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Hoov's 2008 Season Recap

The draws for the 2008 season did not treat me well, but I still had a few solid hunts lined up.

• Alaska Sheep and Grizzly.

  This year I finally made the Dall Sheep and Grizzly hunt I have had booked since 2005. It was originally scheduled for August, 2007, but I happily postponed it to welcome our new daughter. I left for the hunt, with John Peterson's Bristol Bay Outfitters, on August 6, the day after Molly's 1st birthday. My .300 Winchester Magnum joined me on this trip.

• Colorado mule deer.

  I put in for preference points for my first choice, and picked up a leftover tag over the counter for 3rd season. Turned out to be pretty lame, unfortunately.

• Colorado elk.

  I drew a 4th season tag this year, a season I've never hunted. In theory, snow would have concentrated the elk and pushed them down in to more accessible areas, offering a good hunt. That was not the case this year. Tough hunt with little action.
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  Wyoming Antelope.

  As always, I'm a sucker for Wyoming antelope. I tried a different area this year in hopes of breaking out of the rut of 12-inchers I've been in. It was the inaugural trip for my Remington 700 LSS in .257 Weatherby, and a fun hunt as always.

   

• Nebraska whitetails.

  I usually do a Mid-November whitetail hunt for rutting bucks. But since my Colorado elk season conflicted with the Nebraska firearms season, I bought an over-the-counter muzzleloader tag for the month-long December black powder season. I hunted the area I usually have good luck in during rifle season, but did not see a single deer. Disappointing.

Trying to Draw in 2009

With two kids at home under the age of 2, I don't think my wife will let me out of the house much this year. I'll still build points and submit some applications, but I'll focus on really good tags with really long draw odds. If I'm going to go out this year, I'm going to try to make it worthwhile.

You can track my applications, and the corresponding rejections, here. It's going to be a long list (44 applications planned).