Out Of State Hunting

[ballpark]

Hunt both in/out of state.  Idaho still has plenty of what Washington calls "Wilderness", where you can see less than handful of hunters during season.  Idaho 2021 will see a significant increase in out-of-state fees, so that may deter some.  Washington still has good hunts, just have to be picky and a little lucky.

[Muleyslyr]

Does the lack of quality hunting in Washington factor into every ones decision to hunt out of state?

Absolutely does for me. Have had the fortune to hunt many different states including Canada and have done at least one out of state hunt every year since 99'. Not being able to draw an Elk tag or only getting to hunt Mule Deer in the rut once every 10yrs in this state just doesn't cut for me.

[jeffitz]

Yeah we just a MT combo trip last month and although it was a blast of a trip it was a little disappointing(probably didnt go to a great area((SW MT near Dillon))) We saw three elk in 10 days (no shot opportunties). Did get 5(small) bucks and one doe so we limited on deer but for $1100 each in tags it was a little underwhelming. Yeah i know many factors are at play- probably coulda hunted harder,shoulda went to a better area,etc. But when we went into the 300 Unit (we applied but didnt draw)looking for elk after taggin on deer we saw lots of BIG bucks (300 is permit only for Muley bucks)-Long story short if I hunt MT again it will not be that area - maybe shoulda went to SE for big bucks and just forgot about the elk tags, maybe its tough to do both.Mostly was just after a dandy buck but ended up killing a doe last day because i couldnt find a decent enough buck to shoot

[deerlick]

I do because i love to hunt and having the ability to hunt early September til December in multiple states give me my fill.

[MADMAX]

I do because I’m sick and tired of going out day after day after day and not seeing anything and getting excited to see something that’s not even legal
It’s a damn shame that my relatives in Massachusetts do better deer hunting then we do now in Washington , the last 10 years it has gone drastically downhill

[JimmyHoffa]

I do because I’m sick and tired of going out day after day after day and not seeing anything and getting excited to see something that’s not even legal
It’s a damn shame that my relatives in Massachusetts do better deer hunting then we do now in Washington , the last 10 years it has gone drastically downhill

I agree that the time frame for really taking a dive seemed to start around ten years ago.  I would even see maybe a dozen deer a day in National Forest--far from prime territory.  When I'd go to the tree farms it was normal to see thirty deer in a day.

[Ingwe]

I am a dedicated black tail deer hunter. My out of state hunting now is going to British Columbia moose hunting every year. That is what I saved money for and at 71 I hope to keep doing it for a few more years. I applied for moose here in Washington for many years and never drew so decided to go where I can hunt every year if I want to. I have had the same guide for las 2 years and he is great to hunt with and we have a great time and work hard.

[HUNTINCOUPLE]

Here is a sad fact. I live in the Chiwawa unit, the Swakane unit is 48' across the street and the Entiat unit is 800 yards from my house.
 I rarely hunt for Mule Deer in Washington, nearly 100 percent out of state. I help others that draw tags but I do not hunt Deer here very often.

That is very sad.

[CaNINE]

My Washington hunting is pretty much limited to spring turkey and applying for special permit hunts. For the past 5 years I’ve been hunting a combo of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and Alaska.  All hunts are primarily focused on putting meat in the freezer with some hunts targeting the best “trophy” class animal I can find. I’ve come to appreciate the adventures and reliably filling the freezer every year is huge.

[Twispriver]

I started out archery hunting in the Blue Mountains of Oregon in the mid 1980s not so much because it was better hunting but because it was more hunting. Since then I have hunted in Colorado, Wyoming and Montana. When I started going out of state, up until about ten years ago, cost wasn't really a consideration because it really wasn't that expensive but now with price of non-resident tags I plan to go out of state every other year. Depending on the draw sometimes I get to go every year. My son lives in Montana so when I go there it's not because of better hunting it is to spend time in camp with him. (Better hunting is a bonus)

I still very much like hunting in Washington too and I still have what I consider to be very productive places to hunt and find game. Sometimes I don't have the right tag for what I see but there are still critters to find so as long as I'm able I'll be at our annual camp in the 340 for elk and hosting deer hunters at my cabin in Twisp.

[actionshooter]

Does the lack of quality hunting in Washington factor into every ones decision to hunt out of state?

Absolutely and the overcrowding... on the west side with the timber companies selling limited numbers of permits it pushes a lot of people East or onto the public lands that can't support the numbers.

[DOUBLELUNG]

My out of state hunting is primarily driven by where friends and family are located, rather than hunting quality.  However, when allocating scarce days off, knowing I can drive to Wyoming in 2 long days (28 hours round trip), and be absolutely confident I can fill deer and antelope in 2 days of hunting, has absolutely been a factor. 

[theleo]

I grew up out of state (NE Oregon over around LaGrande) and didn't move here until my 20's. I took one look at the regs and they just made me laughed. Tagged along with some coworkers on their WA tags, and after that quickly made the decision that if I'm going to be serious about hunting my time would not be well spent here. 

[dvolmer]

I grew up out of state (NE Oregon over around LaGrande) and didn't move here until my 20's. I took one look at the regs and they just made me laughed. Tagged along with some coworkers on their WA tags, and after that quickly made the decision that if I'm going to be serious about hunting my time would not be well spent here.

You made a smart decision.

[Mulie87]

I started hunting out of state four years ago and never looked back. Longer seasons, opportunity and you actually see multiple animals that aren’t just does. It’s actually fun...what hunting should be.