Idaho non resident tag quotas for 2021

[Taco280AI]

So sincere question to those upset. Why is what idaho is doing so grossly offensive but its fine in basically every other western state for basically the exact same money? And for those put off by the price, where you gonna go hunt for less money? There are still THOUSANDS of tags available in idaho that you can just hop online and buy. Theres deer and elk in every unit available just waiting to be hunted. When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say "man I'm glad I hunted less and saved that $90 on an idaho deer tag and license". Food for thought.

It's not saving $90, it's spending nearly $1200 for a license, deer and elk tag, per person. And it's all the other related expenses for many people to travel out to Idaho as well. There's other units available, but that's a big investment without knowing the area if they haven't been to those units, if they even want to hunt those units. Maybe people will pay the extra money and/or hunt units they don't want. Or maybe it'll become a trip every other year, or just not at all anymore. This year especially with millions still out of work.

"When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say 'man I'm glad I hunted'" more and spent that $1200 on an idaho license, deer and elk tag for a unit I didn't even know and jeopardized my families finances since I wasn't even working at the time. Food for thought.

[blackveltbowhunter]

So sincere question to those upset. Why is what idaho is doing so grossly offensive but its fine in basically every other western state for basically the exact same money? And for those put off by the price, where you gonna go hunt for less money? There are still THOUSANDS of tags available in idaho that you can just hop online and buy. Theres deer and elk in every unit available just waiting to be hunted. When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say "man I'm glad I hunted less and saved that $90 on an idaho deer tag and license". Food for thought.

   I'm past the upset part A fifth of pendleton and 4 am frozen run to clear the the hangover off before work got it out of my sytem

    I am not upset at the increase in price. I get it, its business and raising the price to market is smart business. They should have gone up more IMO.  Two things upset me, they created urgency for no other reason than to ensure there risk of raising cost was not a bust. Capping all the zones and units created a sense of urgency causing a flood of buyers that IMO would have been prevented had they rolled out a simple cost increase. Or they could have rolled out a draw for very popular units, or rolled out in stages, to limit impacts for folks. Lots of options.
    The bigger issue is I see it as a first step. I have always held IDFG as an "ideal" standard for game departments. Given their funding mechanisms they will never be able to go to a simple draw like many western states IMO. Very few will enter a draw for deer and elk at 1300 dollar price tag. This move of capping zones in this way without a draw essentially removed their reason to manage game, and began managing hunters. Welcome the new WDFW.

[buglebrush]

So sincere question to those upset. Why is what idaho is doing so grossly offensive but its fine in basically every other western state for basically the exact same money? And for those put off by the price, where you gonna go hunt for less money? There are still THOUSANDS of tags available in idaho that you can just hop online and buy. Theres deer and elk in every unit available just waiting to be hunted. When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say "man I'm glad I hunted less and saved that $90 on an idaho deer tag and license". Food for thought.

   I'm past the upset part A fifth of pendleton and 4 am frozen run to clear the the hangover off before work got it out of my sytem

    I am not upset at the increase in price. I get it, its business and raising the price to market is smart business. They should have gone up more IMO.  Two things upset me, they created urgency for no other reason than to ensure there risk of raising cost was not a bust. Capping all the zones and units created a sense of urgency causing a flood of buyers that IMO would have been prevented had they rolled out a simple cost increase. Or they could have rolled out a draw for very popular units, or rolled out in stages, to limit impacts for folks. Lots of options.
    The bigger issue is I see it as a first step. I have always held IDFG as an "ideal" standard for game departments. Given their funding mechanisms they will never be able to go to a simple draw like many western states IMO. Very few will enter a draw for deer and elk at 1300 dollar price tag. This move of capping zones in this way without a draw essentially removed their reason to manage game, and began managing hunters. Welcome the new WDFW.

Equating WDFW and IDFG is ridiculous.  Let's face the fact that Idaho is primarily concerned with its own resident hunters, as it should be.  Yet, it's still offering more opportunity than almost any other western state for non-residents.  The rage is created by losing the unparalleled opportunity Idaho has been giving non-residents. 

