AK Jeff

MT and ID would be better served by lowering their non-resident wolf tag fee and then charging a trophy fee of say $150 to successful non-resident hunters. Not many people will pay that kind of money for what amounts to a long shot incidental. They'd be better off getting more people licensed to take them and then charge them after they bag one. Most folks would fork over the coin after they had one in the bag. Alaska has dropped the non-resident wolf tag fee in a lot of areas to encourage non-resident hunters to take wolves while they're hunting other species. Wolves are tough to target specifically and most are taken incidentally to something else just on a dumb luck basis.

South33

Couldn't have said it any better! Montana has so much to offer & the experiences you can leave with are priceless. I don't see the prices going down any time soon; as the price of everything else increases so will tag prices.

Eyeball2 the deer/elk hunting in Trout Creek is still awesome & it doesn't take much effort to locate the buck/bull you are looking for. The wolves have definitely made their mark though; The bucks & bulls are staying low year around to get away from the pressure caused by wolves. I was out a bunch of times in that area last year & I seen & heard my fair share of these disgusting predators. Hope you can make it this way & help put our predator control to action!

-South

AK Jeff

Meant to post that in the wolf tag thread. My bad.

eyeball2

I used to agree about the greatness of the hunt, but when i go back to new mexico sacremento mts where 35 years ago i saw 25-40 deer /day in archery season and now i go back and see 2-3 deer/day in hundreds of sq. miles of beautiful mtns. there isn't much thrill in the hunt. mostly the few deer around live in the edge of town to get away from the mt. lion and coyote. actually, it's pretty depressing.

South33

Sounds like you need a new hunting spot. If there isn't "much thrill in the hunt" then what is the point in hunting? I do agree that seeing deer & elk herds being destroyed because of improper management is VERY upsetting & all we can do is play whatever roll we can (no matter how small it may be) to try to keep the predators in 'check'. Fortunately here in MT we get to experience hunting to the fullest (with the exception of the wolf deal) & I thank God that I live in such a beautiful place.

-South

txhunter58

Hey, I am all about "the experience" and I have hunted your great state three times and taken two bulls and a bear, and my brother got lucky and drew a moose tag and took a 49" bull! All hunts were great experiences.

But as far as "the expience", I can get a great one in Colorado for $334 for a deer or $554 for an elk (I like most people can't afford to hunt both in the same year so you really can't add the two and compare).

Easy to talk about the experience for those paying resident fees, my contention is that many nonresidents, after spending almost a grand for JUST the license may have buyers remorse when they return without an elk

scottb3472

Well last time i checked, there were no, none, nada, zip, zilch, zero hunts that guarantee to get you a shot at an elk for less then $1,000.00. anywhere, especially on public land. Whether you do a DIY hunt or book an outfitter, regardless of the cost of the tag you have almost the same chance that a resident has depending on where the resident lives. Funny thing about wild animals, they just don't care how much a tag costs, It's called hunting, not killing. Like i said earlier, it's about the entire hunting experience, not just the filling of a tag.

Maybe i'm wrong on this issue, but i don't think so. Yes the prices are high, but we have quality animals and have them in decent numbers. I hear no one complaining that they spent 500-1,000 dollars more on their new truck as compared to what they could get it for 3 states away, so why do it with the cost of hunting tags?? I just don't get it.

South33

The "hunting experience" im talking about isn't determined on how little or how much something costs (the fact I pay resident fees means absolutely nothing); I just payed more than I would care to admit for an Alaskan Moose hunt last fall & had the time of my life & I left with more memories than I could have ever hoped for. I also payed $10.00 for a turkey tag this spring & shot a beautiful tom opening morning & I had the time of my life doing so. My point is the prices are what they are if you want to hunt in MT, AK, CO etc. you are going to have to pay the fees & if going into the hunt with the right attitude you very rarely leave disappointed. So either pay the price & enjoy being out there or don't. But whining about something you can't change is a waste of time...

-South

txhunter58

I agree with everything you say in your first paragraph. The experience has NOTHING to do with the price you pay. As far as you getting it (my point of view), please tell me where you are traveling out of state each year, spending a grand on a tag, and coming home empty handed 7 out of 10 years. And those odds are being generous for the average nonresident hunter. I can get the same "expeience" for 1/2 the money in Colorado.

Yes, there are probably many nonresident hunters who have been coming a long time, that will continue to come, but I will still bet you that it will be harder to sell out on the tags each year for the next few years

txhunter58

The fact you pay resident fees means absolutely nothing to the experience, but it certainly has relevance to the question I asked.

Certainly price doesn't affect the "experience". But how many will continue to be able to afford it at that price, that is my question. I am not whining, just asked a simple question: Will there be buyers remorse? In your mind, when does it stop being whining and become a legitimate question? Would it be legit if you raised the price to $10,000 per tag? Well, for many nonrsidents, raising it to over $900 has the same affect as that price, they can no longer afford it. So enjoy the incredental move toward having more nonrsident hunters driving $50,000 pickups and monster ATVs

There is certainly a line states will cross at some point where price starts to affect applicants. It already has in Montana. Yes, you sold all your tags (this year) but applicants were WAY down. I will bet you a 6 pack that they will drop again next year.

Colorado is currently setting up a "summit" to determine why they have lost 10s of thousands of nonresident elk hunters. I can tell them: Certainly there are many reasons, but one of the biggest is that when they raised the price to over $500, they crossed a threshold where hunters can't afford to go every year.

If I were a resident, I would probably be worried too (Montana or Colorado). If nonresident hunters drop and therefore money coming in to the state drops, they will be raising my tag prices........... Othewise, why complain? Less nonresidents in the woods means more game for me.