By Jordan Christianson- WTA Hunt and TAGS Consultant. With the TAGS season mostly behind us, we are only left to see the results for Arizona’s deer and sheep applications. Now don’t get me wrong, there is no doubt that the lucky recipients of these permits have a world class hunt on the horizon, but the odds are long. It’s not something to typically plan for, as much as to react to, when the lucky day arrives, and you receive the good news from your consultant.
This often begs the question, “What Now?” Many hunters I work with call and begin to scramble to put a plan together for the fall when they haven’t drawn tags. They are looking for a quality, last-minute, over-the-counter hunt where available, and WTA almost always have a few of these.
What I have found is that many of the hunters I speak to worry that if they were to plan a guided hunt at this point, they would be picking up the leftovers, and that the real quality hunts have been spoken for. This couldn’t be more incorrect, as the truth is that many of the landowners in the west do not actually receive their permits from their respective state until June. This creates many high level opportunities that were not available previously. Another reason for openings could be that for whatever reason that particular species or style of hunt was not as popular as it may have been in the past or will be in the following years. Hunting trends vary and change. The time to lock in those hunts is now, as it is rare to see those trends dip for very long. If it is a hunt you truly want to go on, it is best to strike while the iron is hot. For these and other various reasons, a hunt of your dreams could have not sold out for the year, and the outfitter has offered some “Outfitter Special” that has fantastic pricing.
Many of these opportunities are advertised and listed on the main page of our WTA website under the link “Outfitter Specials” and are often being updated on a weekly or even daily basis. You will also notice a link to the “Cancellations” page where the deals don’t tend to have any rhyme or reason, but it’s worth a look while you are on the site, because you never know when a deal that is too good to be true becomes available.
To further your confidence in WTA Outfitter Special Hunts when comparing these to any others you may see is that these are still WTA vetted operations, and our reputation is on the line each and every time a hunter is in the field. The quality and track record of our outfitters is never in question.
So if you have not been successful in any of the draws this year, but had your heart set on being in the field, don’t hesitate to call. WTA works with the very best outfitters in the industry, and after talking with your consultant about your goals, you can have confidence in our research and boots on the ground experience to ensure that you will be headed to a top shelf destination. The outfitters and staff that you will meet work very hard to make your time with them the best it can possibly be. Good luck this fall and I hope we cross paths sooner than later.
Cheers,
Jordan Christensen
WTA TAGS Consultant
