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APPLICATION STRATEGY 2020: Utah Elk and Antelope
Utah's 2020 elk and antelope application overview
Jump to: NEW FOR 2020 State Information Draw System Elk Breakdown Antelope Breakdown
Note: The application deadline for all Utah species is March 5, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST. Applicants wishing to purchase preference and/or bonus points only have until March 19, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST. You may apply online here.
New for 2020
- Utah has changed their draw system slightly. Previously, if there were an odd number of permits for a hunt, then the bulk of those was allocated through the random draw. Now, the bulk will be given to those in the maximum point pool. For example, if there are seven permits, four will go to maximum point holders and three will be randomly allocated. If there is only one permit, it will still be randomly allocated.
- Starting in 2020, if you want to surrender your big game permit you MUST do so at least 30 days before the start of the season; otherwise your points will be purged. If you return it at least 30 days prior to the season opener, you’ll get all of your previously accrued bonus or preference points for that species/permit back, but you will not earn a point for the current year.
- Starting in 2020, up to four youth may apply together in a group for the youth any bull elk hunt.
- Season dates change every year, so please check them carefully before applying for hunts. Most notably, the archery elk hunt will end on Sept. 11.
- In 2020, there will be a new extended archery elk area, which is the West Cache.
- There will be a new muzzleloader hunt for antelope on the Panguitch Lake/Zion, North (only available to residents).
- There will be a new muzzleloader hunt for antelope on the Pine Valley (residents and nonresidents).
State information
To view important information and an overview of Utah’s rules/regulations, the draw system and bonus points, tag and license fees and an interactive boundary line map, check out our State Profile. You can also view the Utah Elk Profile and Antelope Profile to access historical and statistical data to help you find trophy areas.
Utah State Profile Elk Profile Antelope Profile Draw Odds Filtering 2.0
Important dates and information
- The deadline to apply is March 5, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST.
- Apply online here.
- The bonus point/preference point only purchase and application withdrawal deadline is March 19, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST.
- Results will be emailed or available online on or shortly before May 29, 2020.
- Hunters must have a valid hunting or combination hunting/fishing license to apply.
- Hunting licenses are valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. If you time it correctly you can apply for two consecutive years on one license. You do not need an active hunting license to hunt, just to apply.
- Applicants must be 12 years old by Dec. 31, 2020 to apply and hunt in Utah.
- Hunters born after Dec. 31, 1965, must have taken an approved hunter’s education course.
- Withdrawing or correcting an application is allowed before the application deadline. Corrections are made by withdrawing an application and submitting a new one. Be aware: you will be charged the $10 application fee again to make adjustments and reapply.
- Nonresidents may apply and build bonus points for all available species.
- Residents may only apply for one limited entry species: elk, antelope or deer. They may also apply for one once-in-a-lifetime species: moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat or bison. They can also apply for general season deer and the dedicated hunter program if they are not already enrolled.
- If you draw a limited entry elk permit, you may not apply again for five years.
- If you draw a limited entry antelope permit, you may not apply again for two years.
Fees and permit costs
Utah elk and antelope fees 2020 | ||
---|---|---|
Item | Resident fees | Nonresident fees |
365-day hunting license | $11 youth (13 and under) $16 youth (14 to 17) $34 adult (18 to 64) $25 adult (65 and older) | $25 youth (17 and under) $65 adult (18 and older) |
365-day hunt/fish combination license | $20 youth (14 to 17) $38 adult (18 to 64) $29 adult (65 and older) | $29 youth (17 and under) $85 adult (18 and older) |
Application fee per species | $10 | $10 |
Limited entry elk | $285 | $800 |
Multi-season limited entry elk | $513 | $1,505 |
Limited entry antelope | $55 | $293 |
Snowpack in Utah
The entire state is currently at over 100% of normal snowpack. It’s shaping up to be a very good water year and the antler growth should reflect that. If spring snow/rain are good through the months of March, April and May, antler growth could be exceptional in 2020.
