So you want to elk hunt Colorado or elk hunt Wyoming, or maybe mule deer hunt Utah. But how the heck do you go about getting a tag? What if I can’t afford a guided hunt, can I hunt elk on my own or hunt pronghorn DIY (Do it yourself). The answer is yes, but first and foremost you’re going to need a tag.
The draw systems can seem confusing and not user-friendly for those unfamiliar with them. The bottom line is if you want to hunt in the West, you need to know how to get a license. Why do Western states have draw systems? Simply put, there’s more demand than there is a resource. If the states gave everyone a tag during the time they wanted to hunt, the landscape would run out of critters rather quickly. So to help get you going on your first western big game hunt, here’s a quick intro to the western draw systems, note there's several other ways to get tags, but the first step each year is typically applying in the draw so we'll start there.
First, here's some terms and what they mean, this will go a long way in getting you pointed in the right direction.
What are Preference Points for Hunting and how do they work?
A true preference point system works this way, each year you apply for a tag and do not draw, the applicant is awarded a preference point. From the pool of folks who apply for a specific tag, those with the most preference points are awarded the tags. Here’s an
example, you apply for a first / early rifle deer tag in unit that has 100 tags available of which 20 are allotted to non-residents, which, for this example, is the pool you fall in. This is the third year you’ve applied and you have yet to draw a tag thus you have 2 preference points from the prior two years. There was three applicants with 5 points, five with 4 and seven with 3. So they all draw which leaves 5 tags for the 2 point group of which there are 15 of you. Those fifteen applicants will have there names in thrown in a computer generated hat and 5 of the 15 will be awarded a tag. The 10 that do not draw would probably be feeling pretty good about their chances next year now having 3 points, though draw odds can change a bit from year to year, so while confident, it wouldn’t necessarily be a sure thing.
What are Bonus Points for Hunting?
While the difference in the term Preference Point and Bonus Point may seem like minutia they are actually very different when it comes to western big game draws. Essentially a Bonus Point increases the odds or names in the hat you have, when applying for a big game license. Every State does it a little different, but the generally principal is the same. More Bonus points equals a higher chance of drawing. In Utah (as of this writing, systems change all of the time) a bonus point equals a true name in the hat. So as an example, if there are 5 bonus point tags available (Utah uses a Hybrid system where some tags are awarded to the highest point holder like a preference point system and some are awarded on the Bonus point system) and you apply similar to the scenario above, in your third year, you’ll have two bonus points plus this year so three names in the hat for that tag. This can seem great, but it all depends on the tag. If there are 200 applicants with anywhere from 1 to 20 Bonus points, you’re three chances don’t feel quite as awesome.
When are the application deadlines?
Be aware, they’re early in the year than you might think. Some as early as the end of January (Alaska, though not really the part of the country we’re talking about, is in December of the prior year). If you miss the draw, don’t fret, there’s many other ways to go hunt the west this fall. That’s the source of another post. But applying in the draw can increase your chances of a less crowded / more enjoyable hunt (again, so many factors it’s hard to put in a short blog post, just know using a strategy the encompasses both draw hunts and over the counter, general type tags will give you the highest opportunities to be chasing critters in the woods each fall). In General, the Big Game draws across the western states, run from the end of January through May depending on the state. At the bottom of this blog are links to several of the western states wildlife agencies where you can find specifically draw deadlines for each state.
What states have a preference system and what states have a bonus point system?
Here’s a quick run down of several of the states draw systems as of this writing (2024). This is purely for hunting elk, deer and pronghorn. Moose, Bighorn Sheep and Mountain Goats are very limited and draw process for those species often have their own styles.
Colorado – True Preference Point System - Winner Takes all
Arizona, Wyoming and Utah – Hybrid where some are awarded to those with most points and some in a Bonus Point System
Nevada- Bonus Point System where points are squared to determine number of entries (if you have 5 points then 5 x 5 = 25 making 25 names in the hat).
New Mexico – Lottery system, no points, same chance for everybody every year. Can be good and bad, you’re not behind the curve in terms of points, can skip a year, etc. However, a person could potentially never draw even in some easier to draw areas as well.
