Wyoming Non Resident Hunting: A New Look
Justin Hunold
12/23/2023
With an App built for the everyday hunter, focused on DIY residents and non-residents alike, it is an appropriate time to address some changes in Wyoming Non-Resident Hunting Licenses coming in 2024. What is the structure, pricing, advantages, and disadvantages for the increases in pricing that will go into effect after January 1?
As a non-resident of Wyoming who hasn’t applied for a tag there before, I’ll admit I was fully in the dark about topic. I was lucky enough to chat with Infinite Outdoors very own Sam Seeton to help me walk through the Wyoming Non-Resident Hunting License process.
The draw opens on January 3rd and runs through the last day of May. You can find the application information here : Wyoming Non Resident Hunting License Info
Now the changes in Wyoming Non-Resident Hunting License Draws don’t have a lot to do with seasons or structures of the actual draw. The difference this season will be in the pricing. Nonresident hunting licenses have gone up dramatically.
With the ever-present point creep and pressure applied to local animals and land from non-residents a constant source of contention in the western states Wyoming is taking to the offensive on these issues with a basic macroeconomic principle. Increasing Prices can and likely will decrease demand for these finite resources.
Let’s Be Clear on this fact it is not the general tag that has increased in price. The increase is in the special tag, which in theory, increases the odds for a hunter to draw for the particular species they wish to pursue. 60% of all non-resident tags in a unit are given to the general draw and 40% to the special draw. The assumption was always that fewer people would be willing to pay the difference and the structure made sense. This is where the change in Wyomings HB200 takes effect.
The 40% special draw tag pricing on a Wyoming Elk Tag went from an out-the-door, all-in total of $1,315.07 in 2023 to a bit pricier $2,014.12 in 2024. So, herein lies the issue at hand, there is a chance that with this increase folks will be willing to forgo the special draw. We will see if that happens.
Analysis
Whoopty Doo, what does it all mean Basil? At the end of the day, it only means you may or may not spend more than you did last year to help your odds of drawing a tag in Wyoming once you draw the tag. Oh, and that amount will be withheld until the draw happens which can be a deal breaker for folks. So, is the juice worth the squeeze? That’s for you to decide.
Analysis Now with that background let’s dive into what Sam has taken from this, some insights on planning, access, hard work and the opportunities that come when all of those factors fall into place.
When I asked Sam why I would pay more to apply in Wyoming the first thing he told me about was what a unique opportunity Wyoming can provide to a Non-Resident hunter. A hunter can chase a game with a season-long approach rather than just a weapon-specific one.
“You draw the tag and then can buy an archery permit and hunt that same unit for the same game throughout the entire season. Plus you can hunt with a crossbow in Wyoming which is rare in western states.”- Sam
This piqued my interest in a few different ways. Firstly, I am a hunter. My preferred method is to bow hunt, but I have been known to happily pick up one of my rifles after chasing critters all fall with a bow. Sometimes when coming in from out of state Bowhunting and be a lot of Bow Hiking. The opportunity to take what you learned during that bow season and then move right along into rifle season can make a massive difference to many folks.
Secondly, limiting myself to bowhunting limits my hunting partners. My father, for instance, has been a long-time gun hunter but never bow hunted. With Wyoming's structure and laws to allow for crossbows, there is a chance for my dad and I to go on an actual western big game hunt together with a lot more opportunity for him and me to align on the method of take and seasons.
“We built the app for DIY hunters.” -Sam
With that in mind, the Infinite Outdoors App aligns with Wyoming’s perspective on managing for success rather than just opportunity. The access that Infinite Outdoors can provide with private hunting land for DIY hunters is a perfect compliment to a season-long hunt plan for the Cowboy State.
With an increase in special draw pricing can be a lot to swallow for a non-resident hunter. Once that draw is successful are you willing to put the success of that hunt on the line to run and gun on public lands? Infinite Outdoors was built to take that hard-charging, DIY hunting spirit and allow it to flourish with ample opportunity on private hunting lands.
It’s no secret Western hunting success rates generally hover around the single digits. And that's a sliding scale. There are just a lot of things a hunter cannot control, sure you didn’t blow out that basin, but someone else you never saw or heard did the day before you were there. More and more our time is limited and Sam and his team wanted to give DIY hunters a resource to get those single-digit successes and maybe push them well into double digits.
Sage Advice
With that in mind, it’s hunting and hunting is still hard. So, when I asked Sam for a tip on hunting the West, he said this.
“Get out of your car. Just because you can see a long ways people think you can be lazy. Liberal regulations and long seasons lead to more road hunting. Wyoming restricts nonresidents a lot. So if you come to the state willing to hunt, hike, and try you can have more success.”
When we look at Wyoming's pricing increase for Non-Resident Big Game Special Tags, we might assume the worst: a state agency taking more money and decreasing output for the everyday hunter. This couldn’t be further from the truth. A hunter can still apply for easier-to-draw tags or general tags for the same price as before.
Would you be here reading this if you were just an average Joe running around the woods? As Sam pointed out, the same folks who spend the money to hunt out of state, read blogs on hunting, pour over gear lists and reviews, E-scout constantly, and have bucket lists for game species are the people applying for the special draw. Those are the folks for whom Infinite Outdoors is built. Are you one of those folks?