New for 2020

State Information

The Draw System

Utah's 2020 rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Breakdown

Utah's 2020 desert Bighorn Sheep Breakdown

Utah's 2020 shiras Moose Breakdown

Utah's 2020 rocky Mountain Goat Breakdown

Utah's 2020 bison Breakdown

Utah's 2020 sheep, Moose, Goat and Bison Application Overview

Note: The application deadline for all Utah species is March 5, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST. Applicants who want to purchase bonus points only have until March 19, 2020 at 11 p.m. MST. You may apply online here.

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 Species Profiles to access historical and statistical data to help you find trophy areas.

Important Dates and Information

Fees and Permit Costs

Note: Applicants only need to buy either a hunting license or combo hunting/fishing license to apply. Applicants will not be charged the cost of the permit unless they are successful in the draw.

Understanding the Draw

Utah issues 10% of their draw permits to nonresidents.

UDWR utilizes a bonus point system for once-in-a-lifetime species. For every year that you apply for a once-in-a-lifetime species and do not draw, you will be given a bonus point for that species. You may also buy a bonus point only. Every bonus point you have is, essentially, the number of chances you have in the draw. Utah gives 50% of the permits for any given hunt to the applicants with the most bonus points. The other 50% are randomly drawn. Statistically, the more points you have, the better your odds for those random permits.

If there is only one permit available for a hunt, it will be randomly allocated. If there is an odd number, for example, three permits, the bulk will be allocated to maximum point holders and the one permit will be randomly allocated.

We advise applicants to apply for a hunt rather than just build points. The only reason you should not apply is if you cannot afford the time to hunt or the cost of the permit should you draw.

Hunt Choices

Utah allows applicants to enter one hunt choice for once-in-a-lifetime species. If you draw a permit and hunt, then your accumulated points will be purged. Residents can only apply for one of the following: moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat or bison. Nonresidents can apply for all of those species.

Group Applications

Group applications are not permitted for moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat or bison.

Utah’s Draw Goes in the following Order from First to Last:

Note that if you draw a limited entry deer, elk or antelope permit, your moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat and/or bison application will not be considered in the draw. You cannot draw both a limited entry permit and a once-in-a-lifetime permit in the same year.

Bonus Point System

For all species, the maximum point amount is 27 for 2020; however, there are some species that no longer have applicants at that level. Below are the high point holders for applicants that either purchased a point or applied.

*Utah won't set their 2020 allocations until May, which is after the application deadline.

**Does not include resident Cooperative Wildlife Management Units (CWMU) moose permits.

The largest populations occur in the Nine Mile, Box Elder/Newfoundland Mountains and the Book Cliffs units. Populations are generally stable in these areas while trophy potential is average. Utah isn’t known to produce book rams, but any unit can provide a high success hunt and a chance at a mature ram.

* Permit numbers will be set at the May big game board meeting.

Boone & Crockett (b&c) Entry Trends for Utah Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep

Managing Points and Expectations

2020 Maximum Points for Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep

Residents: 27Nonresidents: 23

Residents can apply for one the 14 hunts. Nonresidents can apply for one of four hunts, which are indicated in the table above. It’s unlikely that there will be a bonus point permit for nonresidents. If there is, it’s most likely going to be in the Box Elder, Newfoundland Mtn unit.

Find your draw odds

I Have 0 to 19 rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

The Box Elder, Newfoundland Mtn archery hunt and the Oquirrh-Stansbury, West had had 100% odds at the 17 point level.

Nonresidents

Nonresident applicants can choose from the Book Cliffs, South, Box Elder, Newfoundland Mtn, Nine Mile & Gray Canyon or the new hunt on the Fillmore, Oak Creek. One permit is likely available for each one of those hunts. The Box Elder hunt had the best odds, but even it was less than .5% through the entire point range. The Book Cliffs and Nine Mile units have the best qualities of those units.

Find your resident Rocky bighorn sheep draw odds with 0 points here

Find your nonresident Rocky bighorn sheep draw odds with 0 points here

I Have 20 to 26 rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

Every hunt had 100% odds at 23 points in the last draw. At 22 points, every hunt also had 100% odds except for the Book Cliffs, South hunt. At 21 points, every hunt had 100% success except for the Book Cliffs, South and the Nine Mile & Gray Canyon. With 20 points, you could also consider the Oquirrh-Stansbury, West or the Fillmore, Oak Creek.

Nonresidents

Once again, nonresident applicants can choose from the Book Cliffs, South, Box Elder, Newfoundland Mtn, Nine Mile & Gray Canyon or the new hunt on the Fillmore, Oak Creek. Odds will be less than 1% across all hunts. The Box Elder, Newfoundland Mtn hunt could possibly have a bonus point permit, but it’s not likely.

Find your resident Rocky bighorn sheep draw odds with 20 points here

Find your nonresident Rocky bighorn sheep draw odds with 20 points here

The largest herds exist within the Zion, Kaiparowits, East and West and the San Rafael, North and South. The other herds are smaller and hunting opportunities are managed accordingly.

* New hunts and tag numbers will be set at the May big game board meeting.

