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Posted: 6/20/2017 8:56:43 PM EDT
So the family and I booked a week in Sheep Mountain lookout (near Buffalo if you're unfamiliar with it). Looks like Antelope and deer are in season while we will be there (late october), the deer tag is a bit more money than I'd want to spend but a doe antelope tag looks like it's the right price.
I was hoping somebody could give me some pointers on zone 102, or antelope in general. Never been to WY, never hunted antelope(although I've wanted to for a while), hell I've never been in the mountains. |
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Did you draw a tag? Out of staters have to put into the lottery in June, and this year all left over tags will be a lottery as well.
Good glass is indispensable for speed goat hunting. Mainly you drive, find a heard, and and pick one you want to stalk and shoot. Practice shooting long range, and know that speed goats have supernatural eyesight and speed. |
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If that's the old Fire Look out tower, on Sheep Mountain, just down from Powder River Pass, then it's pretty close to my cabin. We go there for day rides on the 4 wheelers in the summer.
It's pretty high up there. The weather will not be nice in october. Are you staying in the actual tower? I'm not sure I'd let my family sleep in that. It looks pretty infested with mice. I didn't know there were still allowing people to stay there. We just usually walk around the upper deck when we are there. At least the bugs will be dead in october. |
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Read winter kill was pretty high this year and based on what I saw for available doe/fawn tags this coming season it seems to be the case.
I also have an uncle with a ranch in 46 and 47 (Med Bow / Hannah), I've been poking sod puppies and yotes since April every couple weeks and have come across more than usual carcasses and herd / fawn pop appear be down. Same can be said about Muley's too, but the Elk are doing good. Left over tags will be available to draw next week. https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Hunting/Leftover-Licenses |
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Did you draw a tag? Out of staters have to put into the lottery in June, and this year all left over tags will be a lottery as well. Good glass is indispensable for speed goat hunting. Mainly you drive, find a heard, and and pick one you want to stalk and shoot. Practice shooting long range, and know that speed goats have supernatural eyesight and speed. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Did you draw a tag? Out of staters have to put into the lottery in June, and this year all left over tags will be a lottery as well. Good glass is indispensable for speed goat hunting. Mainly you drive, find a heard, and and pick one you want to stalk and shoot. Practice shooting long range, and know that speed goats have supernatural eyesight and speed. Quoted:
If that's the old Fire Look out tower, on Sheep Mountain, just down from Powder River Pass, then it's pretty close to my cabin. We go there for day rides on the 4 wheelers in the summer. It's pretty high up there. The weather will not be nice in october. Are you staying in the actual tower? I'm not sure I'd let my family sleep in that. It looks pretty infested with mice. I didn't know there were still allowing people to stay there. We just usually walk around the upper deck when we are there. At least the bugs will be dead in october. As far as weather goes I'd love a little local knowledge on what to expect. I figured it would get cold, maybe snow, but not sure on how cold or amount. I looked up some average high/lows for the area online and it didn't seem much different than our climate here in WI for the time of year, but I'm not familiar with the elevation and such. Quoted:
Read winter kill was pretty high this year and based on what I saw for available doe/fawn tags this coming season it seems to be the case. I also have an uncle with a ranch in 46 and 47 (Med Bow / Hannah), I've been poking sod puppies and yotes since April every couple weeks and have come across more than usual carcasses and herd / fawn pop appear be down. Same can be said about Muley's too, but the Elk are doing good. Left over tags will be available to draw next week. https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Hunting/Leftover-Licenses |
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The tower is above tree line, barely.
