Poll - January archery bison

[Clarq]

The Division is offering an archery bison hunt on the Henry Mountains this next season. Hunt dates are January 18 - 31. This hunt will take place after five rifle seasons and in the dead of winter.

My question is this - is anyone actually going to apply?

I tip my hat to anyone ambitious enough to give it a try. That's going to be a crazy hard hunt. Snow, sub-freezing temperatures, rugged country, and a heavily pressured herd are all going to work against them.

I'm projecting 7 applicants this year. Let's see how close I get.

[gander311]

I guess that's one way for people to get maybe a tag without 2 decades+ worth of points built up.

With what I witnessed on a rifle cow hunt down there last winter (last week of December into the first week of January) for my grandfather's tag, and how hard of a hunt it was. You couldn't pay me to go chase them with a bow 3 weeks later and burn up my 21 points. I don't think you could pay me to go do it with just a couple points.

[PBH]

It's unfortunate. We were hoping to be hunting bison archery this year. But not now. No way will we use our points for a January archery hunt.


Just a question I asked my brother: would you be willing to shoot your bow in sub-freezing temperatures? Is that even safe?


Stay-puft marshmallow man sneaking through crunchy snow and trying to get a shot? Have fun with that hunt...

[Critter]

You could of done away with three of the negative votes and gotten the same results.

I am sure that there might be someone out there that is willing to cash in points for a hunt like this.

Shortly after he does he will be on the forum here asking where to find the bison in the middle of January. Or he'll come on and say that he has been down there for 2 weeks and hasn't even seen a track and asking where they hang out at.

[MooseMeat]

I would absolutely do it in a heart break if my points were in the bison pool. When I draw my mtn goat in the next couple years and if this hunt is still around, this is the tag I’ll be chasing

[Catherder]

You can bet some poor souls will apply and find out the hard way about the challenges. It will probably be just like Critter stated too. I suppose it moves guys through the system though.

On a peripherally related (and modestly more successful) note, did the DWR ever publish the point totals for the folks that bought the OTC bison tags and are they doing it again? I know they said 200 something guys bought one with 79 successful the last I heard.

[MooseMeat]

Every year the archery guys cry and cry for more opportunities to go hunting. Then they get said opportunities and they are upset that the hunt isn’t ideal dates or timing or that it will be too hard haha they are worse than the rifle crowd crying that they can’t kill elk if the rifle hunt is pulled from the rut. No one is ever happy.

If you want to go hunting and don’t wanna wait for your whole life to get a tag, these tags are great. Good hunters will kill bison on this hunt without any trouble if they spend the time it could require to get an opportunity. Bad hunters will eat this tag and not see a single animal. But bad hunters usually will have the same results with a rifle in their hand as well on these types of late hunts and other more ideal hunts too. I’ve run into rifle elk hunters during the rut that hunted all 9 days and never saw a bull and we were covered up in elk all day every day, in the same area.

[Clarq]

Originally Posted by MooseMeat

No one is ever happy.

The longer I follow the board/RAC process, the more I tend to agree...

But for the record, I'm actually VERY happy about these archery bison hunts, and fully supportive of them. I'm all about finding ways to increase opportunity and give people who really want to work at it a chance to hunt.

What drives me bonkers is when the archery crowd uses "opportunity" as the premise to advocate for their weapon of choice, then turns around and asks for the best season dates (such as elk during the rut) or the best units (Zion desert bighorn). Giving them the best will only lead to increased success rates, which in turn will actually decrease their opportunity as the Division cuts tags to compensate.

These January bison hunts should be perfect, though, if the goal is to issue more tags. I can't wait to see how it goes.

[Critter]

If they wanted to issue a true archery tag at a time when the archery guys might have a sporting chance they should just have it The first of September or during the rest of the archery hunts.

Then they may get quite a few folks moving through the system as they burned their points.

As for the statement that no one is ever happy, it reminds me of a saying that my grand mother told us kids. I want what I want until I get it and then I don't want it anymore.

[MooseMeat]

Originally Posted by Critter

If they wanted to issue a true archery tag at a time when the archery guys might have a sporting chance they should just have it The first of September or during the rest of the archery hunts.

Then they may get quite a few folks moving through the system as they burned their points.

As for the statement that no one is ever happy, it reminds me of a saying that my grand mother told us kids. I want what I want until I get it and then I don't want it anymore.

They had the archery hunts earlier in years previous. What they found is it was pressuring the bison off the mountain and into the winter range earlier than they wanted and was causing range and health issues for the land and animals. Which is why they chose to move the hunt until later.

Doesn’t matter if they hold the hunt in September or January, these tags will not go undersubscribed. They will still burn the same amount of applicants points through the system in a January hunt than they do a September hunt. I’d be willing to bet they issue more tags for a January hunt than a September hunt due to success rates being lower in January when you actually have to hunt them, instead of drive around and find a herd close enough to the road to stalk. More tags, more people pushed through the system. January hunts have the potential to do that more than your September proposal