2020
2019
The draw system
Utah issues 10% of their draw permits to nonresidents. Limited entry elk and antelope hunts are allocated through a modified bonus point system. Half of the permits for each hunt are given to applicants who apply with the most bonus points. The other half are allocated through a random draw with weight given to the number of points you have. Essentially, the more points you have, the more chances you get in the drawing. If there is an odd number of permits, the bulk go to high point holders. If there is one permit only, it will be randomly drawn.
Applicants that are unsuccessful in the draw will get a point for each species they applied for. You can also apply for a point only. Only apply for a point only if you cannot afford the permit or the time off to hunt should you draw. With a portion of the permits being randomly drawn, you always have some chance.
Hunt choices
Applicants can select two hunt choices when applying for limited entry hunts. Every applicant’s first choice is considered before moving to anyone's second choice. It is extremely rare for a limited entry permit to be drawn as a second choice. In recent years, the very few hunts that could be drawn as a second choice are not hunts we would advise applicants to apply for unless they have a guide/outfitter lined up for those areas. If you draw a permit as a second choice, you will lose all accumulated points.
Group applications
Up to four applicants can apply for limited entry hunts on one application. Nonresidents and residents can apply together. Points are averaged for a group application and rounded down to the nearest whole number. There must be enough permits to cover the number of applicants on your group application; otherwise it will be rejected. That goes for residents and nonresidents who apply together as a group. Nonresident permits will come out of the nonresident pool for that hunt — make sure there are enough.
Draw order
Utah’s draw goes in the following order from first to last:
- Buck deer (multi-season premium limited entry, premium limited entry, multi-season limited entry, limited entry, Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit (CWMU) and management buck deer)
- Bull elk (multi-season limited entry, limited entry and CWMU)
- Buck antelope (limited entry and CWMU)
- Once-in-a-lifetime species (bighorn sheep, moose, mountain goat and bison)
- General buck deer (lifetime license holders)
- General buck deer (dedicated hunters)
- General buck deer (youth)
- General buck deer
- Youth any bull elk
Utah does not allow applicants to draw multiple limited entry tags in the same draw/year. You also cannot draw a limited entry and a once-in-a-lifetime (moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat or bison) permit in the same year.
Utah's 2020 elk breakdown
Utah manages their elk herds by individual units. Each unit has a desired age class objective for harvested bulls. Age class is determined by analyzing teeth from bulls harvested each year. The average age over a three year period guides the number of permits offered.
Utah bull elk age class objective 7.5 to 8 years | ||
---|---|---|
Unit | 2018 average age | Three year average age |
Beaver, East | 7.6 | 7.8 |
Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits | 8.2 | 7.9 |
Book Cliffs/Little Creek | 7 | 7.1 |
Fillmore/Pahvant | 7.6 | 7.9 |
San Juan | 8.3 | 8 |
West Desert, Deep Creek | 5.4 | 6.3 |
Utah bull elk age class objective 6.5 to 7 years | ||
---|---|---|
Unit | 2018 average age | Three year average age |
Book Cliffs/Bitter Creek | 6.4 | 6.8 |
Cache South | 5.7 | 5.1 |
Central Mtns/Nebo | 5.8 | 5.6 |
Monroe | 6.7 | 7 |
Mt. Dutton | 6.9 | 6.3 |
Panguitch Lake | 6.1 | 5.7 |
South Slope/Diamond Mtn. | 7.3 | 7.3 |
Southwest Desert | 7.2 | 7.1 |
Utah bull elk age class objective 5.5 to 6 years | ||
---|---|---|
Unit | 2018 average age | Three year average age |
Central Mtns/Manti | 6.4 | 6.2 |
La Sal/Dolores Triangle | 5 | 5 |
La Sal/La Sal Mtns | 5.9 | 6 |
Nine Mile/Anthro | 8.5 | 7.8 |
North Slope/Three Corners | 4.7 | 5 |
Oquirrh/Stansbury | 5.8 | 5.4 |
Plateau/Fishlake | 5.9 | 6 |
Wasatch | 6.3 | 6.5 |
Utah bull elk age class objective 4.5 to 5 years | ||
---|---|---|
Unit | 2018 average age | Three year average age |
Box Elder/Grouse Creek | 6 | 5.6 |
Box Elder/Pilot | 5.3 | 6 |
Cache/Meadowville | 5.1 | 4.9 |
Cache/North | 4.6 | 4.6 |
Paunsaugunt | 4.8 | 4.7 |
The goHUNT hit list units for Utah elk
The San Juan, Beaver/East, Plateau/Boulder and Fillmore/Pahvant (to a slightly lesser extent) are the best trophy units in the state. Those four units are your best bets if you are looking for a bull in the 370”+ range. It’s not that all hunters will harvest a bull of that caliber, but every year a few bulls are available in those units.