There will be constant wind up there. It will feel much colder than the temps show. October up there can be nice....50-60F during the afternoon, but normally below freezing at night. October can also be very, very cold, and possible big storms. Feet of snow at that elevation is possible. Some days hunting in October up there is tshirt weather. Other days, we've been snowed in at our cabin, about 2000 ft lower than the tower. As to condition, the deck, and steps were not all that sound last summer when I was up there last. The inside is always boarded up and locked when I've been there, so it might not be that bad. It just looked dirty in the little bits you could see through the window covers. Read the part about it being a frequent stop for people coming to get a view. May not be as bad in october, especially if the weather is bad, but during the summer, it's a constant flow of people on 4 wheelers. In 25yrs of going up there at least once a summer, I've never seen anyone actually staying there. |
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The tower is above tree line, barely. There will be constant wind up there. It will feel much colder than the temps show. October up there can be nice....50-60F during the afternoon, but normally below freezing at night. October can also be very, very cold, and possible big storms. Feet of snow at that elevation is possible. Some days hunting in October up there is tshirt weather. Other days, we've been snowed in at our cabin, about 2000 ft lower than the tower. As to condition, the deck, and steps were not all that sound last summer when I was up there last. The inside is always boarded up and locked when I've been there, so it might not be that bad. It just looked dirty in the little bits you could see through the window covers. Read the part about it being a frequent stop for people coming to get a view. May not be as bad in october, especially if the weather is bad, but during the summer, it's a constant flow of people on 4 wheelers. In 25yrs of going up there at least once a summer, I've never seen anyone actually staying there. View Quote |
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The tower is above tree line, barely. There will be constant wind up there. It will feel much colder than the temps show. October up there can be nice....50-60F during the afternoon, but normally below freezing at night. October can also be very, very cold, and possible big storms. Feet of snow at that elevation is possible. Some days hunting in October up there is tshirt weather. Other days, we've been snowed in at our cabin, about 2000 ft lower than the tower. As to condition, the deck, and steps were not all that sound last summer when I was up there last. The inside is always boarded up and locked when I've been there, so it might not be that bad. It just looked dirty in the little bits you could see through the window covers. Read the part about it being a frequent stop for people coming to get a view. May not be as bad in october, especially if the weather is bad, but during the summer, it's a constant flow of people on 4 wheelers. In 25yrs of going up there at least once a summer, I've never seen anyone actually staying there. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
The tower is above tree line, barely. There will be constant wind up there. It will feel much colder than the temps show. October up there can be nice....50-60F during the afternoon, but normally below freezing at night. October can also be very, very cold, and possible big storms. Feet of snow at that elevation is possible. Some days hunting in October up there is tshirt weather. Other days, we've been snowed in at our cabin, about 2000 ft lower than the tower. As to condition, the deck, and steps were not all that sound last summer when I was up there last. The inside is always boarded up and locked when I've been there, so it might not be that bad. It just looked dirty in the little bits you could see through the window covers. Read the part about it being a frequent stop for people coming to get a view. May not be as bad in october, especially if the weather is bad, but during the summer, it's a constant flow of people on 4 wheelers. In 25yrs of going up there at least once a summer, I've never seen anyone actually staying there. Quoted:
My uncles place runs for 6500-7400' and yes some days it s t shirts and then next you're being pulled out of drift by one of his tractors. Just checked drawing results for non resi's and I'm not eating speedy goats over the winter. Guess that's why we raise beef. |
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Well that's about what I assumed for the weather. Hopefully the lookout isn't too bad but I guess we'll see and just make the best of it if not. The website said it is a popular spot for people to stop and check out, which I can see being annoying but unless they're assholes I doubt it will be a problem. Jun 15 - Oct 31 is when it's available to be reserved, and it's pretty much reserved every day except a handful in Oct this year. If there are a lot of 4 wheelers out there what about dirt bikes? I have a couple I could bring along but I don't know anything about WY OHV laws. What's your Uncle's # in case I end up in one of those drifts? View Quote |
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Well that's about what I assumed for the weather. Hopefully the lookout isn't too bad but I guess we'll see and just make the best of it if not. The website said it is a popular spot for people to stop and check out, which I can see being annoying but unless they're assholes I doubt it will be a problem. Jun 15 - Oct 31 is when it's available to be reserved, and it's pretty much reserved every day except a handful in Oct this year. If there are a lot of 4 wheelers out there what about dirt bikes? I have a couple I could bring along but I don't know anything about WY OHV laws. What's your Uncle's # in case I end up in one of those drifts? View Quote http://wyotrails.state.wy.us/ORV/Requirements.aspx Uc doesn't have a cell, they check V-mails on the house phone once a day and hard to get a hold of..... yes I'm jealous. Didn't draw tags this year, been denied for the last 4 yrs, so I shoot sod puppies instead. |
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Put in my app for the leftover lottery, now we wait and see. It said there were 170ish available doe permits, and because I've never done this before I put in for one of those so I don't waste $280 to find out I really suck at antelope hunting. There weren't any deer permits left. Worst case scenario I just buy a small game license.