[fishngamereaper]

Price increases are expected and don't bother me.
Unit choice sux

I've been hunting Idaho since 98 and the ability to go over at different times of the year and explore different area's was a huge bonus. I spend several weekends a year in idaho during hunting seasons which equates to spending money throughout the year. We didn't rush to buy kinda waiting to see how things shake out. Still have some options in area's we are familiar with so will see.

One aspect is I talked to a small store owner over there recently. I asked about the prospect of loosing business during hunting season. They estimated they might loose well over 1000 customers during Oct/ Nov because of reduced tag numbers.  Guess time will tell.

[2MANY]

I just hope Karl isn't laying on his bed next year and can actually hunt like he likes.
Been a rough couple years on 2 wheels for that bugger. LOL

[2MANY]

 "I'm past the upset part A fifth of pendleton and 4 am frozen run to clear the the hangover off before work got it out of my sytem "

Now it all makes sense. LOL
Just grab the rifle my friend.

[Karl Blanchard]

So sincere question to those upset. Why is what idaho is doing so grossly offensive but its fine in basically every other western state for basically the exact same money? And for those put off by the price, where you gonna go hunt for less money? There are still THOUSANDS of tags available in idaho that you can just hop online and buy. Theres deer and elk in every unit available just waiting to be hunted. When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say "man I'm glad I hunted less and saved that $90 on an idaho deer tag and license". Food for thought.

It's not saving $90, it's spending nearly $1200 for a license, deer and elk tag, per person. And it's all the other related expenses for many people to travel out to Idaho as well. There's other units available, but that's a big investment without knowing the area if they haven't been to those units, if they even want to hunt those units. Maybe people will pay the extra money and/or hunt units they don't want. Or maybe it'll become a trip every other year, or just not at all anymore. This year especially with millions still out of work.

"When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say 'man I'm glad I hunted'" more and spent that $1200 on an idaho license, deer and elk tag for a unit I didn't even know and jeopardized my families finances since I wasn't even working at the time. Food for thought.

thats a bit of a stretch don't you think? If an out of state tag is gonna bankrupt the family then you're probably not planning that trip to begin with. And like I asked, name a state that isn't $1100+ for a deer and elk tag.

 A new unit is a new unit. Nobody thinks twice about it when heading to (insert any western state with quotas) but all of a sudden its the end of the world in Idaho? A person's favorite unit in idaho was once a new unit to them as well and somehow they figured it out. 

[2MANY]

So are you implying that when the buffalo reach the cliff they don't need to jump off?

[Karl Blanchard]

I just hope Karl isn't laying on his bed next year and can actually hunt like he likes.
Been a rough couple years on 2 wheels for that bugger. LOL

haha! I'm surviving.  5 deer in the last two weeks has left me with a pretty sore hand 

So are you implying that when the buffalo reach the cliff they don't need to jump off?

what I'm trying to convey is that there's still no better value in the west than idaho. Most states are as expensive or more expensive, are on draw systems, and have quotas. All this "im going somewhere else" talk doesn't add up when you compare apples to apples.  When presented with an obstacle you have a few choices. First is sit back and complain and remain stagnant.  Second is find a new path and keep moving forward.....

[Houndhunter]

I got a tag, hunting a brand new unit i've never been to and look forward to learning a new area. Totally worth the money to get a chance at hunting mulies in Nov. Over the counter tags are going away in my opinion, got to make the most out of what we got while the opportunity is still here.

[luvmystang67]

I don't think they really knew what they were doing.  How do they know the exact quantity of "resident participation" in each deer unit?  They have some idea due to self reporting, but they have no idea in reality.  They're about to find out which deer units are worth the extra $50 and which were never worth the original.

I sincerely hope that they do not sell out of either deer or elk tags and that residents get the chance they've been waiting for to buy a second.  So many of the message boards indicate that those folks want to, but lets see what happens when the rubber meets the road.

It was not many years ago when they couldn't sell their elk tags for $299 each, to anyone.  I bought a second one in 2015 in November. 

Regardless, this is a lesson for everyone, Idaho included.  This will not be the final version, this is a learning experience.

[Taco280AI]

For the millions out of work, not being able to afford it isn't a stretch at all, it's a fact for many.

