Big Browns Report post Posted May 30, 2018 About 6 years ago I started to recognize and see the trend of point creep in Arizona. I realized very quickly I would not be able to go on quality hunts as often as I wanted in Arizona. Due to this I decided to start building points in other states. I did this in hopes to draw more tags every year and hopefully go on some Amazing hunts. I also recognized I could not afford to hunt out of state every year, but I did know I would eventually be able to do so. I figured I could afford to buy points every year with the hopes I could afford to go on these hunts in the future. The first state I purchased points in was Wyoming. Wyoming is probably one of the easiest states to buy points or apply for tags. In Wyoming you can purchase preference points from July-October. This allowed me plenty of time to afford to buy the points. In Wyoming Antelope points are $30, Deer $40 and Elk is $50. The best part of Wyoming is you can keep your preference points if you draw your second choice. 2 years after buying points I was able to draw my first Antelope tag in my second choice draw. In that same year I was able to purchase a leftover buck tag. I got 2 buck tags and I kept my points. I will be burning my 6 Antelope points this year on another great tag. In 6 years I will have gone to Wyoming 2 times and had 3 Buck tags. Amazing!!! You can actually go on a Wyoming Antelope, Deer and Elk hunt almost every year. All you have to do is a little research. Utah was my second state I started buying points in. In Utah you have to buy a $60 dollar license, but after that the points are only $10 each. After buying points for every species Utah is actually cheaper than buying points in Wyoming. I currently have enough points to draw a general deer tag in numerous units. Im still a ways off for getting a Goat or Elk tag, but eventually I will get a tag. I plan to go on a Utah Deer hunt in the next few years. My next state was Colorado. At the time I started applying you had to front the cost of the tag and License fee. That unfortunately changed this year and now all you have to do is pay of the point. This is a lot more affordable, but now a lot of extra people will be applying and therefore massive point creep will happen. In the past couple of years Ive added North Dakota and California to my list of states I have points in. Im sure some of you are thinking there is no way I can afford to go out of state ever year or buy points in that many states every year. All I can say is take it one step at a time. I LOVE to hunt! The only way Im guaranteed to go on quality hunts every year is to have the points needed to draw those tags. When I started this point collection process I was not financially able to go out of state, but I knew I would be able to one day. Thankfully that day has now come. With the points I have in Az and other states I am guaranteed to draw a great tag every year for a minimum of the next 5-10 years. Yes the tags cost more than Arizona, but after the cost of scouting do they really cost more? I personally scout a LOT for my tags. After gas and food for every scouting trip I easily have $500-$1000 invested in most of my hunts prior to the hunt even starting. Therefore going out of state in a lot of ways cost the same or slightly more or less. The other added benefit to hunting out of state is the quality of the hunts. Those of you who have hunted out of state can vouch for me on this. Most of the hunting in other states is drastically easier to find animals than Arizona. We work very, very hard for our animals. Yes we have some Amazing hunting, but we typically have to work for it. The out of state hunting I have done has always seemed so much easier than what I have to do in Arizona to become successful. I guess what Im trying to say is, start buying points now so you can eventually go on Amazing hunts! Start out with one state and add more states as you can afford it. 9 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
1uglydude Report post Posted May 30, 2018 I need to start thinking about Wyoming antelope, especially as my kids get older. I have 11 LE Deer points in Utah, 10 general deer preference points, 9 bull elk, antelope, and mt. goat points. The other nice thing about Utah is if you know you aren't going for a few years you can get two years worth of points out of the same license...all you have to do is make sure that you buy it near the end of the draw cycle on the first year and then buy your points at the beginning of the draw cycle the next year. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted May 30, 2018 Aaannnnddddd here comes point creep. 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Viper Report post Posted May 30, 2018 I started buying WY antelope points a few years ago. I hope I can go before the system changes in the wrong direction. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stanley Report post Posted May 30, 2018 Aaannnnddddd here comes point creep. LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yotebuster Report post Posted May 30, 2018 I apply in ND, SD, MT, CO, OR, AZ, NM, UT, NV, ID and AK. Some Im in every year for everything, others I use as my go tos when I dont have a hunt lined up elsewhere. I think its smart to spread the cards on the table. I apply for roughly 50 different hunts a year, but many are 1:1000 plus odds but some are 1:2 odds. I figure if they average to 1:100 and I apply for 50 of them I should get a once in a lifetime tag every other year or so and thats been pretty true. It can be expensive, but I think the non refundable part comes out to about $2000 a year. I know a lot of people that spend far more then that on golf each year or new guns. My passion is hunting and the more out of state tags Ive drawn the more addicted I become to going into a new area and figuring it out. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MULEPACKHUNTER Report post Posted May 30, 2018 Nice set up, congrats on the pay off. My strategy is a little more drastic, I plan to move to better hunting. We are looking hard in Colorado for land and then I plan to buy the az lifetime license so I can come back here most years. Only bad thing is I really don't like Colorado politics and the anti hunting trend is also not looking good lately. Still az is not doing much better. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildwoody Report post Posted May 30, 2018 Wyoming is easy to draw , $330.00 and your on your way, thanks for the info Adam, I think I will start. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ej20 Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Thanks Adam for chatting with me and passing along your knowledge. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CatfishKev Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Adam, are most of the hunts your applying for "trophy" hunts? I love to hunt but don't care as much about scores. My only personal requirement is a mature animal. IE a 6x6 bull, or a 8 pt. buck etc. Sure a monster is great but not expected. This as part of the process would open up even more doors right? I've been contemplating doing the out of state thing but just don't know if it's worth the investment. I guess if I didn't have 5 kids that I can live through it would probably be more cut and dry for me. Let me rephrase this way.... white Billy goat, bighorn sheep (desert or mountain) and antelope are my 3 animals I most want to hunt. Knowing the score is not my priority but a mature animal whats your suggestion? Great post by the way! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rossislider Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Other states!?!? With all the hunts my kids, wife, extended family, and friends I have committed time and help too, I won't have time for Arizona hunts of my own. Looks like I'll be applying for AZ premium hunts (basically bonus points). It is a problem I enjoy having. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cell4soul Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Nice set up, congrats on the pay off. My strategy is a little more drastic, I plan to move to better hunting. We are looking hard in Colorado for land and then I plan to buy the az lifetime license so I can come back here most years. Only bad thing is I really don't like Colorado politics and the anti hunting trend is also not looking good lately. Still az is not doing much better. About the same plan I have, except I am looking at Wyoming instead of Colorado. A ton of inexpensive over the counter tags for big game if you are a resident. The politics in Wyoming will never be an issue. There are less people in the entire state than there is in the City of Mesa. Putting myself on a 2 year plan to get there, that is when my stepson graduates high school. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CatfishKev Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Sounds like Wyoming might be worth a visit! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
218buck Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Very nice good luck on your upcoming hunts Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MULEPACKHUNTER Report post Posted May 31, 2018 Nice set up, congrats on the pay off. My strategy is a little more drastic, I plan to move to better hunting. We are looking hard in Colorado for land and then I plan to buy the az lifetime license so I can come back here most years. Only bad thing is I really don't like Colorado politics and the anti hunting trend is also not looking good lately. Still az is not doing much better. About the same plan I have, except I am looking at Wyoming instead of Colorado. A ton of inexpensive over the counter tags for big game if you are a resident. The politics in Wyoming will never be an issue. There are less people in the entire state than there is in the City of Mesa. Putting myself on a 2 year plan to get there, that is when my stepson graduates high school. Good plan except for the weather, southern Colorado isn't much more than flagstaff weather wise. I have no desire to be snowed in or frozen out most of the year Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