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If you intend to spend time in Wyoming over the next few years you would do well to start accumulating preference points now.
Trust me on this one. |
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I tried to get my wife to go for a ride up there Monday, but the weather was a bit spotty so I couldn't talk her into it. Hell of a windstorm went through the whole area last night. Incredible winds. There are a lot of very large trees down.
Glad I wasn't up there at the lookout during that. It was scary enough at my cabin If I make it up there over the next few weeks, I'll take some pictures for you. |
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If you intend to spend time in Wyoming over the next few years you would do well to start accumulating preference points now. Trust me on this one. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
If you intend to spend time in Wyoming over the next few years you would do well to start accumulating preference points now. Trust me on this one. Quoted:
I tried to get my wife to go for a ride up there Monday, but the weather was a bit spotty so I couldn't talk her into it. Hell of a windstorm went through the whole area last night. Incredible winds. There are a lot of very large trees down. Glad I wasn't up there at the lookout during that. It was scary enough at my cabin If I make it up there over the next few weeks, I'll take some pictures for you. I would love some up to date info and pictures if you get up that way! Anything to help me be as prepared as possible for our trip would be excellent. You've got me a bit nervous about it snowing when we're up there. I was already planning a for a new set of tires on the truck but now I'm thinking I should find some chains just in case. They're not really legal for use here so I'm not even sure where to pick them up. |
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So here is my plan for the trip...
Leaving on a friday morning, 3am. Drive to Rapid City, SD and go through Badlands National Park on the way. Once in Rapid City either find some kinda touristy BS to do with the family(assume we make good time) or just check into our hotel and rest up. Leave Rapid City saturday morning, 5am. Drive to Mt. Rushmore, spend about 2 hours there. Leave Mt. Rushmore, take 244 to 16A, then 16A to S Playhouse Rd, then S Playhouse Rd to 87/Needles Highway, then 87 to 385. I'm hoping I wont need to pay for a Custer State Park sticker on this route, if anybody knows I'd appreciate the info. The next stop is Devils Tower. Google Maps recommends taking 385 to 16 and then into WY. It also suggests 385 back to I90 and then into WY. But I see a little road called Deerfield rd that looks like it might be a more scenic drive, and time wise it says it's about the same. Any input here would be appreciated. Arrive at Devils Tower, spend about 2 hours there. Drive to Gillette, WY and check into hotel, there is also a auto museum there that I'd like to check out. Sunday morning leave Gillette and head towards Buffalo and then Sheep Mountain, they say the check in time is 11am for the lookout tower. Driving home friday will be a straight shot, no stops. All of this is of course if the weather lets me, lol. |
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Thank you! It's beautiful!
I'm not worried about the cold, we're used to it being cold here. I'm not worried about driving in snow, I'm used to that as well. I'm mostly worried about trying to drive up or down a mountain in deep snow or ice, haven't done that before. Although, I think if the weather gets that bad they will probably close the lookout early and that kinda ruins the trip then. Either way I plan to bring everything I might need in case of an emergency. |
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Good for you!
We struck out in Wyoming this year. Awaiting the 28th for SD results. |
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Took another trip up there yesterday morning with some friends. Again it was occupied.
It was cold and windy enough and threatening rain that we didn't stay too long. Still, gorgeous views. I'll bet it's pretty amazing at night. |
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Took another trip up there yesterday morning with some friends. Again it was occupied. It was cold and windy enough and threatening rain that we didn't stay too long. Still, gorgeous views. I'll bet it's pretty amazing at night. View Quote |
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Sounds amazing. Did you see any antelope? lol. I'm going be buying the onX map for wyoming but any tips on where to hunt in that unit(102) would be appreciated! View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Took another trip up there yesterday morning with some friends. Again it was occupied. It was cold and windy enough and threatening rain that we didn't stay too long. Still, gorgeous views. I'll bet it's pretty amazing at night. There's been a small herd of 8 up here on Web Creek Flats all summer. They even ventured down to my cabin one morning, earlier in the summer. Kind of crazy seeming them up this high. |
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Our family use to have a cabin behind Hazleton. Awesome pics. Never a dull moment there! Guns are you from Buffalo?
