dog1

Need some help please! I want to go Antelope in 2007. A couple years back, I read an article about public land hunting in the Thunder Basin land. The article went onto tell how good antelope hunting is there, ease of access to the land for a non-resident, etc. The writer also talked about a map he purchased of the land and how this map was broken down to 1 inch squares, which I believe represent exactly 1 inch square mile areas, thus making it super easy to find your way to a specific area of the grasslands.

Questions: Is there a good antelope population there as stated?
Is it relatively easy to draw a tag (non-resident) for the area?
Is it open to all hunting, bow, muzzleloading, rifle?
Where can I find a map like the one above?
Is camping allowed anywhere in/on the land?
If no camping, how far would I (guesstimate please) probably
have to drive from a hotel?
All information you can give on the above and suggestions is deeply appreciated.
dog1

Knightia

I dont think i can be of much help - I have never hunted that area of the state or been up there to much myself even(just some fishing& rock hounding in the gerneral area.)


I dont know what was stated in the article about antelopes - But there are antelopes all over the state. I dont know that map you speak of either.

I would suggest -TheWy game& fish web sitewould have some info on licences& draw tags, rules& regsetc.

There is some camping in spots inthe general area( keyhole state park?(and a few other areas maybe(i dont know the rules on camping much either).And anywhere theres a small town(moorecroft,wright) or larger( newcastle, gellette etc)- there should be hotels - how far they aredepends on where in the thunderbasin your hunting( things are somewhat few& far between there)

Sorry i couldnt be of much help- good luck to you- it seems like it be a intresting area to hunt in.

Knightia

Also maybe you could write to those towns i mentioned aboveschamber of commerce- they can be pretty helpfull sometimes.( the only places i have hunter lopes is south& west of casper, but i havent in many yrs now)

Alsatian

Dog1:

You can find much information on the Wyoming Department of Wildlife web page. You can identify hunting units and drawing odds at different locations on this web page. I think the map you are referring to is a Bureau of Land Management Map, available from the Wyoming Department of Wildlife. Look towards the end of the Hunting Booklet. Maybe this URL will work for you:

http://gf.state.wy.us/downloads/pdf/06appbooklet/06NR44-52.pdf

You are PROBABLY looking for the Gillette, Reno Junction, Sundance, and Newcastle maps. They cost $6 each.

I can't tell you anything about the numbers of animals available out there. I hunted pronghorn out there in 2004 and wanted to hunt in the Thunderbasin National Grassland but made a deal with a rancher instead so I could have confidence that I wouldn't have my hunt disturbed by large stampedes of hunters on the public ground. I hunted in Unit 23, about 5 miles south of Gillette. There are a lot of pronghorn in Unit 23 around Gillette.

I think my next hunt will be on the Thunderbasin Grassland. I might choose to go later in the season and during the week, in hopes of encountering fewer people.

Yes, you can camp on the Grassland.

wycelticlassie

Hi~ I'm from Gillette, WY and my husband and I spend a lot of time in the Thunder Basin Grasslands. We horn hunt major portions of it along with regular hunting. We'll get my mule deer tags for the grasslands area. Although around here, you could just as easily find private land to hunt antelope on. Sometime the landowners wanta couple hundred dollar "tresspassing fee" but usually they have pretty decent bucks.

We have friends that come out from Wisconsin to hunt antelope every year. Last year my husband took them out and the three of them got 5 antelope in one day. I couldn't go cause I was like 9 months pregnant, but not this year! There are so many freakin antelope out here thatyou can find places to hunt pretty easily. If you want to come out next year, we could hook you up with information or take you around.

The grassland are kind of misrepresented by their name...they are FAR from flat and grassy. They actually have some pretty freakin rough territory. Like 60 degree slopes easily. There are WAY more antelope in Campell and Weston Counties than people.

Anyways, there is camping in the grasslands. You don't have to be in a campground to camp, like most of Wyoming public land.Also, I'd definatly look at the northern section of the grasslands for hunting. Another thing...you can also get at least two additional doe fawn antelope tags, so you can take lots back with you!

Let me know if you'd like help looking at hunt areas and finding etc!

wycelticlassie

sorry, i didnt answer all your questions...
where we hunt antelope south of Gillette (area 24) it is like 100% draw area for both resident and non-resident.Most areas are open to most types of hunting. We didn't fill all our tags with our bows, so we'll get them with guns.

The BLM (Bureau of Land Management) have maps available for those areas. I'm not sure if it's the maps you were talking about, but they identify all state, federal, and private land (although not who actually own the private land). You can contact the BLM office in Buffalo, Wyoming at (307) 684-1100. That is the closest office. They should be able to send you the maps. I think they cost like $3 each. Or, you can order a Gazatteer online for Wyoming. The one we use is DeLORME. Go to their website. I do technical mapping for work and we use both of these types of maps.They work well for hunting also.

Although, one secret is to just go drive up to landowners and ask if you can hunt. It takes a lot of guts, but the worst they can say is NO. We do a lot of that for mulies, antelope, elk, and coonhunting.

Rangerlab

Most of the TBNG is in area 27. The odds of drawing a non res tag for that area is about 12%. There are alot of areas around there that are 100% draws, but they are mostly private land areas. You can call the Game and Fish Dept. and they will send you a list of landowners that will let you hunt their property. Most charge some sort of tresspass fee.

dog1

Thanks to all of you for replys and info. I have printed them for future reference.

dog1