Genetics are good throughout the state and the feed should be excellent during the 2020 antler development season. Trophy potential statewide is not what it was 2005 to 2010 and 350”+ bulls are not nearly as common; however, there is still decent trophy potential generally.
Top hunt units to consider for 350” or better bulls
| |||
---|---|---|---|
Unit | Trophy Potential | Trophy potential trending | Bull:cow ratio |
Beaver, East | 380”+ | Down | 31:100 |
Fillmore, Pahvant | 380"+ | Down | 20:100 |
Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits | 380"+ | No change | 11:100 |
San Juan | 380"+ | No change | 61:100 |
Book Cliffs, Little Creek | 370"+ | Down | 20:100 |
Monroe | 370"+ | Down | 22:100 |
Mt. Dutton | 360"+ | Up | 22:100 |
Panguitch Lake | 360"+ | Up | 7:100 |
Southwest Desert | 350"+ | Down | 18:100 |
Central Mtns/Manti | 350"+ | No change | 52:100 |
Central Mtns/Nebo | 350"+ | No change | 17:100 |
North Slope/Three Corners | 350"+ | Up | 35:100 |
Boone & Crockett (B&C) entry trends for Utah elk
Units listed below may not have a current hunt for this species. Units in this table are included if any part of the unit is found within the county. Data provided below courtesy of the Boone and Crockett Club.
Utah's top B&C producing
| ||
---|---|---|
County | No. of entries | Units found within county |
San Juan | 8 | San Juan, La Sal/La Sal Mountains |
Garfield | 7 | Mt Dutton, Panguitch Lake, Paunsaugunt, Plateau/Boulder/Kaiparowits, Beaver |
Sevier | 5 | Plateau/Boulder/Kaiparowits, Beaver, East, Central Mtns/Nebo, Central Mtns/Manti, Plateau/Fishlake/Thousand Lakes, Monroe, Fillmore/Pahvant |
Sanpete | 4 | Central Mtns, Nebo, Central Mtns, Manti |
Box Elder | 4 | Box Elder, Grouse Creek |
Iron | 3 | Beaver, East, Southwest Desert, Mt Dutton |
Rich | 3 | Cache, South, Cache, Meadowville |
Millard | 3 | Southwest Desert, West Desert/Deep Creek, Fillmore/Pahvant, Beaver |
Uintah | 3 | South Slope/Diamond Mtn, Nine Mile, Anthro, Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South |
Utah's top B&C producing
| ||
---|---|---|
County | No. of entries | Units found within county |
Garfield | 4 | Beaver, Panguitch Lake, Paunsaugunt, Plateau/Boulder/ Kaiparowits, Mt. Dutton |
Carbon | 1 | Central Mtns, Manti, Nine Mile, Anthro, Wasatch Mtns |
Iron | 1 | Beaver, East, Panguitch Lake, Southwest Desert |
San Juan | 1 | San Juan, La Sal/La Sal Mountains |
Tooele | 1 | Oquirrh-Stansbury, West Desert, Deep Creek, Box Elder, Pilot Mtn |
Wayne | 1 | Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes, Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits |
Managing points and expectations
2020 maximum bonus points for elk: 27
The point creep in Utah is significant — most notable is the number of nonresident applicants at the 11 point level and below. That bubble represents the year that Utah allowed nonresidents to apply for all species instead of having to pick only one limited entry species. Consider that there are 6,212 nonresident applicants with 12 points or more and 26,101 below that. In 2019, there were 269 nonresident limited entry permits allocated and, of those, 115 of them were bonus point permits. With that, it could take 54 years to guarantee every applicant with 12 points or more to draw a license of some kind. If you just began, the truth is you are not going to be guaranteed a license in your lifetime if trends remain the same.
