Making the most of an Antelope Trip

GAPointer

FNG
Joined
Jan 10, 2018
Messages
25
Location
GA
Hey all,
I have 1 pt for Wyo this year and will be trying to secure a rifle tag for Antelope. However, I am not after any type of trophy so I am not picky. The trip out there will ultimately be reward enough.

With that said, I would like to maximize my meat yield while I am out there and if I understand it correctly, I could draw 1 buck tag during the regular draw and then up to 4 doe tags during the leftover draw?

I would love to shoot 1 buck and 1 or 2 does (Im a meat guy...not a horns guy :eek: ) and want to make sure my understanding is correct.

Has anyone ever done this and is it feasible given draw odds and/or tag availability?

This is my first western hunt so I appreciate any knowledge before I start narrowing down my unit list.
 

wapitibob

WKR
Joined
Feb 24, 2012
Messages
5,365
Location
Bend Oregon
1 buck and 2 does in the initial draw, up to 2 bucks and 4 does in the leftover draw, no more than 2/4 total.

I hunt does every year and can say it has gotten to be the hardest unit decision I make out of all my hunt plans. Half the tags there used to be and an ever increasing demand makes it tough. The leftover draw killed my odds for leftover tags.
 

cnelk

WKR
Joined
Mar 1, 2012
Messages
6,798
Location
Colorado
Last year I had 1 buck tag and 2 doe tags and that was plenty of tags to fill over archery season and rifle season.
I was successful with my archery buck and archery doe, and took the 2nd doe with a rifle


Having doe tags in your pocket is not a 'given', especially when you looking for a couple big ol fat ones
 
Joined
Feb 25, 2012
Messages
2,208
4 of us went for the first time last year and we each had 1 buck and 2 doe tags. We were done in 3 days. We were definitely not trophy hunting. Next time I doubt I will get as many tags.
 
OP
G

GAPointer

FNG
Joined
Jan 10, 2018
Messages
25
Location
GA
4 of us went for the first time last year and we each had 1 buck and 2 doe tags. We were done in 3 days. We were definitely not trophy hunting. Next time I doubt I will get as many tags.

Do you mean you won't attempt to get that many tags? Or you don't think you will be able to get that many tags due to the draw/tags?

Did y'all draw all your tags in the first draw? Or leftover?
 
Joined
Jul 31, 2014
Messages
516
Location
Colorado
wapitibob was spot on with the draws and tag limits. Wyoming makes their draw odds pretty accessible and easy to interpret, but the draw odds are becoming hard to predict as more people are finding out about Wyoming antelope hunting. The doe tag draw odds for the unit I was applying for went from having leftover tags in 2016 to less than a 50% chance of drawing in 2017.

Either way adding a couple doe tags is a great way to extended your hunt and add some meat to the freezer. Plan on about 30 lbs per doe and 40 lbs of boneless meat from a buck. They are always a blast to hunt, just try to avoid opening weekend in most units.
 

Jimss

WKR
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Messages
2,074
It can be 80 degrees one day and snow the next in Wyo. One concern you may have with multiple antelope is keeping the meat from spoiling. I usually harvest a buck, get him in a cooler and back home ASAP. I do my own meat processing. Investing in a large, quality cooler or possibly taking the meat to a meat processor may be worth considering before you pull the trigger? It may also be worth checking into where you can fill your cooler with ice (several trips may be necessary) if you intend on hunting several days?
 
Joined
Feb 25, 2012
Messages
2,208
Do you mean you won't attempt to get that many tags? Or you don't think you will be able to get that many tags due to the draw/tags?

Did y'all draw all your tags in the first draw? Or leftover?

I won’t attempt to get that many. We got them in the first draw.
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2012
Messages
1,836
Location
Casper, Wyoming
Take this for what it is worth as I usually get to hunt goats every year. The area I hunt is a fun hunt but with that many tags your going to be running around trying to fill tags instead of enjoying the hunt. I recommend the first time coming out getting one buck and one doe. Anymore than that and you will be worried about the meat not being spoiled. I will say if you are content on shooting that many, look at coming out later in the season. You do run the risk of not seeing a ton of goats as they sometimes begin to “migrate” around if we get weather. I do hunt in the later season but I am able to run out after work.


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