Drawn West

The 6.5 Creedmoor has always taken heat for being underpowered on elk — until now. Federal's engineers sit down to explain how their new Peak Alloy case technology closes that gap by packing 300 extra feet per second into the exact same cartridge millions of hunters already own. Federal design engineers Ben Carlson and Brad Abramowski, along with product line manager Josh Vickers, break down how a...

If you've been daydreaming about real deer camp adventure but feel stuck by time, money, or gear, this conversation will feel relevant. Tom LaLond from XOP joins me to break down attainable whitetail trips on realistic budgets, the culture behind XOP's gear labs, and how building one dialed-in kit frees up money to hunt more states. We walk through what attainable adventure actually looks...

You've probably looked at sheep tag odds and thought — that's never happening. The numbers are brutal. Most states are handing out a handful of tags to thousands of applicants, and the herds aren't exactly booming. But there's a population in the Black Canyon of Colorado that just got its first hunt tag in over 80 years, and a wildlife researcher who's been tracking every sheep...

If you’ve ever tried to glass all day on a steep hillside and felt your lower back lock up, this episode is going to hit home. I sit down with Steven Giles from DRT Hunting to talk about the Recon Lounger—a rifle cover that turns into a legit glassing chair—and how one well designed piece of gear can keep you comfortable, protect your optic, and replace two or three other items in your pack. We di...

It can be hard for women to find a mentor in the hunting world. Taylor Gutierrez is changing that. Taylor grew up in Colorado where grabbing an elk tag on a free weekend was just... a thing people do. She didn't realize how rare that was until she started teaching women who are brand-new to hunting and have no idea where to start. This conversation is part draw system deep-dive, part honest gu...

If you’ve ever daydreamed about drawing a Maine moose tag, chasing bugling bulls in Colorado, or finally taking turkey season seriously, this episode is for you! Brian sits down with Maine-based hunter and filmmaker Jacob Haskell to talk about what it actually takes to draw these tags, how the odds and bonus points really play out, and why these hunts are more realistic than most people assume. Al...

Want to find more sheds each season? This is the episode for you! I sat down with Alex Kunkel from Minnesota Shed Hunters, one of the most active shed hunting community pages in the Midwest. Alex has been doing this long enough to figure out what actually works — and a lot of what he shared challenged some of the "common wisdom" you hear thrown around, like walking fence lines (spoiler:...

2026 Wyoming Mule Deer Application Guide Tired of how confusing Wyoming's mule deer draw is? We cover how it works and the best mule deer units in the state! Wyoming's application system is one of the most complicated in the West, the June 1st deadline is coming fast, and 2026 is the last year to buy preference points at the current price before they jump to $75 across the board. If you&#3...

Want to go Antelope hunting this year? THIS is the episode for you! Wyoming is coming out of one of the worst winters in recent memory, and the antelope herd has responded. Tag allocations are going up almost across the board, units that were off-limits without 15+ points are becoming more accessible, and there's never been a better time to get serious about your Wyoming antelope application....

Already applying in Oregon wondering if you should add antelope, sheep, or goats to your application? We breakdown everything you need to know to decide! Oregon isn't known for massive antelope numbers, but what it does have is consistent trophy quality, high harvest success rates, and one of the most cost-efficient point systems in the West. For sheep and goats, it's a fully random draw —...

Oregon has 130,000 elk. That's not a rumor — it's one of the largest herds in the country. But most non-residents either overlook it or misunderstand what it actually offers. If you're building a Western elk strategy, this is the episode that puts Oregon in the right place. We break down both sides of the state — Roosevelt elk on the west side of the Cascades, Rocky Mountain elk to the...

Looking for another option for a deer tag this fall? Oregon might be the perfect fit! The state just renamed and restructured every deer unit in the eastern half of Oregon — which means nobody has clean odds data, and for once, experience and points alone won't tell the whole story. Oregon doesn't get talked about much — and that's part of why it's worth a closer look right now. Th...

Fourteen dollars. That's the cost to add a desert bighorn, mountain goat, or moose application to your Nevada big game submission — and for the right hunter, it might be the best $14 you spend all year. This is part four of the Nevada Application Series, the final installment covering the big three: moose, sheep, and goats. If you haven't listened to parts one through three covering mule d...