Boone & Crockett (b&c) Entry Trends for Utah Desert Bighorn Sheep

Managing Points and Expectations

2020 max Points for Desert Bighorn Sheep

Residents: 25Nonresidents: 27

Find your draw odds

I Have 0 to 19 desert Bighorn Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

With 19 points and fewer, applicants should review the odds and apply for the unit that best meets your objective. The odds for the best trophy units range from less than 1% to 2%. The best odds were 2.4% for the San Juan, Lockhart unit.

Nonresidents

Nonresidents can apply for one of the four hunts that will each have one permit a piece. Those units are the Kaiparowits, East, Kaiparowits, West, Zion and the San Rafael, South. Odds were less than .2% for all four hunts across the entire point range. The Zion and the Kaiparowits have the best trophy potential.

Find your resident Desert bighorn sheep draw odds with 0 points here

Find your nonresident Desert bighorn sheep draw odds with 0 points here

I Have 20 to 26 desert Bighorn Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

The Zion archery hunt had 100% odds at 20 points. The Kaiparowits, Escalante had 100% odds at 21 points. There were five hunts that had 100% odds at 22 points, including the San Rafael units and the La Sal, Potash/South Cisco and the Henry Mtns. Moving into the 23 point level, Kaiparowits, East and the San Juan units had 100% odds. Every hunt had 100% odds in the past draw with 24 points. Make sure you visit the detailed Draw Odds page for the hunts you are considering in order to gauge how many applicants are at your same point level and what your chances might be moving into 2020.

Nonresidents

Adopt the same strategy as every nonresident applicant. Pick a unit and hope for some real luck.

Find your resident Desert bighorn sheep draw odds with 20 points here

Find your nonresident Desert bighorn sheep draw odds with 20 points here

The largest herds in the state occur along the Wasatch Front, the Cache and the North Slope, Summit in the Uintas.

*Units are mostly private land.

Many are not aware that there are many CWMU hunts with permits available for residents to draw. Nonresidents may not apply for CWMU permits, but it’s likely that there are bull moose landowner tags available for purchase on some of these properties. See the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) guidebook for more information on CWMU hunts.

Boone & Crocket (b&c) Entry Trends for Utah Shiras Moose

Managing Points and Expectations

2020 Max Points for Shiras Moose

Residents: 26Nonresidents: 26

Find your draw odds

I Have 0 to 22 moose Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

Unfortunately, from zero to 21 points, the odds of drawing a permit were less than 1% for every hunt except one: East Canyon, Morgan-Summit, which had 34% odds. With 22 points, applicants are still likely to be a year behind the bottom end of the curve; however, they should review these units: East Canyon, Kamas, Morgan-South Rich, and the South Slope, Diamond Mt/Vernal.

Nonresidents

The Wasatch Mtns/Central Mtns had 17% odds at 22 points. That is, once again, likely to creep, but it is worth a longer look. The other hunts all had odds of less than 1% through the entire point range.

Find your resident moose draw odds with 0 points here

Find your nonresident moose draw odds with 0 points here

I Have 23 to 26 moose Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

Seven of the twelve hunts had 100% odds with 23 points. At 24 points, every hunt had 100% odds. Review the odds and unit profiles to find the hunt that best meets your needs.

Nonresidents

The Wasatch Mtns/Central Mtns had 100% odds at 23 points. That is likely to creep, but it is worth a longer look. The other hunts all had odds of less than 1% through the entire point range.

FIND YOUR RESIDENT MOOSE DRAW ODDS WITH 23 POINTS HERE

FIND YOUR NONRESIDENT MOOSE DRAW ODDS WITH 23 POINTS HERE

The highest populations of mountain goats occur on the Uintas, West and Central Units and the Beaver unit. Trophy potential is decent throughout the state, but has slipped some in recent years. Beaver and Ogden, Willard Peak have been the standout trophy units, but, once again, trophy potential is not what it was and we would not recommend looking solely at those units for the absolute best trophy potential. The Uintas Units also have older age class billies available for those willing to put in the time and effort. The Beaver, Ogden, Willard Peak, Mt Dutton and La Sal area have easier access; the Uintas units are more of your traditional backpack wilderness style mountain goat hunt. There will be no nanny only permits available for any unit going into 2020.

*There will be a nonresident permit on the La Sal, La Sal Mtns in 2020 to go along with the other seven hunts that offered a permit(s) last year.

Boone & Crockett (b&c) Entry Trends for Utah Mountain Goats

Managing Points and Expectations

2020 Max Points for Mountain Goat

Residents: 25Nonresidents: 22

Find your draw odds

I Have 0 to 14 mountain Goat Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

With 14 points, residents could have drawn either of the archery only hunts on the North Slope/South Slope,nttttHigh Uintas Central, or the Central Mtns, Nebo. That may still be the case in 2020, but it could creep some. Below the 14-point level, odds are less than 1% up to approximately 3%. The Beaver and Ogden, Willard Peak have the best access and trophy potential and, thus, the worst odds. Use the draw odds and unit profile to find hunts that best meet your ability and objectives and apply accordingly.

