Wyoming outfitter, landowner, DIY tag battle!

[richhymas]

Sorry if you've already read this on a different website but I am trying to reach out to every DIY/OYO across the country that enjoys hunting Wyoming. I'm not sure if many Wyo nonres are aware but nonres landowners currently take tags off the top of the pool of nonres tags available each and every year prior to the limited elk, deer, and antelope draws. Currently nonres landowners can potentially take every tag available. In fact, this happens every year in a number of high demand Wyo elk units.

With that said, Wyo outfitters are trying to do this same thing in Wyo. Hunters that sign an outfitter agreement prior to the draw would be eligible for tags prior to the Wyo elk, deer, and antelope draw. Every tag issued to outfitters is obviously 1 less tag available in the public draw.

If you are a nonres that enjoys hunting DIY/OYO in Wyoming I would highly recommend offering comments in regard to your dissatisfaction of Wyo offering any type of tags in any form to outfitters. Allow hunters to draw tags in the public drawing. Once tags are drawn hunters can decide whether they want to hire an outfitter or hunt on their own.

Nonres hunters across the country have devoted years and years to applying for Wyo deer, elk, and antelope and paid stiff pref pts fees. I encourage all of you to offer comments.

The Wyoming Task Force is taking comments for the next meeting with an April 21 deadline. Here is a link

Wyoming Wildlife Taskforce - Public Input

Submit comments for the Wyoming Wildlife Taskforce below. Public comment provided to the taskforce for consideration prior to each meeting can be found on the "Meeting Materials" page. Comments received by 5 p.m. MST on November 7, 2022 will be provided to the Taskforce for the November 18, 2022

sites.google.com

Can you please site your source that outfitters get guaranteed tags before the draw that they can sell? Especially that in hard to draw units they can take all the tags before the draw??? I am a non resident hunter who would be willing to use an outfitter but my understanding is that even though you sign a contract with an outfitter you still have to draw that tag before you can hunt. I can't just pay an outfitter and then go hunt a hard to draw unit for elk in Wyoming just because I have money. If I'm wrong, please correct me with a reference and show me an outfitter I can pay to hunt a premium unit without any preference points please.

 

[richhymas]

A lot of the Non-Residents that come to Alaska to hunt is just for a Trophy. A very big portion don't even take the meat back with them. At one point they were finding a lot of the meat in dumpsters at the transfer sites.

I am pretty sure most hunters are donating the meat. In Alaska they even serve wild game in the schools. The outfitters have mechanisms in line to donate the meat sod the locals are grateful to get it. Sometimes it's just not cost effective to get the meat home. I brought some of my moose meat home and it cost me over $10 per lb just to get it home. I can buy prime beef for less than the transportation and cut and wrap cost alone.

 

[jimss]

Richymas, currently in Wyo landowners are alloted tags prior to the drawing. Outfitters are now trying to do the same. Hopefully the Wyo task force doesn't go for this. There is a lot of landowner and outfitter ties on the Task Force so just about anything is possible. Nonres DIY/OYO hunters have pretty much 0 voice as members.

 

[jimss]

I had time to listen to most of last week's Task Force meeting. Around 1/2 of it was talking about landowner tags. Currently both resident and nonres landowner tags are issued in unlimited numbers prior to the public draw...or until those tags run out. In several high demand elk units all nonres random tags are issued to nonres landowners prior to the public draw (unit 111 type 1 elk is a fine example). There are 0 random tags issued in 111-1 for elk each and every year because nonres landowners receive these tags prior to the drawing.

The Task Force discussed capping both res and nonres landowner tags depending upon how much private land, crop damage, etc. was present on a particular property. It was mentioned several times that the current system isn't working how it originally was intended when first established. Currently it's possible for res/nonres to purchase 160 acres of land that meets the requirements and the landowner can purchase landowner tags each and every year. It's possible that wealthy hunters could purchase 160 acre tracts that qualify so they can hunt high demand units every year. Unit 124 elk was mentioned by one of the TF members. My guess is units 100 and 124 are other units where res and nonres public hunters receive few random tags that go directly to res and nonres "landowners". Anyway, the Task Force seemed very interested in improving the current landowner tag system.

One other discussion that took up a chunk of time was Type X tags. Most of the members seemed suspicious and uncertain about the vagueness of the description regarding these tags. They would be separate from Type 1 or 2 tags. There were not many specifics but had something to do with landowners, trespass fees, expensive priced hunts, etc. They raised a lot of red flags by several of the Task Force members and at the end Task Force questions were left unanswered. The wording was sugar-coated and I'm certain outfitters are trying to set aside both res and nonres tags that would be cut from high demand limited units that would be available for their clients. TYPE X quotas could potentially come directly out of the limited public pool of type 1 or 2 tags available to both Wyo resident and nonresident hunters!

I certainly hope DIY/OYO res and nonres hunters stand together on some of these tag issues! I'm certain that outfitters are trying every strategy in the book to gain tags in their favor.