Want to hunt 400” bulls? Me too. Somewhere in Nevada, there are bulls pushing 400 inches on public land that almost no one will ever hunt. The draw odds are that bad. But if your name comes up, it's probably the best elk hunt you'll ever go on. This is part three of the Nevada application series, focused entirely on elk. Nevada doesn't have the numbers Utah has, but unit for unit, the...

Nevada might be the most overlooked antelope state in the West — and the hunters who know about it are already building points. Statewide, Nevada produces a higher percentage of mature, oversized bucks than any other state. In peak years, a third of all antelope harvested were 15 inches or taller. Even in down years, about a quarter of the harvest hits that mark. No other state comes close to thos...

Is Nevada mule deer even worth putting in for as a non-resident? That depends almost entirely on where you're at in your strategy, and this episode breaks down exactly how to think about Nevada Mule Deer. Nevada doesn't hand out a lot of non-resident tags, but the trophy potential is as high as anywhere in the West. Twenty units with 180-inch-plus potential. A minimum 140-inch floor across...

How many points do you actually need before you can hunt elk in Colorado? If you've been watching that number climb and telling yourself "maybe in five more years" — you might be sitting on a play you haven't tried yet. Brian sits down with Dwayne Jones — sales manager for Novick's Outdoors, co-founder of Dream Dirt, and the man behind Shed Season — to talk through his journe...

Did you know there are over-the-counter Bighorn Sheep tags in the lower 48? We dive in to that and more in this episode! Montana runs a squared bonus point system, which means you always have a chance no matter how many points you have — but the odds climb very differently depending on the species. Moose points actually build toward something real. Sheep is closer to a lifetime lottery ticket. Goa...

Would you pay $6000 to apply for a Bison tag? This episode we dive into the Wyoming Moose, Goat, Sheep & Bison applications for 2026. Moose, bighorn sheep, Rocky Mountain goat, and free-range bison are all on the table, but the draw odds, the point system, and the upfront costs are a completely different game than anything else in the West. Before you write that check, you need to know what yo...

Someone bid $290,000 for a Utah Rocky Mountain bighorn tag at this year's Hunt Expo. You can enter the same draw for $21. That's the whole argument for applying for Utah's once in a lifetime species — and it's a strong one. These aren't tags you build toward with a realistic finish line. The point creep is real, the permits are scarce, and you're probably never going to hit...

Is Utah Antelope worth it? A lot of people skip Utah antelope entirely. That might be exactly why you should be building points right now. If you're already applying for elk or mule deer in Utah, adding an antelope point only costs you $— and some of the best pronghorn tags in the state are starting to come within reach. Utah doesn't carry the same reputation as Wyoming or Nevada, but the...

Want a shot at hunting some of the biggest public land elk in the country? In this episode, we break down what Utah elk tags cost, how the draw works for nonresidents, and where both limited entry and OTC tags fit into a long range elk strategy. We walk through the nonresident math on the 365 day hunting license, general, spike only, any bull, and limited entry tag prices, and why Utah’s cheap bon...

Want to chase some of the biggest mule deer in the country? In this episode, I break down what Utah really costs, how the draw works, and which units are actually worth your points so you can decide if it belongs in your long range strategy. We walk through the nonresident math on the 365 day license, general and limited entry tag costs, and why Utah’s cheap points become a bargain once you’re alr...

Ever walk through the woods thinking “Elk don’t exist” ? I’ve had a few of those days myself – On this episode we have the host of the Elk Don’t Exist podcast himself, comedian and hunter Dillon Deitz. We covered shed hunting and hunting stories stories, but it turned into a really solid conversation about getting into hunting and why it feels harder than it should. Dillon’s working on a series ca...

A Colorado moose, sheep, or goat tag is one of the hardest tags in the lower 48 to draw, but it may be worth applying for and we breakdown why! In this GOHUNT Bonus Episode of the Drawn West Podcast, Brian breaks down how Colorado’s moose, sheep, and goat system actually works, what makes it different from the straight preference draws for deer, elk, and antelope, and why these tags are still one...