Not everyone can hunt out of state to begin with, so who cares who isn't $1100. Many can't afford it, so they don't. For those who can it might be time to go to a different state since they all cost about the same anyway.

A new unit can simply be a new unit, but not for those who have hunted one area for years on end. For those who once upon a time hunted a new unit, they didn't have to with prices this high. And for those that can't simply get there in less than a days drive scouting prior to the season may not be an option. Big gamble. And again, new unit with the same money, why choose Idaho instead of any of the other states?

For one person it's a $315 increase. For a family of three, almost $1000 difference. Then add in the one unit restriction. And Covid related loss of wages. And having to pay right now or you won't get a unit you want, if you were able to get it at all. Will they even be able to get that time off, guaranteed, from work if they are working? It all makes a difference.

If you want to great. I'm just saying I think it will result in many people saying no thanks, or not this year.

[2MANY]

Imagine the upcoming stress this will put across the boarder on Montana.

Reminds me of when they quit planting fish on the Cowlitz.
Every river went down with a sea of aluminum.

[idaho guy]

So sincere question to those upset. Why is what idaho is doing so grossly offensive but its fine in basically every other western state for basically the exact same money? And for those put off by the price, where you gonna go hunt for less money? There are still THOUSANDS of tags available in idaho that you can just hop online and buy. Theres deer and elk in every unit available just waiting to be hunted. When laying on your death bed will you look back on your life and say "man I'm glad I hunted less and saved that $90 on an idaho deer tag and license". Food for thought.

   

  hey! Quit inserting common sense into this conversation   :chuckle:thats how I see it Idaho’s just now moving to prices similar to other western states and even with the unit choice still only good state you can hunt otc every year! Is a great draw tag in Arizona, Utah, etc. better? Yes but enjoy paying for that tag every year in the draw for 5-29 years until you finally get the privilege to buy a tag at 1200 bucks. I have no problem with out of state hunters because when I go to Montana I are one every year.  :chuckle:This whining is bullsh#t Idaho is fairly priced and provides way more opportunities than other western states. Does anyone get to hunt the same draw unit in other western states every year ? No. I have a feeling they will change the unit choice thing and make it more user friendly. Idaho’s problem is NEW resident hunters and we will eventually have to go draw for everyone in more units then eventually for everything. Enjoy it while you can Idaho will become a draw state where you get a tag every 2-5 years with everyone moving here.

[Karl Blanchard]

For the millions out of work, not being able to afford it isn't a stretch at all, it's a fact for many.

Not everyone can hunt out of state to begin with, so who cares who isn't $1100. Many can't afford it, so they don't. For those who can it might be time to go to a different state since they all cost about the same anyway.

A new unit can simply be a new unit, but not for those who have hunted one area for years on end. For those who once upon a time hunted a new unit, they didn't have to with prices this high. And for those that can't simply get there in less than a days drive scouting prior to the season may not be an option. Big gamble. And again, new unit with the same money, why choose Idaho instead of any of the other states?

For one person it's a $315 increase. For a family of three, almost $1000 difference. Then add in the one unit restriction. And Covid related loss of wages. And having to pay right now or you won't get a unit you want, if you were able to get it at all. Will they even be able to get that time off, guaranteed, from work if they are working? It all makes a difference.

If you want to great. I'm just saying I think it will result in many people saying no thanks, or not this year.

I get that but thats not idaho's fault. Those problems will exist regardless of which state someone chooses. Upset with idaho so gonna go somewhere else. Where? WY? CO? MT? NM? AZ? OR? NV? UT? All will be new units. Most will take preference points. Most you won't be able to get deer and elk in the same unit and all except oregon archery will be a draw a draw system for single units.

I hate change as much or more as the next guy but my point will be and will always be.....find a new way. I hunt lots because I hustle hard to stay out ahead of this stuff and always have a plan. Thats gets you hunts. Throwing your hands up and shouting poor me will find a guy on the couch looking at everyone else's success on huntwa.

Thats a metaphorical "you", not a you specifically taco. I just want everyone to change the way they look at obstacles.  Its always easier to go negative but its seldom the right approach