That’s the bad news. The good news is that there were 154 nonresident permits allocated randomly and everyone has a chance at those. The more points you have, the better the chance. The cost to apply is Utah is still relatively cheap, but is it worth it? You’ll have to decide!
Find your draw odds
Utah limited entry bull elk points going into the 2020 draw | ||
---|---|---|
Bonus points | Resident | Nonresident |
1 | 9,260 | 4,971 |
2 | 7,961 | 3,802 |
3 | 7,712 | 3,124 |
4 | 5,677 | 2,390 |
5 | 4,857 | 2,012 |
6 | 4,085 | 1,746 |
7 | 3,254 | 1,483 |
8 | 2,801 | 1,401 |
9 | 2,417 | 1,380 |
10 | 2,209 | 1,506 |
11 | 1,860 | 2,286 |
12 | 1,729 | 974 |
13 | 1,566 | 995 |
14 | 1,307 | 867 |
15 | 1,341 | 798 |
16 | 1,095 | 651 |
17 | 924 | 516 |
18 | 790 | 410 |
19 | 676 | 384 |
20 | 594 | 261 |
21 | 443 | 156 |
22 | 386 | 92 |
23 | 297 | 54 |
24 | 147 | 36 |
25 | 84 | 10 |
26 | 21 | 8 |
27 | 9 | 0 |
Total | 63,502 | 32,313 |
I have 0 to 4 elk points. What can I expect?
Residents and nonresidents that have never applied have a chance to draw. For nonresidents, there has to be at least one permit available for the hunt you apply for, but as long as that is the case you have a chance to draw. However, odds for the vast majority of the hunts are less than 1%. As noted, applicants should still apply for a hunt. Do not apply for a point only unless you cannot afford the cost or time to hunt. You never know when you might draw.
A couple of strategies:
1) Find the best hunts/units in the state and take a swing for the fences approach knowing that odds are long; however, should you draw, you will have one of the best hunts in the West.
2) Review the odds and apply for the hunt with the best odds.
Review the unit profile and other statistics to see if that is a hunt that can meet your expectations. Archery permits for residents in the Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South, Cache, North, Central Mtns, Manti, La Sal, La Sal Mtns, Nine Mile, Anthro, Wasatch are worth some research. The Paunsaugunt hunts are also worth review. We do not recommend that applicants apply for the Cache, Meadowville unless they have a guide booked already as this movement is almost entirely private.
Find your resident elk draw odds with 0 points here
Find your nonresident elk draw odds with 0 points here
What can I do with 5 to 9 elk points?
Residents
The archery hunts on the Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South, Cache, South, Central Mtns, Manti, Central Mtns, Nebo, Mt Dutton, Nine Mile, Anthro, North Slope, Three Corners, Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes, Southwest Desert are all worth a look.
The muzzleloader hunt on the Paunsaugunt and Cache, North would also be worth considering. The Paunsaugunt early rifle hunt and the Cache, North, La Sal, La Sal Mtns and the Nine Mile, Anthro late rifle hunts are interesting. Make sure that your expectations are realistic if you apply for one of these hunts.
Nonresidents
For the most part, a nonresident in this point range should utilize a similar strategy as applicants with zero points. There are a few hunts worth thinking about if you just want a chance to hunt including, the archery Paunsaugunt, Oquirrh-Stansbury, Cache, North, Cache, South or even the Wasatch Mtns. The same units should be considered by muzzleloader or rifle hunters — all of which have better random odds than the premier units.
Find your resident elk draw odds with 6 points here
Find your nonresident elk draw odds with 6 points here
What can I expect with 10 to 14 elk points?
Residents
There are many archery hunts that were drawn with 10 or 11 points, most notably among those: Central Mtns, Nebo, Mt Dutton, Panguitch Lake and the Southwest Desert. Muzzleloader hunts on the Book Cliffs, Cache, South, Central Mtns, Manti, Nebo and Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes are good hunts.
Central Mtns, Manti, Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes and the Wasatch Mtns rifle hunts are worth some research.
Nonresidents
The Wasatch Mtns and La Sal, La Sal Mtns archery and late rifle hunts are interesting within this point range.
