Draw.

I have applied for 27 straight years for sheep in AZ and quite a few in Nevada and NM. The bonus Pts are overrated; I know of too many guys that get drawn their first or second year of application...

And you've drawn how many times?

If you're young, tough, in good shape and ambitious, you should consider hunting Montana's unlimited sheep areas, while still applying for all of the other states.

It just means you'll never draw.

ZERO

It took me 24 years to draw an antelope tag in AZ. I had to go to Montana to get my first one a few years before that. Hell, I couldn't even get drawn in Wyoming and Montana for goats!

I have NEVER drawn my first choice elk tag here in AZ, always my second choice. When I got my goat tag, it was, however, tag #1.

I have played the odds for sheep, now I just apply for the unit I want to hunt; I will either get a tag or not. I don't want a chitty sheep hunt. I've been on a couple of those~

I put in every year here in New Mexico for desert bighorns in the Peloncillos. Now, we got desert sheep tags several places and I have to actually look at the drawing odds, although the odds for the new tags don't mean much after only one year.

Used to apply in Arizona and Nevada, and had to pass on a Mexico hunt one year that I could have done for about ten grand. I'll be 70 in February and probably will quit applying in a year or two. At least that's what I tell my wife.

I drew 6 bighorn ram archery tags in Colorado in 35 years. Bagged two nice rams.

Got lucky the first year I applied in Nevada and drew a desert bighorn tag. Arrowed a nice 10 year old ram a week into the hunt! Should have bought a lottery ticket too, but I don't play it.

Moved to BC three years ago. Now I get to hunt sheep every year by buying a tag. Stones start on August 1 and run to mid-Oct. I went on backpack trips the past two years for them........no ram yet, but some great hunts! The unfilled tag is good for our open bighorn and California bighorn units too. They are hunts with very limited success.

As a resident you can put in for LEH drawing tags for Dalls, bighorns or Cali's. Draw odds are good in some units and dismal in others.

Guess I have been lucky to DYI sheep in some great spots.

My one guided Alaskan Dall bowhunt that was attempted on the cheap was a bust. I wouldn't go back with him for free!

Stuff like this is good to know; it's another option that some (me included) probably didn't know about and just might make a difference in whether a guy gets to hunt or not. Advice like this isn't like giving out honey-holes and is personally greatly appreciated. It's just another example of what gives this forum it's value and what kind of great folks hang out here.

Thanks for sharing,
Bob

Dober,

Agreed. And in a similar vein, although it might hurt the odds, I have never figured out why ID makes folks choose between putting in for sheep, goats and moose OR deer, elk and antelope.

Bob

It's called the TX Grand Slam which includes the desert bighorn hunt, a whitetail hunt (normally you will end up on a top end ranch and a 150" or better whitetail), a mule deer in the sadnhills, and an antelope in the uppermost panhandle. All guided and all taxidermy included.

Texas Grand Slam

There are some other hunts you can put in for in a true lottery, buy a ticket type of deal. I've helped guide on the waterfowl one before.

Nathan, I registered on the site and can't find the list of lottery choices. Is it possible they are not available yet?

You can't buy new tickets until the new licenses for TX come out which will be September 1st.

Not true at all. It means you will only have the chance to draw one of the random tags rather than one of the preference point tags for a long, long time.

I have 13 WY points and sure wish I would have started a year or two earlier!

thank you.

You can hunt Montana ever year until you kill one... then you get to sit out for 7 years. I think there are still 4 unlimited units. Odds of killing a sheep are about as good as winning a tag, but you're sheep hunting.

I'm grateful that I live in a state that offers free sheep tags every year, no waiting, no drawing required... and the season is 6 weeks long. If I was you, I'd start saving for a dall hunt. I have a feeling that in the near future the odds of NR getting to hunt up here will be drastically reduced. I mean how long before residents get tired of NR taking half the sheep every year? The reality is NR kill more sheep in Alaska every year than are killed in all the L48 states combined.

The price of a hunt isn't getting any cheaper either.

It totally depends on your age. I'm 38 and sitting on a dozen points. I will get to hunt sheep in my life if I live long enough. There are many guys ahead of me who are probably older than I am.


ddj

I have last year's drawing odds sitting here in front of me. I was the lucky devil who had to run around Wyoming explaining every other state's systems before preference points were selected for Wyoming because it was more "fair"(look up the definition of the word preference-it isn't "fair"). Back then we estimated it would take 20 years for all of the resident applicants at that time and all of the nonresident applicants at that time to draw a license if we just made the waiting period longer. Wyoming now has nonresidents with 12 points drawing sheep licenses in area 8/23, some with 13 points drawing sheep licenses in areas 1 and 9, people with 14 points drawing sheep licenses in areas 2 and 4, and people with 15 points drawing sheep licenses in areas 3 and 22. So don't be spreading crap that you will never draw a nonresident sheep license in Wyoming! Ditto residents, where people with less than maximum points are already drawing licenses in areas 1,2,3,4,6 and 9.
If you all didn't insist on a 90% success rate after "waiting so long to draw a license", there would be a lot more licenses, too. And, if those who forgot to apply the first year of preference points hadn't used kids as the excuse for putting 25% of the sheep licenses into a random drawing, some of you nonresidents who have 11 or 12 points might have already drawn sheep licenses in Wyoming.
But probably not in that ONE area you're applying for, and aren't going to change. If you don't apply and aren't persistent, you won't draw. That's what happens with too few licenses and too much demand.

Exactly. During the past thirty-some years, I've hunted with three guys who drew desert bighorn tags the very first time they applied for a permit. On the otherhand, there's another guy I hunt with and he's had max-points for quite a while now and still can't draw a desert bighorn tag.

I'm 32 and don't have points anywhere, and want to hunt bighorns in my lifetime......

Just how much are we talking about for a guided Canadian hunt?

Depends on the bighorn sub-specie in question and the quality and, the aesthetics concerning whichever hunt you might consider. Prices range from a little less than 20 grand to well over 40 grand.

In my looking in to it, Dall sheep in AK are cheaper... The prices listed above are pretty accurate.

That said, I'd start putting in for some of the lower 48 tags. Can't draw if you don't put in. Some units in some states have less than horrible odds.

I have to agree with Pointer. Dall sheep hunts are the cheapest thing going. However, some desert bighorn hunts Arizona and some Rocky Mountain bighron hunts in Arizona are pretty inexpensive, as well. The thing about Arizona, though, is obtaining the tag. But, hunting Dall sheep in Alaska is probably the most inexpensive sheep hunt in North America, nowadays. And with that said, I'd follow Pointer's advice and submit applications in as many states as possible.

Save/invest your money for 15 years and then hunt Canada.

Idaho has some decent odds.

Montana's "unlimited" unit is always an option.