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All I'll get to hunt this year is general deer up there, so, yeah, ......if the weather isn't too sucky. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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See you on the Hill in October?? I got 35. Weather will be beautiful, positive thoughts |
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So what's the deal with public access in WY?
I'm looking at the map on the F&G website and obviously it shows what's what, obviously you can't cross private to enter the public property but I see very few obvious access points for the properties that have a road going through them or whatever. Here in WI our DNR generally has at least one designated access point for a property, you don't HAVE to use it but it's nice. We can park on the side of the road that crosses it or borders and just walk in wherever also. So on these properties that have a road going through them I see most of them are fenced(using google maps street view). Can you just cross the fence or is it basically inaccessible? I've seen a few places that look like they have a designated spot to park or have a gate for access but I don't see any signage, WI generally has signage at any designated parking area and along the borders of the property. I know around the lookout this wont really be a big deal since it's all just NF but I also don't intend to see any antelope up there.....so... |
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So what's the deal with public access in WY? I'm looking at the map on the F&G website and obviously it shows what's what, obviously you can't cross private to enter the public property but I see very few obvious access points for the properties that have a road going through them or whatever. Here in WI our DNR generally has at least one designated access point for a property, you don't HAVE to use it but it's nice. We can park on the side of the road that crosses it or borders and just walk in wherever also. So on these properties that have a road going through them I see most of them are fenced(using google maps street view). Can you just cross the fence or is it basically inaccessible? I've seen a few places that look like they have a designated spot to park or have a gate for access but I don't see any signage, WI generally has signage at any designated parking area and along the borders of the property. I know around the lookout this wont really be a big deal since it's all just NF but I also don't intend to see any antelope up there.....so... View Quote Towards that side of the state, it gets harder to find BLM. Some land has "Walk in and hunt" rules where the G&F has already paid a fee to the landowner to allow people to hunt. It will be marked. |
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You will need permission from the landowner to cross, and.......you will probably be asked to pay a trespass fee. Towards that side of the state, it gets harder to find BLM. Some land has "Walk in and hunt" rules where the G&F has already paid a fee to the landowner to allow people to hunt. It will be marked. View Quote |
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If you can access it you can hunt it. Park and start walking. Even off the Interstate, but I haven't done that.
OnX maps has phone apps and GPS chips for locating public land. You also need to be mindful of roads. Just because it looks well used does not mean it is a public road. Very little land in Wyoming is marked, and it is your responsibility to stay off private land. Buy good boots. Break them in. |
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But what about land that is clearly public, with a public road going right through it? Just pull over and go hunting? That's how it works here but there aren't usually fences to cross for state land. I've only encountered fences on private land leased to the DNR. View Quote As long as it's public, hop the fence and hunt on. |
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If you can access it you can hunt it. Park and start walking. Even off the Interstate, but I haven't done that. OnX maps has phone apps and GPS chips for locating public land. You also need to be mindful of roads. Just because it looks well used does not mean it is a public road. Very little land in Wyoming is marked, and it is your responsibility to stay off private land. Buy good boots. Break them in. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
If you can access it you can hunt it. Park and start walking. Even off the Interstate, but I haven't done that. OnX maps has phone apps and GPS chips for locating public land. You also need to be mindful of roads. Just because it looks well used does not mean it is a public road. Very little land in Wyoming is marked, and it is your responsibility to stay off private land. Buy good boots. Break them in. Quoted:
With the multi-use policy for BLM land, there are lots of fences on public land here. The fences along the roads are to keep livestock off the roads. As long as it's public, hop the fence and hunt on. |
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But what about land that is clearly public, with a public road going right through it? Just pull over and go hunting? That's how it works here but there aren't usually fences to cross for state land. I've only encountered fences on private land leased to the DNR. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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You will need permission from the landowner to cross, and.......you will probably be asked to pay a trespass fee. Towards that side of the state, it gets harder to find BLM. Some land has "Walk in and hunt" rules where the G&F has already paid a fee to the landowner to allow people to hunt. It will be marked. |
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It looks like it could be nice up there today. Tomorrow is another story.
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Yesterday and today was nice. Sunday and monday were very windy.
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I put in for another tag this year can't wait to come back!
Not making a big trip out of it this time, coming by myself or with a hunting buddy if he fills out the app and depending on weather just camping out of my truck or grabbing a cheap motel. Will be able to go hunting for more than a day since the family wont be there |
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