How to use Insider in the summer to pick up tags for the fall
Hopefully, the draw treated you well. But if you struck out on tags due to point creep or maybe luck just wasn’t on your side, there are still options for you! The ability to find these hunts lies within our Insider membership.
If you’re already an Explorer member and have access to our maps-only subscription. You can easily upgrade to our Insider membership to get access to our entire collection of hunting research tools.
Below are several ways that you can use Insider this summer to help you research and pick up tags.
Over-the-counter hunts across the West are getting more and more limited. But that doesn’t mean all hope is lost. There are still plenty of states that offer OTC hunts for various species. It just takes a little research and using the tools on Insider to break down the barriers of entry, to be more confident that one of these hunts is right for you.
Insiders can use the power of Filtering to look at OTC hunts across many states. Here are a few OTC opportunities that you could research and hunt this year: Alaska, Arizona (archery deer), California, Colorado (elk), Washington (deer and elk), Oregon (Roosevelt elk, rocky mountain elk, blacktail), Utah (any bull and spike) and New Mexico (OTC barbary). Hopefully, that list will get you thinking that there is more than just Colorado OTC elk and you can find those hunts right now using Insider. Then on top of that, there are a lot of OTC fall black bear hunting opportunities as well.
Another powerful tool is using the Insider only Strategy Articlesto learn about turned-back/leftover tag opportunities. Not only do we showcase what units/tags are available, but those articles will show you tips on how to actually navigate the process to help you pick up the tag. For example, Idaho’s turned-back tag process can be a little confusing since you have to log in early and wait in line for your random number to be called before you can add a tag to your cart as quickly as possible. So there are always some tips for each state on how you can put your best foot forward when trying to pick up a turned-back tag.
You can access those leftover articles by clicking the button below:
Some of the current opportunities to pick up leftover tags can be found below:
We’ve already covered several leftover tag opportunities for this year that are now closed, but stay tuned for more articles about Nevada’s first come, first serve process, Colorado’s leftover list, Montana's surplus, and other states' leftover opportunities.
One of the great parts about Insider, you can actually start to research those units that have leftover tags before the rush of the application open and close dates.
For example, Idaho releases their leftover list on a Tuesday and you can pick up those tags on Thursday at 10 a.m. So, once you check out the article that showcases all the tags available, you can jump over to Filtering and click on the Unit Profile and then dive in and read about the unit to see if it’s a place you want to hunt. Then I’ll make a list of my top three units that I’d want to pick up if they are available. This ensures I don’t waste any time when I try to get a tag.
To dive even further, before I pick up any leftover tags, I will utilize GOHUNT Maps and dive into the terrain in 3D and then check out what the public land looks like in that unit. Maps help me a lot when determining if a unit is worth my time hunting.
I say it a lot, but I do get excited about leftover tags and OTC opportunities. I hunt these places every year and I can still find solid animals in them. So just because a tag is leftover, doesn't truly mean it was leftover or OTC for a reason. Best of luck this fall!