Idaho – Lottery style, most similar to New Mexico, though they have a variation where an applicant may apply for Sheep, Goat OR Moose early in the draw cycle though if an applicant applies for one of those three then they may not apply in the Elk, Deer and Pronghorn Draw later in the spring.
Montana – Preference point system but has a different process for deer and elk where one must first draw a general tag in order to apply for a limited tag and when/if you don’t draw the limited tag you’re either stuck with the general tag or can return it at a discount.
Oregon, Washington, California have systems but the cost and point systems are such that I simply would not recommend them unless you have some connections / resources that have hunted them before.
Additional points to consider.
Points are species specific, so deer points are deer points, elk are elk and so on. They do not apply to any other species. Points are not season or weapon type specfici, thus if you draw an elk tag for example, you likely loose your elk points (there's some work around here, but for startes, just know most of the time, if you draw a tag for a species, you'll likely start back to 0 for that species and state)
Most states are going to make you purchase some sort of qualifying license to apply and gain points. Some require you to front the entire tag fee for the species and some do not. Just don’t be caught off guard when you’re required to buy a $75-$160 small game license before you’re allowed to apply, then add a $10-$50 per species application fee.
Tags are season specific. There will most often be an archery season or two, typically earlier in the fall like August / September; then those usually give way to muzzleloader seasons, then rifle seasons can span from late September through November ish. The season you apply for will be the only season the tag is valid for most likely. If you don’t fill your tag, it nearly always does not roll over to a subsequent season (for example, if you draw a Colorado 1st season rifle tag, you cannot then go hunt 2nd or 3rd season, the 1st season dates are your hunting dates for that year).
In most cases, you’ll likely need to have taken a hunter safety course. As far as I know, every state honors each other’s hunter safety cards so you don’t need to take a course in the specific state you’re applying in.
For the most part, one hunter may have one tag per species per year per state. There are exceptions to this rule and maybe we’ll get into it in a subsequent post, for simplicity, just have it in your mind that for most part, you’re looking at one tag per species per year. Unlike many whitetail states, you're not coming out west to hunt 2-3-4-5 elk. One is all you get, for the most part, again per state.
When you apply, many states will give multiple choices, some states take your points if you draw any choice and some only take them with your first choice or two or three. As you get a little deeper, you can start to strategize using 2nd , 3rd, 4th choices, alternate tags and turn back tags to get a tag AND build a points. For starters, just make your first choice the hunt you really want and something you can draw with the point level you have.
Most state websites will have posted somewhere prior years draws results. You can use these tables to find specific hunts and seasons to get an idea of how difficult it is to draw a particular tag. In true prefernce point states you can also estimate how many points a specific tag takes to draw, though keep in mind odds change every year and there's never a guarantee.
There’s several application services available. While the actual service to apply you for tags can be a bit pricey (totally up to you and your own budget if it’s worth having someone else deal with the headache), they pretty much all offer a magazine or online materials that will walk you through specific states systems, changes to those systems each year, deadlines and draw odds for at least some of the units for a pretty reasonable membership fee. A few to look at are Epic Outdoors, GoHunt, Huntin Fool, and Eastmans Hunting Journal. They all have pro’s and con’s to be honest. Epic and Huntin Fool do a great job of breaking down specfic state draw systems, deadlines, points, costs etc. but are geared a bit towards hunters looking for higher quality critters. Epic's member expericne list once a tag is drawn is a huge perk of being a member. Eastmans does a decent job of including more units and a wider range of hunts, but is a bit less thorough on draw systems and points but it's also the lest expensive. Go Hunt has data on all hunt types and units but you have to go find the units you want to hunt vs. scanning a compiled list to compare and contrast.
If you’re just starting out, check out our article on 6 pieces of essential gear you need to hunt western big game.
Ryan Johnson has spent his entire life in the Colorado Rockies. He’s hunted elk, mule deer, pronghorn and many other critters with bow and rifle from the very beginning is now sharing his experiences, success’ and failures for new and experienced hunters alike to enjoy and learn from.
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