May Try WY Antelope

[sourdough44]

I have a neighbor that has been going to WY for years, private ranch. Some of his buddies dropped out last year, he almost went alone. I looked into going, since it was late no tags available at the time.

I talked to him at the mailbox yesterday. I wasn't really inviting myself, but threw out the idea, with the plan of getting tags in the regular draw. He said he would check with his regulars, get back to me.

I've done prairie dogging out West a good bit, one successful CO elk hunt & would like to get the scoop on WY pronghorns. He has it all down, hotel, ranch, processing, etc.. Yes I could figure it out myself, like the quick version though.

My thoughts in order of preference are, modern CZ in 6.5 Swede, 284 Win, then a 243. I hand load for all, would put on my mid+ power Zeiss for the trip. Neighbors newer favorite is his Browning in 6.5 Creed. Could almost be a reason to set up my minty Sako 75.

I am registered on the WY game site. I'm thinking about putting in for a doe tag or two, covering my bases. Anyway, just some random thoughts. It's still easy to get time off work, may linger into Fall.

 

[Ol' Red]

There are a lot of antelope in WY. If filling a tag is what you are looking for, and it is a good way to start, you should be able to fill a tag pretty easy. WY Game and Fish can send you a list of ranches that will allow trespassing for a fee. There is a lot of public land available to hunt at no charge. Is there a particular area you are interested in? Many have camping areas or drive to the local town for a hotel. It is nice to get a shower and not have to cook after a long day.

Pronghorn are fun to hunt because they feed all day. The excitement does not end an hour after sun up.

Plan on shooting from 150 to 600 yards or more. Most of mine have taken under 350 yards. Any of the calibers you listed will work fine. Pronghorn are not hard to kill.
Good luck

 

[338weatherby]

If you can go with your neighbor and hunt private land, go for it. If that doesn't work, there is plenty of public/BLM land to hunt. I plan on going out this year with my 15 year old daughter. Antelope hunting can be low key and you don't have to beat your self up the mountain like elk/deer. I've hunted about an hour and a half SW of Casper about 9 seasons. All but one year, there were plenty of speed goats. One thing I want to mention though is, make sure you know the difference between a doe and immature buck. Not that easy to tell at distance. The black cheeks on the bucks at that age are fairly faint on some, almost light gray. From talking to the local game and fish, a yearling buck is still a buck. The doe/fawn tag is not for a yearling buck. Someone else may be able to shed light on this, I may be wrong but this how I understood what the warden was saying.

I used my .270 when I hunted them. The others used .308's and 243's. Any of the rifle you mentioned will work fine. Just pick the one that you are most comfortable with.

 

[Ol' Red]

If you can go with your neighbor and hunt private land, go for it. If that doesn't work, there is plenty of public/BLM land to hunt. I plan on going out this year with my 15 year old daughter. Antelope hunting can be low key and you don't have to beat your self up the mountain like elk/deer. I've hunted about an hour and a half SW of Casper about 9 seasons. All but one year, there were plenty of speed goats. One thing I want to mention though is, make sure you know the difference between a doe and immature buck. Not that easy to tell at distance. The black cheeks on the bucks at that age are fairly faint on some, almost light gray. From talking to the local game and fish, a yearling buck is still a buck. The doe/fawn tag is not for a yearling buck. Someone else may be able to shed light on this, I may be wrong but this how I understood what the warden was saying.

I used my .270 when I hunted them. The others used .308's and 243's. Any of the rifle you mentioned will work fine. Just pick the one that you are most comfortable with.

You are correct, a yearling buck is classified as a buck, not a fawn. If you have a buck tag and can not see a black cheek mark, don't shoot. There will probably be more pronghorn over the next hill. Bring a good pair of binoculars.

 

[sourdough44]

I think he told me he hunts in Unit 24. He also said there was very little public land there. If I did go I don't mind paying the fee to hunt on the private land, I don't think it was that much.

Last year I registered on the WY Fish & Game site. It sounds like one can get the permit then hunt any time during the season, not broken up into a bunch or short hunt periods.

I'll give it some thought & see what develops.

 

[Ol' Red]

You might check unit 73 also. Lots of public land and "Walk in" areas also. Walk in areas are private land that is open to public hunting. Money donated to "Access Yes" program is used to pay trespass fees to ranchers. A lot of the "Walk in " areas give you access to public land by crossing private land.

 

[338weatherby]

I've hunted 106 and 68. Unit 64 would be good as well.

 

[JDubya]

Two suggestions: (1) Don't wait until October to go. Too high a risk of unexpected big snow, animals migrating out, blasting drifts with all four chained up, closed highways, etc. (2) If you follow the former advice and hunt September or August, be sure to get your animal on ice fast. It'll make all the difference in the quality of the table fare. Gutless method to a big cooler is easy.

 

[Deleted member 107796]

Good luck with your plan. I love any goat hunting, doe or buck it don't matter.
One thing I always add is that pronghorn do not move at night like deer and elk, so if you see them at one spot near dark, hit that spot at morning.
As to your choice of caliber, look for anything you can control well at distance.

 

[Sandhillshunter]

I like going early in the season but that's just me. You will deal with more people early on, but if you get off the 2 tracks some, it's not so bad. Most people won't leave their trucks. If you go early, have a plan to get the meat on ice quickly. Any of the calibers you mentioned will do great.

 

[VLD Pilot]

I have a neighbor that has been going to WY for years, private ranch. Some of his buddies dropped out last year, he almost went alone. I looked into going, since it was late no tags available at the time.

I talked to him at the mailbox yesterday. I wasn't really inviting myself, but threw out the idea, with the plan of getting tags in the regular draw. He said he would check with his regulars, get back to me.

I've done prairie dogging out West a good bit, one successful CO elk hunt & would like to get the scoop on WY pronghorns. He has it all down, hotel, ranch, processing, etc.. Yes I could figure it out myself, like the quick version though.

My thoughts in order of preference are, modern CZ in 6.5 Swede, 284 Win, then a 243. I hand load for all, would put on my mid+ power Zeiss for the trip. Neighbors newer favorite is his Browning in 6.5 Creed. Could almost be a reason to set up my minty Sako 75.

I am registered on the WY game site. I'm thinking about putting in for a doe tag or two, covering my bases. Anyway, just some random thoughts. It's still easy to get time off work, may linger into Fall.

I'm kinda where you are right now. Buddy been asking me to go out to WY. He has kids out there. He's been hunting out there for several years for Goats and Mulies. Hasn't quite came together for both of us but I've got 3 points as we wait to make the trip together. I should have 4 points before actually making the trip west. Building a specific rifle for the trip that should be ready this summer. I'll have another year or so to get it figured out with load data etc. Pretty excited. I'll hunt pronghorn and Mule deer when I do finally get out there.

 

[dogz]

In no particular order any of those rigs will work (we use a 22/250), for sure score as many doe tags as you can (once you get them cleaned out, hang, skin, put the quarters on ice until you get home.

Life's short, go hunt....Now!