Find your resident elk draw odds with 10 points here
Find your nonresident elk draw odds with 10 points here
What can I expect with 15 to 19 elk points?
Residents
With 15 points, almost every archery hunt is available; those unavailable would be the San Juan, Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits, Beaver, East and Monroe. The Fillmore, Pahvant is likely the most interesting archery option at that level. At 17 points, every archery hunt was available.
Muzzleloader hunts on the Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South, Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes and the Central Mtns Manti and Nebo are good hunts near the bottom of this point range. For rifle hunters, Wasatch Mtns, Central Mtns and Fishlake/Thousand Lakes, Nine Mile, Anthro are good hunts.
Nonresidents
Central Mtns, Manti, Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lake, Southwest Desert and the Mt Dutton archery hunts are good options within this range as well as Wasatch Mtns muzzleloader. The Central Mtns, Manti, Nebo, Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lake and the Wasatch early rifle hunts are good hunts for the rifle hunters.
Find your resident elk draw odds with 15 points here
Find your nonresident elk draw odds with 15 points here
What can I expect with 20 to 27 elk points?
Residents
Every archery hunt is available at the 20 point mark. Every muzzleloader hunts is available at the 23 point mark. Every early rifle hunt had 100% odds at the 24 point level except the San Juan. All late rifle hunts had 100% odds at the 21 point level. Other hunts worth considering if you are within this range are the multi-season hunts, which allow tag holders to hunt every season until they have harvested a bull. Most interesting among those is Plateau, Fishlake/Thousand Lakes at 21 points, Mt. Dutton at 23 points, and Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits at 25 points.
Nonresidents
Remember that if there is only one permit for a hunt, it will be randomly allocated so you may want to look for hunts that have at least one bonus point permit if you are within this range. There are some good options and some of the more intriguing ones include the Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits archery at 23 points and the San Juan archery at 21 points. The Mt Dutton and Southwest Desert muzzleloader hunts are also good hunts within this range. Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South, Fillmore, Pahvant, Plateau, Boulder/Kaiparowits, San Juan and Southwest Desert early rifle hunts are worth looking into. Finally, the Central Mtns, Manti and the Wasatch Mtns multi-season required 23 points and 19 points to draw, but those would be good options for a nonresident with the time and means to hunt every season.
Utah's 2020 antelope breakdown
Utah is not a trophy antelope state. There will be a handful of 80” bucks taken across the state each year; however, for the most part, Utah does not have the quality that you see from states like Arizona, New Mexico or Wyoming. If you are a nonresident who is already applying for other species, it’s worth the $10 to apply for an antelope permit also. For residents, if you are on a waiting period after having drawn another species, antelope is a good option. If not, it makes more sense to apply and build points for limited entry elk or deer and hunt antelope in other states like Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho or Montana.
Current antelope herd condition
Utah antelope populations and hunting opportunities continue to increase. In 2018, there were a total of 2,494 hunters afield and 2,046 antelope harvested. Those numbers represent the highest harvest and hunters in the state’s history. The statewide population was also up once again with over 17,000 total. Utah has had good moisture this winter with the bulk of the state over 100% of moisture and temperatures that should not negatively impact adult or fawn survival. Going into 2020, populations should continue to be stable to growing.
