2012 New Hampshire Moose Hunt Lottery Opens
OutdoorHub 01.20.12
It’s time to try your luck on the adventure of a lifetime — hunting moose in New Hampshire. The state’s 2012 moose hunt lottery is now open. Entering costs $15 for New Hampshire residents and $25 for nonresidents.
It’s easy to enter the moose hunt lottery. Visit http://www.huntnh.com to enter online or print out a mail-in application. You can also get an application from any Fish and Game license agent. Moose hunt lottery applications for 2012 must be postmarked or submitted online by midnight Eastern Time on May 25, 2012, or delivered to the Licensing office at N.H. Fish and Game headquarters in Concord before 4:00 p.m. that day. Winners will be selected through a computerized random drawing on June 15.
Last year (2011), nearly 14,000 people entered the lottery for the chance to win one of 395 permits. Hunters from 16 different states and the United Kingdom won permits. The overall odds of being selected in last year’s lottery were 1 in 26 for New Hampshire residents and 1 in 85 for nonresidents, some of the best odds in the nation for moose hunting! About 85% of the permits go to New Hampshire residents; the number of permits available to nonresidents is capped, based on the prior year’s sales of nonresident hunting licenses.
Each applicant can enter the moose hunt lottery once a year. A bonus point system improves the chances for unsuccessful applicants who apply each consecutive year. For example, last year resident applicants who had a total of 8 points had a 1 in 13 chance of being drawn, and a nonresident with 8 points had a 1 in 43 chance.
You do not need a current hunting license to enter the lottery, but hunters who are offered and accept a permit must buy a $150 resident or $500 nonresident moose hunt permit, as well as a New Hampshire hunting license.
New Hampshire’s nine-day moose hunt starts the third Saturday in October. This year’s hunt runs from October 20-28, 2012. N.H. has had an annual moose hunt since 1988, when 75 permits were issued for a three-day hunt in the North Country. The state’s current moose population is estimated at about 4,500 animals. The availability of moose hunting permits, with some issued for every area of the state, is made possible by careful management of moose populations. The resulting sustainable annual harvest of moose helps to regulate moose numbers and provides a unique recreational opportunity. Learn more about moose hunting in New Hampshire at http://www.huntnh.com/Hunting/Hunt_species/hunt_moose.htm.