Nonresidents

Every hunt had less than 1% odds from zero to 14 points. The Central Mtns, Nebo had the best odds at a staggering .53% at 14 points. If you fall within this range and are applying for other species in Utah as well, you might as well apply for the minimal $10 application fee.

Find your resident mountain goat draw odds with 0 points here

Find your nonresident mountain goat draw odds with 0 points here

I Have 15 to 25 mountain Goat Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

At 15 points, residents should consider the two archery hunts and, perhaps, the North Slope/South Slope, High Uintas Leidy Peak hunt, which also had 100% odds at that level. With 16 points, applicants can look at those hunts as well as the hunts on North Slope/South Slope,nttttHigh Uintas East, North Slope/South Slope,nttttHigh Uintas Central, North Slope/South Slope,nttttHigh Uintas West. Jumping into 17 and 18 points, applicants can consider the Chalk Creek/Kamas, Uintas, Ogden, Willard Peak, Central Mtns, Nebo and, perhaps, Wasatch Mtns, Provo Peak.

The Beaver hunts required 21 points. An intriguing option at the 19 or 20 point level is Mt Dutton. There are still some older age class billies that were the original migrants from the neighboring Beaver unit.

Nonresidents

The only hunt that has had a bonus permit available and is likely to again is the Beaver. That hunt required 20 points last year to be in the running for that permit. It will require 21 or more this year and, even still, odds are likely to be 20% with 21 points. The rest of the hunts are randomly allocated and odds were less than 1% through the entire range.

FIND YOUR RESIDENT MOUNTAIN GOAT DRAW ODDS WITH 20 POINTS HERE

FIND YOUR NONRESIDENT MOUNTAIN GOAT DRAW ODDS WITH 20 POINTS HERE

Utah is among the very few states that offer hunts for free-range bison. Bison inhabit the Henry Mountains, Book Cliffs and Antelope Island. Herds are generally healthy and hunting opportunities are good for lucky permit holders. Considering that bison hunts in other states largely occur in “park like” settings, Utah offers a unique opportunity to actually hunt the icon of the American West.

There are hunts for cow only or hunter’s choice as well as a few archery only hunts. The hunts also vary by date. Typically, the later the hunt, the more challenging it can be due to weather and hunting pressure.

*New hunts and permit numbers will be set at the May wildlife board meeting.

Boone & Crockett (b&c) Entry Trends for Utah Bison

Managing Points and Expectations

2020 Maximum Points for Bison

Residents: 26Nonresidents: 27

Find your draw odds

I Have 0 to 15 bison Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

Applicants within this point range have very low odds of drawing an “any bison” permit, meaning the bull bison permits are very tough to draw. The Book Cliff, Little Creek Roadless unit had the best odds at 6.6% with 15 points. Within this range, odds range from less than 1% to about 3% for all other hunts.

The better odds and opportunities within this range are for cow bison. It’s important to note that a cow bison meets the once-in-a-lifetime criteria and you cannot apply for or hunt bison in Utah again if you draw and hunt a cow. The archery Henry Mtns cow bison hunt had 100% odds with nine points. The rifle Henry Mtns cow hunts had 100% odds at 10 and 14 points. The Book Cliffs cow bison hunts had 100% odds at nine and 15 points. There is also a new cow bison hunt in the roadless area that applicants should consider if they have a guide or packstock.

Nonresidents

Unfortunately, odds for all “any bison” hunts were less than 1% throughout the entire point range. The Book Cliffs, Little Creek Roadless had the best odds, creeping up on almost 1% with 15 points. There is also a new cow only hunt available to nonresidents in that same unit in 2020.

Cow bison hunts have much better odds. The Book Cliffs, Bitter Creek/South hunt is new for 2020, but, in the past year, the regular cow hunt required 13 to 16 points for 100% odds. The Henry Mtns rifle cow hunts required 11 and 14 points to draw and are worth some research if you find yourself within this point range.

Find your resident bison draw odds with 0 points here

Find your nonresident bison draw odds with 0 points here

I Have 16 to 26 bison Points. What Can I Expect?

Residents

First, all cow bison hunts that were available in the last draw could have been drawn with 15 points. Going into this draw with 16 points, the cow hunts are worth looking into if that type of hunt meets your objectives.

The “any bull” bison hunts takes a couple decades worth of points to draw. Within 20 points, the Book Cliffs, Little Creek Roadless hunt had 100% odds. The Henrys’ archery permits required 21 points. With 22 points, the other Book Cliffs hunts had 100% odds as did the Henrys’ late hunt. With 24 points, all hunts had 100% odds, except for Antelope Island, which had 14% odds.

Nonresidents

There were a few “any bison” hunts that offered enough nonresident permits to have some allocated in the bonus point draw. Those were the Henry Mtns hunts and the Book Cliffs. Those hunts that had a bonus point permit(s) requiring 20 for the Book Cliffs and 22 and 24 points.

The rifle cow bison hunts all had 100% odds at the 16 point level. Moving into 2020, 17 points should allow you to draw any of those cow hunts that have a bonus point permit(s).

FIND YOUR RESIDENT BISON DRAW ODDS WITH 20 POINTS HERE

FIND YOUR NONRESIDENT BISON DRAW ODDS WITH 20 POINTS HERE