Antelope populations and trends | ||
---|---|---|
Unit | 2018 population | Trending |
Beaver | 444 | Up |
Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek | 264 | Up |
Book Cliffs, South | 706 | Up |
Box Elder, Promontory | 128* | NA |
Box Elder, Puddle Valley | 67* | NA |
Box Elder, Snowville | 420* | NA |
Box Elder, West | 83* | NA |
Cache/Morgan-South Rich/Ogden | 1,062 | Up |
Fillmore, Oak Creek South | 789 | Up |
Kaiparowits | 11 | Down |
La Sal, Potash/South Cisco | 298 | Down |
Mt. Dutton/Paunsaugunt, Johns Valley | 336 | Down |
Nine Mile, Anthro-Myton Bench | 514* | NA |
Nine Mile, Range Creek North Slope, Summit | 224* | NA |
North Slope, Three Corners/West Daggett | 585 | Up |
Panguitch Lake/Zion, North | 317 | Up |
Pine Valley | 368 | Down |
Plateau, Parker Mtn | 640 | Down |
San Juan, Hatch Point | 161 | Up |
San Rafael, Desert | 377* | NA |
San Rafael, North | 1,218 | NA |
South Slope, Bonanza/Diamond Mtn | 846* | Down |
South Slope, Vernal | 241 | NA |
Southwest Desert | 1,620 | Down |
West Desert, Riverbed | 462* | NA |
West Desert, Rush Valley | 252* | NA |
West Desert, Snake Valley | 288* | NA |
The goHUNT hit list units for Utah antelope
A trophy buck could pop up in a lot of units, but there is a handful that continually provides a better chance at a record book buck. The best units have been the San Rafael/North and the Book Cliffs/South. There are a few others that have produced bigger bucks including the Southwest Desert, Nine Mile/Anthro-Myton Bench, Book Cliff/Bitter Creek and the La Sal/Potash/South Cisco. Box Elder County in northwestern Utah has also produced a decent number of trophy bucks although private/public land may be worth some research before you apply in these areas.
Top units to consider for 75” or better antelope
| |||
---|---|---|---|
Unit | Trophy Potential | Harvest success | Buck:doe ratio |
San Rafael, North | 80"+ | Archery: 61% Muzzleloader: 94% Rifle: 94% | 61:100 |
Book Cliffs, South | 80"+ | Archery: 67% Rifle: 95% | 34:100 |
Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Rifle: 100% | 67:100 |
Fillmore, Oak Creek South | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Rifle: 95% | 40:100 |
La Sal, Potash/South Cisco | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Rifle: 100% | 32:100 |
Nine Mile, Anthro-Myton Beach | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Muzzleloader: 100% Rifle: 97% | 64:100 |
Panguitch Lake/Zion, North | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Muzzleloader: NA Rifle: 96% | 35:100 |
Southwest Desert | 75"+ | Archery: 77% Muzzleloader: 73% Rifle: 84% | 41:100 |
South Slope, Bonanza/Diamond Mtn | 75"+ | Archery: 100% Muzzleloader: 100% Rifle: 97% | 54:100 |
West Desert, Riverbed | 75"+ | Archery: 83% Rifle: 96% | 89:100 |
Boone & Crockett (B&C) entry trends for Utah antelope
Units listed below may not have a current hunt for this species. Units in this table are included if any part of the unit is found within the county. Data provided below courtesy of the Boone and Crockett Club.
Utah's top B&C producing
| ||
---|---|---|
County | No. of entries | Units found within county |
Box Elder | 8 | Box Elder/ Pilot Mtn, Box Elder/ Snowville, Box Elder/ Promontory |
Carbon | 7 | Nine Mile/ Range Creek, San Rafael/North, Nine Mile/Anthro-Myton Bench |
Emery | 4 | Nine Mile/ Range Creek, San Rafael/ North, San Rafael/ Desert |
Millard | 3 | Beaver, Fillmore/Oak Creek South, Southwest Desert, West Desert/Riverbed, West Desert/Snake Valley |
Uintah | 2 | South Slope, Vernal, North Slope, Three Corners/West Daggett, South Slope, Bonanza/Diamond Mtn, Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek |
Beaver | 1 | Beaver, Southwest Desert |
Iron | 1 | Pine Valley, Southwest Desert, Panguitch Lake/Zion, North, Beaver |
Rich | 1 | Cache/Morgan-South Rich/Ogden |
Utah | 1 | West Desert, Rush Valley |
Wayne | 1 | San Rafael, Desert, Plateau, Parker Mtn |
Doe antelope opportunity
Utah offers doe antelope hunting opportunities in most units. INSIDERs should take note that we offer draw odds for doe antelope hunts. You can find those on the standalone Draw Odds page. Utah has a preference point system for doe antelope that allows the applicants with the most points to draw the permits. Most units can be drawn with one or two preference points. If you want to do a doe antelope hunt in Utah, plan on applying during the June antlerless/doe draw. This is a separate draw from the regular big game draw. Points are separate and will not be impacted.
