Is it possible to hunt elk each year as an AZ resi?

[WHALE]

Yes I have shot a bull every year since 2003 and then this year no elk tag . Nothing big but a few descent bulls and most on late archery.

[Northern Pintail]

The way our draw works it is possible to draw a bull tag every year but it won't happen. You can gurantee drawing a tag every year but it would be a limited opportunity cow unit. Like mentioned before there are otc hunts, and people are successful guiding clients every year, but the otc areas aren't very large and the elk even farther in between. Do not move to az for the hunting/fishing opportunity, it's rough. Rough in the fact of getting tags is very difficult. Once you have a tag it's good though. Small game and waterfowl is well below average compared to other states. Public land is abundant though, which is always a plus.

[CatfishKev]

It's possible to hunt elk every year with an OTC tag. But the only thing your gonna see with an OTC tag is nice scenery. The OTC units have been pretty much over hunted and wiped out with everyone and ther brother. 5 years ago it was possible, now you have to scout 40 hours a week to make it happen. I would make sure you get you and your wife a lifetime license before you leave so maybe you can hunt back home the years you don't draw here.

[mattys281]

Like stated before, its not that far to drive to co. If you absolutely have to hunt elk every year.

 

Now if you like a little variety, you can 100% hunt every year archery deer, archery turkey, archery & general bear, mountain lions and archery javelina.

I've never hunted small game in another state so I dont know how we compete there, but ive killed probably 30 cottontails or more with a bow and well over twice that with a .22, and theres a lot of quail and dove here.

There is something legal to hunt every day of the year and you can hunt at least 5 different big game species every year.

I think this is a great hunting state if you have enough time to take advantage of all the opportunity.

[goinhuntn]

If it were me I would move to Boise! I love Arizona & grew up in Lake Havasu. Arizona has some beautiful country & great hunting. I've been to

Boise several times & with just a few hours drive you are in some of the most rugged beautiful country I have ever seen. Never hunted Idaho, but

there is a ton of opportunity to hunt just about anything. Don't get me wrong I do love Arizona & still have family living in Havasu & visit several

times of year. You Have a tough decision both places are awesome in my opinion.

[muledeerarea33?]

Hasn't one of the old guys here drawn like 30 tags in a row for 22? His name escapes me at the moment?

[Explorer]

I have drawn tags every year since 2003. How many bull tags.. one. Could have saved points and had a few more bull tags. I just love to hunt elk. That being said I put in for some rough and tough hunts. But once you get the area figured out it is just as productive as a popular hunt area but with way less people. Even cow tags are getting competitive now. Late archery tags are becoming more popular and harder to draw as well. Swarms of people legally immigrating here from all over the country have slowly decayed the quality and opportunity to hunt. It will continue to get worse and some of us including me will become the ones that take over another state just to have quality outdoor experiences.

[jonscaife]

Let me clarify a few things and get pretty detailed here for a second.

 

Yes you can have an elk hunt every year (kind of) and here is how:

1:OTC elk tags.

Pros:You can go down to the AZGFD office and pick up a tag.

Cons:You will never ever even see an elk.

2:Late archery bull hunts

Pros: Great draw odds. There's a few hunts that seem to hover in the 70-80% draw rate with a couple that are as high as 90%, so theoretically if you put those hunts as first and second choice you should draw a hunt every year. There are a fair amount of elk in these areas and some nice bulls have been taken on these hunts.

Cons: These are tough hunts. Plan on either sitting water (BBBBBOOOOOOORRRRRRRIIIIIINNNGGGG!!!!!) or spot and stalk in some nasty country. These hunts have pretty low success rates, not because of lack of animals, but because they are hard to kill this time of year with a bow.

3: Late rifle cow hunts

Pros: Good draw odds. There are a few hunts that hover between 40-60% draw odds, so once again, theoretically, if you put these hunts as first and second choice you have a pretty high possibility of pulling a tag every year.

Cons: It's not a bull hunt. Also, weather can start to play a huge factor, I had some buddies a couple years back that got snowed in for a week on one of these hunts. These are also surprisingly difficult hunts. There's usually plenty of elk but they've been pretty pressured by this point and are real spooky. That being said, if you do your homework and hunt hard you have a good shot of coming home with a freezer full of meat.

