Wyoming Hunting – Where the Deer and Antelope Play!
by Ed H Edwards, Lansing Chapter Member, avid hunter, and fisherman
If you want to hunt any big game in Wyoming the effort to apply and hopefully draw a tag is as challenging as the hunt!
When our son Clinton moved to the great state of Wyoming I immediately started purchasing a yearly non-resident “preference point” for antelope. I have been advised the three preference points now places me in a “near guaranteed draw” for the 2025 season. The draw results will be available on June 19th so let’s hope the prediction holds true. The online application process resulted in two hours of frustration and was finally resolved after calling the Game and Fish Department and coached on how to work around a couple of glitches in the online menu. Computers are wonderful when they work! My previous successful application for a Wyoming antelope tag in 1988 via US Postal Service took less than five minutes with -0- frustration.
My 1988 hunt in Wyoming was successful beyond expectation!
TWO and TWO in TWO! A long-ago hunt fondly remembered.
“This one deserves a close look” my friend Dick Stanton mentioned as he adjusted the window mounted spotting scope. Length, prongs, and mass look good, now if we could get a look at the horn’s hooks. As if they were reading our mind the herd paraded across the two-track we were parked on giving us a good look at the hooks, which angled back and had ivory tips. All boxes checked!
How I had come to hunt antelope near Rock Springs, WY started out four years earlier in Northern Botswana along the game rich Kwando River Delta. I had the pleasure to share camp with Bill Jordan an outdoor writer at the time and previously a Border Patrol officer. In addition to me and Bill three other hunters were also in camp and we were all after Cape buffalo, select plains game, and the semi-aquatic Red lechwe. A congenial group with every one filling out with outstanding trophies. The hunt was out of a tented camp and the evening campfire chats were an enjoyable part of the trip experience.
Bill had taken many hunts in his career but a big lion with a black mane from the Kalahari region of Botswana and an 18”antelope from Wyoming which got him the Silver Bullet award by the NRA were his favorites.
Bill not only enjoyed hunting antelope but also loved antelope meat and if his praise was not enough fellow camp member Dick Stanton was! A life time resident of Wyoming Dick was on his first African Safari and had a wonderful time and applied his life long experience of hunting deer, antelope, and elk in taking his African game. Although I think most people who enjoy hunting and fishing are a cut above the average citizen Dick stood out as being really exceptional company. Near the end of the hunt Dick invited me to visit him in Wyoming and hunt antelope if and when I drew a tag.
Maybe there is something to “the third times the charm.” After being unsuccessful in my first two attempts at drawing, I opened the mailbox on a hot July day and found a parcel from Wyoming Game and Fish Dept. The envelope was too large to only contain the bad news notice received on my earlier tries. Indeed, the envelope contained my coveted tag and a copy of the hunting regulations.
The sky had a slight crimson streak of light as we left the main road the first morning onto a two-track the local conservation officer had suggested we take based on his antelope sightings. We waited in silence on the large track of BLM land waiting for daylight. Within minutes of daylight a small herd of antelope were spotted and the herds small buck was immediately passed. “Look a coyote” Dick whispered. Barely visible the critter emerged outside the herd of antelope and was trotting to my left. I tracked the moving target for ten yards or so and shot when it paused. I was rewarded with “you got it.”
Antelope were present in every basin including many respectable bucks in the 12” range but not what we were looking for. Possessing a second license for a doe we kept our eyes open for one without fawns and in an area that retrieval would be easy. Within a half hour two mature does were spotted and one was taken after a brief stalk. We moved to a high ridge after field dressing the doe and glassed the area. Immediately a coyote and badger in obvious disagreement was spotted and I added coyote #2 to the days bag.
Now we decided to get serious for the reason I came to Wyoming. Two antelope hunting videos and countless articles read prior to the trip stressed mass, prongs, and the hook of the horns were important to trophy evaluation in addition to the often- mentioned horn length.
Even though we were hunting mid-season on public land the antelope were not overly spooky due to light hunting pressure and minimal truck traffic on the established two-tracks from ranch workers checking on free range cattle. Since the area is known for producing excellent trophies it pays to be selective and patient. Patient we were and after looking over two dozen mature bucks we came across one that looked pretty good. Closs examination confirmed his horns were up to par on all four attributes. Even though it was early on my first day I decided to try for him. As I got into a shooting position the does started to drift away and soon the buck was following them, alerted but not spooked. Due to the going away angle a hold midway between his hip and shoulder was necessary. The sound of the 130 grain Silvertip from my .270 reverberated back and the buck tried to run after his harem but was down after a few steps.
I could hardly believe it was only nine o’clock. My planned hunt of four years was over in two hours and I had shot two coyotes and two antelope!
One of my favorite hunting show personalities frequently uses this quote which I agree with 100%
“I think we had a pretty good day.”
-Roger Reglin
Join SCI TODAY!
Safari Club International is the leading voice in the fight to protect the freedom to hunt, both in the United States and internationally. The SCI Departments of Legal Advocacy Resources and International Affairs and Government Relations are headquartered in Washington, D.C., advocating on behalf of SCI members and non-members alike. From staff dedicated to legislation and policy to a team of litigators, SCI hunter advocacy is at the forefront of protecting the hunting heritage. SCI and the SCI Foundation provide the voice of the hunter in treaties that affect hunting and wildlife conservation worldwide. This is where SCI and SCI Foundation go beyond what other hunter organizations do and why their work in this arena is critical to preserving the right to hunt. Plus, we have lots of fun and events like this one!
To find out more information about SCI and join our chapter, click below:
