Like most young bowhunters, I was always dreaming and scheming of my spring hunts for bear and fall escapades chasing mule deer and elk in my home state of Idaho. Those early years created fabulous memories and high-quality, low-fat protein for my young family. As I aged—in tooth as well as in experience—I started looking at new species to bowhunt.

Over the years, I have heard from many bowhunters who want to expand their bowhunting horizons as well, but feel many species are unavailable, or too expensive to hunt. That is getting to be truer every year, as non-resident fees escalate, and tag allotments decreasing due to myriad reasons in many western states. But there are still opportunities to buy over-the-counter tags in a few states, albeit most are heading to all draws for non-residents, and it appears that they may be what many residents have to look forward to as well; we are managing people as well as game anymore it seems.