Find your resident doe antelope draw odds here
Find your nonresident doe antelope draw odds here
Managing points and expectations
2020 maximum bonus points for antelope: 21
Find your draw odds
Utah antelope points going into the 2020 draw | ||
---|---|---|
Bonus points | Resident | Nonresident |
1 | 2,205 | 2,513 |
2 | 1,615 | 1,853 |
3 | 1,255 | 1,477 |
4 | 803 | 1,019 |
5 | 630 | 946 |
6 | 460 | 794 |
7 | 319 | 726 |
8 | 178 | 653 |
9 | 99 | 683 |
10 | 57 | 742 |
11 | 38 | 1,549 |
12 | 26 | 78 |
13 | 6 | 49 |
14 | 4 | 24 |
15 | 3 | 8 |
16 | 2 | 15 |
17 | 1 | 12 |
18 | 0 | 12 |
19 | 0 | 1 |
20 | 1 | 6 |
21 | 1 | 7 |
I have 0 antelope points. What can I expect?
Residents
With no points, residents had 100% odds for archery Box Elder/Promontory and many others had 20% plus odds that included good trophy potential units like the Book Cliffs, La Sal, Potash/South Cisco. The Plateau, Parker Mtn also had 53% odds with no points.
The muzzleloader hunts on the Nine Mile, Anthro-Myton Bench had 43% odds with no points and two other units had 20% odds as well.
Nonresidents
If your goal is to try to harvest a trophy buck then you should only focus on those trophy units that have a nonresident permit available. If you want to maximize odds, the highest odds were for archery permits in the South Slope, Vernal and South Slope, Bonanza/Diamond Mtn at 9.5% and 5.6%.
The odds are dismal pretty much across the board, but, then again, for the $10 application fee, you have some chance. Review the odds, pick your weapon and apply!
Find your resident antelope draw odds with 0 points here
Find your nonresident antelope draw odds with 0 points here
What can I do with 3 to 6 antelope points?
Residents
All but two archery hunts are available to residents with six points. The only two that were not were the West Desert, Rush Valley and the West Desert, Riverbed. Some of the best trophy units, San Rafael, North and the Book Cliffs archery hunts were available with three points.
Every muzzleloader hunt was able to be drawn with six points and three of the six hunts had 100% odds with three points. With six points, the San Rafel, North is your best bet; with three or four points, the Southwest Desert muzzleloader is likely your best option.
For rifle hunters, there were nine hunts that could have been drawn at six points. Some of the most interesting of those are the Book Cliffs hunts, La Sal, Potash/South Cisco, Pine Valley, and the South Slope, Vernal. No hunts had 100% odds at three points. The La Sal, Potach/South Cisco had 100% odds at four points and the Pine Valley and Book Cliffs units had 100% at five points.
Nonresidents
The Plateau, Parker Mtn archery had 100% odds at five points. No other hunts had 100% odds within this range. Once again, archery hunts had better odds so use the draw odds to find the units that meet your objectives. The highest odds for firearms permits were for the muzzleloader Plateau, Parker Mtn and the rifle on the North Slope, Summit and the Box Elder, Promontory.
Find your resident antelope draw odds with 6 points here
Find your nonresident antelope draw odds with 6 points here
What can I expect with 7 to 10 antelope points?
Residents
Every hunt was available to applicants with 10 points except for the West Desert, Riverbed and the West Desert, Rush Valley. There are many quality hunts that applicants can draw within this point range. Use the goHUNT hit list and Filtering 2.0 to find the best opportunity that meets your objectives.
Nonresidents
Check out archery hunts on the Fillmore, Oak Creek South, South Slope, Bonanza/Diamond Mtn or the Southwest Desert. All had relatively good odds. Several others also had reasonable odds. Muzzleloader odds for the Southwest Desert were good and the Plateau, Parker Mtn had 100% odds at nine points. Many rifle hunts have good odds — most notable among those are the Beaver, Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek, Pine Valley and the West Desert, Rush Valley. The South Slope, Vernal rifle hunt had 100% odds at nine points.
At the 12 plus point level, there are many quality options that open up for nonresidents. Use the goHUNT hit list and Filtering 2.0 to find the best fit for you.
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