4:Limited Opportunity Any Elk hunts

Pros: Decent draw odds. These hunts are usually in the 30-40% range, so if used as first and second choice there is a good chance you pull the tag (you may not get a tag every year but probably more like every 2 out of 3 years). Some monster bulls have been taken out of these hunts. Also, it's an any elk tag, so if you see an elk you can shoot it, which is nice.

Cons: Elk are few and far between on these hunts. Plan on hitting this hunt HARD if you want to stand a chance at getting an elk.

 

If you want a high quality hunt in Arizona you'll have to wait a couple years. If you just want to get out there and have a good time with the possibility of getting some meat then it's possible to do it every year. I live in Chino (just north of Prescott) so if you have any questions about what units to apply for that are close by for elk or deer or whatever, feel free to pm me and I'll line you out.

[kennyt]

Get to know the units around Prescott and have a quality hunt every few years and fill in with hints in Colorado

[teej89]

thanks for all the replies guys! Sorry i was away all weekend and couldn't respond but I like the idea of hunting elk in other states like UT, CO and NM on a yearly basis while taking advantage of the OTC deer and other licenses and saving up for an elk hunt in AZ every so often instead of every year.

[mattys281]

thanks for all the replies guys! Sorry i was away all weekend and couldn't respond but I like the idea of hunting elk in other states like UT, CO and NM on a yearly basis while taking advantage of the OTC deer and other licenses and saving up for an elk hunt in AZ every so often instead of every year.

 

If you get the opportunity to make it down this winter and want to give it a shot, you're welcome to come and hunt javi's with my daughter and I. I can't guarantee you'll tag one, I'm just a working guy that hunts on the weekends. But there's usually plenty of leftover tags for the unit we hunt and the weather will be much nicer than Ohio in January. That much I can guarantee!

I've got enough extra backpacking gear I could set you up for a 3 day haul. We'll hunt Friday afternoon til Sunday afternoon.

[MT_Sourdough]

I moved here from Montana several years ago. In a perfect world I'd still be in Montana, but Arizona isn't so bad. I live in Chino Valley and can be in the hills in a matter of minutes. Rifle range is 5 minutes away. Mild winters with virtually no snow and mild summers (as compared to Phoenix area).

There are some different strategies to keep a hunter happy in AZ.

1) get a hunting buddy or two that you work together like a team and you increase your chances of being out there even if you aren't the elk tag holder.

2) scouting as a new person coming here for the first time there is a lot of area to familiarize yourself with to keep you busy for a few years. It's BIG country.

3) diversify start predator hunting. Go after skunk pigs. There's bears and Mountain lions to go after.

4) archery deer there are lots of opportunity for archery deer hunting with OTC tags

 

Personally, I run solo, but learning/scouting the area is still keeping me as busy as I want to be. In Arizona, the seasons are short, but that means you need to put in a lot of time scouting if you expect to have much success when the season comes. Oh yea, I've drawn a limited opportunity tag for three years in a row now.

 

one more thing, take an AZ hunters ed course and archery ed course and earn yourself a couple of draw points right from the start.

[goinhuntn]

Mt never heard of the archery ed course for a draw point is that new? I have hunter ed point already.

[MT_Sourdough]

Mt never heard of the archery ed course for a draw point is that new? I have hunter ed point already.

Maybe I am wrong on that. It's just something I heard as I have yet to get into archery myself.

He can get one point for starters, anyways.

[teej89]

thanks for the perception MT_Sourdough! Before I met my fiance I applied to a job in missoula, they never called me back until a year into our relationship andi ended up getting the job.... she wouldn't do missoula tho, I was so close to living the dream in MT lol

 

thanks for all the replies guys! Sorry i was away all weekend and couldn't respond but I like the idea of hunting elk in other states like UT, CO and NM on a yearly basis while taking advantage of the OTC deer and other licenses and saving up for an elk hunt in AZ every so often instead of every year.

 

If you get the opportunity to make it down this winter and want to give it a shot, you're welcome to come and hunt javi's with my daughter and I. I can't guarantee you'll tag one, I'm just a working guy that hunts on the weekends. But there's usually plenty of leftover tags for the unit we hunt and the weather will be much nicer than Ohio in January. That much I can guarantee!

I've got enough extra backpacking gear I could set you up for a 3 day haul. We'll hunt Friday afternoon til Sunday afternoon.

 

 

shoot thanks man I appreciate it! We're looking at coming down in january but I don't think I'll be able to do much hunting with her being there. Maybe I can take a rain check for another time? I really appreciate the offer that's generous of you!