My question for you gentlemen would be, if you were in my position and had to be on the sidelines for 4 to 8 years, what other states would you be trying to build points in, and what area would you be looking at to hunt as soon as you got the chance. Thank you in advance for your feedback and feel free to PM me.
God Bless
Paul
NM is not a concern. AZ is crazy expensive. Don't know about MT or ID.
If you can't work out hunting during residency, than you picked the wrong residency :) Everyone gets vacation.
Do it while you can, my dad has gotten to where bowhunting/age/physical issues pretty much preclude us from doing most hunts anymore together.
I'm still broke, with no time to do anything, but I've been on some good hunts :)
WY is a must for your time frame. 4-8 years of points will get you some good dang WY hunts, in my opinion
AZ I think is a must. It is more expensive just to get points
IA whitetail--don't overlook this
NV, UT, MT sheep, etc. is a lot longer shots, and you'll have to wait longer, but worth it for some of us
Bake
tags might cost you $1500 each in 4-6 years
seriously
For about $1000/yr, you can build points for about 25 different western tags. The question is, what can you afford over the next 4.
Why not do your residency in a good western state? Less populated communities out there are crying for doctors. In a year you will have all the benefits of in-state hunting, and it will be a heck of a lot easier to pull off a hunt logistically and time-wise if you're already there.
Keep an eye on your dad's condition. As many here can attest, the warranty expires when you turn 40, and it can go fast and be long and hard to get back (if ever).
But to answer your question... I'd apply to Colorado, Wyoming, Utah. Not sure the other states are worth it...
But if I were you I'd investigate all the other options for getting elk tags, given your future resource situation. If Elk were my big priority & desire, I might hunt a premium unit in Utah or Nevada every year, or until I got sick of it.
Of course, you have to get the degree & finish residency first...good luck ;-)
Because i am on a limited budget, no $1000/yr here... im living on loans (grin), in what order would you rank the states in cost vs opportunity to hunt in 10 years???
You will get some vacation time in school, the problem is if it's in September! Utah has early archery elk season in mid August which might hit a summer vacation. Bottom line though if you want to hunt elk during Med school you can make it happen- many of your classmates will have life event and take some time like getting married, and many females will miss a few weeks having a baby.
Life will go on the next 4-8 yrs so live it. Don't miss a chance to hunt with your DAd now because in who knows in 8 yrs if he will be able to (heck you don't even know if you will)
I had a friend in Dental school I met 1st year. One of the few who also hunted. He had never hunted elk having grown up in CA, so we talked about a cow elk hunt the next year on a long weekend and I was going to hunt some pigs with him. Needless to say he died the next year of an inoperable acoustic neuroma before he hunted elk.
Everyone of us choose how much we work. From the techs all the way up to the Docs and the administration. Some people choose jobs that have a lot of hours. Some don't. And that goes for each field.
Saying that Medical School is a bad idea because you have to work too much is nonsense. If you choose a career path that requires those kinds of hours, then sure, you work a lot, but it doesn't have to be that way if you don't want it to.
I have known RNs that work twenty-five 12 hr shifts/month...because they can and choose to.
I work 6 months/yr. That means I have 6 months of vacation/yr. I consider myself semi-retired at 37 even though I have a full income. I spend 6 weeks/yr on the road hunting, still hunt daily at home, and still have plenty of time off to do what I want the other 4 months/yr. I make a healthy 6 digit income and I would bet money that I have more time to do what I want than Thorton and Mossyhorn AND make more money than them.
Discouraging people from going to Medical School is the dumbest thing I think I've ever read on Bowsite. There are gigs all over this country and abroad that pay handsomely and give flexible hours.
Like Idyllwildarcher said, it's all about priorities. Enjoy the ride--it's a great one and worth every minute!
My wife just finished her residency last summer. Her med school brought us (back) to Colorado, and we got to stay here for her residency match. We were able to get away on plenty of long weekends while she was in school, but not quite as many during residency just due to the crazy schedules. While it was tough, we were able to have fun on the journey as well. The only advice my wife has for you is to stick with it no matter how frustrated or stressed you get, it will be well worth it when you're done.
...And by the way, I'd build points in CO, WY, AZ, and then apply for residencies close to those places!
I took about 8 years off hunting with my dad and brother because of school and would not do that again. My dad is 74 and likes to fish, but may never elk hunt with me, but he could have ten years ago.
I now live a life of "oh, wells" instead of a life of "what if's."
Take the ride, just don't forget who you are or loose yourself in the process and I would suggest to get out and hunt with your dad, my friend!
Sending you a PM!
Wife and I just went back to our honeymoon spot -- we were both in med school at the time. We laughed that we actually bought two beers in one of the bars and remembered that back then just one was a splurge.
Living on loans isn't fun, and paying them back isn't, either!
I have one bit of financial advice: Don't buy things you can't afford. It sounds like points in multiple states are in that category. Don't sweat it, though. The point-chasers out there on the internet have us all convinced that if we don't have double-digit points in 3 states, we're losers.
Well, I'm here to tell you that you can still hunt without double-digit points.
Point accumulation takes two things: time and money. You have 50% of that. That's not enough.
Dive into your work. It will take up 100% of your effort, and your time. And then residency will increase that work. For the next seven to ten years, that's your life. Enjoy it.
You aren't guaranteed tomorrow for sure. But if one does live for 20 years most are much happier knowing they got after it and put themselves ahead. It is what has made America great. And the opposite from so many of the millennials that presents a seeming threat. We all have different "balance points" of what brings satisfaction. I am glad my balance point did not allow for me to be a short-timer when I was in my 20s.
Good luck to the OP. Even when you have plenty of funds you will appreciate the accumulation of points and the alternatives it affords you.
