Testing the waters on our next adventure. Looks like WY is over the counter and has some opportunities. Ive heard of a lot of folks going to Colorado but have never heard of anyone on public land in WY. Looks like a ton of public land out there on my initial search. Anyone ever went out there, hunted public, seen Elk or know anything about it? Im just gathering initial info right now. We may apply in South Dakota next year or try an Elk somewhere.

We just put a deposit down with Yellowstone outfitters. Wyoming rifle back country elk hunt. Supposed to have spike camp at the furthest spot from any road in America. The deposit was for 2029 because that was their first availability. Apparently the elk hunting is pretty good

I thought WY recently changed fees and rules making them extremely anti non resident hunter??? I remember seeing something online when researching non resident hunts that they were doing something to make it harder for nonresident to get tags and have to pay a lot more. Maybe it was a proposal that didn’t pass?? Not sure.

Well at 1st it looked like an OTC state but the more research I do it is by draw. Colorado may be the better bet after all. Elk is on my bucket list so Im just researching options. We have always hunted public and no outfitters. Just want to kill a bull, dont care about trophy status.

Sounds like inThe Thoroughfare Area between Cody and Dubois, WY. Awesome part of the Country! I think the nearest road is over 40 miles round trip at the furthest point in The Thoroughfare Area. I believe the Ranger station in Yellowstone NP in the Thoroughfare Area is the most remote point in the Lower 48 states.

I know we started putting in for tags last year and the guide said we’d have enough points by 2028 to get drawn.

I’ve been buying preference points for WY for a bit now. They have a preference point system. I’m planning on hunting public ground when I do pull the trigger 5-7 years from now. They have two separate draws you can apply for and from what I understand the “special” draws went up a considerable amount. You front the money and get refunded if you don’t draw. Special elk draw fee is close to 2K if I remember right. Normal draw fee is 7-800, again going from memory here. There might be some units you can draw with very few preference points but from what I can tell most places with supposedly decent numbers will take nearly a decade worth of points. Just what I’ve noticed in my research and why I’m planning so far out. Point creep is bad from what I’m hearing and likely to get worse with folks not applying for tags due to last winter’s die off. My advice for WY is start buying points and if you want to go with an outfitter, start asking about openings now.

If opportunity to hunt is what you are looking for, Montana has general tags that I think there’s a 40% ish chance to draw with no points. New Mexico is completely random with no point system (thinking of applying for one of these tags in a couple of years). Colorado is OTC unless they change the regs.

*Edited based on OP’s second post*

This is the Info I was looking for. Thanks CeeHawk

If farthest spot from a road in America includes Alaska, you better hope they are helicoptering you in .

I’m looking at going out west for an elk hunt currently and what I’m seeing and reading is in line with what has been posted above.

NM is kicking around that idea. And it is already hard enough to get drawn.

It may have said continental US. I’m not a black and white person so sometimes I miss details like that. They do haul us in on horses and mules though. Should make for a good time either way

Man I hope not. Deck is already pretty stacked against non-residents in the prime units. Figure I at least have a better chance drawing NM than any of the states east of the MS River as it stands now.

The unit I hunted is pretty big and offers some great public elk hunting. The state gives 100 tags for each of 5 weeks of hunting in that unit, ( 2 Archery , 1 ML , 2 Rifle weeks ) . Those 100 for each week include residents , landowners and non-residents, all hunters. As it stands now only 12 each week are non-residents. My Outfitter said they're wanting to cut the non-res back even more. And NM doesn't do points , every year is a new, equal draw.

I have a friend that lives out in WY and always hoped to visit and kill a mule deer on his place. But after researching their rules and tags for nonresidents it doesn’t look like that will happen. Too much bs when I can’t shoot a deer or elk on a friend’s own private acreage because of nonresident hunting rules. It’s all BS.

He must live in a hard to draw region for mule deer? If you have a friend in wyoming that is half the battle. the main gripe nonres have is wyoming is state won't let you hunt wilderness areas without a guide or resident which makes up a lot of the backcountry. They say it's for safety but its just outfitter welfare. Bs since our american tax dollars pay for the upkeep of those places. If you are camping hiking or fishing as a nonres? no problem go all over whatever wyoming wilderness you like. but if you are hunting then it a problem. its a racket. General tags take 3 or 4 points at least for elk. But if you do get a tag your buddy could take you anywhere in WY, opening a lot more areas to you as a non res, that you couldn't go solo.